Litronic Headlights
How many of you have driven the freeway and encountered these
bright blazing white lights that looked like they had a slightly
purple tint? I found out that these headlights weren't your
average typical halogen headlights but were something called HID.
It's a new headlight system that started out on higher end cars,
but as time goes by, the technology will get cheaper and its
availability will increase.
The first time I ever saw these lights was on a BMW 7 series,
which was a few years ago. Now BMW is not the only car company
with HID. Porsche, Mercedes, Lexus, Lincoln, Audi, and Acura have
all now added HID headlights to their option lists, if not
already standard equipment. HID is only available usually as an
option on high-end cars. It will gradually find its way into
mainstream autos.
Why the bluish light? Because it uses a gas filled bulb vs.
filament. An electrical arc is passed through a capsule of gas,
usually xenon. The purple light is a byproduct of using an
electrical arc as light source. The spectral output is richer in
blue and more like daylight than in halogen. The special blue
light is not only prettier to look at but it increases the
reflectivity of road signs and markers. These are essentially
mini versions of stadium lights like at 3com park the difference
is that these lamps would take minutes to light up if not for a
sophisticated starter assembly which produces 75 % of full
capacity within 2 sec. of switching on. They produce 70% more
light than halogen. HID is 3 times more efficient than halogen.
They use far less energy than standard halogen bulbs (35w vs.
55w). HID bulbs last 3 to 5 times longer than standard halogen
bulbs.
These are available in some places as retrofit but are very
expensive usually around 800 dollars. The disadvantage to this
HID light is that it causes glare to oncoming drivers who stare
too long. These lights are specifically focused on the right side
of the road as to prevent this but the lights still attract more
attention that normal lights, which in turn creates the glare.
Halogen lights by the way, are used in most cars on the road
today. This system is the standard right now.
Right now impostors are numerous and are usually halogen bulbs
coated with a bluish tint sometimes called ion/diamond blue or
dichroic bulbs. The easiest way to tell is to see what kind of
car it is, if it's a Honda civic, chances are, it's just a ion
blue bulb. Since HID is only available on higher end cars. I've
seen strange combinations of colors in bulbs like purplish
yellow, reddish blue, blue green/white. These are all the rage
since they promise to look like HID for a cost of $35 as opposed
to $800. These bulbs are not only illegal, but they also give off
less light since the tint filters out all usable light except for
the colors in the tint.
Next time you see a car with funny colored headlights, you can
feel special because now you know whether it's a colored halogen
bulb or the genuine HID bulb. So now I hope I shed some light on
this eye-catching feature on cars.