The Equipment Stop
MCL 257.684 — a half hour after sunset, 500 feet, and never only the parking lights
When. Every vehicle on a highway displays lighted lamps from a half hour after sunset to a half hour before sunrise, and at any other time when there is not sufficient light to render clearly discernible persons and vehicles on the highway at a distance of 500 feet ahead.
Not only the parking lights. When lighted lamps are required, no vehicle is operated on a highway with only the parking lights illuminated on the front.
The rear lamp. A motor vehicle has at least 1 rear lamp emitting a red light plainly visible from a distance of 500 feet to the rear. A tail lamp or separate lamp illuminates the rear registration plate with a white light and renders it clearly legible from a distance of 50 feet, wired to be lighted whenever the head lamps or auxiliary driving lamps are lighted.
Historic vehicles. A vehicle licensed as an historic vehicle is exempt from the rear lamp section if, as originally equipped, it failed to meet its requirements.
Other equipment the code requires, from brakes to mirrors, is set out in other sections that are not on this page. Whether a lamp was out, or the conditions called for lights, is a question of fact, and whether a stop on that basis was lawful is a question for a licensed Michigan attorney.
Sources for this section (2)
- MCL 257.684 — When lighted lamps are required
- MCL 257.686 — Rear lamps and the registration plate lamp
Legal information, not legal advice. Verified as of September 2026. Applying it to a particular situation is the work of a licensed Michigan attorney.