Is it illegal to have underglow lights in Texas?

Even if the law says they are legal, you could still get pulled over and hassled because the cops may not know the law. Even if they are illegal, you could go for years without getting pulled over because cops don’t care enough, or might not see you. If you have some LEDs under your dash you will probably be ok. If you have flashing red and blue LEDs glued all around on the outside of your car, chances are, you’d get pulled over.

Trying to figure out the legality of LEDs in a certain area can be very difficult. It isn’t as simple as looking up the vehicle code for your state. Vehicle code can be very confusing and conflicting. Even a call or email to your local police station can be misleading.

People have been told one thing and even had written proof, only to be pulled over and slapped with a ticket by an officer who may not know the intricacies of the law.

Regardless of the law in your area, there are things you can do to reduce your chances of being hassled.

* Hide the light source so it is not directly visible from the road. Make a shield with a long piece of “L” aluminum or steel. Use black electrical tape to hide a section of the light.

* Take extra caution to obey all laws. If LEDs are perfectly legal in your area, and you are speeding just a few miles over the limit, a cop is more likely to give you a speeding ticket than if you had no lights on.

* Save the strobing red/blue for the car show or your driveway. Blue and red might be fine to cruise with as a solid color, but as soon as they strobe, you may cross the line as “impersonating a cop”

* Keep a copy of the vehicle code in your car. You can just print or copy the section that deals with lighting. Present it to the officer if you are pulled over.

* Respect police officers. They protect you when you are being shot at, they protect you when your house is broken into. Respect them and they should respect you.

https://www.dps.texas.gov/rsd/psb/News/blue_lights.htm

https://statutes.capitol.texas.gov/Docs/TN/htm/TN.547.htm#547.305



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