18
votes
OEM LED tailights: white vs red LEDs under red plastic
My thoughts -
A white LED can be used in multiple lamps in the same car, brakes, side, indicators, reverse lamps, so limiting the need for different stock.
The assembly line will be simpler, so more ...
- 24.9k
13
votes
Accepted
Why are VW tail light bulbs listed as 12W / 5W?
If it is a 21W/5W bulb, then it has 2 filaments of different brightness.
The 5W filament is for the side/tail light for night driving.
The 21W filament is for bright illumination when you press the ...
- 24.9k
10
votes
How can I find out what car this set of tail lights came off of
Use Google lens on your phone; quite useful, allowing search by camera. I pointed it to the top image, and immediately got back a whole bunch of matching lights which appear to show the light is a ...
- 905
9
votes
OEM LED tailights: white vs red LEDs under red plastic
Quality tail lights use red LEDs for the red parts. White LEDs behind a color filter are very inefficient and typically used by cheap OEM parts (and fake OEM parts for that matter) which look good on ...
- 2,642
9
votes
How can I find out what car this set of tail lights came off of
In addition to @Chris's great answer, if you type in the first code on the back of the light ("KS-HD323") and Google it ("KS-HD323 light") there are several hits that indicate it ...
- 263
7
votes
Accepted
What is the difference between an inner tail light assembly and an outer tail light assembly?
The tail lights on this car look like:
(image source)
The outer assembly is the one on the quarter panel:
The inner assembly is the one on the trunk:
I'm 99% sure of this, but note that it is the ...
- 4,900
7
votes
Accepted
What's the difference between a taillight, taillight assembly, and taillight lens
Taillight - Generic term that could refer to any part of the assembly or the bulb. Context required. (i.e. "your taillight is cracked" = lens, "your taillight is out" = bulb, "insert the bulb into the ...
- 1,722
6
votes
Accepted
How to diagnose blown tail lamp fuse
The parking lamp/headlight switch applies power or ground so the circuit would be open if you were testing with the switch off.
Same with the turn signals.
The tail lights are on separate circuits. ...
- 10.7k
5
votes
Mini Cooper 2003 - Identify rear indicator light wiring to install LED resistor
I'm going to answer this in a general way because for someone to tell you what the wires mean, they would need to follow this procedure, or have access to detailed wiring diagrams for your car. You'...
- 13.3k
4
votes
Accepted
Brake light connector drops to 0v when bulb is in, 12v without bulb
I'm assuming that you are testing the brake bulb voltage with the brakes actuated.
There is high resistance somewhere in the circuit causing a voltage drop. For example lets suppose there is 10k ohm ...
- 16k
4
votes
Why does my new tail light keep blowing the fuse?
Remove the tail light bulb then hit the brake and see if it still blows the fuse.
If the brake light works, then the combined bulbs is too much for the fuse. Check the wattages of the new bulbs.
If ...
- 301
4
votes
Accepted
Why are taillights usually colored red?
Its a mixture is tradition and function.
Red has been used to signify "Stop" much longer and in many more applications than just motor vehicles. Stop and Do-Not-Enter signs are used everywhere. ...
- 399
4
votes
Do I have to reprogram the ABS module to fix the ABS light on 528i BMW?
The ABS light is an indicator of an error caught by the ECU. It usually is an error for a defective ABS sensor or a related brake issue. It's difficult to tell what exactly it is without reading the ...
4
votes
Mini Cooper 2003 - Identify rear indicator light wiring to install LED resistor
Blue Green is the indicator wire for the left rear, blue brown for the right rear. Assuming USDM.
- 10.7k
4
votes
Rear lights on 2012 Nissan Rogue
As @fred_dot_u said, test to see if the lights will go off if you raise the brake pedal up with your hand/foot. If so, it's likely that your brake pedal switch needs to be adjusted, or less likely it ...
- 773
4
votes
OEM LED tailights: white vs red LEDs under red plastic
Definitely red LEDs under a red (or white, for that matter) cover. This is how a (good) factory tail lights are made.
Modern illuminating LEDs are more efficient when they are narrow-band color. E.g. ...
- 2,022
4
votes
OEM LED tailights: white vs red LEDs under red plastic
One part of the answer might be spectrum or gamut. There are govt specifications for the color of tail lights, SAE standards etc. It may be that it's easier to get the exact color needed in plastic ...
- 169
4
votes
Accepted
Why don't manufacturers also produce "day-time running" tail lights?
AFAIK, DRLs were created for safety. I guess somehow cars weren't easy to see in the day time(?!), so they added always-on headlights. Okay sure, but I've almost always have been able to see a car ...
- 9,999
3
votes
Accepted
Stripped screw holding rear lamp assembly
You may be able to extract the screw by "drilling" it out with a left-handed drill bit running in reverse (counter clockwise). If you're in the US you can get a relatively inexpensive set from Harbor ...
- 14.4k
3
votes
Accepted
94 pontiac transport - direct shorting of blinker / brake light circuit - fuses blowing
Blowing a fuse is a pretty good indication of a short circuit. If you have a DMM (digital multi-meter) try some basic tests:
With the fuse out, read between the prongs of the fuse socket and ground (...
- 14.4k
3
votes
Mini Cooper 2003 - Identify rear indicator light wiring to install LED resistor
If you are looking to figure out which wire goes to which, an easy way to figure this out is to have a source which produces 12vdc and has the two leads for (+) and (-) with probes attached, plus a ...
- 153k
3
votes
Accepted
What was causing pulsing tail-lights?
One issue which may be happening is a problem with the alternator.
To explain, I'll give a brief outline of how an alternator works. The alternator, as the name implies, creates alternating current (...
- 153k
3
votes
Accepted
Fastener on 2017 VW Jetta won’t screw back in after replacing light bulbs
Have you damaged the start of the thread - easy to do on plastic threads.
Dress the end of the thread with a small file and make sure it is clean, then it will normally go in.
- 34.7k
3
votes
Accepted
LED strip on left inner tail light is out on my Audi and I'm not sure why
Since this lamp is mounted on the boot/trunk and it started out as an intermittent fault, it would suspect that the wires that take the power to the lamp have broken.
The wires pass through a rubber ...
- 24.9k
2
votes
1991 Honda Accord with intermittent brake lights
I had the same problem, turned out to be the green / white wire on the right rear cluster.
Simple easy fix.
- 21
2
votes
Why are taillights usually colored red?
The Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE) does not define regulation, it reflects it.
In the United States the Code of Federal Regulations defines the rules for general safety in automobiles. In ...
- 33k
2
votes
2009 Ford Fusion Tail Lights Outs
There isn't a serviceable relay for the tail lights, all exterior light controls are built into the Smart Junction Box. If your license plate lights and rear side marker lamps work, than take a look ...
- 10.7k
2
votes
Accepted
How to wire trailer brake to 2014 Ford Focus ST
I did finally figure this out. The newer Focus uses CANBus to detect bulb and circuit faults, so the brake light circuit ALWAYS has 12v going through it, with a clamped amperage to prevent the bulb ...
- 151
2
votes
Do I have to reprogram the ABS module to fix the ABS light on 528i BMW?
If this is an E39 or E60 chassis, you should be able to use GT1/DIS or INPA to probe the computer and figure out what is setting the ABS light.
There are a bunch of possibilities that might cause ...
- 39.1k
2
votes
'98 Ram 1500 - One tail light not working
Ok, time to get serious here :-)
Do you have access to a test light or a DMM (or a volt meter of any sort)?
It would be good to start by looking at the evidence – if you still have the old bulb, ...
- 14.4k
Only top scored, non community-wiki answers of a minimum length are eligible