Taillights can be the most beautiful design detail of a car. A vehicle’s lighting can be a work of art all its own. What is your favorite taillight?

I’m going to channel my inner here to say that I think lighting can make or break a car. An automaker can create a swoopy body, but if the body is festooned with a lame set of lights it ruins the whole thing. Lights are your view into a car’s soul, and it’s a real bummer when designers don’t hit it out of the park. The aftermarket isn’t much better, as it seems they are still addicted to slapping Toyota Altezza lights on everything.

My favorite taillights are ones styled after rockets or jet afterburners. Various examples exist from the dawn of the Jet Age all the way to today, on cars from the Ford Galaxie and Chrysler Turbine Car to even the little Smart Fortwo. My colleagues offered up exceptional examples like the BMW 2002, and the Maserati 3200GT.

It seems as if LEDs are bringing back cool lighting designs and establishing distinctive signatures. It’s easy to identify a Dodge at night with the brand’s tails that look like a racetrack.

Show us what other taillight designs are out there. What is the best taillight? Do you love your lights simple or complex?