hid kit
- Thread starter vectramad
- Start date
pgarner
TC ModFather
please be aware that HID conversion kits are unlawful
if your still after a set then http://www.hids4u.co.uk/ are possible the most well respected suppliers
but even they say
if your still after a set then http://www.hids4u.co.uk/ are possible the most well respected suppliers
but even they say
Strange that they are illegal.
I fitted an HID kit but one of the bulbs wasn't fitted correctly so the headlamp setting was way out when it went for it's MOT.
The tester fixed it and set it up and it passed the MOT
Yugguy
Torque King
It is a gray area. Aftermarket hids will not fail not as long as beam pattern etc is correct.
Dot state though that it is their view that they are illegal. I think it's a risk going for very blue hids, but 35w OEM 4300 or 5k you'd be fine.
Dot state though that it is their view that they are illegal. I think it's a risk going for very blue hids, but 35w OEM 4300 or 5k you'd be fine.
I went for the 5K version but it was 50 ? watts. The converters on them keep blowing up, probably because of the wattage, or because I was using the el-cheapo versions from ebay.
At the time of writing up on HID kits in the UK you need headlight washers, self levelling lights and the correct beam pattern. Most kits do not offer this so an MOT tester who is not that up on the rules might let it slide, those that know the book well should technically fail it.
Yugguy
Torque King
Below are excerpts from the MOT tester document.
Information:
Vehicles equipped with High Intensity Discharge (HID) or LED dipped beam headlamps may be fitted with headlamp washers and a suspension or headlamp self levelling system.
Where such systems are fitted, they must work; however, it is accepted that it may not be possible to readily determine the functioning of self levelling systems. In such cases, the benefit of the doubt must be given.
Method of Inspection
Where HID or LED dipped beam headlamps are fitted, switch on the headlamps and check the operation of any headlamp levelling and cleaning devices fitted
Reason for rejection:
A headlamp levelling or cleaning device inoperative or otherwise obviously defective.
So, washing/levelling MAY be fitted, and if so they must work. So from an MOT perspective alone HIDs without these will not fail as long as general alignment and pattern etc. is correct.
However, a car with hids driven in Europe must be E-certified, and to do this it MUST have levelling/washing systems. So from a DOT legal standpoint aftermarket hids with no levelling/washing are illegal.
But, like any law, it needs someone to enforce it. If you have an aftermarket system that is close to the look of an oem then you would need the police to a) notice this and b) be bothered to do something about it. They would also have to prove that your install was dangerous. These days they dont even care about incorrectly-spaced numberplates.
I am NOT advocating breaking the law in any way, but I don't see a properly installed aftermarket OEM-like kit as being a bad thing.
I do see badly-installed hid kits, especially into none-projector lenses, that are dazzling and yep, I want them off the roads.
Information:
Vehicles equipped with High Intensity Discharge (HID) or LED dipped beam headlamps may be fitted with headlamp washers and a suspension or headlamp self levelling system.
Where such systems are fitted, they must work; however, it is accepted that it may not be possible to readily determine the functioning of self levelling systems. In such cases, the benefit of the doubt must be given.
Method of Inspection
Where HID or LED dipped beam headlamps are fitted, switch on the headlamps and check the operation of any headlamp levelling and cleaning devices fitted
Reason for rejection:
A headlamp levelling or cleaning device inoperative or otherwise obviously defective.
So, washing/levelling MAY be fitted, and if so they must work. So from an MOT perspective alone HIDs without these will not fail as long as general alignment and pattern etc. is correct.
However, a car with hids driven in Europe must be E-certified, and to do this it MUST have levelling/washing systems. So from a DOT legal standpoint aftermarket hids with no levelling/washing are illegal.
But, like any law, it needs someone to enforce it. If you have an aftermarket system that is close to the look of an oem then you would need the police to a) notice this and b) be bothered to do something about it. They would also have to prove that your install was dangerous. These days they dont even care about incorrectly-spaced numberplates.
I am NOT advocating breaking the law in any way, but I don't see a properly installed aftermarket OEM-like kit as being a bad thing.
I do see badly-installed hid kits, especially into none-projector lenses, that are dazzling and yep, I want them off the roads.
There seems to be a problem with some of the after-market HID kits in that the power converter fails.
t seems to me that on the desire to make them smaller, they have ignored the basic requirements for cooling, ie there is insufficient surface area to dissipate the heat generated. Not only that but the cases are often made of polished aluminium so that cooling by radiation is significantly reduced.
I have no experience of OEM installations but it would be interesting to know whether they are prone to early failure.
t seems to me that on the desire to make them smaller, they have ignored the basic requirements for cooling, ie there is insufficient surface area to dissipate the heat generated. Not only that but the cases are often made of polished aluminium so that cooling by radiation is significantly reduced.
I have no experience of OEM installations but it would be interesting to know whether they are prone to early failure.
