Building An Animated Turn Signal For The Mazda MX-5

Turn signals in most of the world are mandated to be a flashing orange light, distinct from other bulbs on a vehicle. However, there has been a trend in the modern era to go for fancier animated turn signals using great numbers of LEDs. [ssh16] decided to whip up a set of their own to suit their late-model Mazda MX-5.

Fully lit, the replacement is brighter than the original bulb by some margin.

While many builds go down the route of using addressable LEDs, [ssh16] instead went for garden variety OSRAM yellow LEDs in a 3×12 array, driven via a shift register. A small PIC microcontroller is then used to command the shift register to light the rows of LEDs in turn, generating the sequential lighting effect that sweeps from one side to the other. The LEDs are are installed on a 4″ board designed to install in place of the Mazda’s standard indicator bulb, with the animation spreading from the centerline of the vehicle out towards the direction of the turn.

It’s a fun build that modernizes the rear turn signals of the Mazda. We’ve seen some other neat turn signal builds before, too; it almost seems to be a trend amongst Mazda enthusiasts. Meanwhile, if you’ve built your own automotive lighting mods, don’t hesitate to send them in to the tipsline.

37 thoughts on “Building An Animated Turn Signal For The Mazda MX-5

  1. Some jurisdictions have limits on the maximum brightness of certain lights and indicators, the idea being to avoid blinding other drivers. If this is “brighter than the original bulb by some margin” it may be illegally so.

      1. But a) unless it contributed to an accident and you can prove it, it won’t matter and b) Most US states don’t even have testing to check if the chassis is a rotten rust bucket that will kill people, like they’d care if it was a bright light.

  2. So, when is the USA going to join the civilized world in using amber turn signals? There’s a national fixation on blinking the brake lights to indicate a turn. Using the same bulb for the two functions might have saved a few pennies in the Model T era, but it’s a safety hazard and long overdue to ban the practice.

    Why are Audi and BMW even kowtowing to that market and making red-only rear lights for the American market now? Seriously. Grow up.

      1. No it’s not, the US allows amber turn signals. Car manufacturers like it because it looks nicer than the ugly yellow/white lens but from a practicality standpoint, it’s absolutely stupid.

        1. No, it’s because domestic car companies were cheap. They don’t have to run a separate bulb, wiring, etc for the turn signal.

          Who cares if it’s more dangerous and people have been killed? GM saved a couple bucks per car!

      1. If you are braking for a turn and indicating what do the rear lights do? Also how much thought do the people around you need to put in to figure out your intentions?

        If you’re used to the American system imagine we’re proposing using the brake lights as reversing lights. Dumb and dangerous right? So why are brake lights also indicators there?

        1. Really, anytime anything lights up on the car in front you assume it is going to slow down or stop. It doesn’t matter whether it’s “just ” brake lights or “just” a turn signal. The driver ahead is doing something. If it’s going to be a turn, then it’s going to involve slowing down. If it’s a stop, then it’s going to involve slowing down.

          Lights go on on the back of the car in front = I slow down and prepare to stop. No confusion.

          1. Wait until you hear how you indicate to overtake. And you neither turn or slow down. I mean you don’t turn a corner. It appears you have confusion in this. Do you slow down when someone ahead indicates to overtakes?

          2. @David – Well, if I’m in the fast lane and they’re coming from the slow lane to get in front of me, then I probably will in order to maintain a good following distance. :P

    1. Never mind flashing brake lights or separate turn signals.
      When are they going to make “animated turn signals” illegal?

      They are only partially on during most of the “blink” cycle. This reduces visibility.

      I do NOT need animated entertainment in traffic. I NEED a clear and unambiguous “starting to turn NOW.”

      1. This.

        Modern car light design is obnoxious and animated turn signal is not even the worst.
        I have seen car where the turn signal is a small invisble dot inside the red tail light…
        I have seen car where the turn signal are not at the same level than the rest of the tail light cluster but half a meter lower at the bottom of the car case.

        All this car should not be deem road legal.

        1. Small invisible dot? Sounds like a Tesla 3.
          In USA they made the brake like a thin line of maybe 5 or 7 leds?
          In other markets that row is split between red brake and orange indicator

      2. US regulations require that a sufficient area of the signal light up immediately – I believe the minimum area of a turn signal.

        Most manufacturers animate the fade-out; Audi lights up an entire strip to meet the regs, and then the rest of the turn signal “builds”.

    2. It’s not “the USA”. It’s “the car manufacturers”. My 2017 Cruze hatchback has amber rear signals but curiously the sedan does not (although it’s got a spot in the taillight housing that would seemingly be for them).

  3. I’ve decided I don’t like the animated turn signals so much. Especially if they don’t even animate in the right direction (I’ve seen some that go down a vertical bar – I guess it looks trendy but the animation suggests “I’m gonna get down on this side”). And especially on the front, which people coming from other directions want to recognise quickly at intersections and roundabouts.
    If you aren’t watching long enough, and don’t have a very clear view of the signal, the animation looks less like flashing, and more like a light coming on slowly. Flashing more suddenly is more attention-getting and faster to recognise.
    If the animation is bigger, and viewable from all relevant angles, yeah sure. Front indicators generally suck in this respect.

    1. I really hate the animated indicators the way they’re currently implemented in most cases.

      It seems to me that you’d want it to come on at full brightness (i.e. all LEDs lit) and then animate the fade-out by turning them off in sequence, in the correct direction of course, then turn them all on and repeat. That way you’ve got the same instant “on” with non-animated indicators that you’d think makes it more noticable straight away.

      Maybe the car makers have done some research and the slow animation building up to fully illuminated is more noticable, but it seems counterintuitive to me. If there’s some more reading on this I’d love to see it.

    2. When you see what they can do: https://www.carscoops.com/2021/09/left-no-the-other-left-minis-dumb-union-jack-turn-signals-dont-know-if-theyre-coming-or-going/

      I couldn’t agree more.

      The animation should be specified. It can be fancy, but the duty cycle must be within limit. The animation direction shouldn’t even suggest another interpretation.
      There is technically and legally, nothing that prevents you from animating the other turn direction, how dumb is that?

  4. Is anyone else annoyed by these blinkers? There is one thing, I think they would be useful for: Differentiating between hazard lights an normal blinker. If they ran in the opposite direction when Hazards are on, I’d think they’d provide a benefit. Of course they don’t do this. They still signal “I want to go left (and also right)”, which is 100% stupid. They’d be ok for motorbikes as well, since the signals are close together. Of course I have only seen them on “look what a nice car I have” cars.

  5. On a turn signal related note: I think modern cars with their fancy computers should detect when a driver made a manoeuvre without signaling and then have the computer say ‘thanks for using the turn signal buddy’ or something like that – in an sarcastic voice.

    It’s not like they are not already annoying their customers/drivers in various ways, and often without good reason, else I’d not suggest adding this, but as it is I’d say it would be an addition worth considering.

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