Blue lights on cars

[Daston]

What is the legal implications of blue lights on cars? Theres a land rover that I see every day going through town with thses stupid blue L.E.Ds in the headlight unit. They dont flash or anything but are the same colour that emergancy services use.

Anything law breaking here? Just suprised he hasnt been pulled if it is.

[Hooli]

Illegal I think, just like the chav craze of neon washerjets a few years ago. Prob depends if its a blue light or a white light with a blue tint.

[Dracoro]

illegal.

AFAIK:
Front lighting must be "white" and/or amber (for indicators)
Rear lighting must be red (and obviously amber for indicators). When vehicle is reversing, white is allowed.
Side lighting must be amber (indicators only).

By "lighting", I think the definition is that of lights that are visible to other road users. i.e. you can't put the lights in the windscreen and claim they're not part of the lighting units.

As I understand it, underbody neons are a slightly hazy area in that you can't see the light, just the reflection thereof. Not sure how/if this is covered.

Anyway, blue lights in the front headlight unit are illegal.

On the subject of lights, I've noticed that there are LOADS of cars with a headlight gone, do they ever get pulled. The police would have a field day sitting in a layby pulling all those with broken lights. Far more constructive to road safety than just pulling speeders on the same roads.

On your way home from work tonight, start counting how many cars you see with a headlight out, you'll be amazed, there's so many of them.

Edited by Dracoro on Friday 25th February 14:22

[thetapeworm]

I presume HGV drivers are exempt from this law?

[Dracoro]

thetapeworm said:

I presume HGV drivers are exempt from this law?

Nope.

Police just don't do much about them.

[jr123]

O/T but Xenon drivers are the worst with lights out mainly because of the price of OEM replacement, look out for cars with 1 xenon and 1 halogen, there are loads.

[Stoofa]

How does that work?
You can't put a halogen bulb into a HID socket.
So you would have to replace the whole light - replacing the HID light with a standard Halogen one.

Surely that would be more expensive than just buying 1 new HID bulb.

[twister]

Dracoro said:

On your way home from work tonight, start counting how many cars you see with a headlight out, you'll be amazed, there's so many of them.

Only one out... try both, with the idiot behind the wheel picking their way along the unlit motorway on sidelights alone.

Actually, I can go one better. Try both headlights AND both sidelights, and (given the lack of any frontal illumination) either both front fogs as well or a *total* idiot behind the wheel who thinks that as long as they can see where they're going thanks to the headlights of the vehicles around them, they don't need to make any attempt to make their presence known in the rear-view mirrors of the vehicles they're overtaking...

[Toffer]

Dracoro said:

illegal.


On your way home from work tonight, start counting how many cars you see with a headlight out, you'll be amazed, there's so many of them.

Edited by Dracoro on Friday 25th February 14:22

Totally agree...but I ceased being amazed, when I changed the N/S headlamp on my "02" Citroen C5...and realised probably a few other cars share the same st design!

There should be mandatory vehicle design and construction codes that ensure a headlamp can be changed in less than 10 minutes with no tools, whilst retaining the use of all your limbs....why bother carrying a set of spare bulbs when you need to disassemble your car at the side of the road or alternatively pay the garage the best part of a ton to do it for you...the manufacturers are having a turkish? My local garage offered to replace a headlamp bulb for free...when I went back and saw the state of his ivories...they were in a right old two and eight...I bunged him a pony!

I think he was well chuffed...I saw him down the rub having a pig with his china...seemed made up!

If the old bill stop you for a duff bulb, pretend you are agoraphobic and invite them to change it for you!

[skip_1]

Dracoro said:

thetapeworm said:

I presume HGV drivers are exempt from this law?

Nope.

Police just don't do much about them.

I like trucks with lots of lights. Brightens my day up when I see them, excuse the pun

Guess the police do not bother as people are generally unlikely to mistake them for emergency services.

[Nickyboy]

Hooli said:

Illegal I think, just like the chav craze of neon washerjets a few years ago. Prob depends if its a blue light or a white light with a blue tint.

Nope, completely legal.

Dracoro said:

illegal.


Anyway, blue lights in the front headlight unit are illegal.

Nope, blue lights are completely legal. If they are instead of side lights then an offence would be committed but thats for not having a compliant side light not having a blue light.

You can any colour you like as long as it isn't red and as long as your vehicle adheres to the lightning regulations.

said:

11.—(1) No vehicle shall be fitted with a lamp which is capable of showing a red light to the front, except–

(a)a red and white chequered domed lamp, or a red and white segmented mast-mounted warning beacon, fitted to a fire service control vehicle and intended for use at the scene of an emergency;

(b)a side marker lamp or a side retro reflector;

(c)retro reflective material or a retro reflector designed primarily to reflect light to one or both sides of the vehicle and attached to or incorporated in any wheel or tyre of–

(i)a pedal cycle and any sidecar attached to it;

(ii)a solo motor bicycle or a motor bicycle combination; or

(iii)an invalid carriage; or

(d)a traffic sign.

There is no mention of any other colour

Edited by Nickyboy on Friday 25th February 20:02

[CharlieTwo]

Dracoro said:

illegal.

AFAIK:
Front lighting must be "white" and/or amber (for indicators)
Rear lighting must be red (and obviously amber for indicators). When vehicle is reversing, white is allowed.
Side lighting must be amber (indicators only).

Nope.

It is an offence to show red to the front (certain exceptions).
It is an offence to show any lamp other than red to the rear (exceptions, not least indicators, registration plate lamp and reversing lamps)
It is an offence to have fitted an automatically flashing lamp (exceptions, including indicators).

The upshot is that a steady blue lamp not showing to the rear is, sadly, probably (check the other regs) legal.

The Road Vehicles Lighting Regulations 1989

[Arif110]

I've looked into this a fair bit and from my researches, assuming of course that all of the car's 'normal' lights are as they should be, any auxiliary lighting that is blue is legal as long as it does not flash. Additionally, headlights rigged to flash alternately are also illegal for normal civilian use.

What I don't get is that anyone can set up any vehicle as an 'ambulance' - but then does this not permit them to have full flashing blue lights atop? If not, why not - an ambulance is an ambulance, no?


Arif

[mph1977]

thetapeworm said:

I presume HGV drivers are exempt from this law?

it's because their 'fairy lights' are 'supplementary position marking lights' - and the Uk doesn't require LGVs to have particular pattern of marker lights to the front ( unlike the three or five amber lights above the windscreen on US kit above a certain weight - orthe side position amber lights on vans over a certain length and LGVs)

where blue bulbs in some bazzed up chav chariot's sidelights are replacing a mandatory light with an illegal one...

[mph1977]

Arif110 said:

I've looked into this a fair bit and from my researches, assuming of course that all of the car's 'normal' lights are as they should be, any auxiliary lighting that is blue is legal as long as it does not flash. Additionally, headlights rigged to flash alternately are also illegal for normal civilian use.

What I don't get is that anyone can set up any vehicle as an 'ambulance' - but then does this not permit them to have full flashing blue lights atop? If not, why not - an ambulance is an ambulance, no?

Arif

the requirement to have a stretcher permanently installed in respect of ambulance for RVLR purposes ( vs. 'a vehicle used for ambulance purposes' e.g. a response car or equipment tender)

and for VED there is a restriction on the use of the vehicle

[TheEnd]

mph1977 said:

thetapeworm said:

I presume HGV drivers are exempt from this law?

it's because their 'fairy lights' are 'supplementary position marking lights' - and the Uk doesn't require LGVs to have particular pattern of marker lights to the front ( unlike the three or five amber lights above the windscreen on US kit above a certain weight - orthe side position amber lights on vans over a certain length and LGVs)

where blue bulbs in some bazzed up chav chariot's sidelights are replacing a mandatory light with an illegal one...

I think he meant the blue lights on trucks. I've seen a few that look like they have christmas decorations around the inside.

[JumboBeef]

Arif110 said:

What I don't get is that anyone can set up any vehicle as an 'ambulance' - but then does this not permit them to have full flashing blue lights atop? If not, why not - an ambulance is an ambulance, no?

An ambulance has to be used only for ambulance purposes. If you want to kit out a vehicle to ambulance spec incl. free tax from the DVLA, then that's fine. However, you can only drive it (with or without blue lights) for ambulance purposes.

http://www.ukemergency.co.uk/index.php?option=com_...

[Dracoro]

CharlieTwo said:

Dracoro said:

illegal.

AFAIK:
Front lighting must be "white" and/or amber (for indicators)
Rear lighting must be red (and obviously amber for indicators). When vehicle is reversing, white is allowed.
Side lighting must be amber (indicators only).

Nope.

It is an offence to show red to the front (certain exceptions).
It is an offence to show any lamp other than red to the rear (exceptions, not least indicators, registration plate lamp and reversing lamps)
It is an offence to have fitted an automatically flashing lamp (exceptions, including indicators).

The upshot is that a steady blue lamp not showing to the rear is, sadly, probably (check the other regs) legal.

The Road Vehicles Lighting Regulations 1989

I'm sure I've read (here probably) stuff that confirms my thoughts.

However, fair enough, I stand corrected.

[f1dget]

TheEnd said:

mph1977 said:

thetapeworm said:

I presume HGV drivers are exempt from this law?

it's because their 'fairy lights' are 'supplementary position marking lights' - and the Uk doesn't require LGVs to have particular pattern of marker lights to the front ( unlike the three or five amber lights above the windscreen on US kit above a certain weight - orthe side position amber lights on vans over a certain length and LGVs)

where blue bulbs in some bazzed up chav chariot's sidelights are replacing a mandatory light with an illegal one...

I think he meant the blue lights on trucks. I've seen a few that look like they have christmas decorations around the inside.

IIrc the law used to be that you could have blue lights INSIDE the vehicle and that they could flash but on the outside of the vehicle would be illegal.

There was talk of this loophole being shut but not sure if it's happened yet.

[Arif110]

f1dget said:

IIrc the law used to be that you could have blue lights INSIDE the vehicle and that they could flash but on the outside of the vehicle would be illegal. There was talk of this loophole being shut but not sure if it's happened yet.

Interesting loophole, if it existed - as then just-behind-the-windscreen blue flashers would be legal, and the police use these on their unmarked vehicles sometimes.