Clear tailights???

[longhorn396]

I seen a truck on here a while back that had clear tailights. It was a 67-72 not sure which year but anybody know where I can find some???
Also while im thinking about it what about some nice ball joints upper and lower???

[1LoC10]

I got mine from LMC, not sure if they still make them, I got mine in 06

[vegaschevy]

Lots of places sell clear tail light lenses. As for cheap ball joints, any parts store like Auto Zone, Checker etc. will have ball joints for you

[PanelDeland]

longhorn,cheaping out on suspension parts is like cheaping out and using a vet to do your heart surgery.Sure,the basics are there but wouldn't you really prefer someone familiar with "the real deal"?

[longhorn396]

Well i want nice ones for a good price is what i mean

[Longhorn Man]

You may well have to go to e-bay for the tail lights. The feds have cracked down on illegal lenses and those fall into that catagory. Regardless of what state you live in, they are illegal.
Hold onto your red lenses if you do buy the clear ones. If you offer to install the red ones on the spot you are more likely to get off with no ticket. I had to do that in Kentucky back in 1998. Got pulled over in my first longhorn for having blue dots in the tail lights. He didn't care that I had Texas registration and inspection sticker, he wanted to give me a ticket. When I offered to install the solid red ones he let me off the hook. I flat out told him that I'd be pulling overr in Cincinati to swap them back over.

[longhorn396]

Wow mine have the blue dots and know one around here says anything?? but i live in a little hick town of about 2500 people and the cops are idiots so yea haha. But thats surprising why would they be illegal if they light up red??

[1LoC10]

I thought blue dots were legal on older vehicles

[longhorn396]

Originally Posted by 1LoC10

I thought blue dots were legal on older vehicles

I did too

[67ChevyRedneck]

I have clear lenses for my front turn signals, but I'm running Amber bulbs. I've never been messed with for that. As long as you use red bulbs, or some nice bright red LED's, you might be left alone, but if you run the clear lenses with clear bulbs I can almost guarantee you'll be pulled eventuelly.

Here's a set on ebay;

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/67-72...Q5fAccessories

Advance or Autozone (maybe both) sells Moog stuff, but be sure to check the box, people have been known to take out the moog stuff and return cheap knock off stuff to get some $ back.

[longhorn396]

I have clear lenses on the front too and no one has said anything. but i still dont understand why it would b illegal??

[BADPURPLE70CHEVY]

Like these?

[Boomerswany]

I got an entire kit: lenses, gaskets, and bulbs for 20.00 for the filling station - pt # BA-100K

Plus they work really great with red LED spider bulbs - IDK about being illegal... each state and township has people with there own pet peeves... To tall, to low... wtf...

http://www.fillingstation.com/

They get ball joints too...

[72 cheyenne pdx]

At least in Oregon, as long as the bulb is the correct color (amber, Red) you can use clear lenses. Now I don't know about smoke lenses. A buddy of mine just got pulled over about a month ago because his aftermarket lenses were too dark. The officer said that your tail/brake lights must be so bright at 100'. I have no idea how they gauge that, but I can tell you that they are dark.

[Longhorn Man]

federal law dictates the tail lights must have red reflectors in them. The clear ones reflect white, as do the clear side markers. Up front they are not required to reflect.
Like I said, this is federal law, not local. Just becouse you haven't been pulled over, doesn't mean it is legal.
The blue dots are a gray area in the laws. Correctly installed blue dots make the light come out the lens purple, obviously illegal. However, the modification of any safety device is illegal.
Some states have decided to ignore this and let it slide on older cars. In Ohio, motorcycles can do it (some Columbus police motorcycles have them) yet no car/truck can run them on the street.
Do it, don't do it... as long as you have the information to make an educated decision, that's all that matters.

[Shane]

Can you provide a source for this Federal Law?

I have looked and I can't find anything that states it is anything other than a local or state-level law. And even then, they only state that the tail light is only required to produce red light, not that the lens must physically be the color red. A red bulb fulfills this requirement.

I'm not disagreeing, just curious as to the source.

[72 cheyenne pdx]

I was always told that as long as they said DOT (Department of Transportation) approved, the are legal under federal law. Being DOT approved though does not always mean they are state approved. So if you made you own lenses, you could get pulled over, even if they are red. With my friend's smoked lenses, I am unsure if they were DOT approved or not.

[67ChevyRedneck]

Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard 108 for lighting equipment.

http://fmvss108.tripod.com/fmvss108text.htm#s5_1_5

From the text:

S5.8.10 Unless otherwise specified in this standard, each lamp,
reflective device, or item of associated equipment to which paragraph
S5.8.1 applies may be labeled with the symbol DOT, which shall
constitute a certification that it conforms to applicable Federal motor
vehicle safety standards.

From the chart:

Taillamps ......................... 2 red...................... 2 red................. J585e, September 1977.
Stoplamps.......................... 2 red...................... 2 red................. SAE J1398, May 1985.

Here's the SAE J1398 definition.

http://www.patentstorm.us/patents/68...scription.html

[big mike71]

There's a thread on here where one of the vendors said he was told not to sell them any more, because they are illegal.

[chevyboy55]

My son got stopped by the Washington State patrol for clear tail light lenses even though he has red LED bulbs. They told him he has to have a "red rearward
facing reflector" on the rear of the vehicle. We just cut a small piece of red reflective D.O.T. tape that they use on semi trailers & put at the bottom of the lens & that satisfied them. Heck you can see that stuff for a 1/2 mile.

[Shane]

from 67ChevyRedneck's link ...

Lens 110 is a one-piece, transparent polycarbonate molding. To allow lamp 100 to function as a stop/tail/turn lamp, lens 110 is tinted red. In alternate embodiments, one could employ different colors of polycarbonate, such as amber or clear.

[Gene]

Somebody should tell my local truck parts dealer if they are illegal. I just bought a set last week.

[longhorn396]

Wow thats surprising that they really care that much about stuff. now i understand the smoked lights but the clear ones and having to have red reflectors. thats ridiculous. if they are illegal then why do they still make them. Not everyone has a trailor queen that they dont drive that has illegal lenses on them. Customization should be however you want ur vehicle to be regardless of a stupid piece of plastic. If it lights red then pi** off right. haha

[longhorn396]

The picture with the purple truck is what im talking about

[67ChevyRedneck]

You know... according to the years... the "new standards" only apply to vehicles made after 77/85... hmmmm....

I have seen some vehicles with white lenses and white bulbs and I do feel you should be pulled for that. But if you have the right colored bulbs that are BRIGHT ENOUGH it shouldn't be an issue. I have also seen some aftermarket stuff that has brake lights barely brighter than a dying flashlight.