Leader

When I bought my '62 Coupe, I was concerned that the brakelights were a little to anemic to be effective out here
in the land of "SUV-drivin'-cell-phone-chattin'-oops-didn't-see-that-little-car" drivers.
So, I swapped the 12-watt bulbs for 18-watters. The brightness difference was considerable.
But recently, an article on the 356 Registry site about LED brakelights caught my eye and I ordered a pair of LED bulbs from NLA.



With 39 tiny bulbs, I figured these units would be quite bright, but not as 'hot' as the 18-watt regular bulbs.

Here's the comparison: The top panel shows 18s in both lights; middle panel has an LED in the right light; and the bottom panel has LEDs in both sockets.



I think the conclusion is clear. The 18-watt bulbs are brighter...and I've switched back to them from the LEDs.
I know the incandescents increase the risk of melting the plastic lenses during prolonged ON cycles, but they are
clearly 'more visible,' which is what I was trying to accomplish.

Submitted FYI. Your actual mileage may vary.

jcnesq

Interesting! I just received LED taillight units from CU Layer (http://www.culayer.com/356.htm). Haven't installed them yet, but probably will this weekend.

Leader

I was all set to order those, too, Jim, but they're only available in the 6-volt set-up. He's working on a 12-volt version, but it's not ready yet.

The CU Layer LEDs are all oriented correctly (pointing directly at the target). The LED bulbs from NLA have the LEDs pointing all over the place. If the reflectors in your taillights aren't sufficiently shiny, most of that LED light is wasted. Rechroming the reflectors would probably make the NLA bulbs work much better.

For me, I just popped the 18-watters back in the brake light slot and moved the (pricey) LED bulbs into the running light socket.

Q

Leader, I have the same concerns with my A


My resolution is to find / modify / make a strip LED to mount in the top of the engine grill as a highlevel brakelight. [Alan @ aceparts is helping me with this atm ]
I will also use the top two louvres as left and right indicators.
.....perfect for preoccupied SUV drivers.....

Leader

Quite a few of the Replica guys put a HCMSL in the upper part of the engine grille. I've seen them in action and they can be effective.
I'm just not a fan of 'the look.' I'm certainly not a purist (my '62 has a 912 engine in it), but a third brake light is not in my car's future.
Your Black A Coupe is a stunner, by the way. Extremely beautiful.

Q

Agreed. I am not a fan of the look either.
......but I rationalise that it looks better than a Ford Explorer imprinted on the back of the car

Thank you
I posted some more photos of it here:
https://rennlist.com/forums/showthre...192855&page=15