The Rabbit goes legal :D

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Around here a quick way to get stopped late at night is to have no license plate light. When I picked the Rabbit up from paint a few months we riveted the new plate onto the bumper and forgot about it. Somehow I've managed to make some 6000+ miles without drawing un-needed notice. I decided I was pushing my luck. So today I checked out the selection at Napa and settled on a couple hole mounted lights because they were cheap.  I whipped out a plate design in cad based on the 1-1/4" mounting holes and the 6x12 plate size. I then cut it out of some scrap 1/8 aluminum plate on the plasma. That was the easy part. I then had to wire it up. I soldered a ground unto each lamp because the bumper it mounts to is plastic. The  wiring was easy until I found a short in the lights behind the Diesel placard.  Some tape and a new fuse I was back in business. Now I'll likely get stopped for having license plate lights that are too bright. If you'd like to see the whole car I posted a photo a while back:http://weldingweb.com/showpost.php?p...11&postcount=6 Attached ImagesLast edited by forhire; 08-29-2013 at 10:53 PM.
Reply:Looks good.Now fix that bumper on the right side. I had one of these on the tailgate of my truck when I done the rollpan. Worked real well. http://www.autozone.com/autozone/acc...er=873393_0_0_If you cant fix it with a hammer, it must be an electrical problem."Boy, everyone starts with a full bag of luck and an empty bag of experience. The trick is to fill the bag of experience before the bag of luck is empty."-Grandad circa 1990ish
Reply:Looks good to me.    Reminds me of when I was pulled over on the beach..because one of my license plate lights was out. Cop was just being a d***.. Airco Ac/Dc 300 HeliwelderMillerMatic 200 (stolen)Miller Maxstar 150STLMiller AEAD200LE (welding and generating power) Hobart MIG
Reply:license plate light is probable cause to stop for DUIVantage 500's LN-25's, VI-400's, cobramatics, Miller migs, synch 350 LX, Powcon inverters, XMT's, 250 Ton Acurrpress 12' brake, 1/4" 10' Atlantic shear,Koikie plasma table W/ esab plasmas. marvel & hyd-mech saws, pirrana & metal muncher punches.
Reply:A scratch in the paint is probable cause....lol... just depends on the mood and experience of the on duty Officer.seabee78
Reply:what kinda mileage ya getting? I had a teacher who drove one of those and lived in town, I don't think he burned a whole tank that year driving to work.
Reply:Originally Posted by 7A749All I see is another excuse to fabricate something totally useful & overbuilt for your awesome fuel sipping automobiles. Another job well done man!!!
Reply:It looks good! That's a very smart idea.PlasmaCam CNC cutterLathe and Band SawClamps
Reply:Nice job, Forhire. Is it just the camera angle or is white light being show to the rear? If so a definite No No in the UK.Lincoln SP-170 MigHypertherm powermax 45Lorch T220 AC/DC TigButters FM 215 synergic MigKemppi 180 adaptive mig RULES ARE FOR THE OBEDIENCE OF FOOLS AND THE  GUIDANCE OF WISE MEN.
Reply:I have always wanted a volkswagen, hopefully one day.Here's a member of my car clubs (Scikotics) rabbit. For all my electrical projects I go to superbrightleds.com.They have quality products and best of all cheap!
Reply:Seems to me it was about $16- $17.If you cant fix it with a hammer, it must be an electrical problem."Boy, everyone starts with a full bag of luck and an empty bag of experience. The trick is to fill the bag of experience before the bag of luck is empty."-Grandad circa 1990ish
Reply:Originally Posted by surfsideIt looks good! That's a very smart idea.
Reply:They still have Rabbits out there?  Haven't seen one of them on the road for years. No salt on the roads out there?Hard to find a good Jetta or Golf around here."The reason we are here is that we are not all there"SA 200Idealarc TM 300 300MM 200MM 25130a SpoolgunPrecision Tig 375Invertec V350 ProSC-32 CS 12 Wire FeederOxweld/Purox O/AArcAirHypertherm Powermax 85LN25
Reply:Nice job !  I have to chuckle on the license plate light ticket.  The local revenue enhancement agents got on that kick a couple of years ago.  They were writing 4-8 $50 dollar pus court cost tickets a night.  One night they pulled over one of the local shop owners and wrote him a ticket.  He showed up with his lawyer and a copy of the Missouri Department of Revenue Vehicle Inspectors Manual.  In the manual it clearly states what lights must be working and for license plate lights it clearly states that failure to function is not cause for rejection.  The judge tossed the case and all the other pending ones with orders to the Pillsbury Doughboy look a likes to not write any more of those tickets.As for the white light to the rear question?  Most license plate lamps are a maximum of 4CP.  The regs I am familiar with refer to white light being "projected" to the rear of the vehicle meaning more than a glow and excluding cracked or broken tail light lenses.It all goes by location with no two states being the same.RogerOld, Tired, and GRUMPYSalesman will call, Batteries not included, Assembly is required, and FREE ADVICE IS WORTH EXACTLY WHAT YOU PAY FOR IT!Dial Arc 250HFThunderbolt 225 AC/DCAssorted A/O torches
Reply:And they are good "back up" lights
Reply:If you want them less bright you can wire them in series so each bulb will get 6 volts. The only down side is that if one bulb goes bad, both will go out. On the plus side, at the lower voltage they will likely last the life of the car.I've always understood that the light from the lamps had to project across the plate and not back toward following drivers.I too have not seen a Rabbit on the road in many years. Your's looks really nice.CharleyMiller MM252Miller Bobcat 225NTMiller DialArc HF / DIY Cooler2 Victor O/A TorchsetsMilwaukee 8" Metal SawMilwaukee Dry Cut "Chop" Saw 5 Ton Wallace Gantry Various Grinders, Benders, etc.
Reply:Originally Posted by noriteThey still have Rabbits out there?  Haven't seen one of them on the road for years. No salt on the roads out there?Hard to find a good Jetta or Golf around here.
Reply:I think the lights you bought were designed to be mounted like the ones in the picture so that the angled part of the bumper makes the shielded part effective.JasonMillermatic 200Hobart Handler 120Victor O/A & Ramco BandsawLincoln 225 ACSnapOn AD HoodMiller XMT304/22AHypertherm Powermax 1650 G3Lincoln Idealarc DC600 w/Extreme 12 VSMiller Digital Elite "Joker"
Reply:Originally Posted by RaptorDunerI think the lights you bought were designed to be mounted like the ones in the picture so that the angled part of the bumper makes the shielded part effective.
Reply:looks good those heckblendes are sweet! makes me miss my old one
Reply:Originally Posted by chrisbmx68looks good those heckblendes are sweet! makes me miss my old one
Reply:I live in pottstown it was probably me I used to get up to the Leigh valley area a fair amount.  Fairly sure its no longer functional and lives in Colorado now.
Reply:Originally Posted by tackitRaptor can you post pics of your Jeep?  it looks really nice from the back.
Reply:A few days ago I removed my temporary tape and tin solution. I ended up cutting down the plastic cap from some starting fluid and attaching it to the lens with a dab of silicon to form a visor. Looks ok. The light isn't as bright as it was with the sheet metal cover because it was reflective but it's enough. At least I'm legal.