Thread: LED headlights/inserts and ADR legalities?

Interesting find. I knew that HID retrofit was usuallly too hard to do legally because of headlamp wash and or self leveling requirements but good to know it now applies to LED

My reading of the ADRs is that the manufacturers need to apply for the approval mark and many just have not bothered.

Your question about the lumen of the product is part of the published information the manufacturers have to include. That is, an approved bulb will have its lumens noted on the packet.

So these guys have their headlamp rated as less than 2000 lumen - thus not needing the headlamp power wash.

STEDI 7 INCH IRIS LED Headlight Motorbike Truck Jeep Wrangler Harley Davidson

The issue I see is that if the headlights do not have an appropriate marking, you may have to prove (to the relevant authority's satisfaction) that the lights meet the specification of the ADR. If someone (such as your insurer, the other bloke's insurer, or a cop you have rubbed the wrong) way wants to dispute this, it could be quite difficult.

On the other hand, if they do not cause glare, it is very unlikely that the question will ever arise.

Originally Posted by AK83

So I went through as much as I could(bare!) again, and read this interesting section that pretty much sounds to me like LED globes in themselves may not be as illegal as some folks insist.

Dipped-beam headlamps with a light source or LED module(s) producing the principal dipped beam and having a total objective luminous flux which exceeds 2,000 lumen shall only be installed in conjunction with the installation of headlamp cleaning device(s) according to Regulation No. 45.

That quote is copy and pasted straight from the ADR source.

Which ADR and which clause?

Yes - my brothers current model RAV 4 has led lights (ok on low beam - hi beam is non existant) as standard - no washers on it.

Originally Posted by Mick_Marsh

Which ADR and which clause?

Vehicle Standard (Australian Design Rule 13/00 – Installation of Lighting and Light Signalling Devices on other than L-Group Vehicles) 2005

compilation date 18/11/2017, but the original issue of the amendment appears to have been made in 2007

Link Here

hopefully the link takes you directly to the relevant paragraph but if not, then scroll down to 6.2.9.

The other interesting point to note is that they refer too the lumen rating as 'objective luminous flux' which implies that the lumen rating is taken from the headlight lens(ie. not the actual globe, or in the case of an LED, the chip).

Ah. That is actually from "United Nations regulation 48".
Rule 11.1 in ADR 13 states:

The technical requirements of United Nations Regulation No. 48 - UNIFORM PROVISIONS CONCERNING THE APPROVAL OF VEHICLES WITH REGARD TO THE INSTALLATION OF LIGHTING AND LIGHT-SIGNALLING DEVICES, from the 00 series of amendments and including up to the 06 series of amendments, shall be deemed to be equivalent to the technical requirements of this standard.

With the demise of the local car industry, ADRs are now pointless. We have no control over the design of cars imported into Australia. I suspect we will be adopting international regulations soon.

Originally Posted by Mick_Marsh

Ah. That is actually from "United Nations regulation 48".
.... ADRs are now pointless. We have no control over the design of cars imported into Australia. I suspect we will be adopting international regulations soon.

Yeah, this has been 'transitioning' from about 2005-06 (about the earliest record I can locate), where the overall idea was to reduce the cost to manufacturers(I'm thinking local ones at that point) as they align rules to a more global approach.

That is, if they hadn't started this process, the rules would have affected local cars for possible export if the ADRs weren't aligned with export markets.

So ADRs in themselves aren't so much pointless, I'm pretty sure we'll still have them to account for regional differences. eg. bullbars .. in EU/UK are not legal, but here they are due to our regional requirements(such as roos!). But they'll still have to conform to some safety specs.

etc, etc.

Its round & 7" , you can see & don't glare oncoming drivers , then use them .
My Defender had certified Trucklites $750 from memory , My Iveco has certified Narva 90mm LED low beams $1200 (just for low beam) & my Electric LW has Chinese Trucklite LED's , cant pick them from the genuine item , $100 the pair and best light of the lot and only 15 /45w .

Not headlights but ADR's
Iveco 4x4 brakes don't even go close to complying with ADR's - on several points (they are outright dangerous) there is no shuttle valve or line pressure fail switch, & both circuits share the same fluid, when a line fails you lose aLL brakes. Any thats not even touching on how ineffective & how easily they overheat & fade. But the trucks have EU certification and are compliant in Australia on the back of EU paperwork. EU are all about emissions & nothing else - But the E6 unit is still getting plated as E4 here , they have it both ways.