LED headlight lamps

[hollytree]

Has anyone tried these.
Do they fit.

http://www.horizonleds.co.uk/headlamp-cree-led/4th-generation-cree-led-kits/h4-cree-philips-led-headlight-kit-g4

[strat24v]

if the led is housed at the same dimension from the mounting face as the normal h4 bulb filament then they should be ok.

[ChrisCar6]

Are they legal? As per HID retro-fitted bulbs?

[ProtoTipo]

Are they legal? As per HID retro-fitted bulbs?

At the risk of inviting any more 'daytime TV' jibes, 'Wheeler Dealers' had to put a notice on one of their old programmes to say that their fitting of HID bulbs to an old Lexus (in the case of this particular programme) wouldn't be legal.

[Stratos Fear]

Yes - I saw that programme. They said that the the use of HID bulbs should be with a complete custom-made headlamp fitting - and not retro-fitted in the existing headlamp housings - or words to that effect. This is presumably to avoid mis-alignment/ bad adjustment of the bulbs and dazzling other road-users

Peter C

[tomsredstratos]

Here is the DOT's view of them.

http://webarchive.nationalarchives.gov.uk/20120606172804/http:/assets.dft.gov.uk/publications/dft-information-sheets/aftermarket-hid-headlamps.pdf

The H4 LED bulbs I have seen looked great in colour when on (bright white) but must have only been shining 15ft. Wasn't drivable at night. Standard bulbs went back in.

Tom

[Griff]

The key word in the whole of the paragraph is in RED below, despite the DfT publishing their 'view' in May 2010, it still remains untested in lawIn the Department for Transport's (DfT) 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 would be a better option: http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/111827847398?_trksid=p2060353.m1438.l2649&ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT and there a number of such units on sale in both LHD and RHD beam patterns from a variety of manucaturers

[Guy Mayers]

If your headlights are poor then the answer is in my Avatar ;)

[threep]

Is it just me or do most HID headlights tend to dazzle? I don't think the DOT rules have caught up with the current headlamp technology where the amount of light bears no relationship to power (wattage). I used to use 80/100W bulbs for road rallying and were marked not for road use, but modern headlights are much brighter. Has anyone seen the adverts for the Laser Lights option from BMW? Not sure how such powerful lights can be road legal.

[hollytree]

But i started this about LED, not HID

[john]

Is not the question of changing from a standard setup relevant?

[Griff]

I've done this some time ago, pm me if you want a more detailed answer

[john]

I'm getting the impression there must be a legal way to do this then...................

[Griff]

1.It is the VIEW of the DfT, that is to say their opinion.
2. This view is restricted to the adaption of previous halogen based units being modified by the inclusion of HID illumination
3. LED units i.e. as in my photo are legal as they are designed for that purpose
3. The Construction & Use regulations specify 55W as the maximum allowed wattage, which is why 80/100W bulbs are marked 'not for road use'


A number of manufacturers now use laser head lights, purpose designed, not using more than 55w, and completely legal

[Stratos Fear]

Griff

Interesting thread - but are your LED lights any good? How do they compare with other types of headlight? Are there any comparative tests that we can read about? (they certainly look the part!)

Peter C

[Griff]

My pet hate is bad lights, the LED's were after a LOT of research, I wanted to do something better than Halogen (even the ever so slightly iffy 100w 'off road use only') 6000k white light output of HID, but with instant illumination, because they are my 'headlight flash' and avoid the heavy duty wiring associated with HID ballast units.

My lights are 6000k white, produce approximately the same volume of light as a 35w HID unit, but use a normal H4 plug, as per the pdf, so miles better than any Halogen unit, equivalent to an HID unit in light output, but with no electrical 'draw' penalties or the associated heavy duty wiring. I'm very pleased with them

[Stratos Fear]

Thanks for details - they sound very impressive . I'll log them for when I'm ready with my LB build - but could be a few months yet!
Peter C

[GrahamH]

Hi Griff
Interested in what you've done to your head lights, if you have any further info could you PM me please. Sounds like a much better solution for bright lights.
Many thanks

[ChrisCar6]

Not cheap! Only source I can see is US Amazon which doesn't ship to UK.

[Griff]

UK Importer

https://www.mobilecentre.co.uk/index.php?main_page=index&manufacturers_id=4&sort=20a&filter_id=360&alpha_filter_id=0 (https://www.mobilecentre.co.uk/index.php?main_page=index&manufacturers_id=4&sort=20a&filter_id=360&alpha_filter_id=0)

Mobile Centre / Speaker Europe
PO Box 222
EVESHAM WR11 4WT
United Kingdom
Tel . +44 1386 21 21 21
Fax. +44 1386 21 31 41

Manufacturer
http://www.jwspeaker.com/

Specific headlamp unit information
http://www.jwspeaker.com/products/led-headlights-model-8700-evolution-2/