Merdcedes style strobed brake lights

[winstontj]

Mercedes has gotten approval from DOT to test a new theory for brake lights. It's now currently against the law to have any lights flash or strobe on a normal passenger car - nevermind red flashing lights. Mercedes thinks that by flashing brake lights (6-8 times a second) very quickly it will draw more attention to the stopping car and avoid rear-end accidents. I've purchased a set of LED replacement bulbs for my rear lights (blinker, parking and stop) and will be installing a third brake light shortly.

Can anyone think of a reason why I should not copy this idea? The LED lights alone will be a huge improvement and the strobe can be accomplished with a few simple add ons.

TIA,

TJW

[BillWilliams]

headlights and brakelights. The headlights strobing really gets your attention. Wish my son would of had them on his bike last summer! He already has them on the rear.

Hey, that might be a great Christmas present.

Thinking about it, strobing headlights would be crazy in a line of traffic. Visually imagine that when you see a line of stopped or slow moving traffic coming at you....people with sensitivity to flashing lights will live with a never ending migrane.

[winstontj]

headlights and brakelights. The headlights strobing really gets your attention. Wish my son would of had them on his bike last summer! He already has them on the rear.

Hey, that might be a great Christmas present.

Thinking about it, strobing headlights would be crazy in a line of traffic. Visually imagine that when you see a line of stopped or slow moving traffic coming at you....people with sensitivity to flashing lights will live with a never ending migrane.

Random seizures! What a wonderful thing to instigate....

So would I be better off grabbing something from a motorcycle rather than trying to engineer my own? I think just upgrading to a set of H-4's would be plenty for headlights but I do want to strobe the brake lights.

What would be my best place to look for something like this? I don't want to get rear ended again and certainly not ever in my 2002!

(Mercedes only got approval for the 2007 or 2008 S and E class cars from DOT) How do the M'cycle guys get away with it? I'd think they can almost do whatever in the name of safety and get away with it but sometimes not...

[dtharp113]

[quote="winstontj

What would be my best place to look for something like this? I don't want to get rear ended again and certainly not ever in my 2002!

quote]

Having been rear-ended to the tune of 3K (could have been worse...), I know what you're talking about! I installed one of the JC Whitney 3rd Brake lights and will be wiring in a Hella rear fog light (red) to the brakelight circuit. By the time I'm done, my rearend will be more visible than an Atlantic City streetwalker!

Think though, if they're not paying attention or trying to multi-task (not that I've never done it...), it won't matter what lighting I have rigged up. The upside to our cars is that we can't roll down the road with a latte in one hand and a cellphone in the other, steering w/ your knees.

I still watch warily my rearview mirror.

Dennis

[garya]

In the back window?

You would not be altering the original equipment, and you would have additional light plus strobe.

Gary

[winstontj]

In the back window?

You would not be altering the original equipment, and you would have additional light plus strobe.

Gary

My car is nowhere near stock. I'm rebuilding a wire loom and can add the provisions for anything now. Also the LED lights are the same stock base diameter only have LED's instead of the standard incondecant (sp?) bulb with a fillament. The only change would be up under the dash where the brake light wires meet into a strobing unit.

I'm not talking a flash that is visable - that's not street legal. This is a flash that is barely visable to the naked eye. It's not 6-8 times it's 60-80 times per second. Enough that it gets your attention but not enough to look like a strobe light. If it's across all 3 it'll be more uniform - why not draw attention to your entire car rather than just one light?

[GolfYellowTii]

I know of a kit for a car that uses a gyroscope or something similar to take into account how strongly you apply the brake. It would flash more times as you hit the brake harder. I don't remember exactly if it stayed flashing when you came to a complete stop. I have the catalog at home and can look it up when I get back if you would like. I don't know if it is still made, but this was maybe a year and a half ago that I saw it.

[Brandon]

Why do you need strobbing brake lights..how annoying would that be to look at...especially at night in the glare of a wet road? If you are paying attention to driving the car instead of fiddling with things like phones and coffee cups, then you should never rear end anyone....

[winstontj]

Why do you need strobbing brake lights..how annoying would that be to look at...especially at night in the glare of a wet road? If you are paying attention to driving the car instead of fiddling with things like phones and coffee cups, then you should never rear end anyone....

Here's one article - I'm simply trying to protect myself from being hit... not from hitting someone else. It's a system that flashes during panic or hard stops. There are also tests out there on flashing brake lights but I don't think you realize how fast they flash. So fast that it won't look like a strobe it's more of a subliminal thing. It just looks brighter rather than flashing.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/11351634/

The more I think about it the more I think that I'll put a strobe/flasher at the same rate as the DOT approved for Mercedes hooked up to an inertia switch for panic stops and do nothing for the rest of the time. I don't want to complicate things and I'm in the process of deleting my brake booster and moving the brake MC down to the pedal box. I'm going to have a hard enough time figuring out a way to rig up a brake light switch never mind a flashing doo-dad...

[2002tii]

Why do you need strobbing brake lights..how annoying would that be to look at...especially at night in the glare of a wet road? If you are paying attention to driving the car instead of fiddling with things like phones and coffee cups, then you should never rear end anyone....

mostly agree, guess it would not hurt if it was used only on panic stops (which is every stop in the Bay Area freeways)

Perhaps graduating intensity acording to deceleration in a way that it would distinguish the brake lights on the cars of the "look at me I have rear foglights on on a clear night crowd".

P.S. sorry for the last comment, big peeve of mine. well one of them.

[BillWilliams]

motorcycle suppliers will pop up

My sons Buell has two small lights on each side of his stock light that modulates.

On Harley Sportsters, they make a light bar that replaces the reflector bar that strobes.

I think you can easily adapt on of these type units

[Velocewest]

Seems like a Harley would just need a "Slow Moving Vehicle" triangle...

[bugtustlebub]

Not that I know for certain, but, it seems to me that the big Lexus' have a "blinking" third brake light on the rear shelf. I do not know if it is a LED or not. I do remember thinking, "Cool!", when I observed one in operation.

HTH

Regards,

Randy Bryant

Elkton, VA

[BillWilliams]

my tii and wonder if removing the US spec reflectors and replacing them with the side markers wired to the brake lights. That would lighten things up abit, still down low though.

[f1reverb]

so the law against the strobing brake-lights is still in effect for you. You'll get pulled over by the cops the first time one spots the strobing. You can always strobe the brake-lights with your foot if you are careful legally right now, but other drivers will think you're giving them a brake-test and want to pound you.