I can see.

[mk1bexwa]

I have acquired a hid h4 hid kit, and we fitted it at the weekend.

What do you all think?



Beckie

[alanmr2turbo]

they make a big difference for you when driving. Pity the other road users and MOT people dont like them

[jon_st205]

+1, just make 100% sure they are correctly adjusted (and even go a little lower for safety's sake).

Jon

[mk1bexwa]

yeah will do my other half has taken it to work today so he can adjust them on the beam setter.

As for mot, its not a problem as hes a tester as well

[chrismanchr]

they make a big difference for you when driving. Pity the other road users and MOT people dont like them

theyre illegal unless you have headlight height adjusters I think

[cabbydave1]

According to the mot book it only says some cars with HID's might have headlamp washers and adjusters. Most cars with HID's from factory are self levelling so theres nothing illegal about them, They just p you off when you have some little chav behind you that has badly adjusted hid's fitted they normally get the brake test off me. If that doesn't work I just plant the trottle and leave them behind.

[jimi]

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Home » HID Xenon Bulbs » HID Kits - New Legislation 2012

The latest directive from VOSA includes their view that unless strict criteria are met, after-market HID kits may not be legal.

There is some confusion regarding the change in legislation towards HID kits. Although we are still trying to determine the full details here is some text that may help! Many thanks to the MX3 Forum guys who bought it to my attention

Here is the relevant text -

"In the Department's view it is not legal to sell or use after market HID lighting kits, for converting conventional Halogen headlamps to HID Xenon. If a customer wants to convert his vehicle to Xenon HID he must purchase completely new Xenon HID headlamps. The reason for this is that the existing lens and reflector are designed around a Halogen filament bulb, working to very precise tolerances. If one places a HID "burner" (bulb) in the headlamp, the beam pattern will not be correct, there will be glare in some places and not enough light in other places within the beam pattern.
The following is the legal rationale:

The Road Vehicle Lighting Regulations 1989 regulate the situation in the UK.
Under these Regulations, HID/Gas Discharge/Xenon headlamps are not mentioned and therefore they are not permitted according to the strict letter of the law.

However new vehicles have HID headlamps. This is because they comply to European type approval Regulations. The UK cannot refuse to register a vehicle with a European type approval. These are to ECE Regulation 98 (for the HID headlamps which are tested on a rig in a laboratory) and ECE Regulation 48 (Lighting Installation on the vehicle).

For the after market, a used vehicle cannot obtain type approval because it is only applicable for new vehicles. However we feel that saying "HID is banned in the after market" would not be reasonable. Instead we should make analogies with new vehicles. It would be reasonable to require HID in the after market to meet the same safety standards as on new vehicles. The same level of safety should apply.

Therefore a HID headlamp unit sold in the after market should:

1. be type approved to ECE Regulation 98 as a component.
2. when fitted to the vehicle should enable ECE Regulation 48 to be complied with (although no government inspection will take place).
3. Comply with RVLR as far as "use" is concerned.

In practice this means:

1. The headlamp unit (outer lens, reflector, bulb) shall be type approved to ECE 98 and be "e-marked" to demonstrate this. That can only be done by the headlamp supplier - Hella, Valeo etc. who must test the headlamp in an independent laboratory.
2. Once fitted to the vehicle it must have headlamp cleaning and self-levelling (which can be for the headlamp or can be in the vehicle suspension - some expensive estate cars have "self-levelling suspension" and that is adequate). Also the dipped beam must stay on with the main beam.
3. The headlamp must be maintained in good working order, kept clean, and aligned/adjusted correctly like any other headlamp.
Under the Road Traffic Act 1988 it is an offence to supply, fit or use vehicle parts which are not legal.
In summary it is not permitted to convert an existing halogen headlamp unit for use with HID bulbs. The entire headlamp unit must be replaced with one designed and approved for use with HID bulbs and it must be installed in accordance with the rules stated above."

If you are found to be using lights which don't comply, in all likelihood, you may be reported to the Procurator Fiscal and may end up with a fine.

The above seems to be a precursor to the new MOT criteria slated to come into existance on New Years Eve 2011 (for 2012), this is from the MOT Testers VOSA bullitin explaining the new EU MOT regulations which were ratified this year,

[Peter Gidden]

The biggest problem with ebay indo-chinese-philipino HID lights is that they are out of focus, causing massive glare. ALL the rebased bulbs will do this.

Genuine Phillips/Osram HID bulbs are designed to work with projector lenses. Aftermarket kits use rebased bulbs due to patents etc.

I've recently bought full OEM Phillips/Hella HID lights for my Noble and they've cost around £500. Well worth it IMHO. Not only will i be able to see, but i won't be blinding every other road user by using cheap poo.

[Lauren]

Not a good idea. You will blind other road users.

You can't fit HID lights to old cars.

[SuperRedMR2]

Should have got some Raybriggs and decent bulbs! - They are much better than OEM

[Peter Gidden]

Not a good idea. You will blind other road users.

You can't fit HID lights to old cars.

Thank you. I normally get shot down by everyone.

[craig]

Not a good idea. You will blind other road users.

You can't fit HID lights to old cars.

Agreed, I got dazzled by some chav in an A3 using crappy ebay HID lights.

Bloody dangerous.