lighting up your car?

[Rothrandir]

is there a limit to how much light your car can put out and where?

for example, what if i put 1 nichia led every square inch of my car?
i certainly don't intend to do this, but is there any law against this?

at some later point, when i get a decent car (and more money!), i would like to put lights on my car (in a tasteful way) to improve the appearance and the visability of my car, reducing nighttime accidents.

i wouldn't be a moving christmas tree...but more like the lights on semi's..they always look extremely cool with all of those red and amber lights [img]/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif[/img]

for that matter, is there a limit on how bright your headlights, turn signals, or brakelights can be?
does it matter what color they are? i think a bank of 10 cyan 5w luxeons would really get the person behind me to stop!

[Kristofg]

Over here, the lights must have correct colors, be fixed at certain locations and not blind other traffic. You have to get your car trough a technical inspection each year to verify this kind of stuff.

[Rothrandir]

i thought that might be the case [img]/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/frown.gif[/img]

then again, you're in belgium...maybe things aren't so strict here...

[highlandsun]

Different states have different codes, but most of them incorporate the Federal Motor Vehicle specs (FMVSS) as well.
Different states also have different enforcement of these codes. Some states have annual inspections. I've never had my car inspected...

But anyway, the FMVSS and Euro-Spec aren't very different. There are regulations for how high lamps can be mounted, how many, what colors, etc. etc... Forward lamps must be white or amber. Rear lamps are not allowed to be white unless they're reverse lights. There are minimum and maximum light levels for various lights in various directions. Some specs have no max, some have no minimum. There are also specs requiring certain types of reflectors/lenses on signal lamps. All kinds of regulations...

I've only really paid attention to the headlamp and turn signal specs. I think you may have some freedom wrt general marker lights, but then again, underbody glow kits aren't street-legal so I dunno.

[Rothrandir]

thanks for the information.

i don't plan on going crazy with it. just an accent here or there.

i also thought it would be cool (and effective) to put blue or cyan brakelights. it would certianly get the person behind to notice [img]/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif[/img]

[Kristofg]

I think you can do most creative things on the sides of the car where the orange markers are allowed. i've been playing with the idea of using orange neon-wire strips over there.

[Rothrandir]

that would be a good idea.
imagine the looks you'll get when you drive down the road with an "eat at joe's" sign glowing on your car [img]/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif[/img]

actually, i don't think that would be allowed either (not here at least)
i think the reason the underbody lights aren't allowed is because it presents a danger if it were to be impacted.
(i've also heard that they're legal...but you're not allowed to see the source of the light (the tube) only the light resulting from the tube...)

[Kristofg]

But some cars have yellow side markers, so it must be possible to use the neonwire used for pc-modding and apply it in the form of a logo or something like that, I think.

[iddibhai]

blue/cyan is NO NO in uncle sam land. only emergency vehicles can have those colors (doesnt stop kiddies from putting those KEWL bleu lamps however!)

[Saaby]

Roth...sorry bud but you gotta stick with the right colors. This means white headlights, amber/yellow/orange signals and makers, and red brake lights.

Also, if the backend of the car ahead of me turned bright blue, "Stop" would be the last thing I thought of.

I've seen, and maybe you have too, cars where the front turn signals (Supposed to be amber) have been replaced with white lights. This is illegal.

The exception to the rule is show/off road. You can do whatever you want for show but to drive on the street you need to follow street rules. You can put as many offroad lights on as you want, but legally they need to be covered when you're on the road.

[Rothrandir]

oh [img]/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/frown.gif[/img]

well, i wasn't planning on really doing much of that stuff anyway...was more curious than anything else.

of course, i can make the inside of my car glow any color i want [img]/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif[/img]