yeah... its just my luck I learned about the hella's from hotsauce after i already purchased my set of projectors...
But that's ok, because it looks like I may go ahead and install them where the stock headlight assemblies are now instead of taking the parking light route I was originally planning on.
However, to my (limited) knowledge the projectors I purchased are DOT approved as they are OEM.
Now as far as placing them on my particular vehicle makes that null and void, I'm still fuzzy on this. I'll have to research it a little further. I would hope if the projectors themselves are DOT approved, they might retain that approval being mounted on another vehicle. And it's up to me to aim and adjust the lights to meet state regulations.
But in reality, I'm guessing that the DOT approval is based on the final results of the fixtures on the vehicle they are to be installed upon.
I've also been following what the NHTSA has been up too.
posted from another forum discussing the topic, "NONE of the rebased bulb/ballast "kits" are in compliance with FMVSS No. 108. As soon as someone modifies a bulb or HID capsule to make it fit into a headlight fixture other than what the headlight fixture was pronounced DOT-compliant for, the modified bulb/capsule is non-compliant, and the resultant combination of light source & fixture are also non-compliant."
So far I've seen only mentions of HID retrofit kits being named as illegal for sale and use (OEM being legal for SALE as they are of course, OEM). The aftermarket HID kits are specifically in question as it involves placing a non-filament bulb (HID) inside a halogen based reflector. Such as I'm assuming what Hotsauce has already done with his headlights.
Apparently Halogen housings in order for DOT approval require a bulb with a filament - and thus is where the kits fail.
According to NHTSA's website - they've only intiated an investigation and inquires into certain sellers of HID rebased kits. The laws here have already in been place, and has been illegal all along. Of course, I was already technically working under this assumption but was hoping for the best using an OEM based assembly.
Apparently from what I've read multiple times halogen based headlamps with reflectors lack the optics to handle a HID based bulb and it not produce intense glare - even with a shield. As I've never done one nor seen one personally, I'm not an expert on the topic.
I've also read mentions of Hella's 90mm halogen rebased aux HID as being illegal - but again these aren't confirmations and could be just purely speculation.
ok, I'm shutting up now.
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