led tail lights
 

Hey everyone. new to the forum here. i have a question. i have a 2008.5 3 hatchback, and i wanna change the tail lights. i found someone online for a 2006 and they look like the same size and shape as mine. does anyone know if the 2006 tail lights are compatible with my car?

not sure, but I think LED and traditional lamps were used for a few years - meaning both should work the same... since they aren't going to change the wiring between models if they don't have to.

ok thanks djs. i think the wiring should be the same too if not im pretty sure i could find a way to make them work. my question is the shape. i'm wondering if they are the same shape as mine.

i'd bet they are the same, though when looking for a new light just have a loog at it before you buy to make sure.

Mazda3 rear bumper LED's
 

I've installed bumper LED's on my 2012 3 H/B, connected them to tail/brake lights. I've had them on for 10 days now and they do look nice (CorkSport). What I am seeing is that if the lights switch is turned on (one click, regardless of engine running or not) after the car has not moved for 20+ minutes (like say, in the morning), the brake lights will come on (including the 3rd brake light). If I leave the lights on for 2 minutes or if I start the car and drive just 20-30 yards within 2 minutes from turning the switch on, the brake lights go out and have only parking lights (the way it should be). This drove me crazy for a few days until I thought of leaving the lights on for a few minutes (engine not running, keys off ignition) and see what happens and sure enough the brake lights went out right on the 2min mark. Has anyone seen this? It's not a big issue now that I have an idea of what's happening, I suppose, but I'm thinking it's a problem that conveniently happened to have an automatic self-work around. I wonder if it's something related to the on-board computer (maybe something else needed to be done after the LED's were installed?). Any ideas anyone?