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Are Colored Headlights Legal? What Colors are Legal?

Car headlight

Modifying your vehicle to make it look more personal is extremely popular, and there are plenty of aftermarket modification kits available that can significantly change the appearance of your vehicle. For example, tinted windows are extremely popular, and many people also like to use alternative lighting. Many people want to know if it’s legal to use colored headlights to create a personal statement.

Unfortunately, the laws governing the exterior lighting of vehicles are extremely strict, and you can only use authorized headlights in your car. Keep reading as we explain why you can’t use colored lighting and look at what options are available to you.

car and road divider What Color of Headlights Is Legal?

White is the only legal color of headlights in the United States. It provides you with the best visibility and makes you more visible to other drivers. The standard vehicle lighting color scheme also helps prevent confusion, especially in multilane, high-traffic situations when many lights are coming from different directions.

Are Colored Headlights Ever Legal?

Colored lights are never legal on public roadways in the United States, but no laws prevent you from using them on private property, like a farm or junkyard. You can also use colored headlights when off-roading if you want to, but the lowered visibility can make it more dangerous.

What Type of Headlights Are Legal?

Standard Headlights

Standard headlights are the most common ones on vehicles today, though many other types are becoming more popular. These headlights emit a yellowish-white light that most of us can easily recognize, and they are usually the least expensive bulbs available.

Car headlights
Image By: Pexels, Pixabay

LED Headlights

LED headlights can be confusing to new drivers because the packaging can describe them as having a blue light, which might make some people afraid to try them. However, these lights are completely legal, and the light is closer to white than blue. It only looks blue because most of the other lights that we see regularly are yellow, so it’s a type of optical illusion. LED lights are bright, inexpensive, and have a long lifespan, so you won’t need to worry about them too often.

Xenon Headlights

Xenon headlights were developed in the 1990s, and they are easily recognizable because they are quite bright, even on low beams. The light also often appears blue compared to other lights on the street but is white. These bulbs get their name from the Xenon gas that helps them light up. To use these lights instead of halogen bulbs, you will need to purchase a conversion kit to accommodate the different bulb shapes. Besides their extreme brightness, these bulbs are popular due to their long lifespan, often outlasting their halogen competitor.

LED headlight
Image By: Oleksiy Mark, Shutterstock

Super Blue Halogen Headlights

Super blue halogen headlights are popular and legal lights found in many vehicles. Its name seems to imply that it is a colored light, especially since the glass is often colored blue, but it produces a bright white light similar to the other lights. The main advantage of these lights is that they provide greater visibility than standard bulbs but aren’t as expensive as many other varieties.

car and road divider Summary

Unfortunately, colored headlights are illegal, so you can only use them on private property or off-roading. Therefore, you will need to stick to traditional white or yellow lights for your headlights. We recommend Xenon headlights for maximum visibility because these lights can be quite bright. They also have a long lifespan, so you won’t need to change them as frequently as standard bulbs. Super blue halogens are also great, and they are becoming quite popular, as are the inexpensive and long-lasting LED headlights.


Featured Image Credit: wilkernet, Pixabay

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