Xenons...

[87henderson]

Got pulled over last night because my headlights were too bright.. Was told that because I dont have "self levelling lights" and no washers are attached my lights are illegal (Even thoguh my HiD kit is TUV regulated and E marked road legal!!)... £30 fine as part of the bargain.
Im not disputing the law but I certainly dont want to go back to the yellow tinge halogen lamp OR the cheap looking white Xenon bulbs.....


Can any one help.. Or make a suggestion.

Thanks

 

[toby1]

Check headlamp aim?

Dimmer bulbs?

 

[alexanderfoti]

Do you have projector housings or normal housings?

A HID bulb in a normal housing will produce HUGE amounts of glare, and cause the light to be scattered upwards instead of onto the road.

 

[87henderson]

Whats the dimmest hid bulb you can buy?
I presume its just normal housing as i have not modified the actual headlamp unit.. I had the bulbs adjusted so they were pointing down on the road...

 

[alexanderfoti]

The dimmest is 45watt, but its the beam pattern that causes the issues. This is what you look like to oncoming traffic, without projector housings:

This is what projector housings look like:

and cause a beam pattern similar to this: (but with the bump on the other side of course)

 

[Troon]

my HiD kit is TUV regulated and E marked road legal

I'd put money that it does not have any approvals to back up its "E-marking". To my knowledge, there are no legal discharge bulbs available to replace OEM filaments in OEM halogen lamp assemblies. Where did you get them?

The only legal way to get HIDs is to use them in conjunction with an approved HID lamp assembly.

 

[alexanderfoti]

I'd put money that it does not have any approvals to back up its "E-marking". To my knowledge, there are no legal discharge bulbs available to replace OEM filaments in OEM halogen lamp assemblies. Where did you get them?

The only legal way to get HIDs is to use them in conjunction with an approved HID lamp assembly.

And the headlamp washers and automatic level adjustment to go with them.

 

[JML270]

Osram Nightbreaker Plus halogens are superb.

 

[Alex M Grieve]

Got pulled over last night because my headlights were too bright.. Was told that because I don't have "self levelling lights" and no washers are attached my lights are illegal (Even though my HiD kit is TUV regulated and E marked road legal!!)... £30 fine as part of the bargain.

I think you have been very unlucky. I am not arguing for the legality, or otherwise of what you had done, but if your local police would like to come down here, they could have a feeding frenzy.

On trips out at night around here it is unusual to spot a car with lights which work, and which are correctly focused. And in the unlikely event that they are, it is all too common for the driver to drive at you whilst on main beam, either because of crap wiper blades and a blurred screen, or poor night vision (not tested anywhere, AFAIK).

 

[television]

I think you have been very unlucky. I am not arguing for the legality, or otherwise of what you had done, but if your local police would like to come down here, they could have a feeding frenzy.

On trips out at night around here it is unusual to spot a car with lights which work, and which are correctly focused. And in the unlikely event that they are, it is all too common for the driver to drive at you whilst on main beam, either because of crap wiper blades and a blurred screen, or poor night vision (not tested anywhere, AFAIK).

It is becoming like "other lights are so bright" I will have brighter lamp too, I used to drive all over the world at night with never a problem, these days I just do not like night driving very much as so many cars have out of focus beams.

This has come to the attention of the EU regulation guys hence the clamping sown on it , and about time as well.

 

[87henderson]

Some very valid point thanks.. As i said to the traffic cop iv had my hid kit on my car over a year now, driven by umpteen traffic, unmarked, riot vans, paddy wagons and jus normal cop cars and not ONCE have i been stopped or advised about them, fact being if i knew they were illegal i wouldnt have fitted them! I think he was just bein a tosser tbh tryin to prove a point cos he prob drives a T reg Corsa! Idiot... Anyway those Osram seem to get good rep.. Need to check them out..

 

[alexanderfoti]

Most likely, I have had a police officer SCREAM at me whilst he was directing traffic, I was on my motorbike, which had sky blue angel eyes on the headlights, at the time.

There is no need to talk to me like that, I thought. Completely OTT and rude, ruined my journey to work too

 

[television]

I must admit that the night breaker plus are very good, and made the 140 much more drivable at night.

 

[Naraic]

HID Xenons are 35Watts (not 45W as may have been suggested).

So it's not about the wattage. Nightbreaker plus are the ideal...they are 55 watts like any other (legal) halogen bulb.

 

[Naraic]

Some very valid point thanks.. As i said to the traffic cop iv had my hid kit on my car over a year now, driven by umpteen traffic, unmarked, riot vans, paddy wagons and jus normal cop cars and not ONCE have i been stopped or advised about them, fact being if i knew they were illegal i wouldnt have fitted them! I think he was just bein a tosser tbh tryin to prove a point cos he prob drives a T reg Corsa! Idiot... Anyway those Osram seem to get good rep.. Need to check them out..

Has you car passed an MOT with these bulbs in? If yes, then you have been lucky...you got a stupid MOT station because your lights should have failed on three counts...no self leveling, no washers and the wrong reflectors.

The cop was perfectly correct. Just because you hadn't been stopped previously makes the others stupid...not him. Why do you call him an idiot. And why would he drive a Corsa...keep digging, the hole is getting bigger.

 

[alexanderfoti]

Very harshly put, but correct

 

[w44nty]

My motto is stick with the lights the car was designed with,if you want to upgrade,do it properly using the recommended parts for the job.

There are 1000,s of these not road legal bulbs for sale on E Bay,perhaps the clampdowns should start with the distributers and sellers of the not road legal bulbs.

The get out clause is the same old chesnut,these are designed for shows and off road only, just like the number plates that are everywhere on the road,another clampdown coming.

People only have thereselves to blame if they buy such tat.

 

[star]

Has you car passed an MOT with these bulbs in? If yes, then you have been lucky...you got a stupid MOT station because your lights should have failed on three counts...no self leveling, no washers and the wrong reflectors.

These have only just come into effect and might be still an advisory for a month or so?

 

[Naraic]

These have only just come into effect and might be still an advisory for a month or so?

Do you mean they have only just become part of the MOT? Or the regulations re: HIDs? The regulations re: the HIDs have been in for years so the cop was correct...not sure about the MOT.

 

[star]

For the mot.