1967 with 1968 side markers

[Mark McDonald <tomswift@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Chris,

Thanks for confirming my memory on that.  I was pretty sure it was '68, but I 
couldn't think of the actual number of that act, or standard.

As I understand it, the purpose of the side marker lights is to make cars more 
visible from the side when they are in motion-- since, when a car is parked, it 
usually doesn't pose much danger to anyone.  (Unless it's parked in the middle 
of the road!)  But maybe they were thinking that if some kind of accident 
occured and the car lost power and was sideways in the road, reflectors would 
be better.  I guess you're right, they could have reflectors AND lights, but I'm
guessing that the few extra cents that would require was too much to add to the 
cost of a vehicle (?).

As for Germany, I'm really surprised to hear that, because all the new VWs I've 
seen have a light in the front fender just behind the wheelwell, which I think 
is there to allow pedestrians to know when a vehicle is making a turn.  (This 
is how it was explained to me; a pedestrian walking alongside a car or riding a 
bike beside a car cannot see the turn signals at front or rear-- the side light 
allows them to know the driver's intention to turn.)  Anyway, my point is, if
they're THAT safety conscious over there, why no side marker lights?  (Maybe 
they don't have thre kind of highways we do where people can enter the roadway 
from right angles to the direction of traffic??)

I mean, you really cannot see certain types of cars at night without those 
lights.  Particularly older cars that have small taillights and don't have the 
wraparound headlights.  The fenders conceal the headlights, and at certain 
angles the cars just disappear.  Even the tiny lights on my 68s are kinda 
small, in my opinion.  However, you can't miss the ones on my '71.

As for the high rear brake light, in some circles this is known as the "Dole 
light" because it became law as a result of Sen. Bob Dole (I am pretty sure it 
was him, and not his wife, although I know she was involved).  So here is more 
proof that Sen. Dole did a few good things while he was in Washington!  :)

Getting back to Imperials, I have seen one '65 that had an aftermarket 
reflector on its side that looked pretty decent and accurate for the "period"-- 
but all the other aftermarket stuff I've seen looks too modern to put on an old 
Imperial.  Does anyone know of a manufacturer of old-fashioned looking 
reflectors?  Probably not.  Well, I guess you could install some from a later 
year on your older Imperial . . .

Mark

imperial67@xxxxxxxxxxxxx wrote:

> Yep, Mark, it was model year 1968 that required side markers, part of "FMVSS 
>108," probably the most expansive auto safety standard ever enacted. (That's 
>Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard #108, and it is still in effect.) 108 is 
>why we have collapsible steering columns, recessed switches and interior door 
>handles, anti-glare wipers and many more things we take for granted today.
>
> My point about the 1969 lights was that it would have been so easy to *add* 
>reflectors (for visiblity of parked cars) to the functional side marker lamps, 
>especially since already they knew they'd need both a year later, that it 
>seemed oddly cheap to replace one with the other for one year.
>
> Oddly, 35 years later, the US (well, Canada, too, but many of their motor 
>vehicle regulations are just me-toos of the US laws) is still the only nation 
>requiring side marker lamps. Most (if not all) of Europe not only doesn't 
>require them but for some reason does not even *allow* them. It's very odd 
>driving in Germany at night where none of the cars has side illumination or 
>reflectors... especially considering the stringency of most of their vehicle 
>safety regulations.
>
> And while consumer demand caused most of the world to adopt center 
>high-mounted stoplamps (whose benefits are dubious) within years of their 
>September 1, 1985, requirement on US-market cars, the side marker continues to 
>be completely an American feature (and perhaps the only area in which our 
>cars' lighting is superior to anyone else's).
>
> Chris in LA
>
> -------Original Message-------
> From: Mark McDonald <tomswift@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
>
> And by the way, let's all stop and thank the big ol' Mean Nasty Stupid 
>Fed'ral Guv'mint for them thar side marker lights!  (I think '68 was the first 
>year they were mandated.)  They have greatly cut down on side collisions at 
>night.
>