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when in ireland, i noticed that a lot of cars had either one clear backup
light on one side and the other red, or one extra red light on one side
(like in the bumper) my question is why, when does the extra red one come
on, why the extra light, etc... if anyone could shed some "light" on this,
i would appreciate it. thanks...
dodger65
...and another thing. when i was there i saw a number of compact cars w/
the rear quarter windows blanked out or painted body color... what do you
call those? are those the "saloons" i hear cliffy and tb talking about?
dodger65
1. The white light on the back is an extra, higher intensity back-up
light. The red light is nothing more than a rear fog light/high intensity
tail light. Common in many European countries, mandatory in the UK on cars
built after the mid-eighties or so. One of the blokes should be able to
pinpoint the date.
2. A saloon is nothing more than a sedan to us. That's a fact. You know
how they like to butcher the language. As for the painted windows, it
sounds like something the boy racers are doing to look cool. That's just
my semi-educated opinion.
vwhobo
thanks. i figured some of them were the boy racer thing, but some of the
cars had metal knockouts in them like a old sedan delivery or panel van. i
just didn't know if they had a name for them.
dodger65
It sounds as if you're talking about something like this...They're
basically car derived vans. Just cars with no back seats or rear windows,
lol.
http://www.applevanleasing.co.uk/images/special_offers/Fiesta%20van%201.gif
Reverse lights aren't a legal requirement, as you stated, hobo, but all
cars are fitted with them and have been sinse the eighties (apart from some
cars like the Mini etc). Rear fog lamps became mandatory in 1979/1980 in
the UK I believe, but as far as I'm aware, most UK cars had them sinse the
seventies or so. It is mandatory for any imported cars to have them fitted,
too, and they must be installed on the Off-Side of the car, although both
sides is okay too, this is because of the side of the road we drive on in
the UK and Ireland. Obviously the O/S needs to be seen more than the N/S
just incase somebody thinks you're a motorbike or something and tries to
overtake when visibility is low, only to have a shock, lol.
Also bear in mind that Ireland has only had a road worthiness test for a
few years or so (like the UK's MoT or the US equivelant), so such items may
not have been fitted on early cars. Hope this has ansered a few wuestions.
Cliffy
