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3rd Brake Light

S

SuperRoo

NAXJA Forum User
Location
London, UK (formerly OZ)
Just a quickie, wondered if anyone has fitted a later (97+) 3rd brake light to the hatch of an earlier model? Mine by the way mine is an 1988 model
Cheers,
:confused:
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1988 Cherokee Laredo 4WD auto
 
You'd be better off finding one from a 94-96, as they were fitted inside the glass, and not ontop of the hatch...

I would imagine it to be easy, just splice the wires to the brakelights.
 
The 97+ lamp fixture is constructed at an angle to match the angle of the 97+ tailgate. I don't think you could make it fit very well on the older Cherokees.

The 3rd brake lamp on some General Motors mini-vans and SUV's is LED and surface mounts with 2 screws or some adhesive tape. It would be very simple to attach one to the top of the tailgate.
 
As stated, the 94-96 had them, they just screw into the hatch through holes in the panel. Drill some holes and run a wire from one of the brake lights

I'm actually in the process of swapping hatches (cracks in my '91) and having to mess with the wiring now. It's not hard.
 
Thanks guys,

I was thinking of the later version because 1). I prefer its more modern look, compared to the earlier version, 2). I haven't seen the earlier type either on the road nor in the bone-yard over here in the UK.

As for the 1994-96 type, behind my hatch interior panel is a blue lead with black plug iirc, I thought that was the lead for the 3rd light option?
Otherwise, what would it be used for?

Mine was originally from California according to the emissions label, if that makes any difference.
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1988 Cherokee Laredo 4WD auto
 
That lead could be for the rear wiper option, unless yours already has a wiper. That would leave the rear hatch speakers as the only other wiring possibility. I know there are plenty of 88 vehicles on the road with factory 3rd brake lights, but I don't think AMC was prepping XJ's for them. I could be wrong.
 
xj88superjeep said:
That lead could be for the rear wiper option, unless yours already has a wiper. That would leave the rear hatch speakers as the only other wiring possibility. I know there are plenty of 88 vehicles on the road with factory 3rd brake lights, but I don't think AMC was prepping XJ's for them. I could be wrong.
Click to expand...
Already have a rear wiper and the panel is kitted out with what looks to be the original factory speakers (their replacement is still on my to-do list) but they sound reasonable for their age.
 
All you need to do is splice into the 2 wires that go to one of the brake lamp bulbs. You can inspect the brake bulb socket and determine the wire colors there. The wires go from the tail lamp assembly to the interior of the Cherokee, behind the plastic trim panels. Look for the same color coded wires you see at the stop lamp. Run some extensions from there to your new 3rd brake light fixture.
 
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