Road lights with EU standards approval

[annirak]

I'm hoping to start commuting on my bike again this winter. This time around, however, my commute is mostly on the road. The cheap Chinese Cree light I have from last year isn't going to cut it. Oh, sure, it's plenty bright, but it blinds oncoming road users.

I'm hoping to find a set of lights which are either StVZO approved, or approved by the relevant British standard. I'm looking for approved lights for two reasons: first, they tend to have more appropriate beam shapes. Second, I worry that if I were in an accident without approved lights, it might work against me.

So far, I've really only seen lights that seem appropriate from Busch & Muller and Phillips. The new Flux line from Specialized looked good, the beams seem like they're the right shape, and I like the high beam switch, but they lack standards approval.

Are there any others out there?

 

[BalkanExpress]

The best place to look are on the websites of German base retailers such as rose bikes (which has a UK site) or bike24.de. They naturally stock a wide range of German standard lights, prices are keen (even when including delivery) and service is generally good.

Happy hunting

 

[Drago]

In use a Chinese job for commuting but avoid blinding folk by aiming it at the road surface ahead.

 

[mjr]

As far as I know, there's an Askalitt front LED light in Clas Ohlson and some Eurolight lights which have BS approval but that's about all I've found in shops at the moment. So I bought German-spec Axa lights from bike-discount last year.

 

[annirak]

The best place to look are on the websites of German base retailers such as rose bikes (which has a UK site) or bike24.de. They naturally stock a wide range of German standard lights, prices are keen (even when including delivery) and service is generally good.

Happy hunting

I've been looking through the available lights and so far, the ones that I like best are the B&M Ixon IQ Premium and the B&M Ixon IQ Speed Premium.
I'm also interested by Trelock ones, but I haven't had much luck finding reviews on them yet.

In use a Chinese job for commuting but avoid blinding folk by aiming it at the road surface ahead.

I have tried that. I find it requires more management than I like and that I am always adjusting it. It also means that I have a real hot-spot in front of me, which creates tunnel-vision.

 

[oldstrath]

Probably depends on your commute conditions,. I commute on dark, windy, hilly roads, with lowish numbers of quite quick cars, usually tolerably well driven, so my comments apply to that situation.
The battery stvzo lights all seem rather limited to me. The ones with a usefully wide beam seem to be the Saferide and the ixon iq premium. The Saferide is no longer made, and has a relatively short runtime (about 80 min on max), the ixon has a weak battery case closure.

A better solution is probably dynamo lighting - the BuM Luxos is a reasonable light, so probably are others, although I still felt the need to supplement it with a bar mounted torch on some of the windier and narrower stretches of my commute.

In the end I gave up and went back to a Strada, because personally I didn't gain anything in convenience. With that, and maybe with the Flux, one has the same side visibility, the same lighting on the road, and the benefit of a high beam.

 

[annirak]

The Exposure Strada was the first "road" light that I became aware of. Because of its rather high price, I didn't give it much of a look. The Specialized Flux Expert looks like a really nice piece of kit. Ideal, I would say, except for the lack of approvals. I contacted Specialized about this. Apparently, they're working on it and "More info to come in the next year or so."

Not exactly helpful for riding this winter.

 

[ianrauk]

There is no need to worry yourself about EU standards for lighting, you won't get pulled up for not having EU approved lights either or work against you because of it. And don't think there 'might' be a chance that you would be. Well their might be a chance a meteor will land on your head.
Just make sure you have bright enough lights on the front and rear, that's all you need to do.

 

[mjr]

There is no need to worry yourself about EU standards for lighting, you won't get pulled up for not having EU approved lights either or work against you because of it. And don't think there 'might' be a chance that you would be.

In other words, break the law, who cares?!?

 

[winjim]

In other words, break the law, who cares?!?

Break the letter of the law, adhere to the spirit of it.


PS. Pedal reflectors!

 

[ianrauk]

In other words, break the law, who cares?!?

If you like.
Who cares. As long as your lights are bright enough that's all that matters. The Fuzz don't care, lawyers don't care. just as long as you do have decent enough lights.

 

[annirak]

If you like.
Who cares. As long as your lights are bright enough that's all that matters. The Fuzz don't care, lawyers don't care. just as long as you do have decent enough lights.

I fear that you're mostly right. The Police don't seem to stop cyclists at all, including those with no lights to speak of. The only time I've ever witnessed the police pulling a cyclist over was a campaign that they did fining cyclists for riding the wrong way on a one-way road.

It's worse than that. If I ask for a standards approved light at a cycle shop, they don't even know which are approved (none of them) and which are not and they don't seem to think it matters.

Many drivers complain about cyclists with blinding lights. It's not the cyclists who are (entirely) at fault. In fact, the police are not enforcing the law and the bicycle shops are complicit in the breach of the law, not just because they don't advise cyclists on which lights are legal, but also because they sell only lights which are illegal to use on the road.

I don't want to contribute to this situation. I'm trying my very best to be a responsible cyclist. This includes getting an appropriately beam-shaped headlight, which adheres to an EU standard.

 

[AndyRM]

There's nothing to fear, you're over-thinking it.

As the blue fella says, make sure your lights are bright enough and appropriately angled and forget about adhering to an unenforced 'standard'.

 

[oldstrath]

Many drivers complain about cyclists with blinding lights

But not about other drivers with dazzling (sorry, but blinding is a ridiculous word in this context) DRLs, fog lights and badly adjusted headlights. Not about speeding drivers. Not about morons texting at the wheel, not about drivers putting on makeup at the wheel, not about arguing with their kids while driving. Just about "blinding bike lights".

Maybe if more of them drove with the attention neded to see what was around them fewer cyclists would feel the need for bright lights?

But here's a plan. When the government has delivered infrastructure at least as good as Germany's, and motorists feel the same social pressure to drive respectfully as in Germany, I'll worry about German bike light standards.

 

[mjr]

Worry about British bike light law, which allows you to use German standard lights. I agree the current situation is a bit poo but I'd strongly encourage anyone who can afford it and has no particular reasons not to, to import a standards-compliant dynamo light set. It means at least your lighting should not be blamed in any dispute!

Not that any lights will stop some of the non-looking morons. If I hadn't grabbed my brakes despite having priority, I would probably have been a bonnet ornament last night. The driver was looking at only the lane next to him and not the lane I was in. At least it would have had a good witness: a police car was immediately behind the bad driver (and I don't think they'd noticed that either - and those cars are plastered with hi-vis too).