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Hids On Mk7


orcomma
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103 members have voted

  1. 1. Aftermarket HIDs on the road?

    • Aaargh! I'm blind
      33
    • Yaarrgh! I'm cool
      49
    • Oiiii. You're Nicked
      21


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As KeithC says, give an insurance company a way out of coughing up and they will find it.

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As KeithC says, give an insurance company a way out of coughing up and they will find it.

...and of course its not just the damage to your car / third party car, if the other party is badly injured / killed, you will be paying the damages too.

risky business modding cars.

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As KeithC says, give an insurance company a way out of coughing up and they will find it.

And as I've said... Mine are declared on my policy, as with the LED sidelights and number plate bulbs. Yet I'm made out to be a criminal but I'm insured more than most on here are!

Jason- yeah on all the fiesta forums, I think I'm under the same username.

I have seen some dire setups on cars without projectors that are more blue than White and they do blind, bit only because they're reflector style. And for anyone who cares, mine were first adjusted against a wall then tested using the light dispersion machine at a testing station.... Guess what, they passed. I know in terms of washers and levellers they're not considered kosher but all those who claim to be blinded, well not by me you won't ;)

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  • 2 months later...

im thinking of having some fitted to my car and to be honest they look awesome.

why do they have to have washers on as standard light dont and iv seen plenty and not been blinded.

and at what stage are they classed illegal as there are different types to buy.

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im thinking of having some fitted to my car and to be honest they look awesome.

why do they have to have washers on as standard light dont and iv seen plenty and not been blinded.

and at what stage are they classed illegal as there are different types to buy.

if some of the HID light hits dirt particles and deflects into someones eyes..... then there could be an issue!

I'm not a HID snob tho.... I genuinely think some people are being far too uptight about the whole issue..... HID's should not be fitted to reflector headlights...... but I have never seen an issue with them being fitted to projector headlights.... and anyone that says they have, are being far too tight about it all. (unless the headlights weren't levelled at all.)

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if some of the HID light hits dirt particles and deflects into someones eyes..... then there could be an issue!

I'm not a HID snob tho.... I genuinely think some people are being far too uptight about the whole issue..... HID's should not be fitted to reflector headlights...... but I have never seen an issue with them being fitted to projector headlights.... and anyone that says they have, are being far too tight about it all. (unless the headlights weren't levelled at all.)

Not as tight as the boys in blue, I can't name my source but roadside checks are coming very soon, 3 points and £60 if you are caught, apparently it's become a big enough problem, I've seen the test kit they will be using issued by DOT....

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and at what stage are they classed illegal

At the stage you fit them to the car and drive on a public road!

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thanks for clearing that up lads i might just see if i can blue lights a differnt way that is not illegal lol. :rolleyes:

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Just to put a little perspective on this. one of my neighbours is about to lose his house probably at the end of this month after a year of court cases and trying to broker a deal. his teenage son was driving the family Ford focus fitted by him with HID lighting. The boy was involved in an accident with an other driver claiming being blinded by the lights. Both drivers were injured the other driver losing part of his leg. The insurance assessor confirmed the lights on the focus had been illegally modified and the insurance company voided the insurance. so now the family are still paying a loan on a car that is written off and they face paying 10s of thousands of pounds to the injured driver who hasn't been able to work since.

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Just to put a little perspective on this. one of my neighbours is about to lose his house probably at the end of this month after a year of court cases and trying to broker a deal. his teenage son was driving the family Ford focus fitted by him with HID lighting. The boy was involved in an accident with an other driver claiming being blinded by the lights. Both drivers were injured the other driver losing part of his leg. The insurance assessor confirmed the lights on the focus had been illegally modified and the insurance company voided the insurance. so now the family are still paying a loan on a car that is written off and they face paying 10s of thousands of pounds to the injured driver who hasn't been able to work since.

:unsure: Wow, that does make you think twice. Bit scary actually

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:unsure: Wow, that does make you think twice. Bit scary actually

True Paul. Maybe governments should start with all the shops that sell those lights...

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True Paul. Maybe governments should start with all the shops that sell those lights...

Thats what I thought when I first saw Halford's chav-tastic display of crazy lights (including flashing ones and blue exterior lights), but I guess they say they sell them for "off road" or car show purposes only.

Its then up to the buyer if they decide to use them on the streets

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but I guess they say they sell them for "off road" or car show purposes only.

Yeah right :P

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  • 2 months later...

Thats what I thought when I first saw Halford's chav-tastic display of crazy lights (including flashing ones and blue exterior lights), but I guess they say they sell them for "off road" or car show purposes only.

Its then up to the buyer if they decide to use them on the streets

In all fairness I had a friend with all round blue neons and other lights like in the grille and things and he actually truly did use them only for shows.

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  • 1 month later...

True Paul. Maybe governments should start with all the shops that sell those lights...

well that's just crap, how about we stop selling cars too, after all speeding is illegal but I bet a few of us do that.

not wishing to get hung up on the legal issues here but I do seriously think its time the police started to jump on the many cars with dazzling blue headlights travelling today's roads. I don't have a general problem with HID's but there does seem to be those who have to fit the brightest most powerful ones they can get there hands on without any thought or safety in mind for other road users. Sad thing is these morons will be the first to whine "I didn't know they are illegal" after killing or seriously injuring someone - fit them if you wish but be man enough to take the blame for any accident caused.

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I've noticed a particular little car on my side of town recently whose lights are far too bright, if I see the little chav driving past again and it's just me and him on the street i'll be putting my full beams on until he passes (I'm presuming it's a he but theres no way of seeing past the glare). We'll see how that little t!t likes it.

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How about getting the Philips X-treme Power bulbs instead? Probably not even comparable with HID's, but at least they are legal, safe and probably (?) the best regular bulbs you can get?

Haven't tried them yet, but I probably will.

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  • 1 month later...

Rule of thumb

Only white or Ce marked blue/white to front

Only Red or white (reversing/numberplate to rear)

Only flashing lights permitted are indicators or authorised strobes/flashers if Emergency services (lucky me, i get to play B) ) or Works/Recovery.

Lit washers are acceptable as long as they're not red.

Saying that my friend has been pulled 3 times in 5 months for red washer jets (warned him before he fitted them but he still went ahead) Officers that tugged him made him disconnect the wires there and then.

Underside Neons and show lights are best kept just for that - Saturday night in the local Tesco's car park.

Off road and private land Good - Public Roads - Bad.

I personally like the look of lit up cars but unfortunately i don't write the rules and don't personally have many instances when i have to be the nasty man ruining Johnny Chavs fun.

I restrict myself to things like blown lights and excessive use of fogs / high beam.

I do agree though that HID lights are just too bright, i liken it to staring at laser pointers, the dazzle distracts other drivers and can cause major problems if misused.

Everything in moderation and a place/time for everything.:D

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  • 2 months later...

They do dazzle in a heck of a lot of cases, hell even factory fit ones do, may as well run around with high beams on. And just because you don't have an MOT coming up for x years, the police can pull you for them and request removal in x amount of days and to be certified as having done so. A lot of police won't bother because of paper work, they can't or can't be bothered turning around, or just don't really care because they're not traffic police. Probably the only reason they're allowed to be sold is because they're either outside the UK or list them as show lights.

And with them being brighter they reflect more, try driving for more than a half hour at night with poor street lighting and your eyes are toast >_>

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And just because you don't have an MOT coming up for x years, the police can pull you for them and request removal in x amount of days and to be certified as having done so. A lot of police won't bother because of paper work, they can't or can't be bothered turning around, or just don't really care because they're not traffic police.

I'm not a Traffic Officer but I turn around and am bothered.

Paperwork is paperwork.

It actually takes an average of 20 - 30 minutes to deal with it, most of that explaining multiple times to someone who argues they know more about what constitutes an offence than we do, then 5 minutes on the radio logging the stop, carrying out PNC checks, obtaining the transaction number for my notebook and sending them on their way with all paperwork they need to explain the procedure for reporting rectification.

I don't mind doing the paperwork, I get paid whether I'm driving around or stood at the side of the road.

The job is the job.

The reason most officers don't pull for lights is either they are not aware of legislation or they are doing some other tasking which takes priority.

Of course some are lazy but you'll find that type of person in any workplace.

I like to play fair, not like some black rats I know. :)

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  • 1 month later...

Hi All,

In response to HID's. I have the MK7 zetecS and it was recently due its first MOT.

I want full service history so get this done through Ford.

Prior to even booking my MOT I called in and questioned the HID concern... basically will it pass after April the 1st without headlight washers and self levellers.

Indeed the service department pulled out the new legislation stating this fact that it should not pass, BUT...

I was then told aslong as your beam pattern is standard it will pass, and they are never going to be looking inside the headlight unit for bulb type to prove its HID. (Even if the relay harness is clearly visable)

True enough it passed no problem.

One week on my friends mk7 MOT was due so as a test i fitted HIDs to his and put it through its MOT at another garage after raising the HID question... Once again it passed.

Hope this helps,

Lewis

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Hi, I have HID's fitted to my car. I went for 35W 4300k OEM look and they seem fine. I fitted them because I thought the standard bulbs didn't give out enough light. To be honest I don't think these are as good as the OEM HID's on my Mini. However, thats not what I wanted to discuss. The points raised about the legality of the HID's are down to two points:

1) Headlight washers

2) Auto leveling.

So, as far as 1) goes, it would be really easy to retrofit washer nozzels to the bumper. They may not look as good as the pop up washers, but it would satisfy the point.

On point 2), I work as an electrical engineer and design and commission large machinery. Most of may work involves programming electronic controllers. So, I've had a look around and have seen a very cheap device that can except an inclinometer with 0.1 degree resolution. I'm not 100% sure about the switch on the headlight leveling, but I would assume that it switches various resistances to alter the level of the headlight. This device can also accept a digital potentiometer output (but there's probably a different way of doing it). So installing this device and calibrating it on a level surface, should in theory be able to control the level of the headlight in a similar way to cars fitted with these as standard. Including the nod on startup. The basic cost for this 'kit' would be around £50-60.

My time is very limited, but if I get chance to try this I will. If there are any others who'd be interested in this kit, then let me know as it may give me some motivation!

They only thing then would be notifying your insurance company, who obviously are going to increase your premium.

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They only thing then would be notifying your insurance company, who obviously are going to increase your premium.

Out of sheer curiosity I asked Elephant if I could put HIDs on my car, fully expecting a berating for asking to illegally modify my car and they said they'd charge me an extra £13.15 a year. Sounded a bit arbitrary to me, so I asked to be put through to a person who specialises in mods (the chap I spoke to wasn't the most clued up) and another chap confirmed the price, and I spelt out to them that I'd be replacing the normal headlights with HID lights, NOT changing the actual lamp enclosure - he said he'd get back to me with confirmation. Sure enough, they called me back the next day and said it was all legit, and would I like to do it. I was fairly confused because as far as I was aware, an HID couldn't be certified / e-marked / whatever, unless it was in an actual projector enclosure designed for HIDs - otherwise it didn't meet part of the spec. I outlined this to the guy on the phone who said it would be ok. I haven't actually changed my lights to HID, but it did give me food for thought.

Then again, this is the insurance company that put my alloys on my previous car down as transmission modifications..!

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