As you may know, I have a complex relationship with the first-generation Volkswagen Tiguan. I own a 2010 Tiguan, which is my most “modern” car and, un-coincidentally, my wife’s primary car. I actually enjoy driving it and think it’s well-designed, an ideal size, and has a really pleasant interior. It’s also an unmitigated steaming pile of crap, electro-mechanically, with the check engine light on nonstop, which sort of compensates for the fact that none of the interior dome lights work. I’ve already poured way too much money into this steaming pile, what with the massive timing chain failure and then a positive crankcase ventilator issue that blew out the rear main seal, and a bunch of other little things. But whatever, she still likes the car, and if you ignore all the warning lights, it actually drives fine now, which frees me up to get annoyed by other, smaller issues.
In this case, the issue started out with the infotainment screen/head unit, but led me to the taillights. I know that’s a journey nearly across the whole car, but I promise you it’ll make sense in a moment, even if VW’s taillight design here makes no sense to me at all.
Everything started when the head unit died, leading to a period where the car was making these really confusing thwonk sounds through the speakers. I promised Sally that I’d replace the broken head unit with a new one, and one that also supported Apple CarPlay, which she really wanted in the car. Like so many people do, which makes the decisions of certain major carmakers so very confusing. But that’s beside the point; the point is the head unit was dead and needed to be replaced.
Happily, there are a lot of cheap, decent Android-powered head units that support CarPlay and Android Auto out there in the world, including ones that are an exact fit for the dash of this era Tiguan. I bought this one for about $110, and so far it’s been great; I’ll have a bigger story about it soon, because it’s also a ridiculous machine and that’s worth exploring more.
The unit fit in just fine and connected to the car’s CAN bus pretty easily. Well, except for one thing: the reverse camera. A working reverse camera is very important to Sally, so I needed to get that going. It would not connect to the built-in one, but it had an add-on backup camera I was able to install.
And here’s where we get to the taillight part.
So, the camera wants, like we all do, 12V to function. My initial thought would be the smartest way to get that 12V would be to splice off the backup light/reverse lamp 12V line, because I only need the camera to power up when the car is in reverse, so that seems ideal!
Now I’m going to show you how I ended up getting 12V to the camera, and you can decide for yourself if tapping off the reverse lamp worked out:
Yep, I ended up pulling 12V from the rear power socket. It works, but it’s hardly ideal. I mean, we don’t really use that outlet very often, and it’d be easy to pull it out if we ever did need to use it, but the bigger problem was that the camera thoughtfully came with four built-in white LED lights that are about as bright as four tiny white dwarf stars, so that means this quartet of blinding light is now burning nonstop at the back of the car.
I eventually had to cover them with red tape to change their color to a one legal to be showing at the back of the car and to reduce their intensity from “blinding” to just “oddly bright.” People behind the car don’t need to be blinded, at least not all of them, right?
So, you’re likely wondering now what went wrong? Why didn’t I just use the backup light wires as I was planning? I mean, first-gen Tiguan taillight bulbs and wires aren’t hard to get to; you just open a panel in the luggage compartment or on the tailgate, and you can access the back of the taillight unit, right? And isn’t that the reverse light right there, the white lens on the inner section of the taillight?
I mean, it should be, based on the design logic of this taillight: from outside in, there’s a red outer ring for brake and tail, there’s an inner ovoid section with an amber bulb for the turn indicator, then there’s another outer red ring for more taillight, and what looks like a corresponding inner ovoid that looks like it should be the white/clear reverse lamp.
But it isn’t. In fact, it’s nothing. The actual reverse lamp is down in the bumper:
That little reverse light in the bumper I had forgotten about, but eventually I remembered that, for some unfathomable reason, VW decided to put the reverse lamps down there. Okay, I thought, I guess I’ll just tap the 12V line from one of those back-up lights! And then I actually tried, and that’s when I realized that to get access to those lights, if you had to, say, change a burned-out bulb, this is how you have to do it:
You’re taking the whole fucking bumper skin off.
This person had to take the rear wheels off, too:
This is absolutely ridiculous. Light bulbs are consumables, and should be easy to change. You shouldn’t have to take off two wheels and an entire body section just to change out two tiny bulbs! This is hideous design, a design that feels like it has genuine contempt for people trying to do any bit of work on their own, even for something as minor as a bulb change. I can’t explain how much decisions like this piss me off.
So, no, I wasn’t going to go through the hassle of taking off the whole damn bumper just to get access to the reverse light 12V line. I guess if I wanted to devote the better part of a Saturday to this, I could have but you know what? Fuck whatever cruel engineers and designers thought this was okay! I’m not going to play their stupid little game, I’m not giving them the satisfaction.
And all of this leads to what I think is a very valid question:
Why the hell isn’t that area in the taillight already, the part that looks like a back-up light, why the hell isn’t that just the back-up light, one where you could get to the bulb easily and quickly! The existence of that strange silverly egg in the taillight that does fuck-all just makes this decision feel all the more contemptuous because it’s not like there was even any stylistic or design reason to do this! There is already something that visually looks like a reverse light there! What was gained by shoving it down there in the bumper, where you can only get to it via major surgery?
I just can’t with this. It’s such a baffling and needless design choice, something so free of logic or reason, something that spits in the face of kindness; it goes far beyond just a taillight design decision. This is the sort of design choice that affects people’s lives for the worse. This sounds hyperbolic, but think about it: the designers could have easily made that dummy section of the taillight the reverse lamp, with no visual changes, and people could have replaced that bulb easily.
As it was designed, though? Most owners would end up having to go to the dealer or a shop to replace a simple bulb, and that takes time and money, all for no good reason. Whatever this sort of owner-contemptuous design is, we need to be vocal about how much it sucks, and we need to stop buying cars that embrace it. This feels needless and even cruel, and I want it to just stop.
If there’s a VW designer or engineer who can defend this choice, I’m all ears. Until then, I’m just going to be mad some more.
Wait until you have to replace the water pump. I bought a 2010 for my son and his wife because it only had 64,000 miles on it, about 3 months later the water pump went out. It was two days of hell taking the entire front and top of the engine off to get to it, only to have the sensor that screws into it go out 3 days later. Be warned!!
This makes me very happy to still have my Mazda 5. Two easily accessible bolts and the whole light assembly comes right off. That made swapping the lights in there to LEDs much easier.
Jason, I used to get mad at it too. Relax and get that blood pressure back down. I came to my own inner peace with the fact that modern “products” are not designed to be repaired, they are designed to be replaced. Yes, complicated and expensive ones can have a limited amount of repairs completed by a skilled “service technician” who will suffer all the ills of the not-easily-accessed parts. But those repairs tend to favor dealers and shops that have (paid) access to the corporate manuals, software patches, special tools, etc.
In this late-stage of capitalism and corporate greed, most consumers are merely trying to eke out a living and keep a roof over their heads. They don’t have the time to even look up how to repair something, let alone actually perform the repair.
Keep them working, keep them in debt, keep them obedient to the corporate elite that rules them all.
Sorry, I just watched Fellowship of the Ring again recently. There are many quotes that apply to 2025.
Like you our fleet is all old cars, with the exception of my wife’s 2022 Civic Si. I am braced for the time when it needs something that neither myself nor my indy mechanic can handle.
I find it amazing that VW’s incompetence still seems to surprise you…
Some sort of battered person syndrome going on there?
I rented a 2nd gen Tiguan, not by choice, in Utah in 2018, but it was pleasant to drive and remarkably economical. 33 mpg overall for a trip from SLC to Moab and then all the way down to Zion and back to the airport. So, mostly freeway miles.
I didn’t have to change any bulbs. But VWOA is dead to me anyway after my dealings with them years earlier with my ’01 Jetta TDI. So, I guess this comment is pointless.
Maybe try this? Quick Splice. Left backup lamp is black with a blue stripe. Right one is grey with a white stripe.
Or see this thread for comprehensive discussion of tapping circuit C12 under the dash.
Love you Jason, but there are much better ways to do this.
Also, maybe switch to stainless screws instead of drywall ones?
Those wire splices are evil, and should be banished to the shadow realm. They create a perfect unsealed point for corrosion to begin to enter the wiring, working its way under the insulation in both directions, causing intermittent faults and wiring problems. Then, because the corrosion has worked out along the wire, it isn’t as simple as removing the splice and throwing some heat shrink on it, you have to cut out a decent chunk of wire and replace it.
I don’t love them either and you make excellent points, but they do have their use cases. Our pop-up camper uses lots of them and they have been fine for over a decade. However, I used them in my cargo trailer and some are indeed dodgy. Although, that was probably because I used them on course stranded THHN which is not very compatible. I have found they work well enough on most finer stranded wire with flexible enough insulation.
That said, while they aren’t ideal, and certainly not for use at all in wet areas, I still think that in JT’s case they would work well enough for tapping a wire inside the vehicle. Anyway, I think quick splices would work better than the cigarette plug and I’m sticking to that story.
You have the US Govt to shake your fist at:
Under U.S. federal regulation FMVSS 108 (Standard No. 108), a backup (reverse) lamp must be mounted on a rigid part of the vehicle (i.e., a fixed body panel) and not on a moving body section (such as a tailgate or liftgate) that is designed to open/close.
It’s possible that in other countries, the reverse light IS in that tailgate cluster.
This.
Same with ECE regulations from 2006 or 2007 onward.
When did this law come into effect? There are plenty of cars with reverse lights mounted to the trunk or tailgate. Here’s a 2025 RAV4 with the reverse lights clearly mounted to the opening tailgate: https://images.hgmsites.net/med/2025-toyota-rav4-hybrid-xse-awd-gs-angular-rear-exterior-view_100961626_m.webp
You are very correct. 🙂
And yet there are white reflectors on the fixed body panel right next to those fake ones on the liftgate.
It seems we have a misunderstanding. The code actually does permit tailgate mounting
.
S7.6 Backup lamps.
S7.6.1 Number. See Table I-a and S6.1.1.
S7.6.2 Color of light.
S7.6.2.1 See Table I-a.
Said table only requires that it be mounted “On the rear”, but that’s it.
The rigid requirement comes in here:
S6.1.3 Mounting location.
S6.1.3.1 Each lamp, reflective device, and item of associated equipment must be securely mounted on a rigid part of the vehicle, other than glazing, that is not designed to be removed except for repair, within the mounting location and height limits as specified in Table I, and in a location where it complies with all applicable photometric requirements, effective projected luminous lens area requirements, and visibility requirements with all obstructions considered.
How could you not buy a head unit with this title?
Android Car Stereo for VW Volkswagen Seat Golf Passat Jetta Beetle Tiguan Touran EOS 7” Double Din Touchscreen Bluetooth Radio with Apple CarPlay Android Auto GPS Navigation WiFi FM Backup Camera MIC
I can’t remember which VW it was of the several I’ve owned, but one or two of them required removal of the 12V battery in order to replace the bulb for the left side headlight, which seemed to blow more often than it ought. It was a PITA, albeit a mild one I suppose if you don’t suffer from back problems like I do. Also worth remembering (I never did) was that the stock stereo head unit would become inoperable after disconnecting the battery, requiring a code to be entered to use it again (an antitheft thing). Of course, I never had the code when needed.
On a positive note, at least it was possible to just replace the bulb on those cars, usually for about $15., rather than spending one or two mortgage payments on a new headlight assembly, as is the case with some modern cars.
Great article. Taillights Monthly hasn’t reported on this at all, I’m thinking of canceling my subscription.
Taillights Weekly did. They also had a comprehensive solution to this very problem that should take anyone able to fog a mirror no more than 5 minutes with a pair of child safe scissors, some dryer lint and a glue stick.
I’d give you a link but their pay wall is formidable.
They truly are designed by sadists for masochists. Check out the new Beetle tail light bulb change. There’s a small door in the cargo area that every other company would use to access the bulb, but not VW, that just leads to a hack-looking accordion aluminum mount. No, you have to remove the unit from the fender, but how? You can take off the rear wheel and liner and do it that way, which I think is the official fix or you can carefully pry it out of the plastic fender, hopefully without damaging paint or anything and I doubt there would be too many times you could get away with it without breaking something or at least scratching it. Eh, that’s OK, though, tail lights last, what 10+ years? That era of VW, it was rare to see one ovcer 6 months old without at least one light out (the plastic part of the headlight connectors would also crumble into dust after a short time). One could go on all day about the dumb shit you’ll find with a VW. They’re complete junk and it’s not even like they’re great to drive, so I do not understand why people buy them. Defenders will come in with “mine was fine for 60k miles! It only needed a transmission and a couple of small electrical faults, but they were covered under warranty.”
My Focus ST needed the front bumper cover removed to replace the foglight housing (smashed by a rock), but it was actually a pretty quick job. My GR86, too, I had to remove the rear bumper cover a few times while installing the hitch and I had it down to probably 15 minutes or so. Doesn’t need to be removed to replace lights, though (the reverse light is in a housing in the bottom of the cover, but is part of a separate piece that can be removed on its own). The reverse light is flanked by a pair of red reflectors that are fog lights or aux brake lights in other markets. Because people choose to modify them to light up, someone made a plug-in harness that goes inline between the tail lights and body with all the splices labeled for every light. It’s overkill for a brake/fog light conversion, but was awesome for wiring the utility trailer. I got one for each side and installed a second set of trailer lights so I have full lighting using two sets of standard 4-pin connectors because these stupid 4-pins are only meant for vehicles with combined brake/tail lights in the 2020s.
The ECE regulations stipulate that the vital lamps (turn signal indicators, brake, night illumination, and reverse) have to be affixed to the immovable part of the vehicle. The lamps on the tailgate don’t meet that regulations.
Look at Opel Insignia Sport Touring. The entire taillamps are affixed to the tailgate, but, wait, you see the second set of taillamps when the tailgate is lifted up. Same with Audi Q3: it has second set of taillamps on the bumper that are activated when the tailgate is lifted up.
Q5 as well, but I can say that they’re at least easier to change than the Tiguan. Those little squares under the lights pop off to access a screw that holds the fixture in. The screw’s at a very weird angle and it’s hard to get a driver on it, but it’s the only thing that you have to do.
One of many routinely stupid design choices that keeps me away from VAG products.
They make the odd stupid design choices on Fords seem almost logical… such as my recent experience with changing the engine air intake filter on my C-Max… where Ford idiotically integrated that filter with the engine cover:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NfGHQTTG-KY
Changing the filter wasn’t that hard overall… but harder compared to every car I’ve owned previously… including Fords.
And I thought the wrist-shredding needed to change one of the rear bulbs in my V70 was bad.
Just went through this myself with my XC70. Very annoying, but at least the car stays in one piece while you’re doing it…
Very, very true. I used to bribe friends with smaller hands to do it, of course lining up the stupid tabs on the socket was another problem in and of itself…
I had to replace the bulb holder on mine to get it to pass inspection- somehow the contacts on the socket had worn out so even changing the bulb wouldn’t fix it. I only realized this *after* going through a couple of bulbs and sitting there wondering why it wouldn’t light up… I got pretty good at it by the end.
Reminds me of Ford’s “Better Idea” ad campaign…
Is it legal in the USA to have the reverse light in the tailgate/trunklid where it would be invisible if you put the car in reverse with the tailgate open?
The outer lens would be fine though.
This was my thought, with the hatch open the reverse lights would not be pointing in a useful direction. I absolutely get Jason’s frustration with VWs solution thought. I’ve owned multiple hatchbacks, and the reverse lights were always in the outer lenses, not the lights in the hatch itself, for I believe; the same reason.
Both of you guys are correct regarding the operation or safety lights having to be on a fixed part of the car. It’s only in recent times starting with I think Lucid where they put lights on a movable part of the liftgate, and also had backup lights fixed within the flanges of the rear D/C ring of the liftgate. That also has a ton more engineering cost than a simple $5 part stuck in some plastic.
ECE regulations don’t allow this…
Dammit… so much for my desire to use my hatch to put light on my garage ceiling!!!
The Mk5 Golf had similar taillights to Jason’s Tiguan with the reverse lights on the hatch
Golf Mk5 was grandfathered in when the ECE regulations were updated in 2006 or 2007 (I can’t remember exactly the year).
Golf Mk5 – 2003–2010
Q3 Mk1 – 2011–2018
Q5 Mk1 – 2008–2017
Insignia Mk1 – 2008–2017
So the tiguan just missed the cutoff. That makes sense
Peugeot: We’re going to put the windscreen washer bottle right behind the headlights on the 206, so it blocks access to the bulb.
Also Peugeot: We’ll make the spout of the washer bottle detachable, so you can actually access the bulbs. De rien.
The French tend to be far more clever in their engineering than they are usually given credit for.
My favorite example was the weirdly shaped “wrench” for removing the oil drain plug in my 504D. That was perfectly shaped to snake between the belts and allow you to easily adjust the belt tensioners.
But ultimately “the French follow no one, and no one follows the French”.
Uninformed people can just be so DUMB when it comes to working on cars. How often is Audi “service position” railed on about? Yet it is actually f’ing *brilliant*, because that 30 minutes of work to move the bumper gives you really good access to things that in other cars is like doing surgery through a letterslot. Like removing the bumper here – a little extra work makes the job so much easier overall.
“How often is Audi “service position” railed on about? Yet it is actually f’ing *brilliant*, because that 30 minutes of work to move the bumper gives you really good access to things that in other cars is like doing surgery through a letterslot.”
I prefer Honda designs where things are easy to access WITHOUT having to remove the front end to achieve accessibility.
I always thought the “Audi service position” was what customers assume when receiving their estimate for a timing chain failure.
I prefer cars that drive properly. Which is why I can’t be bothered with Hondas or Audis. But having worked on both for friends, I would infinitely rather work on an Audi.
“I prefer cars that drive properly.”
As someone who has owned a couple of them, Hondas most certainly do drive properly.
And if you like manuals, Honda vehicles have some of the best manual transmissions. Some people don’t like Hondas (I suspect) because of their design ethos of having engines you have to rev to get the most out of them. They don’t make low-rpm torque monsters.
I hate the way they drive, including the shifters. They universally feel like flimsy, noisy tin boxes to me. With lousy seats. And yes, gutless engines you have to rev the wee out of to make progress annoy me. You do you.
Ah torch, welcome to the tail light cost cutting misery of NA market PQ35 platform vehicles. Why didn’t they make that inner circle the reverse light, like on the mk5 golf platforms? Why isn’t the outer center the turn signal on golfs like other countries, and amber at that! Just a miserable red dual filament meaning if the sun is out you have no chance of a merge because no one knows.
Regarding the head unit, it’s probably best to bite the bullet and buy one of the Chinese market VW rcd330 units. Does all you want without being a pile of crap. Unfortunately nothing aftermarket seems to work with the factory backup camera because it’s an RGB signal and everything else uses composite.