Custom LED Rear Lights - DIY Project

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alastairb

Member
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239
I bagged a pair of pre-facelift lights on ebay for cheap and set about splitting them apart for a custom LED retrofit

Some (very) gentle prying got the lenses off

IMG_20240115_122519.jpg

And then removing the small screws in the back allow both diffusers to be removed
IMG_20240115_124501.jpg

Need to design the lights next (e.g shapes) and wait for some hardware to arrive. Bit of blank canvas on the design front , want to retain some design cues whilst giving a modern look (e.g Sequential turn).


This kind of vibe
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I'll update this thread as I go.
 
A

alastairb

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239
Bit more progress yesterday.
Traced the shapes for the acrylic using paper tape.

IMG_20240115_193335.jpg


Will cut both of these, mirror them for the other light and then heat form them to shape using the outer lense as a guide.

IMG_20240115_200350.jpg
The plastic chrome took a 10 minute bath in some caustic soda to remove the chrome, these will be painted black.
(Check out the plastic damage from the halogen bulbs in its former life - top right in this pic)
IMG_20240115_211510.jpg

Still mulling over the shapes of the lights.
I think I'll keep the long diagonal for the sequential turn , it will fill up from the bottom to the top - This will be white frosted acrylic , so white when not on etc.

Essentially I've then got a triangle shape to design the running lights into. The plan here is to have the white acrylic taped and painted so I can get as intricate with the taping as I want.

Or.... bring back the red diffuser, use the horizontal lines as a focussed light bar and do a Maserati trident in the circular shape , possibly even infinity mirror style - Do you think this would be too much?
I think the red diffuser dates them quite badly tbh.
IMG_20240115_124514_1.jpg


Might order some red acrylic ........
 
Zep

Zep

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9,302
Watching with interest. Will there be fog and reverse lights too, or just the indicators, brake and running light?
 
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Adamcot

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10
Sorry to be a downer, but this frustrates me greatly. I work in automotive lighting.

Millions went into the development of the original lamp, with specialist equipment to make sure it’s legal and safe.

It’s not just about looks.

Taking the aluminised coating off will almost certainly compromise the lamp performance.
 
Ewan

Ewan

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6,825
Can’t believe the original Maserati light cost millions. If it did, they were had. There’s nothing special about it - just standard spec of the time. But you make a very good point about the legality and safety of a home-made item. Would such a thing even pass an MOT? (Then again, does the MOT even check such things?)
Now, the boomerang rear lights of the 3200 - they are worth a million. Just glorious.
 
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Adamcot

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Ewan said:
Can’t believe the original Maserati light cost millions. If it did, they were had. There’s nothing special about it - just standard spec of the time. But you make a very good point about the legality and safety of a home-made item. Would such a thing even pass an MOT? (Then again, does the MOT even check such things?)
Now, the boomerang rear lights of the 3200 - they are worth a million. Just glorious.
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It’s clear that no one in the ‘real world’ understands anything about the work that is involved in a rear lamp.

It takes about 3 years to develop a rear light. We just started a project to launch in Dec 2027. Around 20,000 man-hours, even a ‘standard’ lamp is full of engineering challenges. The tooling bill alone will be north of £1.5m for a lamp like that.

Our laboratory is fitted with around £1m worth of equipment to do full durability, environmental and photometric testing.

To think you can safely replicate any of that on your kitchen table is absurd.
 
Harvey_Tim

Harvey_Tim

Member
Messages
210
ChrisQP09 said:
Opinions aside let the man finish. I’ve learned in my line of work that not every problem has a complex solution. Needless to say I’ve saved businesses millions. Its the OPs DIY project, let’s respect it for what it is.
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Agreed. He is building a one off project for himself not designing a new lamp for a manufacturer and as far as I can tell the MOT requirements for a rear lamp are pretty basic. Good luck to you @alastairb i look forward to seeing the results.
 
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Adamcot

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My main concern is only for safety.

Lamps are there not just for styling, but to make sure you are seen. Making uncontrolled modifications, in my opinion, is a risk, not only to the driver but others around them.

I would also question the insurance status of a modification like this.

If the OP is happy to make changes with those risks, then that’s for them to decide.
 
Phil H

Phil H

Member
Messages
4,181
Adamcot said:
My main concern is only for safety.

Lamps are there not just for styling, but to make sure you are seen. Making uncontrolled modifications, in my opinion, is a risk, not only to the driver but others around them.

I would also question the insurance status of a modification like this.

If the OP is happy to make changes with those risks, then that’s for them to decide.
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Perfectly laudable sentiments Adam. However, when it comes to safety, questions are already being asked about 'legal' hids and the like which are blinding to oncoming traffic, and anyone who's had a biker on their tail knows how high intensity lamps burn holes in the back of your head!!! Legislation used to dictate fitting criteria for aux lamps (PhilW will know all about that), but all that seems to be a thing of the past.

I've no idea whether the OP's intentions are legal, rational, or desirable, but I do commend his efforts.
 
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philw696

philw696

Member
Messages
25,537
Adamcot said:
It’s clear that no one in the ‘real world’ understands anything about the work that is involved in a rear lamp.

It takes about 3 years to develop a rear light. We just started a project to launch in Dec 2027. Around 20,000 man-hours, even a ‘standard’ lamp is full of engineering challenges. The tooling bill alone will be north of £1.5m for a lamp like that.

Our laboratory is fitted with around £1m worth of equipment to do full durability, environmental and photometric testing.

To think you can safely replicate any of that on your kitchen table is absurd.
Click to expand...
Have you ever watched the film the World's Fastest Indian ?
 
Ewan

Ewan

Member
Messages
6,825
Adamcot said:
It’s clear that no one in the ‘real world’ understands anything about the work that is involved in a rear lamp.

It takes about 3 years to develop a rear light. We just started a project to launch in Dec 2027. Around 20,000 man-hours, even a ‘standard’ lamp is full of engineering challenges. The tooling bill alone will be north of £1.5m for a lamp like that.

Our laboratory is fitted with around £1m worth of equipment to do full durability, environmental and photometric testing.

To think you can safely replicate any of that on your kitchen table is absurd.
Click to expand...
I don’t doubt that for a moment. But I do doubt that it has to be that way.

Some of the lights I see used on home build cars such as Westfields are very basic cheap jobs from China off the internet. Perfectly legal and do their job, but have clearly cost buttons to make.
From memory, the replacement rear lights on my Landie were less than a tenner (and it shows!). Though I presume lights on classic cars don’t have to conform to modern standards, just like old classics not needing seatbelts if none were fitted originally (for example, in the back seats).

The rear lights on the new Defender are a different matter. Clearly they took a lot of money to design (and a big committee of people to sign off on such a higgledy-piggledy splatter of LED squares). Quite cool though, and very distinctive. I like them.

Anyway, good luck to the OP, though do keep safety at the forefront of your design.
 
philw696

philw696

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25,537
It's like the Chinese made wishbones and wheel bearings which are copied I'm sure they can't be legal and if someone gets killed as a result that will be like Mr Bates and the Post Office.
 
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