[gadgetfreaky]

     Featured on BIMMERPOST.com

Just came back this weekend from the LA Pure impulse i8 event. Met the product manager & designers of the i8.

The Laser lights will be available starting in November for new cars. I guess for the US they had to wait for the FDA to approve it! Since lasers fall under medical devices in the US.

It will only be 2X stronger than regular headlights vs. the european ones which are 3X. It will NOT have the blue lights inside the headlamp like the European.

There WILL be a retrofit kit, but it'll be expensive. They will not be adaptive (move with the steering with the car).

They will be smart in that it turns off beams hitting oncoming cars.

Not sure it'll be worth it for me.

[Epirali]

Thank you for the updates. Interesting stuff indeed.

I would have hoped that for owners who got the PI package they would offer a reasonable upgrade to laser headlights instead of the trinkets, but oh well. Did you get any idea of how many zeros would be after the cost of the laser headlight retrofit?

[kip1]

Originally Posted by gadgetfreaky

It will only be 2X stronger than regular headlights vs. the european ones which are 3X. It will NOT have the blue lights inside the headlamp like the European.

There WILL be a retrofit kit, but it'll be expensive. They will not be adaptive (move with the steering with the car).

The Euro headlamps should be adaptive based on the info I got. Did they comment on that? did you mean only US,or in general?

[wdeerfield]

can anyone just purchase the euro lights then and retrofit? this is good news for future vehicles!

[Pauleebe]

Expensive, not adaptive, and doesn't have the aesthetic features of their European counterpart?

Pass.

[ChiTownM]

Another reason not to be an early adaptor ever again with BMW....this has been one botched market introduction, with the good stuff becoming all piecemeal. It all started with the dreaded comfort access, then the key, the other assistant systems and now this.....love the car, feeling odd towards the brand now.....

[Carac]

Originally Posted by ChiTownM

Another reason not to be an early adaptor ever again with BMW....this has been one botched market introduction, with the good stuff becoming all piecemeal. It all started with the dreaded comfort access, then the key, the other assistant systems and now this.....love the car, feeling odd towards the brand now.....

It's why I sold mine but still keeping an eye on what they are doing. It seems weird that a car in development this long with the goal of being the most advanced car they offer is still missing so many features that are standard on many entry level cars these days. And features that BMW offers on almost every other model. Here's hoping they eventually get around to offering an i8 with adaptive cruise, lane departure, blind spot detection, park assist, etc. at some point.

[x5love]

not adaptive is a fucking joke.

my X5 I got 10 years ago was adaptive.

[Doctor///M]

...is BMW the only brand that short-changes early adopters as widespread as they do? It's crazy to think that these sorts of changes are announced less than 1 year after introducing NEW models.

[Pentium]

Why there are some differences between EU and USA in the lights? is there any legal issues about them here just like the Auto Park in the 7 Series?

[jphughan]

Cool news, but I'm pretty sure it wasn't the FDA that had to approve this. Not all lasers (or even medical devices) get FDA approval. You sure it wasn't just DOT or NHTSA?

[jphughan]

Originally Posted by Pentium

Why there are some differences between EU and USA in the lights? is there any legal issues about them here just like the Auto Park in the 7 Series?

I think fully adaptive no-dazzle high beams is still verboten because of some rule that high beams must have a dedicated toggle switch, but it can be coded to F30s that have either auto high beams or speed limit info since those have the appropriate camera for the no-dazzle functionality.

[phoenixbmwlife]

Originally Posted by ChiTownM

Another reason not to be an early adaptor ever again with BMW....this has been one botched market introduction, with the good stuff becoming all piecemeal. It all started with the dreaded comfort access, then the key, the other assistant systems and now this.....love the car, feeling odd towards the brand now.....

Why are you feeling odd against the brand when it's the U.S. Policy that stopping us from having the identical laser headlights that Europe has?

[3M TAPE]

No blue lights, no deal!

FDA approval for car parts? Sounds weird.

[chipotle_napkins]

I saw an i8 cruising along the Los Angeles highway with laser lights and the blue light inside the lamps. It blinded the shit out of me in the day time

I've seen plenty of i8s but this one was strange (headlight wise)

[beppeM3+123d]

Order a retrofit from europe and code it like an euro car...i think that police have serius think to do instead of inspection i8 laser light....

[Epirali]

Originally Posted by beppeM3+123d

Order a retrofit from europe and code it like an euro car...i think that police have serius think to do instead of inspection i8 laser light....

I wonder if it would pass inspection on a transfer...

[raysspl]

I think this will be adaptive in a different sense than what most of you are thinking...

[jadnashuanh]

Originally Posted by Pentium

Why there are some differences between EU and USA in the lights? is there any legal issues about them here just like the Auto Park in the 7 Series?

The US vehicle lighting codes are ancient, and requires changes to allow variable output devices - it essentially requires a switch from high beam to low beam, and nothing in between along with a specified beam pattern, and maximum and minimum luminosity over specified areas. The laser light system in no way corresponds to one of the current allowed configurations. The document is huge, but look at section 7 http://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/granule/CFR...ol6-sec571-108 and you'll see why the Euro lights are not legal in the USA. As you might imagine, changing one of these regulations when working with he government can be tedious, and rarely goes as one might plan. Same issue with the way things happened with the i3 and the REx and the restriction with the sunroof on the CFRP chassis (code in the USA requires metal around the sunroof opening for strength...doesn't matter if the CFRP is stronger than metal...the code says metal!). The USA requires side marker lights in certain positions, Europe does not, so in most cases, they are not there. This means they must make two versions of things like fenders. It would be cheaper for all involved if we'd ever agree, but a US agency giving up its control? It would take some serious political push from the top, and has the US Congress done anything worthwhile in a long time?

At some point, for better or worse, with the negotiations that have gone on for years, a vehicle certified for sale on one of the approved countries, would be legal for sale in all of those in the group. The US has been talking this, but no results, forever.

Don't hold your breath...it could get delayed, again.

Anyone actually seen the amendment?

[HermesRider]

Originally Posted by jphughan

Cool news, but I'm pretty sure it wasn't the FDA that had to approve this. Not all lasers (or even medical devices) get FDA approval. You sure it wasn't just DOT or NHTSA?

They are class IV lasers; the FDA is certainly involved. Though the lasers only pump the phosphor that then emits the outgoing light, there is radiation produced, and potential for laser light to leak, and the FDA guards our safety through ensuring manufacturer compliance with Federal Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act (FFDCA), Chapter V, Subchapter C - Electronic Product Radiation Control, as well as Title 21 Code of Federal Regulations (Subchapter J, Radiological Health) Parts 1010 and 1040, amongst various other federal statutes.

With growing pressures to fast track approvals, the FDA seems to have changed its operational philosophy from preemptively warranting public safety to serving as more of a post-consumer database about products recalled after harm is reported (e.g. openFDA project), as evidenced by the incredible surge of recalls in 2014 alone. (BTW I'm not debating which philosophy is better, given the pace of change.) My sense is BMW elected for a protracted review (it's still up to BMW to get it right, not the FDA) and delay to US market rather than risk a senseless (expensive) recall on US soil, and ensuing negative press.

[jphughan]

Originally Posted by HermesRider

They are class IV lasers; the FDA is certainly involved. Though the lasers only pump the phosphor that then emits the outgoing light, there is radiation produced, and potential for laser light to leak, and the FDA guards our safety through ensuring manufacturer compliance with Federal Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act (FFDCA), Chapter V, Subchapter C - Electronic Product Radiation Control, as well as Title 21 Code of Federal Regulations (Subchapter J, Radiological Health) Parts 1010 and 1040, amongst various other federal statutes.

With growing pressures to fast track approvals, the FDA seems to have changed its operational philosophy from preemptively warranting public safety to serving as more of a post-consumer database about products recalled after harm is reported (e.g. openFDA project), as evidenced by the incredible surge of recalls in 2014 alone. (BTW I'm not debating which philosophy is better, given the pace of change.) My sense is BMW elected for a protracted review (it's still up to BMW to get it right, not the FDA) and delay to US market rather than risk a senseless (expensive) recall on US soil, and ensuing negative press.

Wow, very cool info! I stand corrected.

[Pentium]

Originally Posted by jadnashuanh

The US vehicle lighting codes are ancient, and requires changes to allow variable output devices - it essentially requires a switch from high beam to low beam, and nothing in between along with a specified beam pattern, and maximum and minimum luminosity over specified areas. The laser light system in no way corresponds to one of the current allowed configurations. The document is huge, but look at section 7 http://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/granule/CFR...ol6-sec571-108 and you'll see why the Euro lights are not legal in the USA. As you might imagine, changing one of these regulations when working with he government can be tedious, and rarely goes as one might plan. Same issue with the way things happened with the i3 and the REx and the restriction with the sunroof on the CFRP chassis (code in the USA requires metal around the sunroof opening for strength...doesn't matter if the CFRP is stronger than metal...the code says metal!). The USA requires side marker lights in certain positions, Europe does not, so in most cases, they are not there. This means they must make two versions of things like fenders. It would be cheaper for all involved if we'd ever agree, but a US agency giving up its control? It would take some serious political push from the top, and has the US Congress done anything worthwhile in a long time?

At some point, for better or worse, with the negotiations that have gone on for years, a vehicle certified for sale on one of the approved countries, would be legal for sale in all of those in the group. The US has been talking this, but no results, forever.

Don't hold your breath...it could get delayed, again.

Anyone actually seen the amendment?

Oh my god! I never knew this problem is that deep!
you know what is the ironic thing...come and drive in LA and see the how popular the cheap after market Xenon! I get blinded by them almost everyday!
Those lighting codes are just making problems....