Volvo Community Forum. The Forums of the Volvo Owners Club

Forum Rules Volvo Owners Club About VOC Volvo Gallery Links Volvo History Volvo Press
Go Back   Volvo Owners Club Forum > "Technical Topics" > S80 '06-'16 / V70 & XC70 '07-'16 General

Notices

S80 '06-'16 / V70 & XC70 '07-'16 General Forum for the P3-platform S80 and 70-series models

Information
  • VOC Members: There is no login facility using your VOC membership number or the details from page 3 of the club magazine. You need to register in the normal way
  • AOL Customers: Make sure you check the 'Remember me' check box otherwise the AOL system may log you out during the session. This is a known issue with AOL.
  • AOL, Yahoo and Plus.net users. Forum owners such as us are finding that AOL, Yahoo and Plus.net are blocking a lot of email generated from forums. This may mean your registration activation and other emails will not get to you, or they may appear in your spam mailbox

Thread Informations

MOT Test updated Jan 21 - LED upgrade bulbs now a fail

Views : 516

Replies : 6

Users Viewing This Thread :  

Reply
 
Thread Tools Display Modes
Old Jan 18th, 2021, 14:07   #1
Tannaton
Bungling Amateur
 
Tannaton's Avatar
 

Last Online: Today 11:17
Join Date: Aug 2014
Location: Beverley, East Yorks
Default MOT Test updated Jan 21 - LED upgrade bulbs now a fail

Just an FYI - the MOT test was updated a few days ago - previously the requirement to fail halogen lamps where upgrade bulbs had been fitted was specific to HID only, this has now been changed to both HID & LED upgrade lamps.

https://www.gov.uk/guidance/mot-insp...hicles/updates
__________________
2011 XC90 D5 Executive
2003 C70 T5 GT
2012 Ford Ranger XL SC
1977 Triumph Spitfire 1500
1976 Massey Ferguson 135
Tannaton is online now   Reply With Quote
Old Jan 18th, 2021, 14:20   #2
Kev0607
Premier Member
 

Last Online: Yesterday 21:31
Join Date: Apr 2019
Location: Manchester
Default

Quote:
Originally Posted by Tannaton View Post
Just an FYI - the MOT test was updated a few days ago - previously the requirement to fail halogen lamps where upgrade bulbs had been fitted was specific to HID only, this has now been changed to both HID & LED upgrade lamps.

https://www.gov.uk/guidance/mot-insp...hicles/updates
I'm right in assuming that a standard halogen lamp can have a brighter halogen bulb fitted to it? Like Osram & Halfords do... some give up to 120% + more light, but are still halogen bulbs.
__________________
2007 (P3) Volvo S80 SE 2.4D (163bhp) - 109,000 miles. Black exterior with cream leather interior.
Kev0607 is offline   Reply With Quote
Old Jan 18th, 2021, 15:06   #3
Clan
Experienced Member
 
Clan's Avatar
 

Last Online: Yesterday 22:26
Join Date: Jun 2007
Location: L/H side
Default

Quote:
Originally Posted by Kev0607 View Post
I'm right in assuming that a standard halogen lamp can have a brighter halogen bulb fitted to it? Like Osram & Halfords do... some give up to 120% + more light, but are still halogen bulbs.
yes as long as they are still 55w/60w
__________________
My comments are only based on my opinions and vast experience .
Clan is offline   Reply With Quote
Old Jan 18th, 2021, 16:07   #4
Tatsfield
Premier Member
 
Tatsfield's Avatar
 

Last Online: Yesterday 10:50
Join Date: Nov 2015
Location: Poole
Default

Reading the advice paper, the addition of LED bulbs to the regulations for testing HID bulbs is to close the technical loophole which left LED bulbs unregulated. Now they are regulated to the same level as HID bulbs. It is the fine print on the regulations for HID bulbs which needs scrutiny. Having looked at it the wording seems to allow two of the three conditions to be legally sidestepped.

Firstly the cast iron condition is the need to have headlamp washers for any bulb system other than incandescent bulbs. Not insurmountable, even if your model didn't have them fitted, higher spec models did and these can be retro-fitted.

The two questionable conditions are the lamp housing and the ability to adjust the height of the beam. For many years owners of all manner of marques believed that this requirement related to self levelling headlights to avoid blinding oncoming drivers because that is what brand new cars had. Close reading of the guidance notes shows that the need is not for self levelling lights but merely lights whose beam level can be adjusted by the driver without leaving the driving seat. Many Volvos have this ability and those that do not may also be able to retrofit manual levelling systems using genuine Volvo parts. In fact the notes go further to absolve the tester from searching for evidence that will confirm that a factory fitted self levelling light system actually works!

That only leaves the lamp housing and here there are strict rules that the housing must be a projector lens system which will not scatter blinding light.
The notes go further and advise the tester how to confirm that the lamp housing is approved if he is in any doubt. However, most MoT testers can identify a projection lens housing when they see one and so do not need to seek any additional indication that their judgement is correct.

So condition one is solidly OK, condition two is also solid if the car has cabin adjustable beam height adjusters. Condition three may be down to whether the tester is confident in his judgement, can find nothing else wrong with the light system and isn't a full blown jobsworth. I know that my Peugeot 406 V6 Coupe by Pininfarina had abysmal lights but it did have headlight washers, manual beam level adjusters operable from the cabin and projection lenses on the dipped beams. I uprated the lighting to HID and never had a failure in the MoT. In fact the original lights were so bad, to the point of being dangerous on a performance car, that I was prepared to remove the HID system for testing and then replace it as I valued my life more than an infringement of the rules. However, it was never necessary and I suspect that the same will apply to all Volvos with projector lamp housings.

You have to read the guidance notes very carefully on this subject and not jump to conclusions as to what they say even if what they say isn't what the legal drafters had in mind when they wrote them!
__________________
2012 XC70 SE Lux Polestar 230 bhp D5 Auto Oyster Grey

Last edited by Tatsfield; Jan 18th, 2021 at 16:12.
Tatsfield is offline   Reply With Quote
The Following User Says Thank You to Tatsfield For This Useful Post:
Old Jan 18th, 2021, 18:39   #5
Tannaton
Bungling Amateur
 
Tannaton's Avatar
 

Last Online: Today 11:17
Join Date: Aug 2014
Location: Beverley, East Yorks
Default

Quote:
Originally Posted by Tatsfield View Post

Firstly the cast iron condition is the need to have headlamp washers for any bulb system other than incandescent bulbs. Not insurmountable, even if your model didn't have them fitted, higher spec models did and these can be retro-fitted.
As I understand it, headlamp cleaning systems are only a testable item on post 2009 cars and only if fitted. Where it is testable and defective, it's only a fail if the car has LED or HID lamps, it's an advisory only on cars with halogen lamps regardless of whether they are projector or reflector based.

Quote:
Originally Posted by Tatsfield View Post
That only leaves the lamp housing and here there are strict rules that the housing must be a projector lens system which will not scatter blinding light.
The notes go further and advise the tester how to confirm that the lamp housing is approved if he is in any doubt. However, most MoT testers can identify a projection lens housing when they see one and so do not need to seek any additional indication that their judgement is correct.
There are no rules that say HID/LED headlamps need to be projector - many P2 Volvo models (XC90, V70, S60) had reflector based HID/Xenon headlights, the MOT test does not distinguish between reflector or projector housings, just those designed for specific lamp types.


Quote:
Originally Posted by Tatsfield View Post
You have to read the guidance notes very carefully on this subject and not jump to conclusions as to what they say even if what they say isn't what the legal drafters had in mind when they wrote them!
Indeed...
__________________
2011 XC90 D5 Executive
2003 C70 T5 GT
2012 Ford Ranger XL SC
1977 Triumph Spitfire 1500
1976 Massey Ferguson 135
Tannaton is online now   Reply With Quote
The Following User Says Thank You to Tannaton For This Useful Post:
Old Jan 18th, 2021, 23:19   #6
Tatsfield
Premier Member
 
Tatsfield's Avatar
 

Last Online: Yesterday 10:50
Join Date: Nov 2015
Location: Poole
Default

https://www.gov.uk/guidance/mot-insp...#section-4-1-6
__________________
2012 XC70 SE Lux Polestar 230 bhp D5 Auto Oyster Grey
Tatsfield is offline   Reply With Quote
Old Jan 19th, 2021, 15:21   #7
I-S
Premier Member
 

Last Online: Jul 23rd, 2021 00:43
Join Date: Aug 2006
Location: Huddersfield
Default

Quote:
Originally Posted by Tatsfield View Post
Firstly the cast iron condition is the need to have headlamp washers for any bulb system other than incandescent bulbs. Not insurmountable, even if your model didn't have them fitted, higher spec models did and these can be retro-fitted.
Quote:
That only leaves the lamp housing and here there are strict rules that the housing must be a projector lens system which will not scatter blinding light.
The notes go further and advise the tester how to confirm that the lamp housing is approved if he is in any doubt. However, most MoT testers can identify a projection lens housing when they see one and so do not need to seek any additional indication that their judgement is correct.
There are no such conditions.

My Nissan Leaf had LED dip beam in a multi-faceted reflector without headlamp washers.

My Tesla model 3 has LED dip and main beams in multi-faceted reflectors without headlamp washers.

Both are type-approved that way.

There ARE requirements for headlamp washers to be fitted when the light source is over 2000 lumens (for halogen and LED) or greater than 25W Xenon (most Xenons are 35W hence the thought that "Xenons require washers", but there have been cars equipped with 25W Xenon to circumvent that requirement (eg 2012-2015 prefacelift Tesla Model S in europe used 25W Xenon without washers)).

A great many models now from VW, Merc, BMW etc have <2000 lumen LED headlamps without washers - in many cars that's now the basic standard headlamp, and the "upgrade" option is to a more complex(matrix)/higher power LED array (which may then require a washer function and auto levelling function).
I-S is offline   Reply With Quote
The Following User Says Thank You to I-S For This Useful Post:
Reply


Currently Active Users Viewing This Thread: 1 (0 members and 1 guests)
 
Thread Tools
Display Modes

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off

Forum Jump


All times are GMT +1. The time now is 11:24.


Powered by vBulletin
Copyright ©2000 - 2024, Jelsoft Enterprises Ltd.