I'm a firm believer that amber rear turn signals are much more attention-getting - and thus safer - than red, even if the red turn signals are separate from the brake lights.
I've often crawled along rush hour traffic where I can only see one side of a car and can't tell if someone ahead in the next lane is flashing brake lights or turn signals, ready to pounce into my lane. Even with the whole rear visible, if someone has one brake light out, then it takes an extra second for my brain to figure out what's going on: Is he stopping or turning?
I think it's a money saving choice, as opposed to a styling choice. In Europe amber turn signals are required, and US cars sold there have them, so they have the design ready. Some VW and Mercedes models have all red appearance taillights, but still flash amber turnsignals, so it's not a question of car makers not knowing how. I've noticed even Audi and BMW choose red turn signals, apparently to save money. And Honda plays around with amber and red willy-nilly according to the stage of the product cycle. But when I saw a Subaru Legacy with red turn signals, I thought enough is enough. I can't believe car makers are so cheap that they would rather save 50 cents for some amber plastic than put in more visible lights. I thought good communication and lack of ambiguity were important in traffic?
I've often crawled along rush hour traffic where I can only see one side of a car and can't tell if someone ahead in the next lane is flashing brake lights or turn signals, ready to pounce into my lane. Even with the whole rear visible, if someone has one brake light out, then it takes an extra second for my brain to figure out what's going on: Is he stopping or turning?
I think it's a money saving choice, as opposed to a styling choice. In Europe amber turn signals are required, and US cars sold there have them, so they have the design ready. Some VW and Mercedes models have all red appearance taillights, but still flash amber turnsignals, so it's not a question of car makers not knowing how. I've noticed even Audi and BMW choose red turn signals, apparently to save money. And Honda plays around with amber and red willy-nilly according to the stage of the product cycle. But when I saw a Subaru Legacy with red turn signals, I thought enough is enough. I can't believe car makers are so cheap that they would rather save 50 cents for some amber plastic than put in more visible lights. I thought good communication and lack of ambiguity were important in traffic?