Different placement of tailights on Euro QV ?

I would only be suspicious if the 2 sides didn't match. That should be an indication that one of Jeff Foxworthy's friends may have worked on the car. Otherwise look inside the engine compartment/inner fenders for any signs of repairs.

Just because it may have been re-painted or had a slight fender bender doesn't make it a bad car. Remember these cars are now old enough to be considered 'Classics'.

Very few are virgins to a body & paint shop. Almost all of the nicest old cars have been re-painted.

 

Here's the deal..the Factory diagrams are correct and they all went in that way in Maranello...

It was COMMON in importing to USA to swap them as DOT accepted that "in lieu of" cutting in the rear side markers.

The requirement was the red had to be visible from the side (running lights, brake lights did not matter).

The wiring looms are all the same and work the lights properly no matter how you put them in, amber outboard is correct per the Owner's Manual diagram....

You are welcome.......all the statements about "Body Shop' confusion are PURE conjecture......

 

BigTex Thanks for the info. I can understand the logic for the U.S. market but 99.99% of the rest of the 308s in the world have the same arrangement. I'm leaning towards the manuals being correct, to miss that much in a proof read (including color graphics) is alittle hard for me to accept (no offence to anyone) Maybe I should view the car as damaged goods at this point and if I buy it then it automatically becomes more rarer and valuable than 99.99% of the rest of the cars out there

 

Well, the manuals on mine from 1976 and 1977 are illustrated in black and white diagrams, so it's two different patterns of Ziptone, and you have to read the Notes........

Amber is outboard....red is inside.

Even today in modern design the AMBER lens must be seen from a side angle, when indicating the manuever.

 

They are held in by three very delicate studs, changing them back to normal is literally a one hour job.....I was just pointing out how they might have been swapped without 'wreck damage' being the cause.

One of my cars the previous owner used to take them out to WAX it.

The plastic clips of the monolithic lens/housing that hold the metal light bridge/lamps are easily broken, I don't mess with mine......expensive mistep, to break one.

 

I am working on my tail lighs, and it seems that most of the studs have been broken off or are just missing. The holes for the studs are broken or missing. Has anyone found a way to put or glue new studs in that works?

 

I have a '79 Euro GTS. Swedish. Ambers Out. Reds In.

 

That is the kind of previous owner I want

 

That's what the Manual for the 1976-77 cars indicated, and on thru the years.

You can put the studs back in with something like JB Weld, but it usually means your plastic base (and the lens its all one piece in the Parts Books) is "on the way out"...

They are actually very easily broken, given the current age of the plastic.

 

Well, he painted a blue car 'red' too.......

In his defense, (he posts here sometimes) actually someone did before his purchase.......must have been crashed early on to justify the expense (and some of the dash bezels look to be heat discolored, so interior fire, as well.

Still interested??

 

I'll wager there are cars out there with red stop lenses that blink whenever they signal a turn.
It doesn't take re-routing wires, it takes human inattention. And that abounds.

The socket for both lenses is identical, adjacent and can be reversed without effort. Each socket fits either lens. And the only clue being the center position of the parking/stop light is unwired, just used to hold a spare bulb. Noting that takes thought.

I've had my lenses out several times for cleaning (simple job) and had to check each time to insure replacing the correct socket in the proper lens each time. On this task, since the bulb socket assembly is the first to come out before removing the holding huts and last to go back in, one must make a conscience effort to note which wiring socket is which, i.e. the wired middle bulb (reverse) goes into the lens with a clear center. Wire length gives no clues of which is which. Without using your head, getting it correct is 50-50, and we're generally talking painter's apprentices here, glue sniffers.

Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard 108 55.1.1 page 242 requires red stop light be outside on trailers but for automobiles the only requirements continues to pertain to size and brightness not position. And turn signals may be red or amber. The other document, "SAE J586, SEP95-Stop Lamps for Use on Motor Vehicles Less Than 2032 mm in Overall Width", doesn't speak to position.

 

A car done that way would be f&*%^(%ed up, the reverse lights (North American) would be under a red lens, citing your example....and braking lamps would show under amber/clear????

 

If I do get the car I'm thinking of putting both red lenses on the drivers side and ambers on the right.

 

I'm buying the beers if you do!!!!!

 

EXCELLENT! My tailight dilemma solved!

 

Am I the only QV owner that finds it amusing that people are looking for perfection in these cars?

 

I think you missed what he meant. Putting the reds on the outside made the red tail lights double as side marker lights, so then they didn't have to cut side markers lights into the sheet metal when importing non-USA cars into the States. "Euro" cars didn't have any rear side marker lights, but the Feds required them.

 

If this helps, mine is an 85' Euro GTS QV
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Nope, mine are red-out, amber-in. They work fine and that is all that matters to me.

There is enough stuff that doesn't work to keep me busy, if it ain't broke don't fix it.

 

I think it's just part of the fun for some people. I like to learn about what's "correct" and original for fun.

I spent about fifteen minutes actually trying to get mine perfect before realizing driving it was way more fun!!!

 

I agree. Not interested in concours, not interested in shows, just give me a nice curvy road on a Saturday morning to forget about the week...

 

+1 " "There Is Enough Stuff That Dosen't Work To Keep Me Busy,"
"If It Ain't Broke Don't Fix IT"

 

Some of you guys are missing the point of the entire thread, I'm not trying to be anal or amuse you, I'm trying to determine weather or not the lights are positioned correctly or if they were removed at some point due to impact and if in fact it warrants $2200 in airfare to go check out. So far it sounds like they came from the Factory that way and were shipped to certain markets, would be nice to know which ones just for knowing.

 

Orange should be on the outside. When I bought mine they were reversed. They were installed wrong by the painter when it was restored. I have seen a bunch put on wrong after painting.
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Your car looks great, did you cut out the Shelby grills on the quarter windows?