[mgmurano]

I need to replace my 2016 Murano third brake light. How do I access the rear of the unit to remove the mounting nuts?

 

[RysterArcee]

I am not 100% certain, but I think the upper interior tail gate trim panel needs to come off.

 

[mgmurano]

I have already taken it off. The third brake light assembly is not accessible from there.

 

[RysterArcee]

Ahh, OK. In looking more closely, it appears as though the 3rd brake light is mounted inside the black air spoiler assembly itself. That would need to come off, then you would have access to the 3rd brake light. Not exactly sure how that spoiler comes off. I am guessing since the 3rd brake light is designed to be a lifetime part, Nissan decided that providing easy access to it was not really needed. Form over function.

The pictures of the part on this auction are a great reference to see what the piece entails and how the 3rd brake light connects to it.

NISSAN MURANO TAILGATE LIFTGATE BACK DOOR ROOF AIR SPOILER OEM 2015 - 2016 ✔️ | eBay

Donor vehicle: 2015 NISSAN MURANO PLATINUM 3.5L V6 FWD AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION. All parts sold by Advusedparts LLC bear a permanent identification mark and we will not take any part back if this mark is missing or altered in any way.

www.ebay.com

 

[mgmurano]

C'mon someone must know how to remove the spoiler...

 

[MuranoSL2003]

You can find the service manuals here, hopefully they can help you:

https://www.nicoclub.com/nissan-service-manuals

How To Use NICOclub Factory Service Manuals

Here's a step-by-step guide to help find the correct Factory Service Manual for your Nissan, Infiniti, or Datsun - and a tutorial on how to use it!

www.nicoclub.com

 

[Ramness]

3rd brake lights were some of my favorite things to get when I was pulling parts at junkyards and selling them on eBay. Junkyard sold them for $6 and I could resell some for $80. Sometimes I would take entire spoilers with the lights for $12 and sell them for $150.

According to the service manual the spoiler for the Murano is held on with 6 nuts on the inside of the hatch and 2 bolts from the outside on each far edge. But that's not all... To remove the 2 outer bolts you have to remove the side air spoilers which are the pieces of trim on the sides of the hatch under the spoiler. Those are held on with 3 nuts each from the inside along with 3 clips. Of course before all that you have to remove the 4 pieces of interior hatch trim. Sounds like a lot but can probably be done in less than 10 minutes with proper tools. If you were wanting to upgrade your reverse lights to brighter LEDs this would be the time to do that as you will have easy access to them.

 

[MuranoSL2003]

Thank you @Ramness, I was thinking of replacing my reverse lights with something much brighter, the OEM ones are barely adequate... When I touch my brakes when backing up the view is much brighter, I'd like my reverse lights to be at least as good as them...

 

[PaulDay]

Thank you @Ramness, I was thinking of replacing my reverse lights with something much brighter, the OEM ones are barely adequate... When I touch my brakes when backing up the view is much brighter, I'd like my reverse lights to be at least as good as them...

These are the brightest backup LEDs that I've installed, hands down.

Amazon.com: Elite Vision 194 168 T10 192 2825 W5W Titanium Series LED Non-Polarity 400LM 6000K Bright White for Dome Map Courtesy Door License Plate Cargo Interior Lights (Pack of 2): Automotive

A little on the expensive side, but well worth the price IMHO.

Have a good day.

 

[Ramness]

Thank you @Ramness, I was thinking of replacing my reverse lights with something much brighter, the OEM ones are barely adequate..

Luckily you don't have to do all that for the reverse lamps. There are 2 square pop-out covers in the back hatch trim to get to those. It's just easier to do when the whole hatch piece is off so you don have to reach in that hole, especially if you have big hands.

 

[MuranoSL2003]

These are the brightest backup LEDs that I've installed, hands down.

Amazon.com: Elite Vision 194 168 T10 192 2825 W5W Titanium Series LED Non-Polarity 400LM 6000K Bright White for Dome Map Courtesy Door License Plate Cargo Interior Lights (Pack of 2): Automotive

A little on the expensive side, but well worth the price IMHO.

Have a good day.

I just noticed the bulbs you recommended are only 400 lumens, there are other reverse bulbs on Amazon that mention ratings of 1000 or 2000 lumens...

Are you sure these are the ones you thought were so bright?

 

[PaulDay]

They may have more lumens, but if the leds are not correctly directed, you're still not going to get the light output spread.

These led bulbs line up perfectly with the reflective housing to put the light where it belongs, directed to the sides and down.

Tonight I'll take a few pics backing up my driveway. No street lights or house lights, just the Murano's rear lights. My wife can't look at the backup lights when I'm backing into the garage if she's there waiting to help me unload something. Hurts her eyes she says.

Have a good day.

 

[MuranoSL2003]

That makes a lot of sense -- thank you for your insight!

 

[PaulDay]

Had to make a run this evening after dark and remembered to take a few pics of the backup lighting using the above mentioned LED replacement bulbs.

I have a third reverse LED light down low in the bumper facia. I have it taped off in one of the pics so that you can see the vast improvement in stock lighting over OEM backup bulbs.

Backup lighting with third reverse LED backup and brake lights on:

Third brake light taped off and brake lights on:

Finally, new LED backup lights only:

As you can see, plenty of bright white light, even projecting off to the sides. I'm at the bottom of my driveway, which slopes upward.

These bulbs are even brighter then the LED ones that I had in there originally.

Have a good day.

 

[MuranoSL2003]

I appreciate the photos! Looks very good, your reverse LEDs look to be as equally bright as the brake lights, just what I'm looking for!

Now if Amazon can deliver my LEDs, my package is currently in a delayed status and may be lost... I'm anxiously looking forward to seeing the light! The stock reverse lights appear to be engineered to only warn to other drivers when backing up, they don't illuminate my path to any useful degree at all...