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I was at a car show In Child's Meadows Sunday and this stunning 48 Chevy convertible parked next to me. They said hi and left never to be seen again while I was there.
This car had a attachment on it that was very cool. Made of chromed steel and louvered glass mounted on the dash drivers side, adjustable for height. It looked something like the prism devices that cars of that era had so you could see overhead traffic lights if you were to close to the pedestrian lane or had a sun shield on your car. Don't think it had a prism or antyway to reflect a image from above back to the driver. I thought I had seen most of the gadgets of that era but not that one..... Any Ideas..... Tedd
I think you're right it's a traffic light finder. They were an aftermarket thing made for cars that had a visor over the windshield. You couldn't see the traffic lights if close, so that thing reflected the light so you could see if it was red, green, or yellow.
Wow! Learn something new every day. I wonder if that one was custom made. I never would have thought about the hooded windshield problem. I wonder if it was a GM option back in the day. When I looked for 1948 options I couldn't find anything like that.
I have one in my Cutlass & the hen’s Mini Cooper, it’s a Fresnel Lens. Not the old school style like above, it’s like a thick decal roughly the shape of a finger nail clipping that is stuck (w/ water) to the upper edge of windshield. Called a “Light In Sight.” I like it, no scrunching the neck @ lights that are close over the front of the car.
Does that mean you're stopped halfway through the intersection?
While I do think you are being facetious, I think it has to do with the more vertical windshields of yesterday, and, even worse, the "eaves" that some cars had, causing the issue, more so than modern cars.
Had one on my second car. A 53 Chevy that had a "sun visor". The only way to see a red light with out leaning forward to look over the steering wheel.
With the top up I have problems seeing signal lights in the 55 but modern traffic lights usually have a light at the corners as well as the overhead area. So if I lay on my side like a reptile and squint through the wind wing I can see perfectly well..... Ain't nostalgia neat.... Tedd
Traffic light finder - I have one on my 64. And it works quite well when the top is up and I'm in a small town with traffic lights hung on wires rather than a post.
I've seen/had them way back when. They were on cars when I bought them. Of course I'm a farm boy, not a lot of traffic lights to look at in my normal everyday driving back then.
Does that mean you're stopped halfway through the intersection?
Kenneth you vicious dog you! I live in residential CT & a large number of traffic lights are located on the near side of intersections as opposed to over the middle or even the far side. With our relatively vertical windshields & my beaten up cervical region the view of the light can be iffy especially if there is any downward pitch of the road. I always try to respect stop lines but I can’t declare that I’ve never ended up “nose out” in an intersection!