Neil VR6

I find them little more than comics because there’s never anything about how the cars drive. The ‘editorial’ never tells you anything interesting that you couldn’t glean from the pictures. Great, a guy strapped a massive turbo to his Golf and fitted a roof rack but what about letting someone who actually knows how to drive to take it out and give it a thorough critique? 5th Gear took a TSR Mk 2 Golf round their test track and while back and it was really interesting to see how a properly modified 17 year old car could perform. I guess a lot of the cars in the magazine are completely impossible to drive properly as they’re all 3mm off the ground. I’ve found that most marque-specific mags are just Max Power without the variety.

The fact that my HIDs aren't self levelling, e-marked, made by eunuchs, or have a cleaning sprayer makes them illegal.

I completely agree :salute: I guess for me it's a trade off I'm willing to take. It's not an OE factory install although a garage did do it for what it's worth as electrics baffle me! As with all things, rules exist for the 2% of people who didn't do things properly prior to the rule being introduced and ruined it for the rest of us. (In my opinion!)

Well my experience is that the overall effect is positive, I've certainly not had anyone flash me or suggest that my lights are dazzling. In answer to your rather pointed question around how would I feel about HIDs if they were seen to be a contributory factor to an accident; I take that chance on the basis of being able to see an awful lot more than when the standard lights were in place.

I wrote to the powers that be regarding HID illegality or otherwise and asked for an explanation My email: My car is 16 years old and the original equipment headlamps ran through a non-relayed circuit which resulted in a significant voltage drop at the bulb. The consequence of this was appalling light output, and frankly, unsafe night driving, unless on high beam which is not practical for today’s roads choked with traffic. The remedy to this situation was an aftermarket HID kit (with no built-in cleaning or self-levelling) which has increased my ability to foresee potential hazards at night. The new set-up also places less strain on my car’s ageing electrical loom as current draw is only in the region of 35w. The beam pattern is identical to standard although the light output is far greater. The system is reliable and I have never been flashed by oncoming traffic for having poorly adjusted lights. My car also passed its MOT in September and the tester even commented on how good the lights were and passed it with no issues. Compared to other cars on the road I see my aftermarket set up as a genuine improvement and I have welcomed the upgrade to make my car safer for me, my passengers and pedestrians alike. Within this context, why has my car been deemed unlawful? Their response: The Road Vehicle Lighting Regulations 1989, as amended (RVLR) require headlamps to have an approval mark to show compliance with the relevant European legislation (see Schedule 4). A lamp that is designed for use with a filament bulb will be approved to the specific regulation for these lamps, e.g. UNECE Regulation 112. Paragraph 14 of part II of the regulations states: Filament lamps 14.—(1) Where a motor vehicle first used on or after 1st April 1986 or any trailer manufactured on or after 1st October 1985 is equipped with any lamp of a type that is required by any Schedule to these Regulations to be marked with an approval mark, no filament lamp other than a filament lamp referred to in the Designation of Approval Marks Regulations in- (a) regulation 4 and Schedule 2, items 2 or 2A, 8, 20, 37 or 37A; or (b) regulation 5 and Schedule 4, item 18, shall be fitted to any such lamp. This effectively means that only approved filament bulbs may be fitted to a lamp designed and approved for use with filament light sources. A HID light source is not a filament bulb and therefore cannot be used in a halogen lamp. The above basically prohibits the use of HID conversion kits, whether or not headlamp cleaners or automatic levelling are fitted. As stated in the factsheet, the only legal way to convert a vehicle to HID is to remove the existing lamp units (by lamp unit I mean the entire lamp including reflectors, lenses etc., not just the bulb) and replacing it with a lamp unit that has an approval mark to show it was approved for use with HID light sources, in this case UNECE Regulation 98. Once this is done there is then the issue of headlamp cleaners and automatic levelling. The Road Vehicle Lighting Regulations require that headlamps should not be used so as to cause undue dazzle or discomfort to other persons using the road, Part III Para 27. Due to the high intensity of HID lights, they will cause dazzle if dirt accumulates on the lens or they become mis-aimed under different loading conditions. In our view the only way of preventing dazzle, and so complying with the regulations, is to fit automatic headlamp levelling and headlamp washers. This is already the accepted approach in European regulations, see UNECE Regulation 48. So, in answer to your question regarding your vehicle, if the headlamps are approved for use with halogen bulbs, you cannot fit a HID conversion kit that simply fits a HID light source in place of the filament lamp. You could fit a new pair of headlamps that are approved to UNECE Regulation 98 for use with HID light sources but you would then need to take steps to prevent dazzle to other road users, i.e. headlamp cleaners and automatic levelling. Bulbs, whether filament or HID, must have an "E" mark to show that they meet the technical requirements for that light source, including the correct base cap. The base cap for a halogen bulb differs to that for a HID bulb to prevent them being interchangeable. Therefore a HID light source that fits into a halogen lamp cannot have a valid approval mark. Some kits do claim to have the correct "E" mark but usually this is placed on the balast and is the approval to show that it complies with the European regulations on electromagnetic compatability rather than the regulations on bulbs. Finally, there are good safety reasons not to put a HID light source into a lamp designed for halogen bulbs. Recent tests carried out by the Department on two such kits showed that, although they produced a beam pattern that might pass the visual MOT test, the actual light intensity at specific points in the beam pattern that are controlled to minimise dazzle exceeded the minimum allowable values by a considerable margin. In addition these lights tended to put too much light directly in front of the vehicle rather than "throwing" it down the road where it is needed. This will tend to draw the driver’s eye away from the distant road scene and give them less time to react to obstacles in the road. This is the opinion of the Department for Transport but only a Court of Law can give an authoritative interpretation of the law. Yours sincerely DfT – Transport Technology and Standards I don't know what everyone on here thinks but there's nothing in the reponse about how they plan to enforce this given that the key annual goverment vehicle check (the MOT) doesn't seem to pick it up. I can't see police stopping my car given the state of some of the other cars on the road which invariably only have one headlamp working half the time anyway!

I hate having to take my hu out - it's always a complete PITA to get back in, plenty of knuckly-skin removal!

Last time I used Synta Silver it was over £40 for the oil alone. I'd contact oilman (Opie Oils). You can stick pretty much any 10W/40 semi-synth in though. Might be worth using fully synth if you use the car on track or run it hard. There are loads of posts on this though so you might want to use the search :)

No front plates required in the states ;-)

Back right of the head, tucked away a bit. Not like the G60 where it sits there on top of the engine!

Can't see the pics at work :( (Facebook's banned)

I haven't got any of that other stuff fitted to my HID set up and it sailed through the MOT with no problem. They just look at the beam pattern on the wall when they test it to make sure the dip is OK and tick their box

I reckon, as others have mentioned, that it's an unfortunate combination of you being very low, them being very high, and 'them' driving like a complete idiot too closely behind you.

I got married in November mate, trust me, the planning can only get more and more 'Monica'!

Economy's fine - I used to get 30 mpg.

Looks gorgeous! Get some nice mats so you don't ruin that mint interior :D

I'd go for the Alpine by a country mile.

Looks like a great set up. Can't wait to see what power she makes! 8)

Its rarity, relative low cost to buy and maintain (compared to mates who have had FD RX7s, R32 GTRs, Porsche GT3s etc). I also think it’s a great looking car and will soon be a proper classic. Parts are generally easy to come by and it’s a car which you can work on quite easily. It’s also a car which I look back at every time I leave it somewhere. To me that’s the test of whether you have an emotional bond with a car.

I agree. If it had had chains, maybe a topend rebuild and HG done perhaps. Although you never know with limited edition models of cars - there's always someone out there.

Remove the ABS warning light bulb and everything's fine, these aren't the driods you're looking for?

Remove the ABS warning light bulb?

I love that script! Especially in body colour. Is it a one off job?

Blimey, that's a great finish!

Have a look at their website: http://www.dodojuice.com/dodo-juice-range.html They do different waxes for different paint shades; light, warm, and dark :) The soft wax is probably easier to use but the hard wax is probably more long lasting. I use the wash called 'Born to be Mild' and it rocks. You only need a dribble and you get loads of suds :clap:

Well given my car’s the same colour of yours I might try some of that Collinite 915 as my Swissol Onyx will run out shortly. The problem I have with traditional hard waxes is they’re quite hard work and certainly in the case of Onyx, need a warm sunny day so the wax properly goes off on the paint. I tend to use soft waxes as they’re easier to polish off. Have you tried any of the Dodo wax products? (I use their wash and it’s very good)