installing neons

[paulr33]

hi all,

are neons under the footweel illegal or violate any vic roads stuff?

[Craved]

yeah any internal lighting apart from standard are illegal, causes "distractions". stupid but true

[paulr33]

interesting, i was not aware. thanks for the advice

[Craved]

yeah, as long as cops cant see the light too brightly at night it should be OK!! just turn em off when you get pulled over, then they got no proof, cause you can have them installed just not on when driving!!!

[geordie]

I have them in my footwells and under the seats, looks awesome when the doors open, but couldnt tell if you were to drive past me on the street, just have a switch close by in the event of being pulled over and your set, no probs.

[2BNVS]

when i got pulled over i got let off for the neons in the footwells because they said as long as the neon is below the height of the steering wheel and the neon was not directly visible it will be fine, but i guess that can change from cop to cop...

cheers...ben.

[cooks44]

Just thought I'd pop this up regarding the legality of non-essential lights in Victoria as it has been clarified to my workplace by the Police.

Following is an excerpt of a Road Safety statement as it applies to neon lights and such. Still trying to find an online link to the document but have had no luck as yet... (will keep looking!)

Road Safety

Non-Essential Lights

The boom of non-essential lights, including fluorescent lights under vehicles and the smaller ones on bonnets or wiper blades (generally blue in colour), on motor vehicles is continuing, creating confusion about their legality.

A little history about non-essential lights: the Road Safety (Vehicles) Regulations 1988, required motor vehicles and trailers to comply with the Standards for Registration (Victorian Government Gazette S15, 1 March 1988). Clause 702 of these Standards prohibited the fitment of lamps or reflectors that weren't required or permitted. The Regulations were repealed in 1999, as to were the standards, and replaced by the current Road Safety (Vehicles) Regulations 1999, incorporating the Standard for Registration at Schedule 8.

In making the new Regulations and Standards, Victoria adopted the National Light and Heavy Vehicle Standards. The current Standards for Registration, unlike the old, does not prohibit the fitment of lamps that are not prescribed.

What they do require, is for vehicles to be fitted with the lamps specified in the Standards and the Australian Design Rules. In addition, cluase 118(2) of the Standards allows a vehicle to be fitted with any other lamp or reflector, providing it does not show red light to the front, a white light to the rear or a light that flashes.

With regards to dazzling lights, clause 75 of the Standards stipulates a light (except a high-beam headlight), fitted to a vehicle must be built and adjusted to provide the necessary amount of light, without dazzling the driver of another vehicle approaching, or being approached by, the vehicle.

Additionally, if any light fitted to a vehicle (whether it complies or not) is used to dazzle, or in a way likely to dazzle another road user, then the driver may be charged accordingly (Road Rules-Victoria rule 219 applies).

The Macquarie Dictionary defines dazzle as 1. To overpower or dim (the vision) by intense light. 6. Temporary loss of vision, or temporary reduction of visual activity, related to the presence of a bright (possibly moving) source of light.

VicRoads' guideline (Vehicle Standards Information Sheet 8) permits the fitting of additional forward and rearward facing lamps, which comply with or are permitted by the Standards. Mandatory light fitted to a vehicle must continue to comply with the relevant Standards.

If a vehicle is fitted with lights in accordance with the Standards and used in accordance with the Road Rules-Victoria, then police can take no action. If a light fitted to a vehicle does not comply with the Standards, then a defect notice may be issued and the driver charged accordingly. As to the use of flourescent lights under vehicles and the blue lights fitted to vehicle bonnets or wiper blades, providing they do not dazzle other road users, they are quite lawful.

[End Quote]

So essentially in Victoria, as long as no additional light shows no red light to the front (making other drivers think you have your brakes on), white light to the back (making other drivers think you are in reverse), flashes or dazzles, you're clear.

This went through the courts here not long ago, where someone got charged for having windscreen washer LEDs. He won his case in court, and all fines issued to people for having these LEDs installed had to be reversed.

Hope this clarifies things a bit!!!

[IWant300kw]

just curious but i assume this is right. police would consider neons under the car, say a blue light, as a 'dazzling' light correct? and if u could find the site with qld legislation would b great. Cheers

[BROCKZILA]

Why don't you just hook them up to the door switch and they only come on when you open the door? or relay them from the power supply to the bulb so that you could switch them on from the interior light swtich too?

[cooks44]

Wouldn't say they'd call neons a dazzling light.... Basically they mean any light that "blinds" you (high beams, spot lights, etc.) is a dazzling light. Neons are fine. (In Vic. anyway.)

I have questioned it myself I must admit, IMHO I think that the high-brightness LEDs on windscreen washers are dazzling, I also think the rear red fog lights on Excels are dazzling and they should all be recalled and defected! But they're not...

We have been trying to get info on legislation for the various states, it hasn't been easy. I spent an hour trying to find the document I quoted from on the web, to no avail. Ended up typing it all.

From the layout of the document it came from the vicpolice.vic.gov.au site. We have been looking for a statement like this for a while, and finally received this last month. Haven't seen anything from any other states though.....