are led lights illegal on cars in australia

Short answer: LEDs aren’t illegal; using them badly is. Fitment just has to meet the Australian Design Rules and your state’s road regs, which is where many DIY jobs go off the rails.

Factory LED headlights or ADR-compliant replacements are fine, but tossing LED bulbs into old halogen housings is generally not road-legal unless the whole lamp assembly is certified. Colours matter: white at the front, red at the rear, amber for indicators—blue or red and anything that flashes is for emergency vehicles, not your Saturday night cruise. Light bars and DRLs are okay if ADR-compliant, correctly positioned/aimed, and not dazzling; many must only operate with high beam or under specific conditions. Underbody neons and other glow-worm theatrics are usually a no for on-road use. Check your state rules (and engineering sign-off if needed) before you get creative with lumens.