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Old 15th October 2019, 09:23   #11
frostybot1977
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Default Xenon wahsers

It will also be an MOT failure if you have Xenon headlights and no headlight washers. By law Xenons must have washers.
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Old 15th October 2019, 09:48   #12
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Quote:
Originally Posted by frostybot1977 View Post
It will also be an MOT failure if you have Xenon headlights and no headlight washers. By law Xenons must have washers.
Nope, wrong If fitted, they must work, but not a requirement. I've had xenons for 10 years without self-levelling or washers
Anyway, after a certain year of manufacture, they don't need them, 2009 onwards vehicles they are testable

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Old 15th October 2019, 09:54   #13
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Originally Posted by suzublu View Post
Nope, wrong If fitted, they must work, but not a requirement. I've had xenons for 10 years without self-levelling or washers
Anyway, after a certain year of manufacture, they don't need them, 2009 onwards vehicles they are testable
Maybe not when you had yours done but now they have to have "self cleaning and self levelling." I know people who have converted and not had washers and failed MOT's. It's undoubtedly down to the tester in the past, but now it is law.

https://www.gov.uk/government/public...-hid-headlamps
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Now on my third 75/ZT and fifth MGR in total.

1st - Rover 420 SLi 2.0 Petrol Hatchback - 2005
2nd - Rover 45 Impression 2.0 Turbo Diesel Hatchback - 2011
3rd - Rover 75 Mk1 Club 2.0 Turbo Diesel Tourer - 2012
4th - MG ZT Mk2 CDTi 2.0 Turbo Diesel Saloon - 2016
5th - Rover 75 Mk1 Connoisseur 2.5 V6 Petrol Saloon - 2019
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Old 15th October 2019, 11:28   #14
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Originally Posted by frostybot1977 View Post
Maybe not when you had yours done but now they have to have "self cleaning and self levelling." I know people who have converted and not had washers and failed MOT's. It's undoubtedly down to the tester in the past, but now it is law.



https://www.gov.uk/government/public...-hid-headlamps
It was 'law' since 2010 .......

How can it fail if from,the link '(although no government inspection will take place)' ?

This is a topic that has been done to death on these forums. It will fail under certain criteria. Fitting hid into projectors, if using e.marked bulbs should pass, as long as adjustment can take.place. (if washers are fitted, they are testable and must work, if not fitted, the owner cannot.be disadvantaged by this and therefore will pass, ie if it cant be tested, it cannot fail lol. ) all other light tests must pass. Eg beam pattern etc. Some.cars came.from.the factory without auto levelling and washing in the mid to late 90s. These cars will pass.


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Old 15th October 2019, 11:37   #15
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I forgot to ask where would you mount the blasts so it is nice clean installation ? And how would you route the wiring ?
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Old 15th October 2019, 14:43   #16
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Originally Posted by T-Cut View Post
So the quad HID conversion I've been planning for my Mk2 will/might fail the MOT?

What's your experience (re. MOT) with the HID kits/conversions you sell?

TC
I don't sell HID kits/conversions for halogen headlamps. My xenon quad projector upgrades are done using factory xenon headlamps. The halogen quad projector upgrades I offer using halogen headlamps use halogen bulbs (work the same way as the xenon quad projectors but use halogen bulbs instead of xenon burners).

Mot criteria 4.1.4 compliance with requirements:

"Existing halogen headlamp units should not be converted to be used with HID bulbs. If such a conversion has been done, you must fail the headlamp."

That's the requirement, that any cars with a HID kit fitted to halogen headlights (whether it's halogen projectors or halogen reflectors) should be a fail.

I personally don't agree with this blanket straight fail criteria, as HID kits correctly fitted to halogen PROJECTOR headlights give a perfect clean cut off beam pattern exactly the same as factory xenons. In fact the projector units used in factory xenon headlights is exactly the same as the projector used on halogen projectors on our cars, with the only difference being the bulb holder I.e. xenon bulb holder holds a d2s burner whereas a halogen projector holds a h7 bulb. Fitting a HID kit to halogen projectors DON'T blind oncoming cars.

The problem occurs when people fit the HID kit to halogen reflector headlights like the ones found on some mki 75's and ZTs. HIDs/Xenons were designed to be used on projector headlamp units, not reflector units. When fitted to reflector headlamps the beam scatters and you get bright areas and dim areas on the very poor beam pattern, this is what blinds oncoming cars. Ever come across a car heading towards you at night with bright glaring blueish headlights? That's a car with a HID Kit fitted to halogen reflector headlamps.

Fitting a HID kit to halogen projector headlights shouldn't pass a MOT under the new MOT rules which came in last year, even though the beam pattern would perfectly meet requirements without any issues. However, in practice you could get away with it as it could be missed by the MOT tester. Also, if you hide the ballast and wiring well enough the MOT tester may not even notice. If you were to fit the HID kit's ballast inside the headlight units by taking the headlight lenses off (as there's enough space to fit a ballast inside the headlight) then the MOT tester would have no way of knowing/noticing that a HID kit has been fitted as none of the HID kit's wiring or ballasts would be outside of the headlight to spot. The only MOT tester it would be obvious to is one who knows the ballast is at the back of the headlights on factory xenons but then again could go unnoticed.

I personally would recommend getting some factory xenon headlights and fitting them, saves any hassle or worry over whether the car would pass an MOT or not. The factory Xenons have 4300k xenon D2S burners fitted to them which give off a milky white light, however you can change them to 6000k ones if you prefer the white light with a blueish tinge.

You can fit factory xenons without the headlamp washers or self-levelling and it'll pass an MOT, as headlamp washers and self-levelling are not a requirement on a MOT when xenon headlights are fitted. The test criteria simply states that they must be working IF fitted. In fact headlamp washers aren't even a testable item on our cars, as they are only testable on cars registered from 01 September 2009 on wards

4.1.6. Headlamp cleaning devices
You must inspect vehicles first used on or after 1 September 2009 equipped with headlamp washers.

You can identify HID headlamps from:

‘DCR’ mark on the headlamp lens or body
an igniter module or inverter behind the headlamp
taking a few seconds to reach full intensity
a bluish tinge to the light
HID headlamps use high voltage. You should take care when inspecting these headlamps.



4.1.5. Levelling devices

Vehicles with high intensity discharge (HID) or LED dipped beam headlamps may be fitted with a suspension or headlamp self-levelling system. If these systems have been fitted, they must work.

Sometimes it is not easy to determine if the self-levelling systems work. In such cases you should give the benefit of the doubt.

You can identify HID headlamps from:

‘DCR’ mark on the headlamp lens or body
an igniter module or inverter behind the headlamp
taking a few seconds to reach full intensity
a bluish tinge to the light
HID headlamps use high voltage. You should take care when inspecting these headlamps.


There's absolutely nothing in the MOT test criteria that states headlamp washers and self-levelling has to be fitted with Xenon headlights. If anyone has ever failed an MOT for having xenon headlights but no headlamp washers or self-levelling, or have ever failed an MOT for headlamp washers not working on a car registered before 01 September 2009 then it has been wrongly failed.
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Old 15th October 2019, 17:53   #17
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In response to the "OP"
I have experienced this myself, the answer is that the inner lens is likely to be dirty, (Prism). So to save lots of messing with brighter bulbs and illegal upgrades that are not compliant with the headlamps, simply remove the headlamps, clean the outer shells prior to any surgery to prevent dirt ingress. Then remove the lenses carefully to expose the lamp innards. With care and plenty of patience use a lens cleaning wipe to both sides of the prism unit paying attention to the delicate shiny plastic reflective portions which must not be disturbed in any way as this easily peels away. Having cleaned out the prism surfaces, and cleaned the main outer lens interior, re-assemble the units and re-fit to the vehicle. May be worth fitting replacement bulbs at this stage before the final fit to the vehicle. This exercise will provide a considerable change to the poor light output.
Cost of repairs is likely to be for the 6 bulbs.
1 box of wipes from £1 shop or similar.
And a few hours of work.
I know I make this sound easy, but having done plenty I do find it easy, but simply take your time and have everything you need to hand prior to starting.
I am sure there is info available to remove lenses either on this site, or via many other sources.

If you do it, good luck and you will be impressed with the light output !
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