HID Lights in the NCT

crossy · 22-01-2014 1:39pm #1

Hi everyone,

Today I came across a post on Facebook saying HID kits are no longer legal as of 2014 and wont pass an NCT.

It says they will pass however if you have a water jet spraying on the headlight and a headlight balancing kit.

Does anyone know anything about this or has anyone passed with HIDs in their car this year?

Thanks

challengemaster · 22-01-2014 1:43pm

http://www.ncts.ie/NCT%20Manual%20Revise%20May%202012.pdf

Search (Ctrl + F) for HID

antodeco · 22-01-2014 1:48pm

Looking at it there, it appears that has been in force since 2012?

bazz26 · 22-01-2014 1:58pm

All they are doing in enforcing existing rules around HID lights which are required to come from the factory with self leveling adjustment and water cleaning. Aftermarket HID kits fitted very rarely will have these fitted which is what they are checking for now.

pa990 · 22-01-2014 1:59pm

about bloody time

antodeco · 22-01-2014 1:59pm

Ah balls. I upgraded my whole setup, and they are put into projectors as oppose to just the sidelights, so no stupid dazzling effect. Ho hum, guess ill be ripping that out and putting in the candle-like bulbs!

Mycroft H · 22-01-2014 2:12pm

From looking at the NCT manual, it's also a fail for a HID bulb to be fitted in a non-HID headlamp.

Nor more silly Civics driving around with dazzling headlights.

Dord · 22-01-2014 2:15pm

Mycroft H wrote: »

From looking at the NCT manual, it's also a fail for a HID bulb to be fitted in a non-HID headlamp.

Nor more silly Civics driving around with dazzling headlights.

That is, if they actually NCT the silly Civics! :rolleyes:

BMJD · 22-01-2014 2:15pm

Mycroft H wrote: »

From looking at the NCT manual, it's also a fail for a HID bulb to be fitted in a non-HID headlamp.

Nor more silly Civics driving around with dazzling headlights.

...until they swap then back in 5 minutes later

Wibbs · 22-01-2014 2:16pm

This very subject lately came up in the Upgrades and Audio forum. The NCT manual clearly states that no HID setup will pass without self leveling and washers. However from the factory my car has neither and HID's and has never failed, nor was any comment made.

I suspect/hope that it only applies to cars after a particular date when EU legislation came in and any cars with HID's fitted as standard from the manufacturers minus these two requirements are OK and will pass. Like I say mine has and a couple of people I know in a similar boat have passed. It seems the NCT guys on the ground have the common sense to understand this.

I hope this is the case anyway as it would be utterly daft to retrospectively fail cars that were built like this outa the box(they'd also have to fail older models without cat converters, ABS etc too, going by this logic). Then again I'd not put it past the bodies responsible, citing "safety" or somesuch nonsense.

PS my car passed in 2013 with HID's minus washers and levelers.

corktina · 22-01-2014 2:18pm

BMJD wrote: »

...until they swap then back in 5 minutes later

yep most of them but just maybe we'll have a few less on the roads.maybe the Gards will start pulling a few of them now

BMJD · 22-01-2014 2:19pm

I think catalytic converters are only required on post-1992 cars.

Pappacharlie · 22-01-2014 2:26pm

Just to let you know my 2003 VW Passat with 220,000 miles and HID lights passed the NCT on Jan 5th. My next door neighbour failed with HID's a week later.

Wibbs · 22-01-2014 2:28pm

Pappacharlie wrote: »

My next door neighbour failed with HID's a week later.

What did they fail on? Focusing, something else? Were the neighbours HID's factory fitted and they failed it for no washers? If that was the case I'd kick up an unholy bloody stink about it, because if they actually start pulling this BS a fair amount of perfectly fine older cars are gonna be off the road.

crossy · 22-01-2014 2:50pm

Thanks everyone for the response. Was wondering because in 2013 I put 2 cars through the NCT.
One with factory fitted HIDs and one with after market. Both of them passed.

Will be good to see what happens the two cars in the NCT next month.:)

DuckSlice · 22-01-2014 2:57pm

Thank The Lord they are tightening up the laws on HID's. It's only last week I nearly had an accident because I was dazzled by some idiot with them in. Car was pulling out a side road, idiot with HID's dazzling me and I just seen the car in time. I also must add that the fella pulling out was an idiot aswell

antodeco · 22-01-2014 3:20pm

See this is part of the problem. I despise HID lgihts in non HID headlights. However, I replaced them with HID projectors, so they have a manual levelling and dont piss the light all over the place.

crossy · 22-01-2014 3:28pm

antodeco wrote: »

See this is part of the problem. I despise HID lgihts in non HID headlights. However, I replaced them with HID projectors, so they have a manual levelling and dont piss the light all over the place.

Well I have a BMW which has projectors in the lights. Should this be ok?

Chimaera · 22-01-2014 3:57pm

crossy wrote: »

Well I have a BMW which has projectors in the lights. Should this be ok?

If they're projectors designed for halogen bulbs, they'll be less bad than HIDs used in reflector headlamps designed for halogen bulbs, but they're still not ideal.

The issue is that the light pattern from a halogen filament is different to that produced by a HID capsule, so a lamp designed for one will be sub-optimal when used with the other.

Projectors are a bit better than reflectors at collecting up the scattered light and keeping it focused which is why HIDs in those are less of a problem.

This guy has some good info on lighting: http://danielsternlighting.com/tech/bulbs/Hid/HID.html

goz83 · 18-02-2014 6:44pm

I have a Mitsubishi FTO GPX with aftermarket HID lights. I bought the car 2 years ago with HIDs but replaced the set as one side was shot.

The FTO GPvR comes with factory HIDS. If I was able to replace my lenses from a GPvR, would this be acceptable do you think? The standard bulbs are very dull and in my opinion, are dangerous. The HID kit in the FTO is not blinding. I am a bit pissed off that nothing was said about these new rules. They could have text people who had already booked in. I booked in December and got tested today.

Mycroft H · 18-02-2014 6:54pm

Did they fail you?

Wibbs · 18-02-2014 7:18pm

I have my NCT coming up this Sunday, so I wonder will any comment about my non leveling, non washing factory HID's be made? I'll report back anyway, though I doubt anything will be said as the car has passed every NCT since 07.

Paddy@CIRL · 18-02-2014 7:26pm

My father's 2008 S40 passed the test two weeks ago with HIDs in the factory projector headlamps. My own car passed nearly two years ago with HIDs in aftermarket projector headlamps but I'm not all that positive it's going to pass this time around. If it fails, I'll refit the original halogen lights for the re-test and retrofit a washing and levelling system for the HIDs after that.

In over two years of having them in the car and driving around Ireland, UK, France, Belgium, Netherlands, Germany and Luxembourg, I've never once been flashed or had a complaint about them. The difference they make in the dark is, pardon the cliché, night and day.

listermint · 18-02-2014 7:32pm

Wibbs wrote: »

I have my NCT coming up this Sunday, so I wonder will any comment about my non leveling, non washing factory HID's be made? I'll report back anyway, though I doubt anything will be said as the car has passed every NCT since 07.

This doesnt matter a jot, I know of several people failed due to HIDs with no washers etc. They are clamping completely down on this since January. There is now major enforcement of this across all NCT centres of the handbook. Were as it was previously very lax about certain sections in the handbook.

Wibbs · 18-02-2014 7:58pm

listermint wrote: »

This doesnt matter a jot, I know of several people failed due to HIDs with no washers etc. They are clamping completely down on this since January. There is now major enforcement of this across all NCT centres of the handbook. Were as it was previously very lax about certain sections in the handbook.

Eh did you miss the important part where I said my HID's are not aftermarket but factory fit as standard? If they do "clamp down" on them? 1) they'll have a fight on their hands with me as you can't retrospectively apply a regulation like this and I have plenty of time on my hands and access to solictors. This would akin to the stupidity of insisting pre mid 90s cars have to be fitted with catalytic converters, ABS etc because this became regulation subsequently 2) This will include quite the number of car models produced before the mid noughties also with factory fitted HID's minus the washers and levelers, including some higher end cars. IIRC quite the number of Hondas, Mercs, Beemers, Audis fall into this category(a mate has a 2004 Merc with HID's and no washers, dunno about self leveling TBH and his passed a few months ago).

Technoprisoner · 18-02-2014 8:02pm

bazz26 wrote: »

All they are doing in enforcing existing rules around HID lights which are required to come from the factory with self leveling adjustment and water cleaning. Aftermarket HID kits fitted very rarely will have these fitted which is what they are checking for now.

the lancer evo came with xenon lights and no washers

Wibbs · 18-02-2014 8:05pm

As did my Integra type R DC2(DC5 the same IIRC). Ditto for my mates early noughties Mercedes. I'd bet it's a long list.

Tropheus · 18-02-2014 8:17pm

My father-in-law's Passat has HIDs in projector headlamps and passed the NCT two weeks ago. All they are interested in is headlight alignment.

As I mentioned in another thread, they may be able to check for headlamp washers, but I don't see how they would check for self levelling.

Wibbs · 18-02-2014 8:18pm

it seems some of our UK neighbours have had this issue with factory fitted HID's, particularly up north of the border here. http://www.autoexpress.co.uk/car-news/consumer-news/35636/watchdog-unfair-mot-failures Mitzi Evo failing it's MOT because it didn't have the (later)regulation parts. Daftness beyond daftness. Bloody moronic jobsworths.

Interestingly take a glance through the NCT requirements for other devices, namely windscreen washers. Get this; (8) windscreen washers (where fitted) are not working or not correctly aimed. Emphasis mine. So if they get a car from god knows where or when that has no windscreen washers that's OK boss, but they may fail a large enough chunk of older cars for not having windscreen washers on their effin headlights(and no mention of where fitted)? Which would be the more dangerous? Answers on a postcard please...

Paddy@CIRL · 18-02-2014 8:26pm

From reading on BMW Driver, you can get a letter from a main dealer to say that XYZ car came with xenons but never with washers / auto-adjustment and this is fine with the NCT.

djimi · 18-02-2014 8:30pm

Wibbs wrote: »

Eh did you miss the important part where I said my HID's are not aftermarket but factory fit as standard? If they do "clamp down" on them? 1) they'll have a fight on their hands with me as you can't retrospectively apply a regulation like this and I have plenty of time on my hands and access to solictors. This would akin to the stupidity of insisting pre mid 90s cars have to be fitted with catalytic converters, ABS etc because this became regulation subsequently 2) This will include quite the number of car models produced before the mid noughties also with factory fitted HID's minus the washers and levelers, including some higher end cars. IIRC quite the number of Hondas, Mercs, Beemers, Audis fall into this category(a mate has a 2004 Merc with HID's and no washers, dunno about self leveling TBH and his passed a few months ago).

Im fighting this exact battle with the NCT right now for my DC2. I wasnt going to post in this thread until I had an update, but Ill let you know how I get on.

HID Lights in the NCT

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