Valenti Tails Reliable?
 

I sees a lot of FS posts around FB with valenti tails w/ problems -- condensation, LEDs out are mostly what I see..

Before I go spending a decent amount of coin for lights...

Are these things reliable??

If you see all the negativity being posted about them, don't you think you've found the evidence you're looking for?

Not really.

I've seen a signal of unreliability in the marketplace (LEDs out, leaking..) Doesn't mean there is big problem with the product. A certain degree of faulty items is expected.

There could be a bias -- that the people with broken lights are the ones wanting to sell.

By opening up this convo to people who aren't selling I feel we can get a better understanding of what's really going on.

Ultimately I want the lights, I just don't want to pay for pretty junk , if that's what it comes down to.

I agree to a point. I've wanted the blacked out Valenti tails for a few years. All the YouTubers I've seen put them on, have taken them off within a year due to failing LEDs and condensation. The only great praise I've heard is from people who haven't owned them for long.

On several other platforms this is also a common theme; LEDs failing and poor sealing. It could be that nobody ever replaced their tail light gaskets, I'm not sure. But the reviews and repeated failures I've seen have made me pretty happy to save money and hold onto my stickers. Just coming from the same point of view as you and wanted to chime in with what my conclusion was :)

Bought mine 3 years ago from thespeedline.com. No problems at all. YMMV I guess

honestly, theres a really good market for used tail lights, id probably find a set on one of the frs/brz buy/sell/trade pages on facebook, much more active than the forum marketplace. that way ur worries about reliability will be even less if you are buying at 1/2 price. youll know which ones are junk or not, itll just be obvious. for example, dont buy from a guy who has typos in his product title lol

I have been running Valenti FT86SF CBW tail lights since two years without any problems.

not reliable enough for me. they seem to put design aesthetics ahead of build quality, which means that the failure rate is higher than other aftermarket designs.

i get the impression non-failures are in the minority, which is never a good place to be for a $400+ life-safety component.

Failures are definitely in the minority. You only see the negative reactions, never the perfectly fine ones. Just like anything else, people are way more likely to write about something going wrong than everything working out as expected. The more units sold, the more individual complaints you'll see. Simple statistics. This gives you a skewed impression of any product.

The LED burnout was mainly from early models, although it's always possible on anything. Additionally, there is a high correlation with tail light issues and the over-torquing or otherwise improper installation of the lights and gasket. If you take out improper installation from the reported issues, the fail rate becomes significantly smaller. You'll see this on any tail light.

Purchased the red/chrome sequentials from The Speedline 3 1/2 years ago. Now on sale for $199.98 http://www.thespeedline.com/12-gt-86...d-lens-chrome/
No leaks or condensation and all LEDs functioning.
Agree with sharpsicle. Improper installation, over or under tightening the 8mm bolts and not aligning up the gasket properly will cause leaks.

I purchased mine from a vendor here and also had them for 3 years and no issues so far.

I bought mine and have them for a 3 months. Now we're getting a bit of rain in Cali and my driver side is getting condensation and flooding my trunk. The fitment is off and water is leaking through. Im assuming all the other people who have had trouble with it their LED and whatnot is experiencing the same.

I wasn't aware of the water until recently and mold started growing in there from my car washes.

I had my valentis for a little more than a year before some of the LEDs burned out. Definitely looked great but bummed that they only lasted a year. I also put a different gasket from ninja gasket to prevent water from getting in and it worked.

Last time I'm going to post this on this forum.

Attachment 186484

Attachment 186483
https://www.harborfreight.com/14-in-...nch-63881.html
Got mine for $14. with a 30% off coupon.

lol I never even looked at the instructions and I don't even have a torque wrench and no issues after 3 years. Just lucky I suppose

harbor freight routinely puts them on sale for $10 each. i got all 3 sizes at that time.

if nothing else, they're heavier than a normal wrench, so when i need to throw tools, they'll go further!

Oh yes you do - it's in your wrist, with a wire that goes to your brain, that tells the wrist when something is good-n-tight - ;)

I actually think that's what happened - I think I hand tightened them

Also be aware that many of the problems reported for "Valenti" lights may not actually be Valenti's at all. There are a shitload of cheap knockoffs and Ebay specials out there that may look like and even claim to be Valenti but most decidedly are not!

The easiest thing to do is what I did: I wanted the Valenti fourth brake light, so I flew all the way to Japan and bought one at a Super Autobacs auto store!

:D

After the foam gaskets loosened up after a short while, I have retightened them.

My only complaint is not quality but design. I wish the amber signal lights had a light diffuser cover like the red brake lights on them.

I also purchased mine from thespeedline.com over 3 years ago, and I’ve had no problems at all. I’ve had the same worries you do about faulty problems on a pricey item, but luckily i can say that mine are in perfect working condition. Even purchased my Valenti 4th break light from the same website, and I’ve even modified it, no issues whatsoever.


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I have had mine installed for around two years and it stayed mostly outside for a year. No condensation and no LEDs are out. knock on wood! I ordered mine from modbargains

As stated previously, its really dependent on who's manufactured them. There are a lot of copy-cats of valenti's out there which vary on quality. Just ensure if you do get them, examine the gaskets and don't screw in too tightly that it pinches it.

I have a pair of these on my car currently. I have a had them for a few months now and as long as the foam like seal on the back doesn’t get pinched or folded over in anyway your good! I have a had no condensation. These are a must purchase in my opinion! Going for the fourth break light next!

Thespeedline is reliable for genuine Valenti?

I'm not sure if they're genuine, replicas or refurbished. I've had mine for 3 years without issues but they didn't come with that authenticating hologram sticker

AFAIK they are not "genuine" as in branded and officially warranteed by, but IIRC they simply might come from very same factory and resold at cheaper prices by some .. "private labels". Speedline, or ft86sf "OLM" ones (in past btw also named as valenti, or valenti style, now changed to OLM, probably due some legislation stuff).
Just like tomei vs gruppe-s headers.

Probably same factory, but it could be that Valenti asks for better QC. Here in Italy many had problems with Speedline Valenti's, but IDK if they are the old V1 type or the new sequential.
Strange is that they cost the half even from the ones from Japan...

IMO, basically saying something similar to what you posted, the Valentis that The Speedline sells are gray market Valentis that come from the same factory as those sold by an authorized Valenti dealer.

Gray market goods (also known as parallel imports) are genuine goods purchased outside a manufacturer’s intended chain of distribution and imported to compete with authorized domestic sales, generally at lower prices, i.e., cameras sold by some NYC camera shops without a USA warranty.

The Speedline claims on their website that the Valentis they sell are authentic, and are warrantied by them.
https://www.thespeedline.com/valenti...c-information/

The Valentis I purchased from them were shipped directly from Taiwan to me.