Contour Enthusiasts Group Archives Forums Modifications Aesthetics Amazing headlight modification.

Well, there's one bad thing about the gene pool, there are no lifeguards...anyway, sarcasm works, especially when the other person thinks you're serious. Oh, BTW, don't ever say that I'm wrong, both you and I know that's impossible

Here is a car that has headlamp adjustment, and its a CDW27 platform! Some Mondeos had the adjuster equipment onboard. I know the European Chrysler Neon does as well. Granted these are manual adjustment though.

Though, it looks like most of the current production BMWs that have HID have automatic leveling headlamps. This would be required. If a driver of another vehicle was coming towards say a BMW that was loaded heavy but its lights wern't adjusted the Xenon would temporarily blind the driver. IIRC, there was a problem with this when HID first started coming out in Europe.

Oh, and just for fun here is another link. Clicky! Its a copy of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard 108, in this, it basically states that using different lighting equipment (bulbs, housings, etc, wires are excluded) then what your car originally came with is illegal. It needs to retain all the functionality of the original unit. This is how people can remove their reflectors on a 98+ but use a stick-on in some places to pass inspection. The use of HID in non-HID lamps is also illegal. A US spec lamp (unless its a projector) doesn't have the sharp cutoff that is needed to keep from offending the oncoming traffic, or causing backdazzle in poor weather. European lamps will cure this problem, but fitting them onto your car, is illegal.

Originally posted by Cool Blue Mystique:

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You're wrong.

8. Doesn't the use of Xenon lamps cause more irritation amongst other drivers?
The International regulations governing light distribution and intensity on the road are very strict. Xenon light
blah blah blah blah.......

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No, you're wrong. According to the NHTSA:

"European regulatory bodies have determined that automatic leveling and washing would help reduce the potential for glare from these headlamps that are specifically allowed to have higher beam performance than current halogen headlamps. The rationale behind the automatic washing is that, in general, a lamp with higher luminance is more adversely affected by dirt on the lens, resulting in more light directed toward the glare zone. In the U.S., because HID headlamps have been designed to comply with the existing required intensity performance, and not some new, higher performance as in Europe, there appeared to be no need for manufacturers to seek changes to introduce HID headlamps into the market nor for NHTSA to prevent them from being introduced."

However prudent installing auto-leveling and headlight washing systems is, the fact remains that law does not require it in the U.S. Contours (or more correctly, Mondeos) have headlight washing systems even though they are not HID, but they were cut in the U.S.

For being 15 (or any age for that matter), it would do you good to exercise some of that class in your little finger.

Sorry, Im still not wrong. Nice try though.

Originally posted by Cool Blue Mystique:

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Sorry, Im still not wrong. Nice try though.

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Give up,Im to old,it's over, nobody listens to techno!

Originally posted by Journie:

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Originally posted by Cool Blue Mystique:

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Sorry, Im still not wrong. Nice try though.

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Give up,Im to old,it's over, nobody listens to techno!

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Another post ruined by Cool Blue. (this post isn't even ABOUT xenons or HID or anything but a mod to headlights)

Sounds like a good mod man. I hope it works out for you.

I'd love to see the pics of the difference.

Ill get some pics up this week,its raining this weekend.