Hey Gary, how's everything been? Dont worry, there are still a few mods left for the VX.. I still have to get back to Mercer about the 1/2 white 1/2 amber LED front turn signals. Those should match with his sidemarkers.. and are also avail in clear or smoke finish.

WyrreJ> The "ban" on HID is nothing recent, its actually been illegal to sell modified HID capsules for use in halogen headlights -- the law has not changed. What has changed, is the amount of complaints the NHTSA has received and the amount of enforment. They hit the nail on the head by sending letters to large distributors and resellers requiring they show proof that their products are indeed DOT compliant. I dont know how many of you guys are lighting gurus, but anyone paying attention within the last couple years has read plenty of discussions and arguements on the forums on how it is NOT okay to retrofit a halogen headlight to HID technology WITHOUT making changes to the headlight assembly. A lot of people were causing ruckus because they felt that these retrofits are indeed okay, and used words like "beam pattern corrected" on their website to try to fool buyers who just dont know better.

Anyway, a few years later.. after X amount of complaints, we are where we are now -- HID "retrofits" being outlawed. Another point, it doesnt matter if its reflector or projector -- halogen to HID is illegal UNLESS the entire components are DOT compliant, period. So, even NSX owners who have projector-based headlamps, cannot go with HID unless they change the projector lens/assembly. On the VX, I would imagine changing to DOT compliant projector OR reflector should be okay. But, like I said.. having this much light on such a taill car with a soft suspension is just not a good combination. EVEN on lowered cars like the S2000, there is a fair amount of glare due to the sharp cutoff, short wheelbase, and stiff suspension. Evertime I see S2000's in my rearview, I see a bouncy set of HID's with tons of color abhorration -- I guess people like the intensity of light and rainbow appearance, but when looking in the rearview of MY car, I dont! Same reason I hate the Range Rover.

I have not had a chance to verify whether or not the auto-levelers react in real-time or whether they are just load-dependent. I know most of the BMWs have sensors mounted throughout the car and from what I've seen, the servos do function rather quickly. I would think that they DO operate while driving as well, just not on smaller bumps. I drive through a lot of canyons out here in LA and I have to give it up to BMW, they are one of the few cars that dont bother me.. (and I drive a pretty low sportscar).

You are correct on the lighting pattern, ECE's typically have that sharper cutoff and wider light spread -- vs DOT which has a blotch above the cutoff, perfect for longer distances which the US is full of. Both serve a purpose, but given the terrain I drive in.. I like ECE-spec lights. DOT is fine for cars that drive big open highways though.

All in all, good information.
- Mike