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Tail Light laws?

Posted: Sun Oct 26, 2003 8:54 am
by ausyota
I am going to shorten my tray soon and I was planning on cutting the back corners of on the 45 degrees.
I was also going to use LED tail lights.
My question is what are the laws regarding tail light placement?
If I cut the corners of my tray off the tail lights will be mounted very centrally, do the lights have to be within a certain distance from the edges of the tray?
Paul.

Posted: Sun Oct 26, 2003 10:59 am
by MQ080
What year model is your truck? ...this from memory is where they(ADR or RTA) draw the line

Posted: Sun Oct 26, 2003 12:29 pm
by V8Patrol
contact the road authority in your state and get the regs, that way you get the right info from the ppl that will book ya if its wrong :D

Posted: Sun Oct 26, 2003 2:42 pm
by Monty
mq080 wont have any trouble booking u hehhehe

Posted: Sun Oct 26, 2003 5:16 pm
by Area54
Talk to the DOT/RTA in your state - they can fax you the pages on requirements for rearward facing lights straight from their 'special books'. This way you can fab up the lights direct to the letter.

Posted: Sun Oct 26, 2003 8:10 pm
by ausyota
MQ080 its a 97 model.
Ill fire off an email to the dept. of transport in WA and see what they say.
Thanks for the replies people.
Paul.

Posted: Mon Oct 27, 2003 6:32 am
by Wendle

Posted: Mon Oct 27, 2003 1:19 pm
by auto_eng
Rear indicators
Within 400mm of the extreme outer edge of the vehicle. Outboard edge of lamp, not the entire lamp. The extreme outer edge is the widest part of the vehicle excluding the rear vision mirrors.
Between 350mm and 1500mm above the ground.
Visible 45 degrees towards the centre of the vehicle (inboard) and 80 degress towards the outside of the vehicle (outboard)

Rear Position Lamp (tail lamp)
same as above

Rear Stop lamp
Same as above

The inner edges can't be closer than 600mm generally for the lamps above. The reverse lamp just has to be between 250mm above the ground and 1200 mm above the ground.

Posted: Mon Oct 27, 2003 6:11 pm
by beebee
auto_eng wrote:Rear indicators
Within 400mm of the extreme outer edge of the vehicle. Outboard edge of lamp, not the entire lamp. The extreme outer edge is the widest part of the vehicle excluding the rear vision mirrors.
.


Is this in accordance with ADRs or the Queensland Traffic Act as last time I looked, they had conflicting measurements?

Posted: Thu Oct 30, 2003 2:15 pm
by auto_eng
That is as per the ADR. The Transport Operation and Road Use Management Act (TORUMS) refers to the ADR.

Not aware of the difference you are referring to. Where can it be found?

Posted: Thu Oct 30, 2003 3:26 pm
by beebee
auto_eng wrote:That is as per the ADR. The Transport Operation and Road Use Management Act (TORUMS) refers to the ADR.

Not aware of the difference you are referring to. Where can it be found?


It's not worth researching. I thought I saw it in the Queensland Traffic Act and when I spoke to my engineer he gave me a different figure. When I was defected by the police, I asked where they were getting their information from. They cited the Queensland Traffic Act and showed me the front cover.

Actually now I remember, they couldn't find the distance from the outer edge of the vehicle that the lights had to be only a distance apart and vertical dimensions. Doesn't matter now. They let me off on the taillights cos they couldn't prove them wrong but I knew that by ADR standards they were incorrect.

Posted: Tue Nov 04, 2003 1:28 pm
by ausyota
Thnks for the info Auto Eng.
Is using a 55 watt spread beam work light or 2 OK for a reverse light?
Or does it have to be lower wattage?
Paul.

Posted: Tue Nov 04, 2003 2:50 pm
by auto_eng
Reverse lamps have to meet their own regulations for light intensity and distribution. The lamp you have suggested will probably be too bright. Best to use a ADR 1/00 approved lamp out of a Narva or Hella catalogue.

IF you are considering LED's have a look at these:

http://www.hella.com.au/cgi-bin/catalog ... maint=2133

The online catalogue at Hella is probably a good spot to start for a reverse lamp too.