Why We Choose Led Driving Lights

The generic driving lights do fan out a lot more light but at a lot less range. They are good at lighting up the sides of the trail but crap for seeing what’s more than 30′ in front of you. As to whether or not it would cause a glare issue on the hood I can’t say. I kind of doubt it because the light is so unfocused.

Driving lights are designed to supplement your high beam headlights. Auxbeam Driving Lights produce a rectangular beam pattern that can reach further and wider than your headlights. These lights are available in higher wattages and create much more candlepower that stock headlights. Driving lights are very useful to help see things near the edges of the roadways and to increase the amount of light out in front of the vehicle. They are great for all around trail riding as well. Most of Auxbeam Driving lights adhere to DOT, SAE and/or ECE street legal standards. Those that are not, now, typically fall within our Spread beam patterns. Spread patterns are similar to Driving but tend to be brighter and wider as they are not required to follow specific DOT, SAE or ECE safety standards.

Fog lights are intended to be mounted below the headlights and project a beam pattern which is very wide but not very tall or far. This pattern lights up a pathway close to the ground but does not light the airborne particles in the line of sight – this increases the visibilty in bad weather. Auxbeam Fog Lights are very useful in Dust, Fog, Rain and Snow. They also work well as Cornering lights in clear conditions.

Outback Travel Australia was chosen as one of the companies to evaluate the new Auxbeam Luminator LED Series driving lights, prior to their Australian release in early 2012. Since then we’ve checked out many competitor LED lights.

The Auxbeam Luminator LED Series looked unlike any driving light we’d seen before. Inside each die-cast aluminium housing, behind a polycarbonate clear lens were three 10-watt LEDs, mounted facing rearwards into a three-dish, free-form reflector moulding.

In addition, three slit-shaped, low-power LEDs acted as position lights that enhance daytime running lights, parking lights or fog lamps. The position lights were in an inverted three-pointed star shape that was quite distinctive.

Auxbeam Luminator LED Series driving light also featured multi-volt adaptability, enabling them to be operated on supply voltages between 9V and 24V. Claimed power consumption was a mere one-watt as a position light and just 30W as a driving light.

We installed the Auxbeam Luminator LED Series on our Land Rover Discovery 3, where they replaced a set of Auxbeam Compact HID driving lights. The only change to the normal driving light wiring arrangement was the need to run supplied wires to the parking lamp terminals, so that the position light LEDs would operate when the parking lights were switched on.

Headlights Vs Led Driving Lights

Drivers may soon notice brighter and whiter headlights on the road as the popularity of traditional halogen headlights continues to dim.

Halogen still ranks highest as the most common headlight on the market, but several alternatives, including xenon-based and light-emitting diode (LED) headlights, are growing in popularity. Here’s how the options compare in terms of performance, safety and price.

Headlight versus Led driving Lights
According to Motor Trend, you’ll notice several important differences in light produced by LEDs, xenon and halogen headlights. LED driving lights have the coolest color temperature at around 6,000 Kelvin, which makes them appear whiter than daylight. Xenon headlights come in at around 4,500 K, while halogens round out the list at a yellowish 3,200 K.

When it comes to reflection, LEDs offer better light return from road signs, while xenon lamps better illuminate the sides of the road. In part, this is because xenon lamps typically produce more light, measured in lumens, than LEDs.

Both LEDs and xenon provide a large pattern of light on the road, whereas halogens offer a small pool of yellow light directly in front of the vehicle. If you’re buying a new car, expect LED headlights to be the premium option, and make sure your auto repair shop is equipped to handle LED headlight replacements and repairs.

If you’re looking for intense light and don’t mind the glare, xenon may be the best choice. LEDs, meanwhile, offer great light, low power and long life, but often come with a bigger price tag.

Halogen headlights
Halogen lights are the most popular lights on the market and are found in most consumer cars. These bulbs are similar to familiar incandescent lights and use heated tungsten filaments to produce light. Halogen headlights produce a significant amount of heat, and even small deposits of skin moisture on the bulb during replacement can affect their performance.

The main benefits of halogen bulbs include low replacement costs and longevity.

Xenon headlights
Xenon lights, also known as high-intensity discharge (HID) lights, produce a brighter light than halogen bulbs and with far less heat. The blue-white light emitted by xenon bulbs is so bright, it has been known to “blind” other drivers.

These headlights require a large amount of power at the outset to produce their first burst of light, but once fully operational, they require much less energy to maintain constant brightness.

Xenon bulbs have a long lifespan and emit little heat, but they cost more than halogen bulbs.

LED headlights
LEDs are the most recent innovation in headlight technology. Instead of gas and filaments, LEDs rely on small diodes that produce light when electric current excites their electrons. They need an low amount of power to work but do produce a significant amount of heat on the diode. This requires heat control systems at the bottom of the headlight and near other car components. If this system fails, not just the light, but other electronics could be affected.

The small size of LEDs means they can be formed into almost any shape, and their light is naturally directional rather than diffuse, making them an excellent choice for headlights.