Since almost getting rear-ended several times in the past couple of weeks by friggin SUVs, I decided
they needed an early warning system that gave them a clue that the little car in front of them certainly exists, and is now stopping. Here's how I installed the 3rd brake light in my '82 911SC Targa:
First I bought a 3rd brake light kit from AutoZone. I know there’s a lot of crap in that store but this brake light was sweet. For $18, I bought a 22-led swivel mount brake light that was about 1” high and about 1-1/2 inches deep. Hides perfectly behind my targa pad (show you later).
Next I removed the back seat cover. Only 4 screws and she was out. I needed a convenient way to get the brake wire from the 3rd brake light into the engine compartment, where the original brake light wiring lives. In the back corner of the shelf, below the rear window, the defroster wiring goes through a rubber seal into the engine compartment. Perfect for my needs:
Then I pushed a hanger through from the engine compartment and taped the wires to the end and pulled it through. It’s a bit of a tough pull:
Next I mounted the brake light using double-sided tape, to the window. This may or may not be permanent, but I’m willing to give this tape a try and see how it performs. If it doesn’t hold, I’ll probably get some of the epoxy used for rear-view mirrors and try to fasten it with that. Here’s a view from the rear-view mirror. It’s only slightly viewable to the tune of about ½”:
Once mounted, I was able to push the wires into the crack between the window and the targa headliner (or whatever it may be called). Easy to do and went all the way around to the bottom corner. The wire then easily tucks behind that piece of upholstery all the way to the engine compartment access hole:
The connector below has a black/yellow wire (that’s a black wire with a thin, yellow stripe) in the bundle which I traced back behind the fuse box. I split the tape with a knife (very carefully as not to cut any wires) and found the black/yellow wire in the bundle. I used my T connector and tied into the wire by clamping it down on the brake and hot wire from the 3rd brake light. Before you do this, make sure you have the correct wire. You can use one of those voltage lights with the sharp points to find it if you need. I tested twice before actually clamping the connector down on the wire. From there you can use liquid electrical tape or plain electrical tape with tie wraps to protect it:
I was pretty happy with the final product: a big, bright LED brake light that anyone should be able to see. Check out the results:
