Are there any regulations on these new brilliant blue car headlights? They
are obnoxious, distracting, and in some cases, they blind me. I do not know
if they are after market, or standard equipment, but is there anything being
said or done about them? I have never ridden or driven a car with them.
What's the big deal, or improvement over regular light spectrum headlights?

They are about as obnoxious as people who drive with their four headlights
on, the mains on low, and the fog lights on, with 75 mile visibility. Those
are as bright as high beams on most cars, and totally unnecessary. I have
turned mine on about ten times since I bought my Dodge 2500 Ram new in '06.
What is the need for all that light other than "OOOOO LOOK AT ME!"?

Steve

"Steve B" wrote in message
...
Are there any regulations on these new brilliant blue car headlights?
They are obnoxious, distracting, and in some cases, they blind me. I do
not know if they are after market, or standard equipment, but is there
anything being said or done about them? I have never ridden or driven a
car with them. What's the big deal, or improvement over regular light
spectrum headlights?

They are about as obnoxious as people who drive with their four headlights
on, the mains on low, and the fog lights on, with 75 mile visibility.
Those are as bright as high beams on most cars, and totally unnecessary.
I have turned mine on about ten times since I bought my Dodge 2500 Ram new
in '06. What is the need for all that light other than "OOOOO LOOK AT
ME!"?

Steve


There was a lot of discussion of those blue lights a few years ago on the
motorcycle forums . The reason they blind you is because the blue light
doesn't cause your iris to contract . Nasty little pieces of crap and I hate
'em - they are illegal in many states .
As far as the bright lights ... I run a pair of aircraft landing lights as
side lamps on my bike along with an e-code headlight lens . On brights with
passing lamps on I project a fan of light about 25deg wide out to about
400-500 yards . I can see the deer long before I get there , which is very
important up here in the Ozarks . I see an awful lot of badly mis-adjusted
lights ... and did my best to am mine properly . I get maybe 1 car in 30 or
40 that will flick their brights on me while on low beams/side lights .
--
Snag

"Steve B" wrote in message
...

Are there any regulations on these new brilliant blue car headlights?

No regulations whatsoever...trust me on this one...

Fact is, if you want to permanently blind oncoming traffic with a high
powered laser, no problemo...suggest just go for it !!!

They are obnoxious, distracting, and in some cases, they blind me. I do
not know if they are after market, or standard equipment, but is there
anything being said or done about them? I have never ridden or driven a
car with them. What's the big deal, or improvement over regular light
spectrum headlights?

They are about as obnoxious as people who drive with their four headlights
on, the mains on low, and the fog lights on, with 75 mile visibility.
Those are as bright as high beams on most cars, and totally unnecessary.
I have turned mine on about ten times since I bought my Dodge 2500 Ram new
in '06. What is the need for all that light other than "OOOOO LOOK AT
ME!"?

My name is Steve.
And I am a blithering idiot.

On Sun, 7 Apr 2013 01:23:13 -0700, "PrecisionmachinisT"
wrote:


"Steve B" wrote in message
...

Are there any regulations on these new brilliant blue car headlights?

No regulations whatsoever...trust me on this one...

Fact is, if you want to permanently blind oncoming traffic with a high
powered laser, no problemo...suggest just go for it !!!

They are obnoxious, distracting, and in some cases, they blind me. I do
not know if they are after market, or standard equipment, but is there
anything being said or done about them? I have never ridden or driven a
car with them. What's the big deal, or improvement over regular light
spectrum headlights?

They are about as obnoxious as people who drive with their four headlights
on, the mains on low, and the fog lights on, with 75 mile visibility.
Those are as bright as high beams on most cars, and totally unnecessary.
I have turned mine on about ten times since I bought my Dodge 2500 Ram new
in '06. What is the need for all that light other than "OOOOO LOOK AT
ME!"?

My name is Steve.
And I am a blithering idiot.

If only there was a service that would allow Steve to type his
blithering idiot questions into a search box in the privacy of his own
home...

On Apr 6, 7:50*pm, "Steve B" wrote:
Are there any regulations on these new brilliant blue car headlights? *They
are obnoxious, distracting, and in some cases, they blind me. *I do not know
if they are after market, or standard equipment, but is there anything being
said or done about them? *I have never ridden or driven a car with them..
What's the big deal, or improvement over regular light spectrum headlights?

They are about as obnoxious as people who drive with their four headlights
on, the mains on low, and the fog lights on, with 75 mile visibility. *Those
are as bright as high beams on most cars, and totally unnecessary. *I have
turned mine on about ten times since I bought my Dodge 2500 Ram new in '06.
What is the need for all that light other than "OOOOO LOOK AT ME!"?

Steve

Have you finally learned to use your Lincoln MIG welder properly?

Did you figure out why you should protect your eyes from the light the
arc creates?

On Sun, 7 Apr 2013 01:23:13 -0700, "PrecisionmachinisT"
wrote:


"Steve B" wrote in message
...

Are there any regulations on these new brilliant blue car headlights?

No regulations whatsoever...trust me on this one...

WRONG.

ALL headlights, by law, must meet DOT and highway traffic act
regulations. No DOT approval? Illegal. Are the laws and regulations
enforced??? That's a different story.

Fact is, if you want to permanently blind oncoming traffic with a high
powered laser, no problemo...suggest just go for it !!!

They are obnoxious, distracting, and in some cases, they blind me. I do
not know if they are after market, or standard equipment, but is there
anything being said or done about them? I have never ridden or driven a
car with them. What's the big deal, or improvement over regular light
spectrum headlights?

They are about as obnoxious as people who drive with their four headlights
on, the mains on low, and the fog lights on, with 75 mile visibility.
Those are as bright as high beams on most cars, and totally unnecessary.
I have turned mine on about ten times since I bought my Dodge 2500 Ram new
in '06. What is the need for all that light other than "OOOOO LOOK AT
ME!"?

My name is Steve.
And I am a blithering idiot.

On Sun, 07 Apr 2013 13:58:54 -0400, wrote:

On Sun, 7 Apr 2013 01:23:13 -0700, "PrecisionmachinisT"
wrote:


"Steve B" wrote in message
...

Are there any regulations on these new brilliant blue car headlights?

No regulations whatsoever...trust me on this one...

WRONG.

http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=sarcasm
sarcasm: "A tongue of which the user speaks of something the complete
opposite of what the user means. It often has the best comedic value."

http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=sarchasm
sarchasm : "the gulf between the author of sarcastic wit and the
person who doesn't get it"

wrote in message ...
On Sun, 7 Apr 2013 01:23:13 -0700, "PrecisionmachinisT"
wrote:


"Steve B" wrote in message
...

Are there any regulations on these new brilliant blue car headlights?

No regulations whatsoever...trust me on this one...

WRONG.


Sharp as a bowling ball this one I see..

--must be my lucky day.


ALL headlights, by law, must meet DOT and highway traffic act
regulations. No DOT approval? Illegal. Are the laws and regulations
enforced??? That's a different story.

Fact is, if you want to permanently blind oncoming traffic with a high
powered laser, no problemo...suggest just go for it !!!

They are obnoxious, distracting, and in some cases, they blind me. I do
not know if they are after market, or standard equipment, but is there
anything being said or done about them? I have never ridden or driven a
car with them. What's the big deal, or improvement over regular light
spectrum headlights?

They are about as obnoxious as people who drive with their four headlights
on, the mains on low, and the fog lights on, with 75 mile visibility.
Those are as bright as high beams on most cars, and totally unnecessary.
I have turned mine on about ten times since I bought my Dodge 2500 Ram new
in '06. What is the need for all that light other than "OOOOO LOOK AT
ME!"?

My name is Steve.
And I am a blithering idiot.

"Terry Coombs" wrote in message
news
"Steve B" wrote in message
...
Are there any regulations on these new brilliant blue car headlights?
They are obnoxious, distracting, and in some cases, they blind me. I do
not know if they are after market, or standard equipment, but is there
anything being said or done about them? I have never ridden or driven a
car with them. What's the big deal, or improvement over regular light
spectrum headlights?

They are about as obnoxious as people who drive with their four
headlights on, the mains on low, and the fog lights on, with 75 mile
visibility. Those are as bright as high beams on most cars, and totally
unnecessary. I have turned mine on about ten times since I bought my
Dodge 2500 Ram new in '06. What is the need for all that light other than
"OOOOO LOOK AT ME!"?

Steve


There was a lot of discussion of those blue lights a few years ago on the
motorcycle forums . The reason they blind you is because the blue light
doesn't cause your iris to contract . Nasty little pieces of crap and I
hate 'em - they are illegal in many states .
As far as the bright lights ... I run a pair of aircraft landing lights
as side lamps on my bike along with an e-code headlight lens . On brights
with passing lamps on I project a fan of light about 25deg wide out to
about 400-500 yards . I can see the deer long before I get there , which
is very important up here in the Ozarks . I see an awful lot of badly
mis-adjusted lights ... and did my best to am mine properly . I get maybe
1 car in 30 or 40 that will flick their brights on me while on low
beams/side lights .
--
Snag


I think the bit about blue light not causing your iris to contract is only
partially correct and is not the main issue. As an optical engineer, I can
point to three other issues that make these HID lamps annoying

1) The head lights do have more intensity, meaning more energy per emitted
angle, and that is the whole point.

2) There are regulations on maximum intensity, but the problem is (as I
understand it) there are no regulations on maximum brightness which is
intensity per unit area of the source. The arc of an HID lamp is smaller
than the filament of the equivalent halogen bulb, so even after the
reflector, the HID lamp source will appear smaller to your eye than the
halogen lamp. This means all the light that enters your pupil is focused to
a smaller spot on your retina. This is why lasers are annoying at low powers
and dangerous at moderate power. It seems regulations have not caught up
with the technology. It is quite possible to make a reflector that reduces
the brightness while keeping the same intensity.

3) The blue light scatters much more from dirt on your windshield as well as
defects in your eye, and in that way it adds to glare.

It is true that your eye is not as sensitive to blue as it is to the middle
of the spectrum. The pupil only responds to what it can see, so given the
same energy in blue and green, the blue will seem less intense and the pupil
will close less for the blue. Thus more undetected energy gets through to
your retina in the blue. However this does not cause any annoyance or
problem until the energy reaches the threshold where is starts to cause
damage. You can look at bright UV and not really know it. In fact you can
have a blind spot burned in your retina by a UV laser and not realize it
until later.

"anorton" wrote in message
m...

"Terry Coombs" wrote in message
news
"Steve B" wrote in message
...
Are there any regulations on these new brilliant blue car headlights?
They are obnoxious, distracting, and in some cases, they blind me. I do
not know if they are after market, or standard equipment, but is there
anything being said or done about them? I have never ridden or driven a
car with them. What's the big deal, or improvement over regular light
spectrum headlights?

They are about as obnoxious as people who drive with their four
headlights on, the mains on low, and the fog lights on, with 75 mile
visibility. Those are as bright as high beams on most cars, and totally
unnecessary. I have turned mine on about ten times since I bought my
Dodge 2500 Ram new in '06. What is the need for all that light other
than "OOOOO LOOK AT ME!"?

Steve


There was a lot of discussion of those blue lights a few years ago on the
motorcycle forums . The reason they blind you is because the blue light
doesn't cause your iris to contract . Nasty little pieces of crap and I
hate 'em - they are illegal in many states .
As far as the bright lights ... I run a pair of aircraft landing lights
as side lamps on my bike along with an e-code headlight lens . On brights
with passing lamps on I project a fan of light about 25deg wide out to
about 400-500 yards . I can see the deer long before I get there , which
is very important up here in the Ozarks . I see an awful lot of badly
mis-adjusted lights ... and did my best to am mine properly . I get maybe
1 car in 30 or 40 that will flick their brights on me while on low
beams/side lights .
--
Snag


I think the bit about blue light not causing your iris to contract is
only partially correct and is not the main issue. As an optical engineer,
I can point to three other issues that make these HID lamps annoying

1) The head lights do have more intensity, meaning more energy per emitted
angle, and that is the whole point.

2) There are regulations on maximum intensity, but the problem is (as I
understand it) there are no regulations on maximum brightness which is
intensity per unit area of the source. The arc of an HID lamp is smaller
than the filament of the equivalent halogen bulb, so even after the
reflector, the HID lamp source will appear smaller to your eye than the
halogen lamp. This means all the light that enters your pupil is focused
to a smaller spot on your retina. This is why lasers are annoying at low
powers and dangerous at moderate power. It seems regulations have not
caught up with the technology. It is quite possible to make a reflector
that reduces the brightness while keeping the same intensity.

3) The blue light scatters much more from dirt on your windshield as well
as defects in your eye, and in that way it adds to glare.

It is true that your eye is not as sensitive to blue as it is to the
middle of the spectrum. The pupil only responds to what it can see, so
given the same energy in blue and green, the blue will seem less intense
and the pupil will close less for the blue. Thus more undetected energy
gets through to your retina in the blue. However this does not cause any
annoyance or problem until the energy reaches the threshold where is
starts to cause damage. You can look at bright UV and not really know it.
In fact you can have a blind spot burned in your retina by a UV laser and
not realize it until later.

Was Steve talking about HID's or was he talking about those blue bulbs
they sell that "mimic" HID's ? I was thinking the latter when I responded .
--
Snag

"Terry Coombs" wrote in message
...
"anorton" wrote in message
m...

"Terry Coombs" wrote in message
news
"Steve B" wrote in message
...
Are there any regulations on these new brilliant blue car headlights?
They are obnoxious, distracting, and in some cases, they blind me. I
do not know if they are after market, or standard equipment, but is
there anything being said or done about them? I have never ridden or
driven a car with them. What's the big deal, or improvement over
regular light spectrum headlights?

They are about as obnoxious as people who drive with their four
headlights on, the mains on low, and the fog lights on, with 75 mile
visibility. Those are as bright as high beams on most cars, and totally
unnecessary. I have turned mine on about ten times since I bought my
Dodge 2500 Ram new in '06. What is the need for all that light other
than "OOOOO LOOK AT ME!"?

Steve


There was a lot of discussion of those blue lights a few years ago on
the motorcycle forums . The reason they blind you is because the blue
light doesn't cause your iris to contract . Nasty little pieces of crap
and I hate 'em - they are illegal in many states .
As far as the bright lights ... I run a pair of aircraft landing lights
as side lamps on my bike along with an e-code headlight lens . On
brights with passing lamps on I project a fan of light about 25deg wide
out to about 400-500 yards . I can see the deer long before I get there
, which is very important up here in the Ozarks . I see an awful lot of
badly mis-adjusted lights ... and did my best to am mine properly . I
get maybe 1 car in 30 or 40 that will flick their brights on me while
on low beams/side lights .
--
Snag


I think the bit about blue light not causing your iris to contract is
only partially correct and is not the main issue. As an optical engineer,
I can point to three other issues that make these HID lamps annoying

1) The head lights do have more intensity, meaning more energy per
emitted angle, and that is the whole point.

2) There are regulations on maximum intensity, but the problem is (as I
understand it) there are no regulations on maximum brightness which is
intensity per unit area of the source. The arc of an HID lamp is smaller
than the filament of the equivalent halogen bulb, so even after the
reflector, the HID lamp source will appear smaller to your eye than the
halogen lamp. This means all the light that enters your pupil is focused
to a smaller spot on your retina. This is why lasers are annoying at low
powers and dangerous at moderate power. It seems regulations have not
caught up with the technology. It is quite possible to make a reflector
that reduces the brightness while keeping the same intensity.

3) The blue light scatters much more from dirt on your windshield as well
as defects in your eye, and in that way it adds to glare.

It is true that your eye is not as sensitive to blue as it is to the
middle of the spectrum. The pupil only responds to what it can see, so
given the same energy in blue and green, the blue will seem less intense
and the pupil will close less for the blue. Thus more undetected energy
gets through to your retina in the blue. However this does not cause any
annoyance or problem until the energy reaches the threshold where is
starts to cause damage. You can look at bright UV and not really know it.
In fact you can have a blind spot burned in your retina by a UV laser and
not realize it until later.

Was Steve talking about HID's or was he talking about those blue bulbs
they sell that "mimic" HID's ? I was thinking the latter when I responded
.
--
Snag


I have not heard about bulbs designed to mimic HIDs. I guess I am not
surprised if the goal is to make a cheap headlight look like an expensive
one. Certainly the true HIDs are very annoying.

On 4/6/2013 22:50, Steve B wrote:
Are there any regulations on these new brilliant blue car headlights? They
are obnoxious, distracting, and in some cases, they blind me. I do not know
if they are after market, or standard equipment, but is there anything being
said or done about them? I have never ridden or driven a car with them.
What's the big deal, or improvement over regular light spectrum headlights?

So idiots that used to drive faster than they could stop within the
distance they could see at night have a longer distance to stop when
they see something in the headlights. Unfortunately, they just drive
faster and into the same situation, albeit with a higher damage amount
when something goes wrong.



They are about as obnoxious as people who drive with their four headlights
on, the mains on low, and the fog lights on, with 75 mile visibility. Those
are as bright as high beams on most cars, and totally unnecessary. I have
turned mine on about ten times since I bought my Dodge 2500 Ram new in '06.
What is the need for all that light other than "OOOOO LOOK AT ME!"?

Steve




--
Steve Walker
(remove brain when replying)

On Sun, 7 Apr 2013 01:23:13 -0700, "PrecisionmachinisT"
wrote:

My name is Steve.
And I am a blithering idiot.

And your name is "precisionmachinist" (not), and you are banned from most
news readers.

Rant on.

Steve

On Apr 7, 4:34*pm, "Steve B" wrote:
On Sun, 7 Apr 2013 01:23:13 -0700, "PrecisionmachinisT"
wrote:
My name is Steve.
And I am a blithering idiot.

And your name is "precisionmachinist" (not), and you are banned from most
news readers.

Rant on.

Steve

Thanks for proving once again that you're a blithering idiot, Steve.

"Steve Walker" wrote in message
...
On 4/6/2013 22:50, Steve B wrote:
Are there any regulations on these new brilliant blue car headlights?
They
are obnoxious, distracting, and in some cases, they blind me. I do not
know
if they are after market, or standard equipment, but is there anything
being
said or done about them? I have never ridden or driven a car with them.
What's the big deal, or improvement over regular light spectrum
headlights?

So idiots that used to drive faster than they could stop within the
distance they could see at night have a longer distance to stop when they
see something in the headlights. Unfortunately, they just drive faster and
into the same situation, albeit with a higher damage amount when something
goes wrong.



They are about as obnoxious as people who drive with their four
headlights
on, the mains on low, and the fog lights on, with 75 mile visibility.
Those
are as bright as high beams on most cars, and totally unnecessary. I
have
turned mine on about ten times since I bought my Dodge 2500 Ram new in
'06.
What is the need for all that light other than "OOOOO LOOK AT ME!"?

Steve




--
Steve Walker
(remove brain when replying)

Several states are toying with the idea of 80 and 85 mph Interstate speed
limits. I have no problem with those, as I shall continue to leave mine on
cruise, and stay in the right lane, jumping up to 85 occasionally to jump
past an alligator throwing semi truck.

But, yes, it shall let drivers drive to the absolute limit of their
headlights, or even farther, and also be sharing the road with a blinded
driver. I imagine this is going to take a few test cases, and incidents and
accidents before it is cleared up.

Does anyone know if these are factory or after market?

Steve

"anorton" wrote in message
m...

"Terry Coombs" wrote in message
...
"anorton" wrote in message
m...

"Terry Coombs" wrote in message
news "Steve B" wrote in message
...
Are there any regulations on these new brilliant blue car headlights?
They are obnoxious, distracting, and in some cases, they blind me. I
do not know if they are after market, or standard equipment, but is
there anything being said or done about them? I have never ridden or
driven a car with them. What's the big deal, or improvement over
regular light spectrum headlights?

They are about as obnoxious as people who drive with their four
headlights on, the mains on low, and the fog lights on, with 75 mile
visibility. Those are as bright as high beams on most cars, and
totally unnecessary. I have turned mine on about ten times since I
bought my Dodge 2500 Ram new in '06. What is the need for all that
light other than "OOOOO LOOK AT ME!"?

Steve


There was a lot of discussion of those blue lights a few years ago on
the motorcycle forums . The reason they blind you is because the blue
light doesn't cause your iris to contract . Nasty little pieces of crap
and I hate 'em - they are illegal in many states .
As far as the bright lights ... I run a pair of aircraft landing
lights as side lamps on my bike along with an e-code headlight lens .
On brights with passing lamps on I project a fan of light about 25deg
wide out to about 400-500 yards . I can see the deer long before I get
there , which is very important up here in the Ozarks . I see an awful
lot of badly mis-adjusted lights ... and did my best to am mine
properly . I get maybe 1 car in 30 or 40 that will flick their brights
on me while on low beams/side lights .
--
Snag


I think the bit about blue light not causing your iris to contract is
only partially correct and is not the main issue. As an optical
engineer, I can point to three other issues that make these HID lamps
annoying

1) The head lights do have more intensity, meaning more energy per
emitted angle, and that is the whole point.

2) There are regulations on maximum intensity, but the problem is (as I
understand it) there are no regulations on maximum brightness which is
intensity per unit area of the source. The arc of an HID lamp is smaller
than the filament of the equivalent halogen bulb, so even after the
reflector, the HID lamp source will appear smaller to your eye than the
halogen lamp. This means all the light that enters your pupil is
focused to a smaller spot on your retina. This is why lasers are
annoying at low powers and dangerous at moderate power. It seems
regulations have not caught up with the technology. It is quite
possible to make a reflector that reduces the brightness while keeping
the same intensity.

3) The blue light scatters much more from dirt on your windshield as
well as defects in your eye, and in that way it adds to glare.

It is true that your eye is not as sensitive to blue as it is to the
middle of the spectrum. The pupil only responds to what it can see, so
given the same energy in blue and green, the blue will seem less intense
and the pupil will close less for the blue. Thus more undetected energy
gets through to your retina in the blue. However this does not cause any
annoyance or problem until the energy reaches the threshold where is
starts to cause damage. You can look at bright UV and not really know
it. In fact you can have a blind spot burned in your retina by a UV
laser and not realize it until later.

Was Steve talking about HID's or was he talking about those blue bulbs
they sell that "mimic" HID's ? I was thinking the latter when I responded
.
--
Snag


I have not heard about bulbs designed to mimic HIDs. I guess I am not
surprised if the goal is to make a cheap headlight look like an expensive
one. Certainly the true HIDs are very annoying.

What I find particularily annoyong are the blue lights that police cars
usually have--they're incredibly distracting as it is, and also cause
significant tempory visual impairment lasting for a few seconds after one
passes by.

On Apr 7, 4:47*pm, "Steve B" wrote:
"Steve Walker" wrote in message

...









On 4/6/2013 22:50, Steve B wrote:
Are there any regulations on these new brilliant blue car headlights?
They
are obnoxious, distracting, and in some cases, they blind me. *I do not
know
if they are after market, or standard equipment, but is there anything
being
said or done about them? *I have never ridden or driven a car with them.
What's the big deal, or improvement over regular light spectrum
headlights?

So idiots that used to drive faster than they could stop within the
distance they could see at night have a longer distance to stop when they
see something in the headlights. Unfortunately, they just drive faster and
into the same situation, albeit with a higher damage amount when something
goes wrong.

They are about as obnoxious as people who drive with their four
headlights
on, the mains on low, and the fog lights on, with 75 mile visibility.
Those
are as bright as high beams on most cars, and totally unnecessary. *I
have
turned mine on about ten times since I bought my Dodge 2500 Ram new in
'06.
What is the need for all that light other than "OOOOO LOOK AT ME!"?

Steve

--
Steve Walker
(remove brain when replying)

Several states are toying with the idea of 80 and 85 mph Interstate speed
limits. *I have no problem with those, as I shall continue to leave mine on
cruise, and stay in the right lane, jumping up to 85 occasionally to jump
past an alligator throwing semi truck.

But, yes, it shall let drivers drive to the absolute limit of their
headlights, or even farther, and also be sharing the road with a blinded
driver. *I imagine this is going to take a few test cases, and incidents and
accidents before it is cleared up.

Does anyone know if these are factory or after market?

Steve

Thanks for continuing to prove over and over that you're a blithering
idiot who is too lazy to learn how to use Google.

On Sun, 7 Apr 2013 15:53:32 -0500, "Terry Coombs"
wrote:

"anorton" wrote in message
om...

"Terry Coombs" wrote in message
news
"Steve B" wrote in message
...
Are there any regulations on these new brilliant blue car headlights?
They are obnoxious, distracting, and in some cases, they blind me. I do
not know if they are after market, or standard equipment, but is there
anything being said or done about them? I have never ridden or driven a
car with them. What's the big deal, or improvement over regular light
spectrum headlights?

They are about as obnoxious as people who drive with their four
headlights on, the mains on low, and the fog lights on, with 75 mile
visibility. Those are as bright as high beams on most cars, and totally
unnecessary. I have turned mine on about ten times since I bought my
Dodge 2500 Ram new in '06. What is the need for all that light other
than "OOOOO LOOK AT ME!"?

Steve


There was a lot of discussion of those blue lights a few years ago on the
motorcycle forums . The reason they blind you is because the blue light
doesn't cause your iris to contract . Nasty little pieces of crap and I
hate 'em - they are illegal in many states .
As far as the bright lights ... I run a pair of aircraft landing lights
as side lamps on my bike along with an e-code headlight lens . On brights
with passing lamps on I project a fan of light about 25deg wide out to
about 400-500 yards . I can see the deer long before I get there , which
is very important up here in the Ozarks . I see an awful lot of badly
mis-adjusted lights ... and did my best to am mine properly . I get maybe
1 car in 30 or 40 that will flick their brights on me while on low
beams/side lights .
--
Snag


I think the bit about blue light not causing your iris to contract is
only partially correct and is not the main issue. As an optical engineer,
I can point to three other issues that make these HID lamps annoying

1) The head lights do have more intensity, meaning more energy per emitted
angle, and that is the whole point.

2) There are regulations on maximum intensity, but the problem is (as I
understand it) there are no regulations on maximum brightness which is
intensity per unit area of the source. The arc of an HID lamp is smaller
than the filament of the equivalent halogen bulb, so even after the
reflector, the HID lamp source will appear smaller to your eye than the
halogen lamp. This means all the light that enters your pupil is focused
to a smaller spot on your retina. This is why lasers are annoying at low
powers and dangerous at moderate power. It seems regulations have not
caught up with the technology. It is quite possible to make a reflector
that reduces the brightness while keeping the same intensity.

3) The blue light scatters much more from dirt on your windshield as well
as defects in your eye, and in that way it adds to glare.

It is true that your eye is not as sensitive to blue as it is to the
middle of the spectrum. The pupil only responds to what it can see, so
given the same energy in blue and green, the blue will seem less intense
and the pupil will close less for the blue. Thus more undetected energy
gets through to your retina in the blue. However this does not cause any
annoyance or problem until the energy reaches the threshold where is
starts to cause damage. You can look at bright UV and not really know it.
In fact you can have a blind spot burned in your retina by a UV laser and
not realize it until later.

Was Steve talking about HID's or was he talking about those blue bulbs
they sell that "mimic" HID's ? I was thinking the latter when I responded .
Or those "diy" HID conversions where you stick an HID from another
application into a reflector that was not designed for the HID -
really nasty stuff.

snip


I have not heard about bulbs designed to mimic HIDs. I guess I am not
surprised if the goal is to make a cheap headlight look like an expensive
one. Certainly the true HIDs are very annoying.

What I find particularily annoyong are the blue lights that police cars
usually have--they're incredibly distracting as it is, and also cause
significant tempory visual impairment lasting for a few seconds after one
passes by.


And to have one come at you in a heavy fog - fog blind easily.

They were popular in Germany -

They were banned on passenger cars as a retrofit in California and then
when the German Imports - they folded.

Martin

wrote


Or those "diy" HID conversions where you stick an HID from another
application into a reflector that was not designed for the HID -
really nasty stuff.

Yes, what I am seeing qualifies as "really nasty stuff".

On 08/04/13 03:03, Martin Eastburn wrote:


snip


I have not heard about bulbs designed to mimic HIDs. I guess I am not
surprised if the goal is to make a cheap headlight look like an
expensive
one. Certainly the true HIDs are very annoying.

What I find particularily annoyong are the blue lights that police cars
usually have--they're incredibly distracting as it is, and also cause
significant tempory visual impairment lasting for a few seconds after
one
passes by.


And to have one come at you in a heavy fog - fog blind easily.

They were popular in Germany -

They were banned on passenger cars as a retrofit in California and then
when the German Imports - they folded.

Martin
I've read that the OE HID installations have to be self levelling
probably to reduce dazzling other road users. I think many of the after
market HID installations don't have self levelling and so are illegal
for road use in many places.

On Mon, 08 Apr 2013 10:08:57 +0100, David Billington
wrote:

On 08/04/13 03:03, Martin Eastburn wrote:


snip


I have not heard about bulbs designed to mimic HIDs. I guess I am not
surprised if the goal is to make a cheap headlight look like an
expensive
one. Certainly the true HIDs are very annoying.

What I find particularily annoyong are the blue lights that police cars
usually have--they're incredibly distracting as it is, and also cause
significant tempory visual impairment lasting for a few seconds after
one
passes by.


And to have one come at you in a heavy fog - fog blind easily.

They were popular in Germany -

They were banned on passenger cars as a retrofit in California and then
when the German Imports - they folded.

Martin
I've read that the OE HID installations have to be self levelling
probably to reduce dazzling other road users. I think many of the after
market HID installations don't have self levelling and so are illegal
for road use in many places.
"aftermarket HID conversions" are virtually all illegal anywhere in
North America - and likely many other places as well. As are "most"
blue coloured "hid wannbee" replacement lamps. No DOT approval - not
legal. Period. Many are sold with a disclamer on the package "for
off-road use only" - RIGHT!!!!

On 08/04/13 19:33, wrote:
On Mon, 08 Apr 2013 10:08:57 +0100, David Billington
wrote:

On 08/04/13 03:03, Martin Eastburn wrote:

snip
I have not heard about bulbs designed to mimic HIDs. I guess I am not
surprised if the goal is to make a cheap headlight look like an
expensive
one. Certainly the true HIDs are very annoying.
What I find particularily annoyong are the blue lights that police cars
usually have--they're incredibly distracting as it is, and also cause
significant tempory visual impairment lasting for a few seconds after
one
passes by.


And to have one come at you in a heavy fog - fog blind easily.

They were popular in Germany -

They were banned on passenger cars as a retrofit in California and then
when the German Imports - they folded.

Martin
I've read that the OE HID installations have to be self levelling
probably to reduce dazzling other road users. I think many of the after
market HID installations don't have self levelling and so are illegal
for road use in many places.
"aftermarket HID conversions" are virtually all illegal anywhere in
North America - and likely many other places as well. As are "most"
blue coloured "hid wannbee" replacement lamps. No DOT approval - not
legal. Period. Many are sold with a disclamer on the package "for
off-road use only" - RIGHT!!!!
Same situation in the UK where its legal to sell something with that
disclaimer but many get used on the road anyway. I was talking to a
policeman that lived near where I used to work and he admitted to having
higher wattage bulbs in his Miata, 100W IIRC where 60W is max legal, and
his superior noticed as well and brought it up with him but chose not to
take it further, likely more important things to do.