State law on headlights ??

B2SO

B2SO

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do i have to have a headlight at all times or just at night ???



reason im asking is i had a set of blue light covers...they are now not leagle in michigan , so i painted them black ..but there is going to be no light going through them ....am i asking for trouble ???
 

I have never had a problem running a headlight cover in michigan.

I personally wouldnt want to ride on some of the busy UP trails without a headlight though...too many morons.
 
Im with B2SO, I wouldnt want to ride without someone seeing me! I know I got pulled over with a vehicle with blackouts in Wisconsin and they made me take the rears off, but said headlights were okay until dusk. I took them both off to avoid a ticket for the rears!

Good Luck!
 
I got stopped by a groomer once on my 97 sx with red headlight cover, he told me there were cops up ahead that would give me a ticket if they saw the headlight cover, because apparently they're illegal in michigan now.
 
Headlight covers banned
In March 2004, the State of Michigan enacted a law banning colored headlight covers on all snowmobiles less than 25 years old.

I copied this from the Eastern UP reports page, it was posted by Kay from Grand Marais.
 
What difference would it make if it was blue or black? It is still covering the headlight. I have been stopped a few times for my blue one on my srx never got into trouble just told to take it off. The officer i talked with told me i was okay as long as i was in the woods, but as soon as you cross roads it is illegal? Idk im going to keep running mine.
I take mine off in the dark but thats it.
 
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Here in Wisconsin you arent supposed to have them at all.
In fact, the exact wording of the law is that the light must be white. I think the reason they do that is because in the past you saw a lot of people running colored headlight bulbs. Granted, it looked really cool but those lights were downright blinding.
I think that if you run a headlight cover during the day 99% of the DNR wardens and cops wont bother you but then there is always that 1% who are looking to make a name for themselves.
I would also agree that its better to not run them because it makes it more difficult to be seen by oncoming riders.
However, if you really want to run them, I dont think anyone is going to try all tha hard to stop you. The DNR has enough to worry about with people running race exahust and riding while intoxicated that they wont worry about a little thing like headlight covers.
Hebi
 
did they really outlaw them?

i have run blue light shields, during the day, all the time since my 00 sxr was new, and have them on my viper and kids phazer... have never been stopped or asked to have them removed...
 
The only vehicle's in MI that can run ANY blue lights are police. If you look you'll never see a blue light on an ambulance, fire truck or anything else. Most cops won't write you a ticket, possibly just ask you to remove them. I think they look sharp but I'm not to sure about the red ones. I've passed people at night with red lights on the headlights and it seemed pretty dangerous. I can imagine someone without a lot of riding experience could possibly cause a head-on collision because they thought they were approaching taillights and it was actually red headlights. Most cops won't ticket you for colored headlights but they might stop you to check your sled VIN or see if you've been drinking but that's a whole other post.
 
I had the Blue cover over my headlight on my 00 SXr and am darn glad I did. Buddy threw a pick and exploded my cover but it saved my headlight. When I did have it on most oncoming people moved to the side of the trail thinking I was a cop.
 
I got pulled over in Eagle River, Wisconsin last year because my headlight was blue tinted halogen. He told me to change it to white A.S.A.P. I didn't get a ticket, but the Cop looked over all the sleds in my group. The blue looked neat, but I can see much better with a white light, and I'd rather not get pulled over anymore.
 
just talked with a State Trooper out of newberry who was on the sled patrol last year ...the ONLY headlight covers you can run on your sled are Clear and Amber , all other will get you a ticket ....
 
I always wondered about the blue tinted headlights. I put a blue tinted xenon bulb on my sled last year and found that I can see much better due to it being a higher wattage. It has kind of a strange reflection off the snow, but I can see much better than with the stock bulb. Hope I don't get in trouble with it!
 
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