Third Brake Light
Thread Starter
Burning Brakes
Joined: Jun 2021
Posts: 1,199
Likes: 449
From: NJ
Third Brake Light
I have a 95 coupe and just acquired a much better looking, used third brake light housing/lense than my original. My original’s lense was cracked on the inside (heat damage) and dull on the outside. I noticed that even the “new” one is melted on the inside of the black housing on the side opposing the bulb mount. So the tip of the bulb is melting the housing. I have heard mention that the C4 center brake lights are notorious for heat damage. What have you guys done to improve this? Is there a special type of incandescent or halogen that will fit the factory connection that gives off less heat? I’m not really interested in hacking the wiring or messing with things to put an LED in. But I might be convinced otherwise if you’re really good.
Thread Starter
Burning Brakes
Joined: Jun 2021
Posts: 1,199
Likes: 449
From: NJ
It just occurred to me… can this heat damage be attributed to someone stuffing in a higher watt bulb to make their brake lights brighter and I should be just fine with a regular output? Just looking for your experience with this.
Emerging Vendor
Joined: Aug 2004
Posts: 415
Likes: 138
From: Summerfield, Florida
2023 C4 of the Year Finalist- Modified
third brake kight
C4 Steck,
I replaced my brake light on my ZR-1 with an led light. Go to zr1netregistry look for post dated 09-13-2022. this may heip you. the post was about replacing the thrid brake light on a ZR-1, maybe it could work for you.
John
I replaced my brake light on my ZR-1 with an led light. Go to zr1netregistry look for post dated 09-13-2022. this may heip you. the post was about replacing the thrid brake light on a ZR-1, maybe it could work for you.
John
Burning Brakes
Joined: Mar 2019
Posts: 843
Likes: 149
From: Iowa
I replaced my center brake light with a LED red bulb. When you step on the brakes the light will strobe flashes for a very short time and then go solid red. Since this is brake light only you will not have any problems with this conversion.
I ordered the light bulb from Amazon and two came in the package.
Thanks Hawkeye56
I ordered the light bulb from Amazon and two came in the package.
Thanks Hawkeye56
Thread Starter
Burning Brakes
Joined: Jun 2021
Posts: 1,199
Likes: 449
From: NJ
I replaced my center brake light with a LED red bulb. When you step on the brakes the light will strobe flashes for a very short time and then go solid red. Since this is brake light only you will not have any problems with this conversion.
I ordered the light bulb from Amazon and two came in the package.
Thanks Hawkeye56
I ordered the light bulb from Amazon and two came in the package.
Thanks Hawkeye56
Thread Starter
Burning Brakes
Joined: Jun 2021
Posts: 1,199
Likes: 449
From: NJ
no luck finding that post. Can you narrow it down a little? Like what section it was, general, technical? I’d like to at least read up on it.
Burning Brakes
Joined: Mar 2019
Posts: 843
Likes: 149
From: Iowa
If you're ever in stop and go traffic for an extended period of time and wondering why the guy behind you is honking his horn or flashing his high beams in the same cadence as your flashing brake light, he's reciprocating his annoyance with your flashing brake light. No one wants to be "flashed" every few seconds in 0-5MPH traffic. It's actually counter-productive to safety, as it promotes road-rage, because it pisses people off if they're stuck behind one.
There are more sophisticated brake flashers that have a time period before they will activate again. Some are even adaptive in that the period before it activates again gets longer and longer the more frequent the brake application. I've seen a few of these types of 'flashers', they flash, but a few seconds later they don't, and won't until a period of no-brakes application elapses. I don't find these nearly as annoying as the ones that do it every damn time.
Years ago there was an advertising campaign for I believe a BMW 5 or possibly 7 series that touted its 'progressive' brake lights. There was an intensity and pattern for normal applications, but there was a much brighter and more of them (Possibly the rear fog lights that many European cars have?) pattern for more aggressive braking, probably utilizing accelerometers in the car for other systems. I recall being on the freeway behind a BMW and its brake lights came on, but then the pattern and intensity changed to "I'm really on the brakes now". I immediately reacted accordingly. I got the message that this car was on the brakes hard. I feel this scheme is really effective. I'm surprised it hasn't been more widely adapted by the OEMs. I don't know if BMW even has this any longer.
ADD: I live in Los Angeles. Our traffic density is really high. I seldom run an errand or a trip without being caught in well below speed limit traffic or construction closures. There's always a car in front of me in stop and go traffic. These flashers don't make sense in the conditions we have here.
There are more sophisticated brake flashers that have a time period before they will activate again. Some are even adaptive in that the period before it activates again gets longer and longer the more frequent the brake application. I've seen a few of these types of 'flashers', they flash, but a few seconds later they don't, and won't until a period of no-brakes application elapses. I don't find these nearly as annoying as the ones that do it every damn time.
Years ago there was an advertising campaign for I believe a BMW 5 or possibly 7 series that touted its 'progressive' brake lights. There was an intensity and pattern for normal applications, but there was a much brighter and more of them (Possibly the rear fog lights that many European cars have?) pattern for more aggressive braking, probably utilizing accelerometers in the car for other systems. I recall being on the freeway behind a BMW and its brake lights came on, but then the pattern and intensity changed to "I'm really on the brakes now". I immediately reacted accordingly. I got the message that this car was on the brakes hard. I feel this scheme is really effective. I'm surprised it hasn't been more widely adapted by the OEMs. I don't know if BMW even has this any longer.
ADD: I live in Los Angeles. Our traffic density is really high. I seldom run an errand or a trip without being caught in well below speed limit traffic or construction closures. There's always a car in front of me in stop and go traffic. These flashers don't make sense in the conditions we have here.
luckily I live in small town Iowa and I want to grab there attention away from there texting.
I ran the same style of brake light in my Harleys and had no problems from stupid people behind me.
Thanks Hawkeye56
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Thread Starter
Burning Brakes
Joined: Jun 2021
Posts: 1,199
Likes: 449
From: NJ
Ok. I definitely do not want flashing/strobing when I hit the brakes. I too find this highly annoying when I’m behind some rice rocket with his two foot long tow hook and the brake lights keep flashing because he is riding the *** of the person in front of him. So my question is this… since I don’t want to have any flashing and I don’t want to change out any of the factory housings, can I swap to retro fit LED bulbs only? Will they flash? Will it cause turn signal issues (hyper flash) since the outers (or inners I forget) have turn signal function? If I did the retrofit LED bulbs is their an easy DIY fix for any of the aforementioned possible issues? I’m leaning toward just making what I have the best it can be but would entertain some extra effort to get brighter yet cooler temp bulbs.
Safety Car
Joined: Jun 2010
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Thread Starter
Burning Brakes
Joined: Jun 2021
Posts: 1,199
Likes: 449
From: NJ
Thanks guys for all the information. I read that thread. Lots of good info that pretty much answered all my questions. I can definitely apply what was posted in that thread to my situation even though the housing is different. If I do it, I’ll probably go the route of red LED strips with adhesive since the regular coupe housings don’t have the bulb holder the ZR1 housing has. I’m going to clean up my new housing and get the lense looking like new and pop a lower power bulb in it for now. Then I’ll revisit this and post that project later. Now I understand about using resistors or a blinker made for LED bulbs. I would imagine that means converting the fronts as well. Why do I see myself going down the LED rabbit hole and doing everything when I swore that’s not what I was going to do.
Last edited by C4 Steck; Nov 15, 2023 at 09:34 PM.
Race Director
Joined: Oct 2012
Posts: 17,325
Likes: 6,507
From: Melbourne, FL
You don't have to go full LED with an electronic blinker module.
I would just buy one of the led 3rd brake light housings on eBay. They're like $40 bucks.lr.so.amd won't flash. The flash things you see are modules that are installed online to create the strobe, typically as a dealer add on they charge for. The module costs them $5, they charge $500 as part of a collision avoidance package.
I would just buy one of the led 3rd brake light housings on eBay. They're like $40 bucks.lr.so.amd won't flash. The flash things you see are modules that are installed online to create the strobe, typically as a dealer add on they charge for. The module costs them $5, they charge $500 as part of a collision avoidance package.
Burning Brakes
Joined: Mar 2019
Posts: 843
Likes: 149
From: Iowa
You don't have to go full LED with an electronic blinker module.
I would just buy one of the led 3rd brake light housings on eBay. They're like $40 bucks.lr.so.amd won't flash. The flash things you see are modules that are installed online to create the strobe, typically as a dealer add on they charge for. The module costs them $5, they charge $500 as part of a collision avoidance package.
I would just buy one of the led 3rd brake light housings on eBay. They're like $40 bucks.lr.so.amd won't flash. The flash things you see are modules that are installed online to create the strobe, typically as a dealer add on they charge for. The module costs them $5, they charge $500 as part of a collision avoidance package.
The strobe module was built right into the led bulb I purchased from Amazon. Two bulbs in a package for under $20.00, This is the same bulb that a man used in a very detailed forum post a few years back. I do not remember his name but he was very up on electronics.
Thanks Hawkeye56
Thread Starter
Burning Brakes
Joined: Jun 2021
Posts: 1,199
Likes: 449
From: NJ
Ok fellas I have another question. If I were to purchase just an LED bulb that fits this factory housing and socket, could I install it without having it flash or have any issues? Advance has them relatively cheap (and I have plenty of coupons) and I’d like to just get an LED bulb. Since Hawkeye said his flash is built in and these don’t seem to have that feature, I should be good to go right?
Burning Brakes
Joined: Mar 2019
Posts: 843
Likes: 149
From: Iowa
Ok fellas I have another question. If I were to purchase just an LED bulb that fits this factory housing and socket, could I install it without having it flash or have any issues? Advance has them relatively cheap (and I have plenty of coupons) and I’d like to just get an LED bulb. Since Hawkeye said his flash is built in and these don’t seem to have that feature, I should be good to go right?
Just make sure that it is a low profile bulb as on my 95 the housing is very shallow.
Thanks Hawkeye56
Burning Brakes
Joined: Mar 2019
Posts: 843
Likes: 149
From: Iowa
I purchased my led bulbs from Super Bright Tech service was excellent. I had the led tower bulbs installed first in the rear but had nothing but headaches getting all to work. I added load resistors in the rear and still problems.
After visiting with a technician at SB we tried a different style of led bulbs and all worked.
I added a digital turn signal flasher from SB .
I ended up doing a complete LED conversion inside and outside. Can be challenging getting all to play together but not impossible and other than adding load resistors it was pretty much plug and play and not adding any extra components.
Good Luck
Hawkeye56
Team Owner
Joined: Sep 2003
Posts: 25,384
Likes: 2,736
Isn't there also a multi LED CHMSL for later C4? I've never seen one but I 've seen them mentioned I believe on eBay. If you had a housing with very poor interior reflective finish maybe that's an option. An inquiry to eBay for the CHMSL 5975799 seems to work. There's many LED diode arrays possible for various 1156 replacements Are there good, better or best? No idea,