3Pooches version 3.5

I thought the 3rd brake light just had to be higher than the two side brake lights?

The buses at work's 3rd brake lights are halfway up the back, and they're definitely unmolested

 

yeah this isn't the highest point. guy is on crack

 

Go somewhere else, he's a walking . By his logic, every single truck in VA with a low mounted third barke light under the tailgate should fail inspection and not be on the road. And I see them every day. By his logic, mine should fail.

 

The Gladiator has the third brake light mounted in the tailgate....

So here's what I understand. Lighting specs like surface area, distance between lights, operation, light color, etc are dictated at the federal level. The state safety inspections are based off that, or just check function of things and what not.

What I'm getting at is that dude has no say on where that light should go. Or if a bulb should be incandescent or LED unless it's specifically in the inspector's manual. And I don't remember seeing it.

 

Dammit to hell! This 3rd brake light thing has had me scouring the web for the last 3+ hours.... Just like my doggie, I get on something and can't let it go.

That said.. in a nut shell from the FMVSS, Code 571.108 S5.3.1.8 (a) through S5.4 (b), and other info from them in different places.

The CHMSL (3rd brake light) Has a minimum height from the ground of 34 inches (vehicles less than 80 inches wide and under 10k GVRW). Has to be in the center of the vehicle, also has to able to be seen at a 45deg angle from both sides of said light. I could not find an overall height requirement other than the top of the vehicle for vans and trucks under the same width and weight rating.

As for @crashdb mention of the Gladiator.. That thing is considered a convertible top, Hence why the 3rd is in the tailgate. Reg's. for a convertible states the "3rd B", can be no lower than 6 inches from the bottom of the convertible top. So the Glad wins on that one.



I guess it all comes down to interpretation of said code, and, at the mercy of who is inspecting.

 

Last sentence is the key.

 

See... Now yer spending my monies. haha

would love to have them but waaaaay over kill for what I do. Plus, I don't have 2 million pennies laying around either and that does not factor in the other add on's I'd need to finish it out. ball park'n it last night because of no sleepy, Came out to an easy 25K+. not gonna lie, I did have fun looking and build them new on a few sites.

 

BINGO.

 

motion to get the door ding doctor as a licensed inspection station

 

Or as someone said a few weekends ago out at Bald mtn.. The Ding Dong Dr.

 

When I had my rtt, I passed for 2 years without taking it off..

 

Do the 3rd brake light laws only apply to certain states? First time ive ever heard about anything like that. I also have a RTT with third brake light mounted on the red part in that photo but further in. Ive never had a problem with it and dont see what the issue is.

 

Really it's a federal thing and you could get ticketed anywhere. But that requires an officer to be very familiar with stuff like this. You're more likely to get a ticket for having it blocked than location.

 

Silverado party lights won't be working by the weekend. Sorry

 

This is ridiculous. Vehicles need to be inspected to make sure they are safe to drive and to other drivers, not to interpret fine print law. Some of these inspectors are picking apart the modifications to our vehicles while passing vehicles with structural damage, failing engines and overall serious drivability issues. At least everyone now knows to boycott NTB in culpepper. I heard rumors about Virginia doing away with vehicle inspections. They should. Or at least let someone with decent automotive knowledge decide the couple regulations we need to follow.

 

That’s a lot of wiring for party lights.

 

The only thing I kind of agree with in the list for JT's failure is the LEDs in the headlights. Even though I gave those to him and ran them in my Tacoma for a couple of years beforehand folks do tend to complain about getting blinded in situations like that. Do I care? Not so much. I want to see the road. I was also the guy who ran Baja Designs Pro Squadrons on my Mustang.

LED lights in other sockets are five billion times better than incandescent bulbs. The Tacoma didn't have a single incandescent bulb, neither did the Mustang and the Silverado only has incandescent headlights. So fuck that inspector.

While it would be nice to have folks with car knowledge as inspectors it's pretty rare. Part of it are the state inspection policies and part of it is doing inspections all day sucks and the rest is that the knowledgeable folks probably just end up as techs.

I'm not against the inspections per se. In some way they keep scary cars off the road. On the same hand I think some inspectors go way overboard. I used to not argue, but recently I've started. First line out of my mouth is to ask how that is a safety issue. Depending on their reply I ask to see which part of the inspection manual they're getting it from. I don't usually get my way, but I definitely feel better. If you really feel that you're being rejected for insanity, contact the VA SP Trooper that's in charge of the program locally. I've seen some positive outcomes happen.

Some inspection experiences: When I got a little older and could actually afford lowering springs on a car I got rejected. Because I had altered suspension. I would wager that happens very little these days. Fortunately, I knew the inspector and we discussed it. I won that time.

When cold air intakes started to become a thing people were getting failed at emissions. I don't remember the details, but the inspector would say something about the filter having to be enclosed.

Remember the Neon SRT-4? From the factory it didn't come with mufflers. Inspectors were failing them. Best part is that the manual says nothing about actually having to have a muffler.

I recommend downloading the manual and reading it. Knowledge is power.

 

While the inspections are a pain in the arse, and probably need to revisited by the state, I will say I don't mind them for one reason. What I don't see on the roads here. In MI we don't have inspections, and every day you could find a car on the road and wonder why it was there and not the junk yard. Lights not working, billowing oil smoke from anything from the headers to the muffler (not joking), body panels barely held on and flapping in the breeze like a flag in a hurricane, etc..... I don't see that here. And I don't mind. Because I don't have to worry about evasive maneuvers at high way speeds and damage to my vehicle, or worse, an accident. I also haven't had the experience that some of you have had, and that experience may change my tune a bit. But as bad as the drivers are here, I really don't mind having one less thing to worry about on the commute to work or anywhere else.

 

Truth be told there is no party light wiring in that picture. It's power door lock and mirror wiring. The party light wiring is making my head hurt so I'm holding off until I'm done with those 'uns.

 

I was hoping it was wiring for a stand alone ecu.