Asleep at the Wheel in the Headlight Brightness Wars
Asleep at the Wheel in the Headlight Brightness Wars
The crusade against bright headlights has picked up speed in recent years, in large part due to a couple of Reddit nerds. Could they know what’s best for the auto industry better than the auto industry itself?
My 1968 Ford Galaxie 500, which I daily drive, originally had incandescent sealed beams when I first got it. I didnt get the car in 1968, but it was new to me post 2010. 6 months into owning it, I switched out the sealed beams for LEDs (which are DOT approved and required modifying the bulb rings to fit).
I am not switching to anything that is not as bright as my current LED lights. Nighttime visibility is very important to me. Where I could barely see road signs before (even with high beams on all four lights, low beams were just for show I guess), now I can clearly read them and have enough safe distance to take action just on my low beams. This is even more important for me when it rains, since my vehicle is not equipped with traction control or ABS, and I live in a hilly area where street lighting is not good enough for the population density. Im not one to usually be easily scared, but driving at night those first six months was probably the most scared I have ever been. Scared of both crashing or hitting a nighttime jogger I couldn't see fast enough.
The most relevant problem which this article barely touches on in one single sentence, is adjustment. Adjustment and dingalings installing conversion kits which put LEDs into reflector type housings. LEDs should NEVER be installed in reflector type housings, they should only be installed into projector type housings. Probably 95% of what these Redditors (m'lady, probably) are complaining about can be attributed to people who did not install the correct lights in the correct housing, and did not adjust them properly. And lifted vehicle owners should note that the proper adjustment spec is made at stock height, so the lift will affect the adjustment and they will need to be even lower per the lift height.
4I drive an 01 Forester. All these huge truck headlights shine straight into my rearview mirror. Kinda sucks. I will say, fog lights are a game changer. I'd love a better bulb, but I don't want to daze the townspeople like they do me, lol.
4Yep, they're ignoring the lift when (not) adjusting the headlights. Most of those people aren't smart enough to realize you cant just lift a vehicle and expect the headlights to not blind anyone. For my Galaxie, the front hood line is already below most other cars window lines, if youre getting blinded I guarantee you it isnt from me.
It depends on people not being idiots, which is pretty much impossible.
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My Lincoln has 4, I think the low beams are 20w and the high beams are also 20w, just angled differently.
I’m going to replace them with LEDs.
My current vehicle has LEDs and my last one did too. Dramatically better.
Even more beneficial is they are auto-dimming. So many ppl drive with their brights, all cars should be auto dimming.
2I agree, if I could find autodimming headlights for my car, Id have them. But for now I just drive with low beams at night.
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