FlawleZ
[H]ard|Gawd
- Joined
- Oct 20, 2010
- Messages
- 1,691
Lincoln Mark VIII had reflectors with OEM HID in late 1995 and 1996. It was the first car to ever come equipped with HID from the factory.
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That, and the fact that they serve two opposing purposes. High beams are supposed to light up the distance, while fogs are supposed to light up the ground right in front of the car. Lighting up the ground right in front of the car reduces the apparent glare from the low beams in the fog. What people mistake is that it allows them to drive faster in the fog: it doesn't. When you increase foreground light, you compromise long range vision, which is the purpose of high beams.
There were early HID cars with reflectors, true. Mercedes E-class W210, S197 Mustangs with Saleen headlights, and surprisingly Jeep Wrangler JK stock housings are the ones I am aware of. These reflectors were designed with HID bulbs in mind, which is why they work, and they wouldn't work well at all with halogen bulbs. I highly doubt you will find any HID-designed reflectors for your car. Your best option is a HID projector retrofit in the clear housings. On a budget, Acme projectors are decent. Apparently the cheaper Amazon Mini H1 projectors are the same thing. The Morimoto Mini H1 7.0s are the latest and greatest in a small package. Several LED projector retrofit options exist as well, but installation is more involved, more expensive than HID projectors, and/or don't provide as much light output.
I have seen some post about aftermarket HID bulbs with some sort of glare guard or shroud around them, that is supposed to eliminate the glare problem.
I wonder if they work well.
Every time some asshole in a lifted truck with after market headlights gets behind me it make me want to take my 3 watt laser pointer and blind them right back (ofc that kind of blinding lasts a bit longer) the kind of people that drive trucks like that would be doing the world a favor if they killed themselves so we didnt have their flawed genetics clouding the gene pool.
I mean look I get it god gave you a small dick and a smaller brain but don't take it out on the rest of us. + you know half those fu%$s have a house that worth half what their stupid truck is stupid trailer trash. /endrant.
There are standards but many states/counties/cities won't enforce or do not enforce. I don't know why but it is silly.
You are nuts. .45 ACP is about 35 cents right now. So generally just $4 a car and that his throwing in a couple of misplaced rounds.You do know they are like $700 a lamp? lol
I use Philips Ultinon LEDs in my car. Designed to mimic normal Halogen bulbs. After installing and testing them in a light tester, they're no different than my halogens. Same pattern. Checked against a wall, same spread too. They're just brighter. My old Philips X-treme Vision halogens said +130%, while these Ultinon are +150%.
I also have some Baja Design LED pencil spotlight/wide cornering light aux lights. I don't use them except when I go play in the mountains at like 3 am and they go off, if I see any traffic in the distance. Germany has zero street lights once you get out of town and majority of the back roads around me have trees. So not even the moonlight can light up the road.
I'm also not in a giant lifted truck. I'm in a 2000 Impreza that's lowered by about 1".
I loathed driving my father's 2006 BMW X5 for the reason that the normal xenon lights were so bright (and pointed up) that I'd blind myself from the reflection of the rear view mirror of the car in front of me.
If they are above the bumper, they aren't fog lights. For fog lights to actually work in, you know, fog, they need to be as low as possible. It's like the idiots who try to use high beams in fog. All you do is blind yourself. ANd the morons in the jacked up trucks - you need to adjust you headlights after lifting the truck a foot, otherwise they are pointing far too high.
Even if they did, the light pattern would be less than optimal. You'll get light in the places you need it least, and less light where you actually need it.
I've done 3 retrofits by now, and it can be done in a single day if you know what you're doing, and a weekend taking your time.
Why is this? Is it just because the bulbs are longer and narrower than halogens and shine the light in different places?
Or does it have something to do with the wavelength difference?
Glad I'm not the only one to notice. It's out of control where I'm at. LED light bars on vehicles, improperly installed after market lights (doesn't matter if LED or not). It's the worst on trucks -- the lights are too high up if you're in a sedan/coupe.
I made the mistake of flashing my high beams at someone who has this. His headlights were bright so I flashed him expecting them to dim, I was instead greeted by a miniature sun on wheels. He had a 30" on top and 4 2" lights on the grill and had zero issues flicking them on to show me "it could be worse".I hate this too. Yes I know the stock headlights on my car are a joke, but today's LED lights in cars are blindingly bright. I live in farmland USA, so every dickhead with a lifted truck that also thinks its cool to have their 10 billion lumen off-roaders on, blinding everyone going the opposite direction. But hey, they can spot a deer from 5 miles out now, and if they go on a steep enough hill they might be seen from space. So who cares, right?
I wish I could just install/mount about five of these, wire them up, push a button to activate all at once, and return the favor.
I made the mistake of flashing my high beams at someone who has this. His headlights were bright so I flashed him expecting them to dim, I was instead greeted by a miniature sun on wheels. He had a 30" on top and 4 2" lights on the grill and had zero issues flicking them on to show me "it could be worse".
I wanted to be mad but honestly I was just speechless and glad he only kept them on long enough to make his point lol. I live in an area where large jacked up trucks are actually needed for work so light bars are very common place here, but he was next level.
Oilfield in Canada, the ruts on some leases after heavy rain or during every spring can very easily leave stock trucks trapped lol.I can't think of any kind of work that requires a large jacked up truck, except monster truck drivers. Stock trucks are already ridiculously high today, compared to like 2-3 decades ago.
Although, my station wagon will be getting LED headlights soon. Already has fog lights and PIAA spot lights. The fogs and PIAA lights are actually stock. I'll be swapping out the PIAA with a 10" bar and two wide cornering aux lights. Contemplating on a 30" bar on top. Either way, I wouldn't be a jackass and drive around with my high beams on, nor actually hit anyone with any of those bars/aux lights. My 10" bar itself is over 11,000 lumens.
What my car could look like, if it was with all the exterior options
View attachment 62312
Same for the 04 TL integrated them into the headlamp assemblyNot really true. The Mercedes S-class in the early 2000s had the fog lights as part of the headlight unit. The determining factor is where the fog lights are aimed rather than where they're placed.
I made the mistake of flashing my high beams at someone who has this. His headlights were bright so I flashed him expecting them to dim, I was instead greeted by a miniature sun on wheels. He had a 30" on top and 4 2" lights on the grill and had zero issues flicking them on to show me "it could be worse".
I wanted to be mad but honestly I was just speechless and glad he only kept them on long enough to make his point lol. I live in an area where large jacked up trucks are actually needed for work so light bars are very common place here, but he was next level.
Oilfield in Canada, the ruts on some leases after heavy rain or during every spring can very easily leave stock trucks trapped lol.
There sure is a lot of wrong currently. First you have everybody staring at their phones. Idiots flying drones, Now we have blinding LED lights in cars.
Whats next?
Its the leases themselves, they are hauling equipment around that weighs in the area of 100,000lbs, no amount of gravel would fix it. Once the lease is setup they put down portable wooden mats that can take the load but until then you get truck eating ruts left behind by the large rig moving equipment lolI can see that. A bit surprising they don't toss some rocks, gravel, and sand to help with that. Unless those roads simply aren't used too heavily.
According to a survey by UK motoring organization RAC, two-thirds of drivers are dazzled by modern headlights, which are much brighter due to LED technology. Many say that they are blinded even when the lights are dipped, and that it takes up to five seconds before they can see clearly again. The Department of Transportation is investigating.
"Headlight technology has advanced considerably in recent years, but while that may be better for the drivers of those particular vehicles, it is presenting an unwanted, new road safety risk for anyone driving towards them or even trying to pull out at a junction." The complaints have led the Department for Transport to set up a United Nations working group to find out why more drivers feel headlights have become overly bright.
OEM lights are never a problem.
Highschool ricers and their aftermarket crap are a huge problem, they are poorly installed and dangerous.
I do have people flash me every now and then on my subaru w/oem
Every time some asshole in a lifted truck with after market headlights gets behind me it make me want to take my 3 watt laser pointer and blind them right back (ofc that kind of blinding lasts a bit longer)
So, are they never a problem, or sometimes a problem in your Subaru?
I find that most low cars with OEM's are not a problem.
Taller Trucks and SUV's usually are a problem, even with OEM LED or HID systems.
Or just mount a remotely triggered 40 Million Candlepower HID Spotlight Lantern on your hat shelf, ad set it up to be remotely triggered when you need it.
You just want to make your point, not permanently injure anyone.