Aftermarket headlight laws ?

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Dr_evil

Dr_evil

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Right I'm planning the headlight upgrade on the series soon and I've got a couple of options as far as I see it but don't know the legalities on them. Gonna speak to the MOT tester when I get a chance but someone on here may know and save me the trip



Option one and my preferred option, Deasy has 7" LED bars so I could fit one per wing in a recess on a voltage regulator to give two brightness levels for low and high beam, this would be my favourite option due to LED's giving high light output, low power use and looking seriously different. Sides and indicators would be replaced by small LED sets in the bumper

Option two, a pair of these one per wing Universal Motorbike Motorcycle 7" Matt Black LED Headlight Custom Project Bike | eBay No idea if they're legal for cars as they've been designed for a bike but they have varying output levels

Option three and my least favourite is a crystal bulb upgrade which I don't want to do as I want to make the series completely different given that the front panels are already butchered




So basically anyone know if option one or two would be legal for road use ?
 
I take it you mean headlights here? The LED's are a no go so throw that idea away, they simply do not have the brightness. The main issue is you need a beam pattern and its a specific pattern, you will need either a lens or a reflector in order to achieve it. I believe the bike ones will be no good, I am not 100% sure. Have you got a pic of your front end? do you want OE looking lights or a complete change? You can get projector lights with a pattern, in fact there are loads of lights you can use as long as they produce a pattern

lights_diagram1.gif
 
You can fit extra driving lights provided that they are independently switched, and do not come on with normal dipped headlights. Also, any aftermarket lights you fit must be CE marked. So you can fit spotlights or fog lights provided that they can be switched on or off separately from the headlights. The easiest way to do this is to use a relay. With mine I have taken a spur from the main beam live as a trigger for the relay, with a simple toggle switch on the dash for the live feed from the battery to the relay. This way the lights will only come on with the main beams, and can be switched off altogether.
 
Jongould said:
I take it you mean headlights here? The LED's are a no go so throw that idea away, they simply do not have the brightness. The main issue is you need a beam pattern and its a specific pattern, you will need either a lens or a reflector in order to achieve it. I believe the bike ones will be no good, I am not 100% sure. Have you got a pic of your front end? do you want OE looking lights or a complete change? You can get projector lights with a pattern, in fact there are loads of lights you can use as long as they produce a pattern
Click to expand...

The LED's will easily have the brightness as they're Cree floodlight bars


Pattern wise no idea if they'd have one though


Bike ones are the same as fitted to choppers etc



What I want is a complete change as I want the front end to look totally different to anything else out there, worst case I was wondering if I could get away with some 55W Hella Micron spoltlights with dimmer bulbs in them as they'll be E marked and have a projector lens although I'd have thought the LED bar would have a specific lens too
 
Dr_evil said:
The LED's will easily have the brightness as they're Cree floodlight bars


Pattern wise no idea if they'd have one though


Bike ones are the same as fitted to choppers etc



What I want is a complete change as I want the front end to look totally different to anything else out there, worst case I was wondering if I could get away with some 55W Hella Micron spoltlights with dimmer bulbs in them as they'll be E marked and have a projector lens although I'd have thought the LED bar would have a specific lens too
Click to expand...


They still wont have the brightness, even CREE LED, if it was that simple then the manufacturers would already be fitting them, Halogen bulbs are very bright in comparison, may not seem like it but remember the beam pattern is designed not to glare other drivers.

How about these:

$T2eC16NHJFoE9nh6nPWTBRm14Hr8V!~~60_12.JPG

MOTORCYCLE TWIN PROJECTOR H4 HEADLIGHT - UK LEFT DIP BLACK | eBay
 
Dr_evil said:
The LED's will easily have the brightness as they're Cree floodlight bars
Click to expand...

Nope, no they won't.

People have this idea that there 50 million watts so they will be brighter.

It dosent work that way, they might look brighter but they dont have the throw or reach in a concentrated form that tungsten lights have.

I see people on here all the time saying LED this and that, yes LED are good, and i believe this is where the future lies, but what you cant do is limit the aperture and try and shape the beam with any kind of decent light out put.

MarkL had cree lights on his disco i believe, they are superb bits of kit, and im thinking of getting some myself, but they are blinding from the front hence using them as a spot.

I work with 240v AC everyday and we cant get LED brighter than tungsten in the entertainment industry. Let alone car bulbs. :(
 
Dr_evil said:
Those bike ones could work or if not could these ? They're E marked I think and can swap the bulb out for a weaker one if needed New & Genuine HELLA Micro DE Halogen 55W Driving Fog Lamp Spot Lights Kit (Pair) | eBay
Click to expand...

Nope, they are driving lights, they are designed to go low down on a vehicle with a wide, long throw beam pattern, you need specific headlight units, google projector headlights or kitcar headlights, must have a UK spec beam pattern as in the picture above (left hand kick up)
 
This is funny as fook> Doc being told by people with more experience( as usual) that it is no. He will be back on here bitching when MOT fails, and he has wasted more money. Must be nice to have deep pockets
 
My opinion for wot its worth
Standard lights on a series ellse it will look ****
Up grade bulbs/reflectors in the head lights
LEDs #### up easy when wet

sorry I did go back to edit the F word when I saw it was on general cht
 
Last edited:
Thor1950 said:
This is funny as fook> Doc being told by people with more experience( as usual) that it is no. He will be back on here bitching when MOT fails, and he has wasted more money. Must be nice to have deep pockets
Click to expand...

Those lights have a beam pattern so will be legal (as long as they point the right way!), only thing he needs to do is get a full beam light but this doesn't need a pattern so any high output light will do...
 
Jongould said:
Those lights have a beam pattern so will be legal (as long as they point the right way!), only thing he needs to do is get a full beam light but this doesn't need a pattern so any high output light will do...
Click to expand...

I have some KC daylighters for that ;)


HID 55w or 150w halogen are sat on me floor doing nothing


And as thats the troll put in his place I rest me case :D
 
Spunka said:
My opinion for wot its worth
Standard lights on a series ellse it will look ****
Up grade bulbs/reflectors in the head lights
LEDs #### up easy when wet

sorry I did go back to edit the F word when I saw it was on general cht
Click to expand...

These are gonna be recessed and hidden in the wings or bumper depending, having a completely blank front end :)
 
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