Legal to remove 3rd Brake Light

[Mr. Bill]

Unlike a buddies 35" (lol) M/T Claws, my 33" SSRs won't clear the rear bumper. It's not even close. Therefore I can't mount the spare on the factory mount.

So, is it legal to remove the factory mount and 3rd brake light or am I opening myself up to a possible ticket?

Thanks

[The Man with the Plan]

There is no law on the books in any state that requires the third brake light. Toss it.

[Wrangled97TJ]

Well...I've been cruising around town for the past couple of years now without a 3rd brake and light and haven't been bothered. I say go for it. :)

Marty

[Mr. Bill]

Okay, I will.

So what did y'all do to plug the hole in the tailgate that the wires ran through?

[jkozub]

Pull it, I did, and have been driveing around for over year with no problems. I cliped the wire close, and then used some shrink wrap around the peice that stuck out. I have also seen guys just push it into the tail gate, and then use a drop of silcon in the hole to seal it up.

[MHM2A]

My insurance company offers a slightly less expensive rate for a vehicle with a third brake light. As long as that is not the case then i say throw it away. I dont think the discount is worth the hassle, it was just on the form i had to fill out.

[Jerry Bransford]

I'm no safety-weenie but I went to pains to keep my 3rd brakelight after installing my 33" spare tire. It wouldn't clear so for $2 worth of longer bolts and spacers, I lifted it up 1.5" or so. I figure if it helps one drunken driver see I've put my brakes on a little easier, it's worth it to me and my family. I do a bit of flying and I have every exterior light turned on I can find so others can more easly see me from further away... same with a Jeep, having that 3rd brake light on sure can't hurt.

[RICK]

The center "third" brake light is a federally mandated safety feature for vehicle manufacturers.
It is not a state law.
It's really your own decision to keep it or trash it.
BUT; if you get rear ended you may have some legal and financial responsiblities to your insurance company. Especially if someone you care for is riding in your back seat and gets severely injured. Or if the other driver has a good lawyer.
A good law suit (according to my lawyer friends) would be that you removed a federally mandated safety feature and knowingly operated your vehicle on a public highway?
I also extended mine to be visible over my meager 32" spare.
As a matter of fact I put brighter bulbs in mine because of the poor tail lights on my TJ. I think they are dangerously dim considering the short distance between the back end and the back seat.
I'm also an ex-military helicopter pilot. When flogging the skies in a subdued helicopter, the phrase is "see" and "be seen"!

[Jerry Bransford]

Rick, the only reason you roto-wing drivers can keep those ugly things up in the air is that they are SO ugly the earth repels them.:D :D

[The Man with the Plan]

I always like the phrase, "Helicopters don't fly, they beat the air into submission!"

What does this have to do with a 3rd brake light? I dunno.

[Mr. Bill]

I took the back seat out to put the spare tire in so I'm not worried about that, but thanks anyway.

[KauaiJeep]

Mr Bill,
Assuming you remove the 3rd brake light, can you then get the 33"SSR mounted on the factory mount. I am going to have the same tires and was planning on using the factory mount until I can get a new bumber and tire mount.
Anyone else had problems like this. I have seen an extension mount that apparently moves the tire out and up slightly, forget who makes it, I'm thinking Currie.
David

[Colo.TJ]

Mr Bill,
Assuming you remove the 3rd brake light, can you then get the 33"SSR mounted on the factory mount. I am going to have the same tires and was planning on using the factory mount until I can get a new bumber and tire mount.
Anyone else had problems like this. I have seen an extension mount that apparently moves the tire out and up slightly, forget who makes it, I'm thinking Currie.
David

Yes it will fit. How long your tailgate will last is the question.

[BrewJeep]

I've moved my "third eye" brake light around a couple of times to clear tires. It's ugly and a pain in the derrier, but being a biker, I'll shoot for safety first. The more a "cager" can see your lights, the less chance there is of a one of them whacking ya, especially when they've got a cellphone stuffed in their ear and are thinking of "more important things" than driving.

Rick, I gotta hand it to you rotor heads. I developed a pretty heavy respect for you all and the Bell 412 while I was fighting fires for the USFS. Tough bunch... Crazy, but tough. ;)

--Paul

[Mr. Bill]

Mr Bill,
Assuming you remove the 3rd brake light, can you then get the 33"SSR mounted on the factory mount. I am going to have the same tires and was planning on using the factory mount until I can get a new bumber and tire mount.
Anyone else had problems like this. I have seen an extension mount that apparently moves the tire out and up slightly, forget who makes it, I'm thinking Currie.
David

No! Not for me.

That's the whole point that no one seemed to get from my first post. I was going to raise the third brake light in order to fit the tires, BUT I test mounted the tires first to see if they would clear the bumper and it's not even close. I don't have the factory rear bumper, I have a durango4x4.com rear bumper because I needed the towing reciever, The tire and wheel on the factory mount won't clear the reciever, much less the top of the bumper.

[BrewJeep]

No! Not for me.

That's the whole point that no one seemed to get from my first post. I was going to raise the third brake light in order to fit the tires, BUT I test mounted the tires first to see if they would clear the bumper and it's not even close. I don't have the factory rear bumper, I have a durango4x4.com rear bumper because I needed the towing reciever, The tire and wheel on the factory mount won't clear the reciever, much less the top of the bumper.

Hmmmm...

I'd probably mount Durango's tire carrier and either fab up a mount for the third brake light or find an aftermarket one. I've seen one that fits a carrier similar to Durango's. It slips into the square center frame tubing. It might've been Bulletproof, now that I think of it...

[JT's TJ]

... I have seen an extension mount that apparently moves the tire out and up slightly, forget who makes it, I'm thinking Currie.
David

Tomken sells one at their website. It's about $35.

[KauaiJeep]

Thanks JT, I have heard of others mounting a 33 SSR on the factory mount on a TJ, so this post confused me a bit until I heard Mr Bill had an aftermarket bumper. Maybe I just need to spring for the full bumper/tire mount straight off.
Thanks again
David

[JT's TJ]

You're very welcome. I must seem like a shill for Tomken, but they also sell a set of extensions to raise the height of that third brake light over an "oversized" tire, if anyone needs something like that.

My 33" BFG also fit... it rests a bit on top of the stock bumper. I've got a Jeeperman bumper/swingaway on order though. Anyone have any solutions to add a third brake light to a swingaway?

[Jerry Bransford]

Maybe this was already mentioned but a 33" can be mounted on a TJ's stock spare tire mount if there is also a 1" body lift installed. The body lift provides enough additional clearance between the tire and bumper.

[WEJEEPN]

Maybe this was already mentioned but a 33" can be mounted on a TJ's stock spare tire mount if there is also a 1" body lift installed. The body lift provides enough additional clearance between the tire and bumper.

Albeit Randall Edge's idea, the stock spare tire carrier can be re-located by making a plate (1/8") 2" larger than the "footprint" of the stock carrier and moving it up 2". The bolts necessary to join the two will land in an indentation in the body.

I did this on my TJ and it works slicker than dog snot on a doorknob.:)

WEJEEPN

EDIT:Spelling, of course!

[KauaiJeep]

Albeit Randall Edge's idea, the stock spare tire carrier can be re-located by making a plate (1/8") 2" larger than the "footprint" of the stock carrier and moving it up 2". The bolts necessary to join the two will land in an indentation in the body.

I did this on my TJ and it works slicker than dog snot on a doorknob.:)



I like the analogy, you wouldn't have a pic of this by any chance, of the plate you fabbed up, not the doorknob

David

[Jerry Bransford]

Yeah that sounds good but the pic of the mount modification would be good since I'm having trouble visualizing it. Show the pic of the dog snot on the doorknob too.:D

[WEJEEPN]

Let's see if I can explain this...............

If you take the stock carrier and place it on a 1/8" plate and trace around it including marking the holes. Then move it upward 2" and mark it again including holes. Then cut the plate on the outside of both marks. The plate will bolt to the carrier and then using the stock bolts, mount it on the Jeep!

Sorry no camera or scanner!

HTH


Hey Randall, you out there! I know you have a pic!

Edit: Oh yeh, don't forget to drill the 12 holes!

[lonegpr]

Unlike a buddies 35" (lol) M/T Claws, my 33" SSRs won't clear the rear bumper. It's not even close. Therefore I can't mount the spare on the factory mount.

So, is it legal to remove the factory mount and 3rd brake light or am I opening myself up to a possible ticket?

Thanks


One thing you forgot William. This is Oklahoma. Who gives a dog snot on a doorknob d.amn whacha do? :)

Ya gotta start thinkin' like an Okie man. Not like some friggin' Redneck Canadian......... :D

[Mr. Bill]

I have bad luck with cops. Had one coming at me with his highbeams on one night, I flashed mine to remind him and he flipped around and followed me until he found a reason to pull me over.

I already ditched the light and the mount. I figure with the height of the regular lights and the flat tailgate, my brake lights are planty visible. Hell, most cars prolly wouldn't see the third light.

[lonegpr]

One of the main reasons I never, ever flash my brights back on to an oncoming vehicle. Never know if it's a cop or not. I usually ignore the flash, or if I get repeated flashes, I'll kill the beams to let them know I'm running my low beams as it is.

Second reason is I don't flash my lights would be that I'd be tempted to hit the high beams and both sets of fog lights. My luck, they careen into me. I did that one time and the poor SOB's probably thought a jumbo jet was gonna land on them. I think I noticed them bouncing off the curb as they passed by me. :D

[BrewJeep]

One of the main reasons I never, ever flash my brights back on to an oncoming vehicle. Never know if it's a cop or not.

Same here -- and if I run aux. lights (other than fog lights), I leave them covered on the highways. I don't worry too much about the State police or Sheriff, but the city police here are real inconsistant about what they like and don't like. Most don't care, but once in awhile you run into one here with a "not so good" attitude. I even had one pull me over while I was on my motorcycle just to let me know he didn't like bikers in "his" town, so I try hard not to give them anything to squawk about.

--Paul

[Mr. Bill]

I've since heard that most, if not all, the cops in Newcastle area have reps for being pricks. And I was trying to be nice at the time that I did it. Of course in this day and age, most people behind the wheel use any reason they can find to get pissed off at you.

[Jerry Bransford]

Thanks WEJEEPN, that makes sense now. I wasn't sure which side of the spare tire bracket you had done that to. That seems like a good way to do it!