Light regulations are my "beat", for Canada. Its a large part of my job in Canada understanding Auxiliary lighting regulations, laws, inspection manuals, and enforcement.
You are correct in what you say about the BC legislated regulations. The BC Motor Vehicle Act Regulations, makes no mentions of any required certification of lighting directly within the auxiliary lighting section. (please see attached for excerpt on auxiliary lighting or find it yourself within the regulations here: http://www.bclaws.ca/civix/document/id/crbc/crbc/26_58_multi)
This can be frustrating when stopped by an inspector and being told your light is illegal in BC when in all appearance you may well be following the BC. MVAR to the letter.
SpokeRider is very correct in saying, "...any traffic stop / inspection has the propensity to go in whichever direction the peace officer so chooses..."
Because Vehicle inspectors and peace officers are given the power to, Inspect, ticket, enforce and prohibit.
The guidance for inspectors and officers to inspect, ticket, and prohibit is given under the Vehicle Inspection Manuals of BC.
The light vehicle inspection manual was updated last June or July of 2016 some time, and gives the guidance on auxiliary lighting inspection.
The inspection manuals are not freely available, but come at a price of the queens printer... Pay some money and you can proudly own your own copy :)
However, since it is my business to know, here is a snapshot of what the latest Light Vehicle Inspection Manual gives for guidance on Auxiliary lighting in the attachment below.
Of course the question of enforcement and law is yet another crazy matter. A peace office is perfectly within their rights to ticket someone or impound a vehicle if they feel it not safe or does not meet the legal requirements for being road worthy. Of course we then have the right to appeal that decision. If we win the appeal that does not mean that what the peace officer did was unlawful, simply unjust.
I personally have been driving BC with my off-road light bars on highway for quite a few years with no issues, or tickets. I always had them connected to my high beam circuit and turned the kill switch to OFF during the day, just incase. However, due to many complaints from the public on improper use of off-road lights, inspectors and peace officers have started to regionally "crack-down" on off-road lighting.
This is where I turned to understanding what would make an auxiliary high beam light in BC "street legal" . I have spent hundreds of hours researching and investigating the matter, talking to vehicle inspectors, deputy ministers, and law makers on the matter. ( It's a job thing ).
What I can tell you, is what is considered the most legal way to have auxiliary high beam lamps mounted to your vehicle strictly obeying enforcement, inspection, provincial jurisdiction and Federal motor vehicle safety regulations in BC.
The bonus is, that a certified ECE R or HR light can be just as good or even better than most off-road lamps.
However I do carry Black-out covers, just in-case. I would rather obey an officer and later win in appeal and overturn a ticket than make life even more difficult for myself or the officer.
Knowledge is power, I'm just here to share some of what I have learned over the past few years on the subject.
So glad you asked! It is easy to look at each light bar and conclude they are the same. After all the double row housing is the same extruded aluminum structure being shared amongst hundreds of manufacturers. However, the outward appearance is where it ends.
1. In order to be street legal in British Columbia and many parts of Canada, a light has to pass strict standards of performance. IE. SAE Y - J581 or UNECE (ECE) R112 testing.
a) Testing for optical conformity and consistency (Physical Inspection)
b) Testing for beam intensity at multiple points in space. (Photometric Testing, Light Color Testing)
c) Testing of physical characteristics for durability. (Dust, Moisture, Corrosion, Vibration, Stress Testing)
2. Legally Marked on the Lens for easy identification for Vehicle inspectors (RCMP, Scales, MOT)
The testing is very rigorous, and the allowance for variation is very low. This means street legal lights in BC and most parts of Canada have to meet a much higher standard compared to off road lights. LED chips have to be a higher bin rating allowing for consistent colour, consistent output of light and consistent efficiency or Lumens/watt.
Also the reflectors in the light bars have to be refined to strictly meet the Photometry tests so that when a street legal light is aimed and positioned correctly on a vehicle, it will not dazzle on coming traffic, (at a far distance since high beaming is illegal anyways, just don't do it!)
I can honestly say, that my street legal lights put out more consistent and whiter light than most off-road lights. The beam shape for myself is also more preferred because light is not wasted vertically into the sky where I do not need it on highway driving. Off road though, I do enjoy the wider bigger flood of light that an offload light bar gives. While some off-road light bars may appear to produce a very focussed beam and share street legal high beam characteristics, if they have not been tested, certified and marked, then they are not legal in BC.
Speeddemon is a great company. They make many great products the one you showed me is fine but would never pass a street legal test due to LED chip and lensing . I prefer CREE or OSRAM chips for Automotive Lighting vs the philips chips. The reason is not because CREE and OSRAM make better chips than Philips, but because of the chip characteristic. Philips chips put out a really really wide almost 180º of light while CREE puts out a more focused output and OSRAM an even more focussed output. Of course it this is the reason the Philips light bars will tend to have a lens instead of a reflector. Unfortunately, lensing absorbs light, retains heat and is not nearly as efficient as as a highly refined reflector. In either case, the speeddemon bar makes for a good off-road light, and in some jurisdictions it may even be legal to use, but not here in BC on highway.
Now, as to your bet. "I'm betting that they look very, very similar" - I have tested hundreds of different light bars and each one has a different characteristic, with both strengths and drawbacks. As to whether you think there is no difference, that is really subjective, but can easily be be measured objectively with a lux meter and standard Grid test @ 25m. I can guarantee, they will not objectively be the same.
You are very correct, Off-Road Lamps are not allowed to be used while on public roads in British Columbia.
Of course LED lights that meet SAE Y or UECE R112 R or HR certification for high beam driving light are perfectly legal when mounted correctly, aimed correctly and wired correctly into the high beam circuit of a vehicle.
I have been pulled over twice with my street legal light bars at road side checks, and although one officer demanded I cover them, (which I did, he had a gun after all), I followed up with an educational at the local dispatch with no issues any further. Many RCMP officers do not fully understand the law on lamps and markings.
So to you BCisCool I say, don't be a party pooper, come ride the light fully and completely legal!
Great thread, such a huge amount of confusion towards aftermarket lighting on vehicles and what is actually legal on BC roads. Since the summer of 2016 the BC ministry of transport included into their Light Vehicle Inspection Manual, section 6, that any High Beam Driving Lamp must be lens designated: SAE "Y" or ECE "R" or "HR"
In order to comply with the Canadian federal Motor vehicle safety regulations on forward lighting, no more than 4 lamps may be illuminated at once on the front of a vehicle. This is specific to forward high beam lighting and low beam lighting. Fog lights are required to ONLY be illuminated while on the low beam circuit. High Beam Driving lamps are only allowed to be on the High Beam Circuit.
Since aftermarket auxiliary lighting falls to the jurisdiction of the provinces, you may find different laws and rules as you travel across Canada. Luckily for us in BC, the rules are quite clear.
I have a set of 2 x D12 Double row NightDriver series ECE R112 on my truck and just love them. The beam is fantastic. It shines far without lighting up the tree tops, gives a good wide flood into the ditches for picking out wildlife on the sides, and honestly, they are really really well built gear. And they are a BC company! Easy to talk too, super cool company.
Light regulations are my "beat", for Canada. Its a large part of my job in Canada understanding Auxiliary lighting regulations, laws, inspection manuals, and enforcement.
You are correct in what you say about the BC legislated regulations. The BC Motor Vehicle Act Regulations, makes no mentions of any required certification of lighting directly within the auxiliary lighting section. (please see attached for excerpt on auxiliary lighting or find it yourself within the regulations here: http://www.bclaws.ca/civix/document/id/crbc/crbc/26_58_multi)
This can be frustrating when stopped by an inspector and being told your light is illegal in BC when in all appearance you may well be following the BC. MVAR to the letter.
SpokeRider is very correct in saying, "...any traffic stop / inspection has the propensity to go in whichever direction the peace officer so chooses..."
Because Vehicle inspectors and peace officers are given the power to, Inspect, ticket, enforce and prohibit.
The guidance for inspectors and officers to inspect, ticket, and prohibit is given under the Vehicle Inspection Manuals of BC.
The light vehicle inspection manual was updated last June or July of 2016 some time, and gives the guidance on auxiliary lighting inspection.
The inspection manuals are not freely available, but come at a price of the queens printer... Pay some money and you can proudly own your own copy :)
However, since it is my business to know, here is a snapshot of what the latest Light Vehicle Inspection Manual gives for guidance on Auxiliary lighting in the attachment below.
Of course the question of enforcement and law is yet another crazy matter. A peace office is perfectly within their rights to ticket someone or impound a vehicle if they feel it not safe or does not meet the legal requirements for being road worthy. Of course we then have the right to appeal that decision. If we win the appeal that does not mean that what the peace officer did was unlawful, simply unjust.
I personally have been driving BC with my off-road light bars on highway for quite a few years with no issues, or tickets. I always had them connected to my high beam circuit and turned the kill switch to OFF during the day, just incase. However, due to many complaints from the public on improper use of off-road lights, inspectors and peace officers have started to regionally "crack-down" on off-road lighting.
This is where I turned to understanding what would make an auxiliary high beam light in BC "street legal" . I have spent hundreds of hours researching and investigating the matter, talking to vehicle inspectors, deputy ministers, and law makers on the matter. ( It's a job thing ).
What I can tell you, is what is considered the most legal way to have auxiliary high beam lamps mounted to your vehicle strictly obeying enforcement, inspection, provincial jurisdiction and Federal motor vehicle safety regulations in BC.
The bonus is, that a certified ECE R or HR light can be just as good or even better than most off-road lamps.
However I do carry Black-out covers, just in-case. I would rather obey an officer and later win in appeal and overturn a ticket than make life even more difficult for myself or the officer.
Knowledge is power, I'm just here to share some of what I have learned over the past few years on the subject.
So glad you asked! It is easy to look at each light bar and conclude they are the same. After all the double row housing is the same extruded aluminum structure being shared amongst hundreds of manufacturers. However, the outward appearance is where it ends.
1. In order to be street legal in British Columbia and many parts of Canada, a light has to pass strict standards of performance. IE. SAE Y - J581 or UNECE (ECE) R112 testing.
a) Testing for optical conformity and consistency (Physical Inspection)
b) Testing for beam intensity at multiple points in space. (Photometric Testing, Light Color Testing)
c) Testing of physical characteristics for durability. (Dust, Moisture, Corrosion, Vibration, Stress Testing)
2. Legally Marked on the Lens for easy identification for Vehicle inspectors (RCMP, Scales, MOT)
The testing is very rigorous, and the allowance for variation is very low. This means street legal lights in BC and most parts of Canada have to meet a much higher standard compared to off road lights. LED chips have to be a higher bin rating allowing for consistent colour, consistent output of light and consistent efficiency or Lumens/watt.
Also the reflectors in the light bars have to be refined to strictly meet the Photometry tests so that when a street legal light is aimed and positioned correctly on a vehicle, it will not dazzle on coming traffic, (at a far distance since high beaming is illegal anyways, just don't do it!)
I can honestly say, that my street legal lights put out more consistent and whiter light than most off-road lights. The beam shape for myself is also more preferred because light is not wasted vertically into the sky where I do not need it on highway driving. Off road though, I do enjoy the wider bigger flood of light that an offload light bar gives. While some off-road light bars may appear to produce a very focussed beam and share street legal high beam characteristics, if they have not been tested, certified and marked, then they are not legal in BC.
Speeddemon is a great company. They make many great products the one you showed me is fine but would never pass a street legal test due to LED chip and lensing . I prefer CREE or OSRAM chips for Automotive Lighting vs the philips chips. The reason is not because CREE and OSRAM make better chips than Philips, but because of the chip characteristic. Philips chips put out a really really wide almost 180º of light while CREE puts out a more focused output and OSRAM an even more focussed output. Of course it this is the reason the Philips light bars will tend to have a lens instead of a reflector. Unfortunately, lensing absorbs light, retains heat and is not nearly as efficient as as a highly refined reflector. In either case, the speeddemon bar makes for a good off-road light, and in some jurisdictions it may even be legal to use, but not here in BC on highway.
Now, as to your bet. "I'm betting that they look very, very similar" - I have tested hundreds of different light bars and each one has a different characteristic, with both strengths and drawbacks. As to whether you think there is no difference, that is really subjective, but can easily be be measured objectively with a lux meter and standard Grid test @ 25m. I can guarantee, they will not objectively be the same.
You are very correct, Off-Road Lamps are not allowed to be used while on public roads in British Columbia.
Of course LED lights that meet SAE Y or UECE R112 R or HR certification for high beam driving light are perfectly legal when mounted correctly, aimed correctly and wired correctly into the high beam circuit of a vehicle.
I have been pulled over twice with my street legal light bars at road side checks, and although one officer demanded I cover them, (which I did, he had a gun after all), I followed up with an educational at the local dispatch with no issues any further. Many RCMP officers do not fully understand the law on lamps and markings.
So to you BCisCool I say, don't be a party pooper, come ride the light fully and completely legal!
> thumbs up <
Great thread, such a huge amount of confusion towards aftermarket lighting on vehicles and what is actually legal on BC roads. Since the summer of 2016 the BC ministry of transport included into their Light Vehicle Inspection Manual, section 6, that any High Beam Driving Lamp must be lens designated: SAE "Y" or ECE "R" or "HR"
In order to comply with the Canadian federal Motor vehicle safety regulations on forward lighting, no more than 4 lamps may be illuminated at once on the front of a vehicle. This is specific to forward high beam lighting and low beam lighting. Fog lights are required to ONLY be illuminated while on the low beam circuit. High Beam Driving lamps are only allowed to be on the High Beam Circuit.
Since aftermarket auxiliary lighting falls to the jurisdiction of the provinces, you may find different laws and rules as you travel across Canada. Luckily for us in BC, the rules are quite clear.
In my opinion, probably the safest bet for aftermarket street legal lighting would be NightRider LED lighting. https://nightriderleds.com/product-category/automotive-equipment/street-...
I have a set of 2 x D12 Double row NightDriver series ECE R112 on my truck and just love them. The beam is fantastic. It shines far without lighting up the tree tops, gives a good wide flood into the ditches for picking out wildlife on the sides, and honestly, they are really really well built gear. And they are a BC company! Easy to talk too, super cool company.