Quality of Aftermarket VS Stock tail lights

[justsomeguy]

Looking at the aftermarket tail lights for Astros on eBay and on retailer's websites, some look to be better quality than others. It looks like some of them (usually the ones that use regular bulbs) do not make the SIDE light up - the peanut bulb seems to go into a socket that points straight back, like the tail light and turn signal bulb above it. That would mean there is NO red light visible from the side of the van anymore. And some of those tail lights look like they might not even have a reflector on the side, so they would not even be DOT compliant. But I think most do - either a round red reflector or a thin vertical reflector.

And when it comes to LED tail lights, I also wonder if the side lights up. I've searched long and hard for pictures and videos showing this on an Astro, but I cannot find one that will confirm this. Some of the pictures are good, and clearly show a reflector and light for the side, so they're probably DOT compliant. But what worries me even more is that some brands of LED are dim, or the contrast between the running light and the brake or turn signal is not very big.

Recently I was behind a mid-2000s Ford pickup with aftermarket LED tail lights, at night. Those tail lights looked fine with the running lights on, but when he braked and put his turn signal on, the difference in brightness was very minimal. Even the stock incadescent bulbs would have been brighter. Compared to vans that come stock with LED tail lights, like the new Dodge Grand Caravan, the difference between running light and brake/turn signal is very noticeable.

I'd appreciate hearing from anyone who has bought any sort of aftermarket tail light, whether LED or those that use regular bulbs. What was the quality like? Was the fit and finish good? Did the lights ever get moisture in them? I don't want to compromise safety for looks. Thanks!

[TDMobile]

In most cases, you'll be compromising safety for looks. Even the better brand name aftermarket tail lights (and headlights for that matter) lack in quality to keep prices reasonable, and most do not offer or very seldom honor a warranty.

I would never put aftermarket lights on any vehicle that were needed for safety reasons...ever.

[Shad0wXCalibur]

I have the black altezza taillights. I haven't had them for a full month yet but its been raining nonstop and no moisture or condensation inside yet. They didn't fit flawlessly but I didn't have to cram them or cut them or anything. The screw holes were ever so slightly off but they went in and look great. They seem even brighter than the factory lights.

[justsomeguy]

In most cases, you'll be compromising safety for looks. Even the better brand name aftermarket tail lights (and headlights for that matter) lack in quality to keep prices reasonable, and most do not offer or very seldom honor a warranty.

I would never put aftermarket lights on any vehicle that were needed for safety reasons...ever.

That's what I was worried about. I thought that maybe some of the more expensive LED tail lights would be better, or at least as good as stock. I'm sure in some ways they are, but in some ways they're not. I've seen some pretty cheap quality lights (tail lights, head lights, signal lights) on various cars, trucks and vans. Some seem OK, but some are obviously inferior quality. Not to mention, the fit and finish could be worse, sometimes they get moisture in them, etc.

I've been thinking of doing a VERY light tint of VHT night shades (like just a very subtle job, just one notch darker). Kind of like how Kenny did it on his Buick and on his Astro. Or maybe I'll use some thin black pinstripes. To compensate for the slightly darker lenses, I'll install high quality LED bulbs which will be brighter than stock bulbs. Or maybe I should just install the LED bulbs into the stock tail lights and stop at that. I just want it to look a bit different even when the lights aren't on.

I just want to have good looking tail lights, that are bright, well visible with lights on or with reflectors and with good fit and finish.

[justsomeguy]

I have the black altezza taillights. I haven't had them for a full month yet but its been raining nonstop and no moisture or condensation inside yet. They didn't fit flawlessly but I didn't have to cram them or cut them or anything. The screw holes were ever so slightly off but they went in and look great. They seem even brighter than the factory lights.

That's encouraging! I'd hate to compromise safety for looks, so I have to ask, do they have reflectors on the side and well as the side that faces back? And when you turn the running lights on, does the side light up, or just the back part? And what brand did you get? Thanks!

[paintdrying]

Call the dealer and see how much lights are. Sometimes they are not that bad.
It seems to vary from car to car, I generally stay away from anything after market. One for quality and two for the fact that I do not like those dressed up style aftermarket lights. Some look more stylish, but for the most part i prefer stock.

[Shad0wXCalibur]

Yes, they do have side and rear reflectors. And I checked the lights from the side and it does visibly light up from the "peanut" parking light. The description did say certified when I bought them. They seem to have all the safety features.

The listing didn't give a brand but the lights say Sonar on them which is a common aftermarket light company. You can tell which ones they are because the reflector part of the reverse light is just black plastic. Its not an issue with me. Anyone could still clearly see you have it in reverse and I have fog lights on the back bumper to help me see backing up at night.

Here's an up close pic.

[TDMobile]

There is always something you can do to dress the factory lights. I would be very careful with Night Shades....Two coats can make a perfectly new mustang tail light look like this:

[94 Van Guy]

I bought some aftermarket LED rear lights. They fit well, no problems with moisture after 1.5 years. I will take some pics after it gets dark and check for the side lighting and get back.

I do know that they have an excellent contrast between park and break lights. The wife says the break lights are much brighter than the stock were.
They are the same kind that "chevy57bert" has.

Stay tuned for more details,

Keith

[justsomeguy]

ShawdowXCalibur, those look good. I like the top half better than the bottom half though. Those would probably look good on my dark blue van too. I'd love to open them up and paint the black part the body color, but probably risk breaking the light if I did that. Now that I know they light up from the side and have reflectors on the side too, I'll keep those in mind. I Googled it and found a website selling them - looks just like yours.

TDMobile, yeah those Mustang tail lights are waaaay too dark for my liking. Must have been two VERY heavy coats of Nightshade. Our fellow member Kenny did two very light coats, and the lights are still red, just a slightly darker shade of red, like a very light tint. I'd go for that, and install high quality, very bright LED bulbs to compensate for the light tint. It would probably be darker that stock bulbs on untinted factory tail lights. I'll have to get a set from the junk yard to practice on.

94 Van Guy, I found some pics of chevy57bert's tail lights. There's a short video on YouTube of someone (seems to be an member here) who has those too. But the video was done during the day and doesn't show how it looks from the side. I've seen those tail lights for sale online. If there's an identical set in red (instead of black) I might consider them. Lots of red/clear LED tail lights, but if that same manufacturer makes a red version of what you have, I might buy them.

EDIT: I see the pics now. thank you for posting those showing the back and side views. Much better pics than on any of the websites or eBay listings selling those lights! I'm not too crazy about the round reflectors, but otherwise looks good. I'd prefer red and clear instead of black and clear, but that might look good on my dark blue van.

I just want something that looks good, a bit different than stock, and that performs as well or better than stock.

[94 Van Guy]

I am still waiting for the sun to go down.

[justsomeguy]

I am still waiting for the sun to go down.

Great, thanks! Yeah, I see you're in Utah, so the sun will set about two hours later for you than it does for me here in the Eastern time zone.

No rush, whenever you have a chance for night pics that would be great. I'd love to see them, and I'm sure some other members would too. I'm not in a huge rush to get my tail lights, but in the next month or two I would like to. For now I'm working on something for the front.

[94 Van Guy]

Here they are. The drive slops down on a steep angle so the lights don't show as if you were behind on the same plane.

Brighter than stock and very red from the side.
Sorry no pic.

Hope this helps,
Keith

[TDMobile]

That is a huge difference!

[justsomeguy]

Definitely looks bright to me! Thanks for taking those pictures, as well posting those other pics earlier.

[TDMobile]

Justsomeguy - i would still be weary of aftermarket lights. Ive seen even "good" brands with condensation in both sides or even more ridiculous, one side gets water and the other is a perfect seal.

[justsomeguy]

Yeah, I'm really torn with so many choices. Maybe I'll still do an ultra light tint with vht nightshades (and I mean really light) on my OEM taillights and install high quality, very bright led bulbs. It's tempting to go with some of those nice looking, and supposedly good quality aftermarket lights though.

[TDMobile]

It's your van, you control it's destiny. No one can dictate what you can and can't do with your van but you, I'm just on the side of modifying what you have rather than replacing it with potentially lower quality parts - you'll find out in a year or two if they're good or no good...not something an investor would do with millions of dollars when investing in a small business startup...

[94 Van Guy]

justsomeguy, You are most welcome. Good luck with your lights.

Keith

[paintdrying]

A year or two? Many of the aftermarket lights I got fogged up the first rain fall. The Honda forums are a good place to go looking for answers on aftermarket lighting. Do not expect anyone to answer your posts, but their is good info within.
Many write ups on darkening your lights.