Community Member Credit: gtrrider

Basing our review on a 1995 Nissan Maxima, this application for years has been in great need of a taillight upgrade that did not take away from the car but gave it a very classy and sensual look. Despite the “demand” for the atrocious looking Altezza taillights on the market, Custommaxima has conjured up a way of bringing back the o-so-wonderful Clear/Red Taillights which until now have been sported by only a select few who could get their hands on them. Being that we were one of the lucky ones to have a set on hand we will be testing these new CE Taillights up against an old and sought-after rival “David L Clear/Reds”.

Here is what CustomMaxima (a CustomEnterprise group) had to say about this product, Our customers have been asking for red and clear taillights for their 1995-1996 Maximas and we answered. Now you can eliminate the orange turn signal found on stock taillights and replace it with our new red and crystal clear tails. Sold as a 4 piece set replacing your trunk lights also. The trunk lights need to be replaced as our new lights have a crystal look to them on the clear lens and not the “cloudy white” clear lens found on the factory backup lens. We are sure you will be pleased with the excellent fitment and superb quality of this product. Installation is easy as we include all necessary bulbs and wiring harnesses”. We shall see about that.. read on

Our Take:

With an almost 11yr old car, lighting equipment is certainly looking dated and not appealing to the more modern style lighting equipment. There is noticeable differences with this new system in that there is a reflective diamond-like backing to better illuminate the housing and also provide a better light output when reversing. Not only is the reflective backing more esthetically pleasing to look at but they also provide the brake light area with a much darker and pronounced red glow when the brakes are applied and when the parking lights are illuminated. These new light assemblies are also prepared with a nice but could be better-applied weather-stripping around the outer edge for those times when you do not need water entering your trunk compartment. Most aftermarket taillight assemblies are lacking very important details such as reflective material which is used to draw passing motorists away from the vehicle if you happen to park on the side of the road. This is a safety requirement, and we give a thumbs-up to CE for adding these to their product. Lastly, a key difference between the CE Taillight and the Factory (David L) is that the rear backing is completely redesigned, which may not be for the better.

Pros:

• Crystal clean look
• Crisp Red color for brake lights
• Smooth Installation
• Chrome bulb standard for turning signal (lights amber)

Cons:

• Possible seal problem
• Requires purchasing new bulb for side reflectors
• Fragile plastic posts may break while securing to car
• Possible wiring issue, check for breakage in ground before installing.
• Factory bolts not exactly made to fit these

Application:

• 95-96 Nissan Maxima’s

Additional Note:

• 2825 (W5W Bulbs) for side reflectors

Part Number Information:*

• 95-96 Maxima Red/Clear Taillights
• 9596RCT
• $199

Tools Required for Installation:

• Sockets and Wrenches
• Short and Long Extensions
• Flat-head screwdriver
• Patience

Materials Provided for Installation:

• 2 Outer Taillights
• 2 Inner Taillights
• 2 Mirror Chrome Turn Signal Bulbs
• 4 Wiring Harnesses

Removal/Installation Process: Outer Taillights

Removal is quite easy with basic tools. Before you begin, we would like to emphasize that the key should be out of the ignition before removal/installation with the parking/driving lights in the off position. Going against this advisor could lead to electrical short, or much worse. ALWAYS CHECK ALL POWER IS OFF BEFORE WORKING!

To begin locate the tabs which hold in the trunk lining to the body of the car, remove these with a flathead screw driver, they should come out fairly easily. Remove both side linings to give you space to work on the taillights. When removed they should expose to you the rear end of the taillight housing, locate the four(4) bolts on each end. Two of the 4bolts are hidden underneath the hanger holding the wiring harness after removing the yellow wire hangers from the inner two(2) bolts. Disconnect all wiring from the back of the housing and proceed to remove. Removing the taillight itself is quite the task, so my suggestion to you is to work each corner one at a time pushing as hard as you can from the inside out without damaging anything.

Installation is the reverse of installation, but we will not be using the backing plate of the OEM taillights, we are given a new harness which for some very strange reason has a different sized side marker bulb then what the factory comes with, which we aren’t supplied. When mounting the new CE assembly make sure to keep watch of surrounding seal so that it seals tightly into place for water not to reach inside your trunk compartment. Although possible it is very hard to maneuver the very loosely applied weather-strip to seal properly, I would recommend laying the light in place, and then pushing in the strip while someone secures the screws (factory screws are not exactly made to fit on these) so we would recommend CE supplying new bolts/washers to fit these. Make sure not to over tighten these bolts to the assembly as they are very weak and can easily break if too much pressure is applied *hint*strengthen posts*hint*.

Removal/Installation Process:

To begin locate the four(4) bolts on each end of the tail light, unbolt all and disconnect all wiring from the back of the housing and proceed to remove. These lights are very tight and uneasy to manage, so if you can try and wedge a wrapped flat head screwdriver between the trunk and the tail light and slowly pry the two apart. Sure enough, the light will slowly come apart from the trunk and you are on your way to replacing the new CE light in its place. Installation is the reverse of the removal, but as with the outer lights we will not be using the factory backing plate, but the supplied CE plate. Final Product: Make sure all mounting points are secured properly, all harnesses connected fully, turn the lights on and enjoy.