How to: 3rd brake light install

[Arne2]

Originally Posted by Arne2

I've decided that the big light I mounted low on the window wasn't cutting it for me, and am now moving in the LED strip direction. I looked at the 9" from HB, but bought a similar 5" from evilBay instead. Looks like the same light as the 9", just shorter. Less than $6 shipped. I wrapped the back with black electrical tape, and that turned the whole thing black, it should be almost invisible when not lit. Will post again when I get it installed.

Mounted the new LED strip today. Used 3M tape to stick it to a thin sheet metal bracket I built that slips between the seal and the glass. Simple, clean and unobtrusive. I like this much better than the big light housing I had.

Total cost - less than $8.

[Nickshu]

Just got my Hella Model 5237 LED third brake light from Daniel Stern Lighting today. Looking forward to installing it soon! Thanks for all the info here!

[911 tweaks]

Nickshu...please post pics of the light before & after the install...thx

[Nickshu]

Originally Posted by 911 tweaks

Nickshu...please post pics of the light before & after the install...thx

I will but I plan to copy the exact setup posted here by Peter Bull from Norway:

How to: 3rd brake light install

I'll try to get some more detailed photos of the install process and post them, might be a while, the car is still up on jackstands in the midst of a bunch of winter projects.

Cheers!

[Nickshu]

Got the light in today. It's all wired but I could not test it as I need to bleed my brakes (just installed refinished calipers from PMB), and cannot generate pressure in the MC for the brake light switches.

[RSBob]

Personal preference is super slim LEDs since they don't obscure rear vision - more likely to see our 'guardians o safety' sneeking up.

[Nickshu]

Originally Posted by RSBob

Personal preference is super slim LEDs since they don't obscure rear vision - more likely to see our 'guardians o safety' sneeking up.

Hey to each his own. I condsidered both and my personal preference was for the Hella unit. Either way hopefully it keeps us both from getting rear ended. My guess is that the only difference is that you will see them coming a fraction of a second sooner.

[sabeo.m]

Finished mine today, got the light on Amazon $7.49 for a 24 LED, not bad at all...Thanks for the nice write
up guys.

[J-Mac]

I followed the advice of RSBob and ordered the Knight Riderz Led. Its now available in a smoked finish and when installed will be even more stealth than the original red version. I'll follow with pics after the install.

Originally Posted by RSBob

Since my last post on this thread, I went even more stealth with a far smaller yet much brighter LED setup at the top of the window. It has the added bonus of flashing 4 to 5 times to really get people's attention before going into a steady red. The wires were run though the rubber window seal. The only bummer is that you will need to fab a small bracket to attach it to. It does come with with a self-adhesive back which I used with my bracket. I did not connect the running light wire.

Knight Rider Non-Sequential Dual Intensity 12 LED Light Bar with Flashing Brake Alert - Red

Knight Rider LED Light Bar and a video: Knight Rider Non-Sequential LED

[RSBob]

J Mac, looking forward to seeing the result. I now have one on my red SC.

[phiba]

Another Pelican reader recently inquired about details of how I installed my Hella LED third brake light from Daniel Stern Lighting.

To protect the window and heating elements from abrasion, I put 1/2-in weather stripping around the top frame of the lamp.

Because the lamp is firmly wedged against the base of the window, it only requires a small piece of adhesive hook-and-loop to hold it in place. I think I used a piece about 3/4-in wide by 1-in long, and it definitely is not going anywhere. I attached both sides of the hook-and-loop to the bottom of the lamp housing (soft loop side attaches to the deck), and slid the lamp into position against the base of the window. When I was happy with it being centered, I pressed it down firmly against the rear deck.

I haven't actually tried removing the lamp since I installed it, but if I did, I would separate the hook-and-loop with a flat-bladed tool and slide it out. The soft loop side would stay attached to the deck.

Hope this helps! Good luck!

Phil

[NY65912]

Mine

[Swoboda]

Phiba:

Thanks very much for the additonal post and pictures!

I'll be doing that this weekend.

Cheers!

Lawrence

[carl74344]

I went old school

[911 tweaks]

nice carl...can you post more pics at different angles so i can see how it looks on the whole car...
I also like the "old school" look...nice job...thx bob

[Lapkritis]

Originally Posted by Arne2

Mounted the new LED strip today. Used 3M tape to stick it to a thin sheet metal bracket I built that slips between the seal and the glass. Simple, clean and unobtrusive. I like this much better than the big light housing I had.

Total cost - less than $8.

I picked up the 9" before coming across this thread. Any pics of your bracket that you would be willing to share?

[kach22i]

I'm in the middle of doing this, and have the Knight Rider flasher version with "running lights".

On my 1977 the brake light wire is black with a yellow dot, not a yellow stripe.

I'm poking around trying to find the running light wires, I say plural because there is one light at the back, and one light at the side.

I think there will be two wires with the same markings, but haven't found them yet.

EDIT-1

I found the running/parking light wire, on my car it's a gray with black dot.

I figured it out by looking at the front fuse panel and seeing wihich wire came out of the left side fuse. Then checking it at the rear location near the hub described on page one..

EDIT-2:......................INSTALLED

Works as advertised.

EDIT-3 photos







parking/running lights


brake lights after 4-flashes


customdynamics.com

1 Red Knight Riderz Non-Sequential LED Light Bar LB03 $35.41
3M Promoter Pack $1.89
Posi-Tap Quick Connects PTA2022 (pack of 4) $3.57

They make several versions of the Knight Rider, mine has red running/parking lights, and also flashes 4-times and then goes bright solid red when the brake is depressed (also does this last part in the day time).

EDIT: It stopped raining but lots of glare with the overcast sky, so I had to use my arm to create a shadow just to see the light from the outside.

From inside



From outside

[testa-rossa]

Ok, i'm doing Mr. Stern's third brake light kit too. I've successfully routed the wire from inside to the engine bay. Now, where do I look for the brake light? I've never worked on electrical before so I realize that I'm a bit in over my head.




Thanks in advance

[fintstone]

Look for an extra loose black/yellow wire behind the left tail light. Might have to crawl under and see if it is stuffed in behind the bumper and is tied up.

[steve911]

I was an early poster on this thread.
From the very first page: "I tapped into the brake light wire to the left of the rear fuses (closer to the 6-pin connector) rather than to the right as you did...On my '85 Targa, there was an existing ground in the engine bay right behind the fuel filter, so I used that. I put a ring connector on the ground wire, undid the existing bolt and retightened."