Re: Now at this price, these guys have to be on the con.

What a surprise...a response.

Q: item is not for collectioon kind regards

So I've reported it for excessive postage.

;-)

Again. Just don't.

Can you give details, please? My SD1 has just passed its MOT with HID fitted to 'halogen' units.

Daniel Stern is a US company selling various car lighting stuff. Not likely to be up to date on UK requirements. As well as being biased.

D Stern hates HID, he has been popping up on forums all over the place telling everyone how bad it is fitting aftermarket hids in halogen headlamps for years, our MOT test shows if light is bleeding out into other drivers eyes when they put the light meters up to the headlamps. Now officially an MOT tester can only fail headlamps for improper aim or improper colour or not working at all obviously :)

So as long as your headlamps are adjusted correctly and the colour is "as near" to white as possible then you are good to go.

Technically it is illegal on a couple of fronts. Unless you fit a kit into a factory hid projector light, the light is unlikely be designed for the beam and e-marked accordingly. Unless you have automatic self levellers for your lights to cut flashing and have a headlamp washer, the rest of the car won't comply. There are no such thing as e-marked aftermarket hid kits for retro- fitting. Car lights by law need to be emarked for road use, as do brake pads.

But I've been happy to use none-emarked brake pads before from a reputable company, that are better than the emarked pad and the standard fit throughout the rest of the world. And I would feel the same about HIDs. As long as the particular set I fit have been proven in the make of car I have to work and not cause glare when properly fitted, I would happily fit them, hence why I was looking.

"Tim S Kemp" gurgled happily, sounding much like they were saying:

The Road Vehicle Lighting Regulations would be a good place to start.

It's not that they're illegal, it's more that they're not legal.

'In the Department's view it is not legal to sell or use after market HID lighting kits'

That's nicely vague, then.

That's an opinion, not legislation. As written it seems that HIDs are illegal however they appear on the car.

Mine give a sharply focused beam with a sharp cutoff - rather more accurate than the originals.

I have self levelling suspension and headlamp washers. ;-) I realise factory fit units have their own self levelling - but then few cars have this for the suspension.

Indeed. I certainly don't get people flashing me.

Think the snag would be if you want a refund for whatever reason. Postage isn't included in this.

Yeah, but further down it does talk about type approval etc.

A quick glance at the dipped headlamp section of RVLR1989 states no minimum or maximum wattage, white or yellow as a colour an its aim should be set as not to cause undue dazzle.

"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."

Should.

"Tim S Kemp" gurgled happily, sounding much like they were saying:

No, but it does specify they must be e-marked.

1. Markings- (a) Any vehicle not covered by sub-paragraph (b), (c) or (d): An approval mark or a British Standard mark

And that's the whole package - reflector, lens, bulb.

And does so in vague terms. It also makes it clear that HIDs fitted bny manufactures don't, in the opinion of DfT meet UK law but are allowed because they are approved in Europe. The whole article is a fudge designed to intimidate people into doing what they want, rather than informing drivers of the actual legal process/consequences.

Can't disagree with you there, it does seem to be all opinion...