Ever since I was a kid – perhaps as a result from so many repeated viewings of The Love Bug – I’ve always had a bit of a fetish for taped headlights. It’s a very specific kind of taping: the kind done to cars at racetracks to prevent shards and chunks of broken glass from scattering all over the track if something smacks into the car, or the car smacks into something. I just love the way a bit of tape over headlights can almost instantly give almost any car a more old-school sporting feel!
Seriously, this has to be the cheapest and easiest mod you can make to your car to make it look sportier.
While at Laguna Seca, I got to see so many fantastic examples of taped lights, so I cropped in nice and tight, fetishy-style, on these taped-up lights for all of us to enjoy in whatever manner you see fit, no judgements.
That checker tape up top, on the Ford Cortina! That’s pretty fantastic, isn’t it? Here, let’s look at it again:
So good! And matches the hood!
This Porsche 901 – yes, this car pre-dates Peugeot getting their lingerie in a wad and demanding the name change – looks so at home with taped lights. It just feels right.
Here’s some nice fat gaffer’s tape in a cruciform (as opposed to X) formation on a 356 Speedster, and it looks incredible.
Color is a big deal, and texture; this tape on a Mini has some ribbed texture and a bit of sheen as opposed to a matte tape like the 356; look how different white tape feels on this other Mini:
That lower left leg of tape looks transparent, somehow? What’s going on there? But that white-on-white look sure is classy.
Red! Vivid red, on a yellow Alfa! Ketchup and mustard! A fantastic combo!
These are the only rectangular lights I got a photo of, on a dogbone-grille British Ford Escort, and I think the tape works just as well. It’s determined, plucky, ready!
This tiny 1966 Ginetta G4R was such a fantastic and charming little fighter. I adore this thing. You could put bootleg Hello Kitty stickers on the headlights and it would look fantastic.
Of course, all of this exposure to taped lights gave me the urge to bring this sort of style to our own steed:
It was kind of a joke to only tape up the round section when all of that is breakable, but I think it has a more classic look. Honestly, it’s an improvement!
Oh, and since we’re talking about Laguna Seca, I feel like I should show you this, in case you missed it:
View this post on Instagram
The truth is out there.
If it hasn’t been done already, I’d love to read a Torch deep dive about the Laguna Seca mufflers!
I smell a cover-up! think we need a “Jason Smashes Headlights” video to test whether taping actually does what they claim.
The Porsche GT3 cup cars have a cool headlight pattern that pays tribute to these while still being useful for road racing at night: https://cimg4.ibsrv.net/gimg/rennlist.com-vbulletin/504×334/20221006150601_572e9b760848cf8ed8b14e305396e11aaae89ba8.png
The ones in the Carerra Cup series have stark outlines on them.
I took strips of yellow ppf and made my own for the 944 that match the tint of my foglights. I think they rock, too.
I’m just not into the tape…I just want to rip it off…now if we’re talking about duct taping cars on the Red Green Show, now that is hilarious!
Not my favorite motorcycle (in part because of all the ornamental retro aesthetic nods), but the ducati scrambler must be the only vehicle with OEM faux taped headlights.
Taped lights also don’t look half bad on the Mitsuoka Viewt that races in Lemons:
https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/53949635661_2b0807b1e3_c.jpg
You done been bamboozled, Torch – all them lights are on the fronts of the cars!
Right with ya man.
I’m going to tape my eyeglasses. Should be worth 5 horsepower.
Make sure you use speed tape.
Taped headlights scream “dead eyes, dead car” to me.
I had the same thought, at least on the ones taped in an X configuration. It’s as if they’ve been knocked unconscious (or worse).
I did get a laugh out of taping the Spaztek’s peepers.
I have a car with a largish high-revving motor, solid-mounted, that once had a sealed-beam shatter while just sitting there. Tape would seem like a good idea at times.
BRB putting electrical tape on my W123 headlights. The euro ones, so at least they are actually glass.
I used to subscribe to the theory that headlights are a car’s eyes, but this article has me thinking the headlights are (family site!) a different body part.
If Disney had taped up headlights in a Cars movie I don’t think they would have been able to rate it G
I’m an absolute sucker for this type of semi-functional aesthetic stuff, it’s right up there with hood belt buckles and turned-wood shifters. It serves some purpose, but on a much higher order of magnitude, it looks great.
edit: Also, I’m surprised nobody’s made a 7″ sealed-beam-replacement projector housing with a X-shaped DRL that emulates the tape. It’d be fairly functional, very attractive and Instagram would EAT IT UP.
Ope, looks like they HAVE done it!
Gotta love the way they took the close up view of the unit with its unique reflection, and then photoshopped it into place twice on the angry grille vehicle
Super high-quality stuff. I did see a much more legit-looking unit for motorcycles
I wonder whether they’re too big to retrofit into Racer X’s car
https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/5355b7c8e4b0e0474a3e7a97/1633891739702-BUJ1M1668TLY0RBT9F9B/speed+racer+racer+x.jpg?content-type=image%2Fjpeg
Turn the Laguna Seca track map 90 degrees clockwise and you will realize it is an elephant. The trunk and ear are quite evident.
Laguna Seca is a T-Rex saying Raaar.
https://youtu.be/kiVCbMlXxNM?si=0r9p1sHWEczLy9od
Egyptian pharaoh? Hmm … no, that’s Bart Simpson, dude!
Ummmm, I have a weird, “sensibility” perspective for this topic.
I also think that taped lights look cool; they add that, fuck-you-I’m-coming-from-the-track look and kind of conjure bad assedness. But they’re as poser as the rally tow hooks that are in half your photos (albeit, I suspect that those are actually frame mounted). Most of the guys with their WRXs have a body mounted tow hook that’s about as useless as their go-fast stickers and fresh air intake.
I’m torn on this one as it’s similar to stance on a vehicle, when does fashion outweigh function?
I guess one could argue this one on paint as well; it’s a toughie.
Lastly (I seem to be rambling now), anything impeding my ability to drive or ride at night ain’t worth the fashion; I’m a bike guy and need as much visibility (from other drivers) as possible so I don’t end up as a hood ornament on a semi.
I agree with the poserness of this and with your assessment on the recovery hooks and most the time they are on the front like they some how are just constantly doing 180s and going off the track also they are normally tiny like yeah right that won’t support any weight getting pulled.
On a side note tape over headlights seems like nipple tape to me haha.
Burlesque performers wear pasties that sometimes look like or are tape. That look should crossover to cars. Add tassles to really bring out the fun!
I’m with you, though in fairness, I’ve never seen taped lights on everyday cars driven around at all times – just on vintage stuff like this that’s not exactly making a long haul trip at 10pm.
To your (fascinating) philosophical question, maybe the answer has something to do with what comes from the factory vs. what you add yourself? As in, factory things have to be within the realm of sensibility both for legal and market reasons, so there’s at least some sense of a proportionate cost/benefit there, whereas anything someone adds themselves might employ a much more lopsided calculation?
Real posers tape their pop-up lights.
I see your point, but tape is so easy to add and take off and it is also very cheap so I think this is not such an issue.
You’re supposed to tape them up before they’re broken?
Now they tell me…
Somebody do this to a Cybertruck.
I taped up my headlights so they work less.
(I kid, I know it’s just for track days,)
Bless you!
thanks, now I read this in Mr. Regular’s voice.