Topic: What's up with the rear bumper reflectors?

[Railton]

Why do so many newer cars have red reflectors on the far corners of the rear bumper?
I've started noticing it over the last year or so that most new cars have them. It started out I think with just SUV's and vans. I figured they're on there to meet some sort of tail light law on cars with higher tail lights. Is that what it is? Which country has actually regulated this, Japan?
Some manufacturers have integrated them nicely. Others, not so nice. And some, they look like some sort of fish fins or something completely over the top. See examples.
Railton

[quadzilla]

For those people that don't turn on their lights. This way you hopefully catch the reflection off the reflectors.

[EV Dan]

.. or when it breaks down on a side of a road and the driver forgets to turn on emergency lights.

[Railton]

For those people that don't turn on their lights. This way you hopefully catch the reflection off the reflectors.

But aren't the tail lights also reflectors in an 'off' condition?
Which country has driven this -Japan, the USA?
Railton

[EV Dan]

This one seems to have a 2 mode light switch, especially after dusk: 1)everything is completely off 2) ON (the driver knows the lights are on via the blue light indicator on the dash) 

[dkaz]

Because it looks cool. They don't put the reflector in the tail light assemblies as a result.

[rrocket]

Because it looks cool. They don't put the reflector in the tail light assemblies as a result.

Well that and newer LED lenses don't require the reflective Fresnel/reflex optics.

[Railton]

Because it looks cool. They don't put the reflector in the tail light assemblies as a result.

Don't know. Maybe our resident automotive lighting Engineer knows?
Railton

[Trainman]

In Japan, the rear reflector in the Foresters can be optioned as actual lights, which to me makes more sense.  A few members of the Forester forum have ordered the parts and done the conversion, even tying in the turn signals to them.

I am guessing this is a Japan/Europe thing; don't some places require a bright red light for use in foggy conditions?  Send it to NA, save a few bucks on the wiring by putting in a reflector rather than having a NA specific bumper.  My guess.

[johngenx]

Given the growing number of knobs driving with their lights off, thank gawd for rear reflectors.

[Railton]

I noticed on the drive this morning that some new MB products (C, CLA) don't have the reflectors at all.
Pick-ups also seem to be exempt.
Railton

[mlin32]

I am guessing this is a Japan/Europe thing; don't some places require a bright red light for use in foggy conditions?  Send it to NA, save a few bucks on the wiring by putting in a reflector rather than having a NA specific bumper.  My guess.

This has some truth in some cars.

The Ford Kuga/Escape and Mazda CX-5 have their rear foglight in one of the bumper-corner reflectors (left side for LHD countries; right-side for wrong-hand drive countries).

[tpl]

Q5 has a mixture of reflector, reversing light, corner light and rear fog light  in the bumper.

[Mike]

"108 (1) Every passenger car, multi-purpose passenger vehicle, truck, bus, motorcycle and trailer shall be equipped with the lamps, retroreflective devices and associated equipment required by Technical Standards Document No. 108, Lamps, Reflective Devices and Associated Equipment (TSD 108), as amended from time to time."

Every vehicle must have some red reflective surface on the rear of the vehicle. Same as why all our cars need some amber reflector in the front side of the car (why we don't get the cool, cleaner Euro headlight designs). This is about seeing street parked/stranded vehicles as much as people not turning their lights on at night.

As some have said here, many modern tail lamps, especially those with LEDs, do not possess these reflective properties. The extra rear reflector really took off when 'clear' tail lights became all the rage. Some use it for styling, but most its due to the tail lights not have retroreflective devices installed.

[Mike]

This too probably has something to do with it, but damned if I can understand it.

"(10) If reflective material referred to in S5.1.1.4 of TSD 108 is applied to a non-vertical surface, the entrance angle used to demonstrate that the material conforms to the performance standards prescribed by that section shall be the sum of the entrance angle specified in Table 1 or Table 1A of SAE Standard J594f, Reflex Reflectors (January 1977), and the angle, measured on the horizontal centreline of the material, by which the material deviates from the vertical."

[rrocket]

Because it looks cool. They don't put the reflector in the tail light assemblies as a result.

Don't know. Maybe our resident automotive lighting Engineer knows?
Railton

I posted the correct answer just above.

LED tails don't use Fresnel or reflective optics in them. So the little reflectors are used in lieu. So that's why you're seeing this more and more. Also, some cars are sold in global markets and their regs are slightly different. Instead of making a different car for every market, they "best fit" them as much as possible.

The big thing now for us is light pipes. You'll start seeing those en masse soon too.

[jamie1]

Don't really have a problem with reflectors in the bumper, but I don't know what designer thought brake lights or turn light in the rear fascia was a good idea.  Very stupid place IMHO to place these lights.