1966 Thunderbird

The series III Birds all had great tail lights but the last of the breed gets the nod. Spanning the width of the tail they lit up wall to wall and went one better with sequential turn signal indicators. Add the central Thunderbird motif, chic wraparound bumper,  slimline rear profile and you've got one of the best rear ends ever to come out of Detroit.

1968 Dodge Charger

There's been dozens of cars right up to the present that have sported round tail lights. None have done it better than the Dodge boys' design for the '68 Charger. Twin bezels per side, housed in chromed circular outlets protruding from blackout panels. Take a closer look and you'll see how much design went in to these beauties - when lit up they resemble fighter jet exhausts - just as the designers intended. Superb..

1966 Chrysler 300

Photos and advertisements like the above don't do justice to the tail lights of the '66 Chrysler 300. You have to see them in the metal to really appreciate how cool they are - especially when lit up. The way the red glow from the lenses glints off the ultra-slim horizontal chrome bars, the knife edged fender wraparound - pure class. The boot lid is cut out at the very edge of the tail lights so that they're both long, one piece affairs. But most impressive is how far those side rear quarter panels continue on past the line of the boot - taking the tail lights with them in ultra narrow housings like the rear gunner position on a WWII bomber.

Ford was first with circular tail lights in the late 1950s. To differentiate themselves from Ford, when Chevy traveled the same styling path - instead of enormous, singular lenses they went with a triple set up. And the best of the breed has to be the '63 Impalas. Housed in a metallic finish panel spanning the entire rear, the lights protrude from metallic housings with chromed rings at their outer extremity. Four of the six lenses are integrated with the boot lid so with lights on, owners could open the boot to bounce red warning beacons off the clouds. I'm kidding - but rear ends on full sized carts don't get much cooler than the '63 Impala.

Arguably the more iconic Mustang tail lights are the stylish units from the first model, but Ford went one better with the second gen introduced in 1967: six individual concave lenses housed within chrome bezels. The way these lights integrate in to the curved rear valance enhances the overall rear aspect, and look even better when lit up. When you factor in the race inspired hinged gas cap, under bumper backup lights, and optional chrome exhaust tips peeking out from cutouts - rear ends don't get much prettier than that on the 1967 Fastback - a styling tour de force.

About the author

Raph Tripp is the former owner of a 1966 Thunderbird, is a passionate classic car enthusiast and writer, and founder of TunnelRam.net. If you wish to publish this article in part or in whole, please credit Raph Tripp and tunnelram.net . This is an original Tunnel Ram production ©2020 Tunnel Ram. All images remain the property of the original copyright holders.