Legality of HID headlights

[CrystalJean]

I've been contemplating changing the headlights on my 2008 Toyota Yaris - but I want to know the in's and outs of all the laws in regards to it, and color shades.

Most states defer to Federal regs, with a few of their own things added in (I reside in Texas) but I can't find the actual code itself.

There are things out there saying you can't modify your headlights to HID unless the car has factory HID (which I also CAN'T find a general list of such cars - as there are 2004 Mazda's that have HID's factory installed)

Also, there are some general provisions saying lights can only be white or amber in color in the front headlight. The only color named as blatantly illegal is red, and in addition red, white or blue that are "beacons" because that's reserved for emergency vehicles, obviously.

That being said, I wanted a light that would classify as a "SHADE" of white, but higher on the color temp scale more towards pinkish (30,000k).

I don't want to be one of those people that just plugs a bright light into their car and screams around blinding everyone, I want to have the head light meet distancing requirements, ect.

I feel like the shade and maybe the "After market modification" would be my only big issues if I follow all the other regulations set - because shade and color is purely the officers discretion.

Can anyone clarify all of this for me, or if they have the codes that I can break apart and classify it on my own?

Any and all help would be appreciated. Thanks!

[deathwisher]

An officer discussing about HID and if it is legal or not in Texas.
You can read it here.
http://www.ar15.com/archive/topic.html?b=8&f=8&t=403095

[cali yaris]

There are things out there saying you can't modify your headlights to HID unless the car has factory HID (which I also CAN'T find a general list of such cars - as there are 2004 Mazda's that have HID's factory installed)

That's correct. Park your car facing a wall at night and turn on your headlights. Do they come up slowly or are they immediately full brightness? The former is HID, the latter is a regular (halogen) bulb.

I wanted a light that would classify as a "SHADE" of white, but higher on the color temp scale more towards pinkish (30,000k).

100% ILLEGAL in California. (but that doesn't stop a lot of people from running all sorts of colors). The interpretation of the color is also at the discretion of the officer giving you the ticket, as well.
Further, any HID installed into a reflector housing (which the Yaris has) as opposed to a projector housing is going to be producing a VERY bright light, that some oncoming drivers may find TOO bright.

[CrystalJean]

Further, any HID installed into a reflector housing (which the Yaris has) as opposed to a projector housing is going to be producing a VERY bright light, that some oncoming drivers may find TOO bright.

Yeah, That's why I wanted to find a whole new headlight housing with was specifically meant to house HID bulbs. I always call other's "douchebag" lights because apparently its just them sticking a random HID bulb into the original headlight.

Thanks for the help. :)

[MadMax]

From a different forum, this (http://www.tacomaworld.com/forum/lighting/83185-texas-laws-information-concerning-hid-lights.html) hopefully answers all your questions...

I am a peace officer in Texas and have been trying to get some information together for the state laws concerning HID retrofits and their legality. The topic has come up with others before and I did not know the specifics so I did my best to educate myself. So far this is what I have come up with. If there is anything you can add or correct please let me know.

HID Kits are illegal to SELL as DOT approved for street use due to FEDERAL regulation and none of the kits that use HID bulbs to replace standard halogen bulbs in a halogen housing should have a DOT seal or marking. DOT does not approve or disapprove headlight components. It is strictly up to the manufacturer to certify that they meet the federal DOT specs, which none of them do since the HID light source is a different position, size, and shape than the halogen filament the housing was designed for. The fact it plugs into a standard housing for H1 or H3 halogen bulbs is not relevant.

That said, there are no longer any headlight aiming requirements for inspection since the 90s in Texas. There are only laws for headlight height and distance they must illuminate (150 ft). They cannot be red in color and they must be functional and condensation free. This makes it perfectly legal to use HIDs that are blinding other motorists on high beam since all HID set ups in halogen reflector housings do this when adjusted to give the driver a good view of the road ahead. They can be as bright as you want, any color temperature as you want, and as blinding as you want ON HIGH BEAM. There are no TEXAS LAWS preventing use if adjusted correctly and only federal laws preventing sale for street use. The only statute that covers aiming states your low beams must illuminate at 150 feet minimum and not project the high intensity portion of the beam into oncoming driver's eyes. This only applies to the low beams.

Driving lights and fog light have no aiming requirements for inspection and are not tested as part of the Texas inspection process. They have no color or distance requirements but cannot be red in color. This makes HID driving and fog light retrofits also completely legal for inspection purposes.

Instead of putting HIDs in a halogen reflector housing, it is much more responsible to do an HID projector retrofit that uses the entire projector assembly and D2S bulbs from an OEM manufactured HID projector set up so that you do not blind other drivers and have a sharp cut off line at the top of your low beams; however, such kits are 3-4X more expensive than a plug and play kit and require custom installation. The up side is that the D2S bulbs and improved distribution of light can put over twice the usable light on the road an HID kit that replaces the halogen bulb in a factory housing will project.

Likewise, using proper color temperature bulbs such as 4100-5000K will produce the maximum lumen output. For example, a 6000K bulb only puts out about 2/3 the lumens of a 4300K bulb, all else being equal. The higher the color temperature above 6000K, the lower the lumen output and the more glare the driver will see in foggy/rainy conditions. All OEM factory HID systems will range between 4-5K temperature for this reason.

Now I do see these particular laws as possibly not allowing the HID retrofit...

§ 547.004. GENERAL OFFENSES. (a) A person commits an offense that is a misdemeanor if the person operates or moves or, as an owner, knowingly permits another to operate or move, a vehicle that:
(1) is unsafe so as to endanger a person;
(2) is not equipped in a manner that complies with the vehicle equipment standards and requirements established by this chapter; or
(3) is equipped in a manner prohibited by this chapter.

COMBINED WITH...

§ 547.3215. USE OF FEDERAL STANDARD. Unless specifically prohibited by this chapter, lighting, reflective devices, and associated equipment on a vehicle or motor vehicle must comply with:
(1) the current federal standards in 49 C.F.R. Section 571.108; or
(2) the federal standards in that section in effect, if any, at the time the vehicle or motor vehicle was manufactured.

The author of the thread contacted the Texas Department of Public Safety and got this reply...

Under Motor Vehicle Code § 547.3215. USE OF FEDERAL STANDARD. Drivers are required to meet federal standards in 49 CFR Sec 571.108. This makes current HID retrofits in Halogen housings NOT meet the beam pattern requirements for replacement lamps. The proper ticket to write is one of the following for those using HIDs in halogen housings.

HEAD LAMP(S) GLARING, NOT ADJUSTED

or

FAIL TO USE PROPER HEADLIGHT BEAM

They could not answer if OEM projector retrofits were legal and only referred to 49 CFR Sec 571.108 and stated if it was legal there is was legal to use. As far as I know OEM retrofits should completely comply with Federal Regulations. They had to in order to be put in OEM applications to begin with.

[cali yaris]

We have projector headlights for the Yaris from Spyder auto to replace the OEM headlights. In stock.

[Darkhorse6]

We have projector headlights for the Yaris from Spyder auto to replace the OEM headlights. In stock.

Website showing backordered... did I miss the boat on these? Also is there a forum discount?

[Darkhorse6]

OP:

Are you sure you want 30,000k colour temp? The higher the colour temp, the lower amount of light output (lumens). ie you'd be looking at around 2900 lumens for 6000k which is blueish white, 2000 lumens for 12,000 k which is purple... 30,000k you'd probably be looking at output similar to your current halogen lights, only in pink instead of yellow. lol

[alfredyeez]

generally it is not legal or a good idea to retrofit HIDs

http://www.danielsternlighting.com/tech/bulbs/Hid/HID.html