diff --git a/context/glass-cockpit.md b/context/glass-cockpit.md
index cd3ca00..a737480 100644
--- a/context/glass-cockpit.md
+++ b/context/glass-cockpit.md
@@ -115,6 +115,25 @@ each, so they cover the foot band too, and the hit test takes the first match 
 what keeps 0x16/0x17/0x1F/0x1E reachable. That class of bug is why the verification below tests
 first-hit reachability, not mere presence.
 
+**Protrusion bonus — `BT_RIO_PROTRUDE` (2026-08-14, player request) [T2 receipt+screenshot].**
+Players asked for more of the RIO buttons to clear the glass so a FLASHING lamp is easier to
+notice. `BTRioBankMetricsFor` now adds a flat **+10px** to `strip` AFTER the scale, so the bar
+reaches that much further out on every renderer; `BT_RIO_PROTRUDE=<px>` tunes it (`0` restores
+the pre-2026-08-14 geometry). Deliberately FLAT, not scaled: the surround runs the glass at half
+scale where the strip sits on the 6px floor — a scaled bonus would help least exactly where the
+lamps are smallest — and that floor already trades proportionality for legibility. Because only
+`strip` moves, this touches exactly the **red MFD** and **yellow radar** buttons (+ the radar
+foot row) and grows them **outward only**: the layout anchors the inboard edge, so under-glass
+depth, button WIDTH and the press targets are unchanged. The **blue flight cells** are laid out
+from `cellW/cellH` and never see it (receipt: their bank bounds are byte-identical). Verified by
+`BT_RIOBANK_LOG` A/B — e.g. Heat MFD top button `y 21→11, h 126→136` with its bottom edge fixed
+at 147, bank bounds `252→272` tall, no negative coordinates — plus a surround screenshot pair.
+Relation to **#172**: the alert RING (`BT_ALERT_RING`, default off) answered the same night-16
+complaint after a *"+8px grown-face bloom"* was rejected on the bench as "the button got fat";
+this is a different shape — the lamp keeps its width and simply shows more of its own bar — so
+the ring stays optional. Desktop-glass affordance only; the pod's buttons are physical and
+backlit and never had this problem.
+
 ## Sticky window placement — BT_GLASS_LAYOUT (2026-07-28) [T2 round-trip-verified]
 
 The `BT_GLASS_PANELS` windows self-place in a pod-faithful ring around the main window
diff --git a/engine/MUNGA_L4/L4RIOBANK.cpp b/engine/MUNGA_L4/L4RIOBANK.cpp
index f1e991d..a88ecd5 100644
--- a/engine/MUNGA_L4/L4RIOBANK.cpp
+++ b/engine/MUNGA_L4/L4RIOBANK.cpp
@@ -25,6 +25,46 @@ namespace
 	const int minimumStrip    = 6;
 	const int defaultGap      = 4;
 
+	//-------------------------------------------------------------------
+	// PROTRUSION BONUS (2026-08-14, player request).  Flat pixels added to
+	// the lamp strip AFTER the scale, so the visible bar reaches this much
+	// further out of the glass on EVERY renderer.
+	//
+	// WHY FLAT, not scaled: the ask is on-screen noticeability of a
+	// FLASHING lamp, and the surround runs the glass at half scale, where
+	// the strip lands on the `minimumStrip` floor (~6px) -- a scaled bonus
+	// would give the surround half the help exactly where the lamps are
+	// smallest.  The floor above already establishes legibility over strict
+	// proportionality for this field; this is the same trade, sized by the
+	// players.  It is a DESKTOP-GLASS affordance: the pod's buttons are
+	// physical and backlit and have never had this problem.
+	//
+	// Scope: only the strip -- so only the RED MFD buttons and the YELLOW
+	// radar buttons/foot row grow, and they grow OUTWARD ONLY (the layout
+	// anchors the inboard edge; under-glass depth is unchanged).  The BLUE
+	// flight cells are laid out from cellW/cellH and never see this.
+	//
+	// Relation to #172: the alert RING (BT_ALERT_RING, default off) was the
+	// answer to the same night-16 complaint after a "+8px grown-face bloom"
+	// was rejected on the bench as "the button got fat".  This is a
+	// different shape -- the lamp keeps its width and simply shows more of
+	// its own bar -- and it is unconditional, so the ring stays optional.
+	//-------------------------------------------------------------------
+	const int defaultProtrude = 10;
+
+	int ProtrudeBonus()
+	{
+		static int cached = -1;
+		if (cached < 0)
+		{
+			const char *e = getenv("BT_RIO_PROTRUDE");	// tune by eye; 0 = pre-2026-08-14
+			cached = (e != 0) ? atoi(e) : defaultProtrude;
+			if (cached < 0)   cached = 0;
+			if (cached > 200) cached = 200;
+		}
+		return cached;
+	}
+
 	//-------------------------------------------------------------------
 	// Per-column horizontal nudge for the 4 MFD buttons, left->right, so
 	// they line up with the (unevenly spaced) DISPLAY / PROGRAM / ...
@@ -111,6 +151,7 @@ void
 
 	int strip = Scaled(nativeStrip, shortAxis, nativeShortAxis);
 	if (strip < minimumStrip) strip = minimumStrip;
+	strip += ProtrudeBonus();			// player-requested reach (see above)
 
 	out->strip = strip;
 	out->gap   = defaultGap;