stainless marker light delete panel

[callofthemopar]

Maybe a cheap & reversible solution to those ugly school bus side marker lights. I used a stud gun to be able to bolt them in place of the marker light. They would blend in better if painted to match body color.

 

[old tired rebel]

Why don't you grind the paint off and weld those plates in to make them permanent?

 

[callofthemopar]

That Is the whole point of trying this. Its not much labor or skill and is reversible. The body panels have a curve to them and the plates are flat not to mention stainless steel which warps when welded even when care is taken. I think if painted same as the body they maybe near invisible Especially With a rallye stripe option.

Not everyone has welding and grinding skills, equipment, or money to have these tasks performed. I was just sharing with others this experiment and I am not sure I am in love with it myself But someone may like it and fit the needs for a project.

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That Is the whole point of trying this. Its not much labor or skill and is reversible. The body panels have a curve to them and the plates are flat not to mention stainless steel which warps when welded even when care is taken. I think if painted same as the body they maybe near invisible Especially With a rallye stripe option.

Not everyone has welding and grinding skills, equipment, or money to have these tasks performed. I was just sharing with others this experiment and I am not sure I am in love with it myself But someone may like it and fit the needs for a project.

 

[Bruzilla]

So what are you going to use as markers instead?

 

[D575]

Illegal.

 

[old tired rebel]

Illegal.

How is it Illegal? We see cars here and other sites that have had side makers filled in along with door handles and a few other custom features.

 

[callofthemopar]

Was thinking of punching a hole in them and using amber and red dots as markers or using hidden lights in the area between the bumper and the body. Anyway the plug fits in the recessed area punched for the marker and is almost flush with the body. Less work than welding and is reversible. Just playing with ideas. Isn't that what this is about? I like to fabricate, Win or fail its still fun for me and an escape from life's problems you cant fix like relatives.

 

[old tired rebel]

Was thinking of punching a hole in them and using amber and red dots as markers or using hidden lights in the area between the bumper and the body. Anyway the plug fits in the recessed area punched for the marker and is almost flush with the body. Less work than welding and is reversible. Just playing with ideas. Isn't that what this is about? I like to fabricate, Win or fail its still fun for me and an escape from life's problems you cant fix like relatives.

Yeah I see your point. I wasn't knocking it, just offering a suggestion.

 

[D575]

How is it Illegal? We see cars here and other sites that have had side makers filled in along with door handles and a few other custom features.

It is in Calif. { V C Section 25100 Clearance and Side Marker Lamps.} But then I got to thinking about street rods. so now I'm confused. It's probably like everything else, If the wrong Cop see's you , you're screwed.

 

[old tired rebel]

It is in Calif. { V C Section 25100 Clearance and Side Marker Lamps.} But then I got to thinking about street rods. so now I'm confused. It's probably like everything else, If the wrong Cop see's you , you're screwed.

That is true everywhere. It does depend on the police officer interpretation and their mood no matter where you live. I am thinking about shaving mine and putting in the 68 style marker lights lower in the quarters on my 74.

 

[callofthemopar]

Thanks Rebel, I had not seen anything like these cover plates I made on any other sites. I looked when I thought of the idea because I would think that this had been done before but could not find anything but cut and weld. Thats alot of body work. I also thought the purist may like the fact that it could save an old mopar from whack and hack body work and could be put back as original.

 

[old tired rebel]

I have a base model Charger so it's basically do what I want to it. I am still gathering parts for it. Yours looks to be in decent shape and the plate idea is a good way to go until you decide how you want the marker lights. The best looking marker lights to me was on the 71 Charger which looked like it flowed with the body style. These big lights look like they were slapped on from the factory to save cost.

 

[callofthemopar]

Yeah, A school bus has smaller markers. I may have some parts you need. I don't think my stuff is gold and will sell at a very affordable price.

 

[old tired rebel]

Yeah, A school bus has smaller markers. I may have some parts you need. I don't think my stuff is gold and will sell at a very affordable price.

Thanks for the offer. Right now the biggest thing I need and having a hard time finding is a K frame mine is rotted bad. Once I find that then I can order outer rockers and a few other parts.

 

[callofthemopar]

Sorry. Just sold a solid one with Power steering, torsion bars and rallye rims and tires still attached for $75.

 

[old tired rebel]

LOL just my luck but shipping would have killed me on that.

 

[Bruzilla]

Sorry guys, but removing the marker lights is illegal at the Federal level and probably at the state level as well. It is a violation of the Federal Motor Vehicle Standards, Sec. 571.108 Standard No. 108; Lamps, reflective devices, and associated equipment.

If you see hot rods without them, it's because the cars were manufactured before 1968, which was the first year marker lights became mandatory.

 

[Cranky]

Never been stopped for not having side marker lights. In the early years, inspection stations would fail the car if they didn't work but later in years, they quit even looking at them. Today's cars have wrap around tail lights and most inspection stations don't care about the old cars and most don't even know about side maker lights and think they are just reflectors that someone stuck on. Even my 95 Dakota passes without the high mount brake light that's supposed to be on my tailgate which got replaced with an older tailgate that doesn't have one. I guess some states are sticklers for stuff like that and Texas kinda used to be that way. Now, they don't even check to see if the head lights aim right. If they light up, they're good.

 

[5.7 hemi]

The ONLY good thing about Ca. is they dont inspect the vehicle....only smog check. But, I'm thinking they should with some of the cars driving around!

I like the delete idea, I sat go for it!

 

[Bruzilla]

It's also a Federal violation to flash the cyclops brake light, but I've seen lots of police vehicles that flash it as part of their rear emergency lights. Florida doesn't have auto inspections so they never get checked down here, but I know they were part of the check up in Maryland because I had to replace one following an inspection up there back in 2004. They also check to make sure all your emissions equipment is there, and I had a 73 Road Runner fail inspection because I had taken the evap canister out!

I don't know if cops are aware enough to even notice the markers would be missing off an older car. I think the bigger problem would be if you sell the car to a buyer who lives in a state where they do inspect and check to make sure they are operational.

But legal or not, I think it's pretty damned foolish to drive around in our cars without them. There's a good reason why they were made mandatory. I popped for the extra bucks to get reflective stripes for my car to make it easier to see at night, and I rank safety ahead of styling trends.