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Are these legal???

Posted: April 15th, 2005, 2:13 pm
by Chiggles
Lately while I've been driving around town, I've noticed that people are starting to put blue colored bulbs and/or have painted their lens covers blue for their sider markers or their turn signals. Are these legit? I always thought the turn signal had to be amber.

Posted: April 15th, 2005, 2:24 pm
by ScooterBovine
Dunno about Canada, but here in Ohio, white is okay, too.

Posted: April 15th, 2005, 4:36 pm
by solo_ryder
I don't think there legal in canada, I think only red, orange and maybe white are. if you dont like the orange bulb you could alway spaint it with high heat silver paint, it will still work but look silver.

Posted: April 15th, 2005, 4:52 pm
by freyguy_412
I live in Nevada, in the US, and here are the laws reguarding the types of lamps, colors, positions, etc. http://leg.state.nv.us/NRS/NRS-484.html#NRS484Sec575 Start reading at NRS 484.545.

Best as I interperet the law, the blue is not allowed. It says you may use white or amber, or any shade of color between the two, so unless you can show a judge how blue is between amber and white, good luck.

Now, in my personal experience, you can do certain things to a vehicle that are against the law and not be pulled over for it... (My muffler doesn't restrict airflow as the law states, and it makes my car much louder than 82db @ 50ft. My side windows are tinted darker than the law allows at 5%.) I have friends who have the blue turn signals, red underglow kits, etc. etc. But you are playing with fire if you do these things. A cop who pulls you over for speeding will nail you for everyone of these things if he wants to be a d---. He will also nail you with "Impersonation of a Peace Officer" if he feels really spiteful, and I think in some places that is a class C felony, so mod with care.

Posted: April 15th, 2005, 4:59 pm
by freyguy_412
P.S.- Here's another link that shows just the colors all by themselves.
http://leg.state.nv.us/NRS/NRS-484.html#NRS484Sec563 NRS 484.563

http://leg.state.nv.us/NRS/NRS-484.html#NRS484Sec541 NRS 484.493 states that a cop can remove and destroy your red and blue lights... ouch. But again these are laws only in my state. Check your local municipal codes.

Posted: April 15th, 2005, 9:29 pm
by mx3frik
in canada any sort of tint or covers over the bulbs or housings/lenses are illegal.

Posted: April 20th, 2005, 1:21 am
by Hoodzy
in canada must be producing an overall orange or red

Posted: April 22nd, 2005, 12:52 pm
by OptiX
Hey, well, here in ontario, the front must be white or amber, the rear red or amber, blue would constitute a violation of the traffic act, since the car isnt Snow Removal :P

even side markers are not allowed to be anything but clear or amber

Posted: April 22nd, 2005, 12:58 pm
by OptiX
mx3frik wrote:in canada any sort of tint or covers over the bulbs or housings/lenses are illegal.
only if they impede the strength/visibility of the light.

Posted: April 24th, 2005, 1:06 am
by solo_ryder
I dunno, I think white is legal...my buddy has white turn signals on the back of his STi and I know red is legal...I have red :shrug:

Posted: April 25th, 2005, 1:05 am
by mx3frik
OptiX wrote:
mx3frik wrote:in canada any sort of tint or covers over the bulbs or housings/lenses are illegal.
only if they impede the strength/visibility of the light.

I'm from Ottawa, and I admit shamfully that I got suckered into the blue ricey bulbs before I went to overwattage clear ones and the whole cherade in HID.

Anyways I did get in trouble for having the blue coated bulbs. I got off the hook 'cuz the OPP officer that issued the ticket didn't show up on court date.

Here's a snip of the highway traffic act (for Ontario):

Attachment that affects lamps prohibited
No person shall drive upon a highway a motor vehicle if either or both of the lamps that are required on the front of the vehicle by subsections (1), (2) and (3),

(a) are coated or covered with a coloured material; or

(b) have been modified by the attachment to the lamps or the motor vehicle of any device that reduces the effective area of the lenses or the intensity of the beam of the lamps.?2002, c. 18, Sched. P, s. 19 (1).

The above snippet applies to headlights and tail lights only. For sidemarkers blue and red resemble colors used in emergency/snow removal vehicles so can't be used. Green, orange are okay (but why green?? :)). Coated blue bulbs (as white) maybe in on a greyish side of the law; it emits a while light by putting a blue spectrum into the yellow-ish output, but it is a coated bulb after all. People are putting in LEDs or LED replacement bulbs to achieve differnt color schemes it's one way to consider. (although putting non filament light sources in OEM filament housings is illegal as well)

The bottom line is if you do a descrete job then it'll look good and got an OEM look and you shouldn't get into too much trouble.

cheers,

eugene

Posted: April 28th, 2005, 12:40 am
by reaper of souls
actually in the falls here i got pinched for having green turn signals on my old scort your only allowed to have amber or white projecting forward of the vechical. also wiper lights are not legal unless they are amber or white but you can fight that ticket in court because there is nothing in the traffic act about them or underglow lights. so there are some ways around things

Posted: April 28th, 2005, 5:30 pm
by kat
I know in Nova Scotia, any blue lights are illegal and red signals are also illegal.

Blue and red are colors related to the RCMP so they wish to keep it on there cars only.

Around here even if you have blue or red lights on the inside of your car, if you can see them from the outside while driving it's illegal.


Might be different in different provinces.

Posted: April 28th, 2005, 8:12 pm
by Gro Harlem
for the most part, in the USA

front signals have to shine amber when turned on
Front sidemakrers w/amber reflector must exist
rear tailllights or markers with red reflector must exist on both SIDE and REAR of car
rear taillight signals may shine either red or amber

blue, green, purple bulbs are illegal in any shape or form

red bulbs shining in the front are illegal.

Posted: April 30th, 2005, 2:16 pm
by Nd4SpdSe
reaper of souls wrote:actually in the falls here i got pinched for having green turn signals on my old scort your only allowed to have amber or white projecting forward of the vechical. also wiper lights are not legal unless they are amber or white but you can fight that ticket in court because there is nothing in the traffic act about them or underglow lights. so there are some ways around things
Actually, it's not what but where they're shining, the LED washer nozzils are facing forward
every motor vehicle other than a motorcycle shall carry three lighted lamps in a conspicuous position, one on each side of the front of the vehicle which shall display a white or amber light only, and one on the rear of the vehicle which shall display a red light only. R.S.O. 1990, c. H.8, s. 62 (1).
With underbody neons, they are on the underside of the car, so technically there is no law against them.