Illegal headlight imports in CBP’s spotlight

[H4LIGHTS]

The Fed's a cracking down again:

By: Mark Rockwell

Although their multi-million dollar seizures of illegal drug shipments get more headlines, Customs and Border Protection officers have been working to stem a flow of illegally-imported auto headlights that can have dangerous consequences for drivers in the U.S.

CBP’s Import Safety Commercial Targeting and Analysis Center (CTAC) is on the lookout for illegal imports of noncompliant High Intensity Discharge (HID) conversion kits, light sources, and ballasts, said the agency. Since receiving a commercial allegation in December 2010, CBPS said it has identified hundreds of shipments for examination at various ports of entry across the U.S. including Los Angeles, Anchorage, Cleveland, San Juan, Miami, Detroit, Champlain, Orlando and Seattle. The agency said it has seized more than $5 million in illegal headlights and headlight components since 2009.

On Sept.12 at the port of Newark, CBP officers working closely with the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT), seized a shipment of 10,740 imported HID conversion kits. The domestic value of the shipment was approximately $570,000, said the agency. The shipment from China had been targeted by the CTAC because of the potential safety threat to the American public, said CBP.

CBP officers seized the shipment after it determined the equipment failed to meet DOT requirements that headlamp replaceable light sources be marked with the light source type, the light source manufacturer's name or trademark, and the DOT symbol indicating certification of compliance with governing regulations. Other DOT compliance issues exist as well. CBP officials have said the headlights pose hazards if they don’t meet regulatory standards.

Automotive headlamps, and replacement light sources and ballasts for those lamps, are regulated by DOT’s National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, said CBP. HID conversion kits are custom light sources and ballasts manufactured to be installed into headlamps that were not designed to use them. When the kits are installed, they pose potential glare hazards to other roadway users. The street value for HID conversion kits can run anywhere from $150 to $500 per kit.

Since October 2009, CBP said it has seized more than 400,000 HID conversion kits and components for violating DOT regulations, equaling a total combined domestic value of approximately $5 million. A significant portion of those shipments arrived into the United States via the air cargo or express mail environment, shipped from numerous southeast Asian countries, it said.

http://www.gsnmagazine.com/node/24703?c=border_security

[240ZGL]

Good, I hope they get them all, just more junk getting unloaded on this country. And please don't go crying that it's your right to upgrade your ride by installing cheap headlights off Ebay that blind oncoming traffic.

[Unkle]

Good, I hope they get them all, just more junk getting unloaded on this country. And please don't go crying that it's your right to upgrade your ride by installing cheap headlights off Ebay that blind oncoming traffic.

Really ??

How about the slight protectionist moves by your government, because the right lobby group whispered to the right people !

Are there tests showing the Chinese crap blinding people worse tham the mis aimed non Chinese crap ?

Edited October 10, 2011 by Unkle

[Walter Moore]

Couldn't they have just marked the stuff "Off-road use only" and got by with it, like all the other non-DOT approved parts that people sell for cars?

Like:

Steel braided brake/clutch lines.

H4 bulbs with wattages above 65W.

European specification H4 housings.

Some exhaust upgrades.

Etc.

[Threehz]

Have to agree with Walter, as long as the lights are not represented as for regular usage they can't really say the lights are illegal...?

[240260280z]

Banjo joints in ss brake lines my bro bought of ebay for his acura TL cracked and leaked within 3 months. Crap pot-metal.

WARNING: They perfected polishing turds...beware the low price it is most likely a polished turd.

[Threehz]

Yep you get what you pay for! Luckily if you find out something cheap is junk at least it was cheap!

[240260280z]

The problem now is that the junk is getting mixed up with the good stuff at higher prices.

The back rotors and pads on my bro's 3 year old Toyota Matrix rotted away as they were junk metal. His front calipers look 10 years old and the pads went as well.

[Zedyone_kenobi]

We live a society that craves cheaply made products. Where price is the most important thing, and quality is a long forgotten concept. People are content with payingvery little and replacing it every 2 years, instead of buying a well made part that will last, that costs 2x as much. Short term thinking and instant gratification make this crap possible. That and people always want the looks over function.