What makes them illegal, the brightness?

If so, put different bulbs in?

 

It is incumbent upon the manufacturer to have the entire assembly tested as they intend to sell it to make sure that it adheres to DOT and/or ECE regulations. IPF has never done this and sells them as offroad only --- knowing that enforcement is lax, they haven't said they're compliant, and putting the burden of liability on the customers and vendors.
It's chicken shit at best.

I have no idea why a vendor would risk the penalty to sell them let alone why a customer would buy them.

 

Who gives two shits about DOT morons?..As long as it doesnt blind people and gives you good view, I say fuck the law-lackey morons..

 

I find this funny seeing that Lexus/Benz/Audi/BMW owners still have headlights that can out shine my IPF headlights.

It sounds like if you have a beef with IPF, you should take it up with them.

 

+1. Those factory HID lights are bright. If we all cared about 100% legality we would be able to do half the things to our jeeps that we do.

 

I'm generally law-abiding, but the stock headlights were completely unsafe IMO. I really don't care if the IPFs are not strictly legal. I would rather be safe on the dark roads up here. After more than one person asked me if my lights were on, I knew it wasn't just me. It's not like I have a full light bar on the highway. Maybe the Daniel Sterns are street legal, I don't know.

 

But we don't know if they'll blind oncoming drivers since they haven't been tested.

Non-compliance with any law is your choice. You may elect to drink and drive, speed, or drive with IPF headlights. With any of these choices, the driver should be aware of possible consequences to themselves as well as others though.
Your decisions do affect others.

 

Just look head on to a jk with ipf headlights...if it doenst blind you and JK owners happy with lighting. its none of your problem. also comparing a perfectly fine improved headlight to drunk driving is funny...my IPF headlights dont affect others

 

I'd rather stay legal and being as the Cibies seem to be a better choice anyways I'm going with them.

 

I have the IPF headlights and have had them since they were offered by David. They are outstanding. I'm very critical on headlights and hate people who are so rude as to disregard the fact that others are out there driving towards them. The IPF's do not blind oncoming drivers. They provide a very nice beam pattern that is much safer than the stock headlamps (which are proof enough that any certification requirements of the DOT are pretty bogus).

I did replace my original IPF bulbs with the cheapest Sylvania Halogen bulbs on the market--$20 for the pair. I've driven side-by-side at night with one JK with the blue IPF bulbs, and another JK with the stock assemblies and stock bulbs. In both cases my headlights seemed to be better--yes, better than those outrageously expensive super-duper bulbs that people pay insanely for. While those bulbs had a more white light, the road was easier to see in front of my Jeep--proof enough for me that blue bulbs, extra white bulbs, etc. are a waste of money. As for the stock assemblies--no competition. They project light in a narrow band that makes it difficult to see much of the road. The IPF assemblies, with el cheapo bulbs, make it almost difficult to tell when I've turned on my fog lights--and still project plenty of light down the road as far as the stockers, but with a very sharp cut-off so as to not blind on-coming traffic.

As for moisture protection: I've not had a problem. I've driven through historical record snowfall and rainfall since installing the lights, so they've had plenty of real-world testing.

As for DOT certification: Has anyone bothered to read the DOT specification? Since it runs many, many pages, I suspect not. But, just a quick scan through it revealed to me that in order to pass the testing, various procedures, some as long as three years duration, are required. The specification prohibits accelerated testing techniques. So, maybe IPF decided that they'd put them out on the market, and the certification will come along later. If you're interested in the certification procedure, you can find it here:

fmcsa.dot.gov/rules-regulations/administration/fmcsr/fmcsrruletext.aspx?reg=r49CFR571.108

These are an excellent upgrade. The only thing I wish is that they sold just the lamp assemblies without the bulbs--let the buyer decide what bulbs he wants.