Night driving can sometimes be trickier than it seems. Especially if you find yourself cruising through areas with little or no external sources of light to help you see your path. This is why having effective headlight bulbs for night driving are a crucial part of preparing your car for these circumstances.
If we think about the different qualities that headlights possess, we can come to the conclusion that the ideal headlights for night driving would be ones that are bright and long lasting. These 2 qualities will give you the assurance that you won’t miss anything that you should be seeing and the reliability that your headlights won’t give up on you when you need them the most. Keeping in mind the functionality needed for night time driving, let’s discuss which type of headlight bulbs are best to have for this scenario.
Most cars, except for more recent models, come with stock Halogen headlight bulbs. Halogen bulbs have been the industry standard for decades mainly due to them being cheap and easily replaceable. Halogens tend to give off a more yellowish light compared to their HID and LED counterparts. This and their tendency to consume higher amounts of energy have led Halogen bulbs to be replaced by HID and LED lights in newer vehicles.
What are HID Lights?
After dominating the headlight market for a very long time Halogen bulbs were finally challenged by HID lights. This new contestant took the market by storm and slowly started being favored for its high intensity light and brighter color. HID headlights are also known as Xenon headlights.
What are LED Lights?
Shortly after HID headlights started being used in the automotive industry LED lights were introduced. LED headlights were most famously seen in Audi sports cars, more specifically the Audi R8. LED lights were favored for their quality of being even brighter than HID lights while being more energy efficient at the same time. The elegant look of LED headlights also gave them the edge over their HID and Halogen competitors.
Is it Legal to have HID and LED lights?
Both HID and LED lights are legal to use in headlights. See your country’s guidelines for further details. The general ruling for headlights tends to be that they have to be a white colored light. Whether this light has a yellow tint like Halogens or a blue tint like LEDs is not an issue.
Which Headlight is Better for Night Driving?
After going over the information we have about HID headlights and LED headlights and comparing the two for use during night driving we can see that LED headlights have a slight edge over HIDs in this department. The higher intensity of the beam without giving off a glare makes LED headlights the better option to use for night drives.
Product Review / Recommendation
Of all the advantages that LED headlights come with the slight nuance is that LEDs tend to heat up quite fast which means they require some sort of cooling device to be installed with them to function properly. Luckily, small fans are sufficient to solve this issue.
If you are interested in installing LED headlights for your car I would recommend starting with an LED conversion kit. These kits include LED bulbs as well as built in fans that are easy to install. You can find the bulb that fits your vehicle and watch one of the many YouTube videos that show a step-by-step guide on how to install LED bulbs so you can do everything yourself and have your car upgraded in no time.
A good LED headlight conversion kit is the following product made by Cougar Motor. This kit comes with powerful LED bulbs and a built in cooling drive to keep your headlights running smoothly. The 3 year warranty is a great added bonus for peace of mind when purchasing these headlights.
Upgrading your car’s headlight bulbs may seem like a minor tweak but this may prove to be the defining factor between a pleasant night drive and a stressful one. Be sure to have your car ready to face any conditions it may need to face.