Third Stoplight

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Third brake light, top center

The third brake light , or also the central brake light , is an additional brake light on the car that is mounted in the middle and higher than the two side brake lights . The third brake light currently (as of 2016) usually consists of a red LED strip that shines towards the rear. The third brake light is mandatory for all vehicles in EC vehicle class M1; it is permitted for other multi-lane vehicles.

history

The third brake light was prescribed for new vehicles in the USA as early as 1986. The introduction of the Center High Mounted Stop Lamps (CHMSL) in the USA reduced the number of rear-end collisions by 8.5 percent in the first few years and by 4.3 percent in the following years. On March 18, 1993 (Federal Law Gazette I 361), the 43rd Exemption Ordinance to the StVZO created the possibility of installing an additional central brake light in Germany. The StVZO stipulates (as of 2016) in Section 53 (2) only two brake lights. In December 1997, the Council of Ministers of the European Union decided to prescribe a third brake light for new vehicles to be attached to the rear of passenger vehicles registered for the first time on January 1, 1998. The regulations under ECE-R48 (Section 6.7.2) for the raised brake light apply as UN regulations and thus also in the UNECE member countries. The third brake light must be installed at least 850 mm above the floor or a maximum of 150 mm below the rear window and the light intensity must be between 25 and 110 cd (S 3).

The predecessors of the third brake light were the raised additional brake lights developed by Hella , whose installation in pairs at least 1 m above the road was approved from January 1, 1980. The additional brake lights in the rear of a vehicle never reached series production, but were installed as a mounting kit by around 5 to 6% of the drivers behind the rear window inside the vehicle. Due to Directive 84/8 EEC of December 18, 1983, the type approval could no longer be issued with effect from April 1, 1985.

According to Spiegel , there were massive complaints about the lights popularly known as “puff lamps” or “pensioners' funzeln” , because the additional brake lights on wet roads or fogged windows contributed to a considerable dazzling of the drivers behind. Furthermore, doctors are said to have criticized the fact that in the event of a collision , additional brake lights installed by laymen can develop into a dangerous projectile for people inside the vehicle. The highest court of the Netherlands , the Hoge Raad , in its judgment of January 26, 1982 prohibited the “use of additional brake lights”. German holidaymakers either had to remove the light bulbs from the additional lights at the border crossing or interrupt the contacts.

Web links

Commons : Third Brake Light  - Collection of pictures, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ dpma.de ( Memento of the original from September 16, 2016 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. Brake light (accessed September 11, 2016)  @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.dpma.de
  2. ↑ nhtsa.gov The Long-Term Effectiveness of Center High Mounted Stop Lamps in Passenger Cars and Light Trucks (accessed on September 11, 2016)
  3. ↑ buzer.de 43. StVZOAusnV (accessed on September 11, 2016).
  4. ↑ § 53 StVZO
  5. ↑ dpma.de ( Memento of the original from September 16, 2016 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. Brake light (accessed September 11, 2016)  @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.dpma.de
  6. ↑ dekra.de ( Memento of the original from September 16, 2016 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. (accessed on September 11, 2016)  @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.dekra.de
  7. ↑ 09.12.1997: From 1998 a third brake light is mandatory. In: neue-deutschland.de. Retrieved September 10, 2016 .
  8. ↑ UNECE regulation 7, p. 9 [1]
  9. ↑ hella.com Legal regulations according to ECE regulation 48, p. 17
  10. ↑ Werner D. Bockelmann: Eye glasses car. Chapter: Raised additional brake lights. Springer Verlag 1987, ISBN 978-3-642-93316-5 direct link
  11. ↑ Automobiles: Pest defeated - Der Spiegel 33/1984. In: spiegel.de. Retrieved September 22, 2016 .
  12. ↑ Kai Brauer: Too old? Ageism and Age Discrimination in Labor Markets . 1st edition. VS Verlag für Sozialwissenschaften , Wiesbaden 2010, ISBN 978-3-531-17046-6 , p. 105 .
  13. ↑ Automobiles: Rote Pest - Der Spiegel 17/1981. In: spiegel.de. Retrieved September 10, 2016 .
  14. ↑ zeit.de Auto-Zeit, April 30, 1982. See also [2]