For cars, headlights are like human eyes. Bright eyes allow us to receive image information more clearly. Good headlights can improve driving safety at night and make driving at night easier and more comfortable for drivers. However, due to production costs and other reasons, many models currently use more traditional lensless halogen headlights when they leave the factory. There is a big gap in performance between these headlights and xenon headlights or even LED light source headlights. .
Based on car owners' dissatisfaction with the performance of original car lights, modified headlights have naturally become a popular modification project in the modification market, but the knowledge and key points involved are not known to most people. Wrong modification and use will not only fail to achieve the desired results, but will also harm others and yourself. Today, we will talk about what you should know and pay attention to when modifying headlights.
First, let’s talk about our most common case of converting halogen lamps to xenon lamps. The reason for the modification is that the light-emitting principle of car lamps using halogen bulbs is just like the light bulbs we use at home. They rely on the use of tungsten filaments to emit light, but they are limited to tungsten. The filament itself cannot withstand high temperatures. Considering its melting point, most original light bulbs are usually set at 60W, and a 60W light bulb can only emit 1,000 lumens. If it is modified into a 100W light bulb, it will only emit 1,200 lumens at most. ! To improve its lumen, new luminescent materials need to be updated! However, due to the limitations of the electrical system of the car itself, if the wattage of the light bulb is increased, it will bring many negative effects to the car! The emergence of xenon headlights has solved the problem of insufficient brightness of car headlights. The lumen of up to more than 3,000 makes the light brightness significantly higher than that of traditional halogen headlights.
☆ Tips: What is lumen?
Lumen is the transliteration of English Lumen, abbreviated as lm, which is a unit of measurement of luminous intensity. It refers to the luminous flux emitted by a light source within a unit solid angle in a specified direction. The specific measurements will not be introduced here. Interested car owners can learn more. Everyone only needs to remember that the greater the lumen, the higher the luminous intensity.
● Modification of xenon headlights:
Xenon headlights are different from traditional halogen lamps. They rely on inert gas to emit light. They are also called high-intensity discharge gas lamps, or HID (Intensity Discharge Lamp) in English. The xenon lamp breaks the tungsten filament light-emitting principle invented by Edison. The quartz lamp tube is filled with high-pressure inert gas-Xenon (xenon), replacing the traditional filament. There are mercury and carbon compounds on the two electrodes. Voltage high-voltage current stimulates xenon gas to emit light, forming a white arc between the two poles, and the light emitted has a higher color temperature.
Due to different working principles, the basic assembly of xenon headlights includes: bulbs, stabilizers and supporting wire sets. Naturally, the light bulb needs no explanation. It is the main unit that emits light, and both color temperature and brightness depend on it. The stabilizer is a device that provides an instantaneous high voltage of 23,000V when driving a light bulb. It also has the function of protecting the circuit from overload and controlling the driving current. At present, the quality of the products of many domestic copycats or small factories is uneven, and problems often occur in stabilizers. Moreover, the wiring of xenon lamp products whose quality cannot be guaranteed can also cause safety hazards in vehicles. Wrong installation or use of inferior products can cause safety hazards. Vehicle spontaneous combustion accident. Therefore, in addition to the lighting effect during modification, the quality and installation of the entire set of xenon headlights are very important.
The bulbs of xenon headlights are different from the original halogen bulbs in appearance, and the focusing point will also change accordingly. After replacing the xenon bulbs, the original lamp bowl cannot effectively focus the light, so the light usually appears To put it simply, the scattering state means that you cannot see clearly inside the car and it is very dazzling outside the car. Not only does it not achieve the desired effect, but it also creates a safety hazard for driving at night. Lenses are a powerful weapon to solve this problem.
☆ Tips for using xenon lamps:
Friends who also use xenon headlights for high beams need to pay extra attention. That is, when the xenon lights are not working (when the lights are not on during the day), do not use high beams in rapid succession (many people are overtaking or prompting). This is the habit of paying attention to other vehicles and pedestrians). This not only fails to bring out the brightness that xenon lamps should have, but it also takes at least a few seconds for the stabilizer of the xenon lamp to enter normal working condition. If this operation is done for a long time, the xenon headlights will be damaged. The stabilizer inside will be reimbursed in advance.
In addition, there is currently a popular type of modified light bulb called golden eye on the market. Several common brands such as Philips and Osram have also introduced golden eye in the form of halogen and xenon lamps. Halogen lamps are electroplated on white glass bulbs. A layer of golden substance will show golden light after light passes through it. Xenon lamp changes the color of the light by changing the electrode, so it is called golden eye. This kind of light has better penetrating power in foggy days and can make the light shine farther, but it is usually more dazzling. It is recommended to use it as a fog light or high beam.
● Visual lighting modification
In addition to making the headlights of your car brighter and more usable, personalized modification is also the most popular car light modification project at present. I believe that friends who pay attention to appearance modification must be familiar with angel eyes and LED width indicators. Compared with the modification of high and low beam headlights, , lighting modification that plays a decorative and beautiful role has become a very popular modification project in the domestic modification market.
☆ angel eyes
There is a saying among the people that if you don’t have angel eyes with lenses installed, you really can’t help yourself. This thing is like the finishing touch. If you don’t add it, it will be like a woman without makeup (perhaps colored contact lenses are more appropriate), unable to highlight you. The charm of pupils! Although it is a bit exaggerated, it is enough to prove the popularity of angel eyes.
In fact, the so-called angel eyes are the unique headlight design of BMW brand models. The halo composed of yellow or other-colored LED lights surrounding the low-beam and high-beam headlights is very beautiful when the width indicator light is used. It originally came from the design of the BMW 5 Series headlights. When the headlights are turned on, the BMW headlights will have a halo. This halo is very similar to the halo on the head of an angel, so many users gave it a nickname: Angel Eyes.
☆ LED decorative lights
In recent years, LED technology has been used as lighting headlights by brands such as Audi and Lexus. However, due to constraints such as technology and cost, LED lights are only used as personalized decorative car light modifications in the modification market (compared to headlight modifications, taillights are more commonly used. is extensive). When it comes to automotive LED lights, the most representative one is the Audi brand. In recent years, Audi has been committed to developing LED light source technology and has now applied LEDs to its mass-produced models (R8, A8, etc.). However, compared with the LED headlights used by the expensive Audi A8, current modified products do not have so many high-tech smart technologies. The decorative function has naturally become the main purpose of LED modification. In China, LED modification is as applicable as angel eye headlights. For various car models, the difference between LED light sources lies in its wider applicable characteristics, such as fog light decoration, car logo decoration, tail lights, interior lights, etc.
☆ Pay attention to the brand and quality of modified headlights:
At present, there are many types of modification parts for car headlights, with huge price differences, which are confusing. Especially car headlights are directly related to personal safety when driving at night, so you must choose with special care. As for the more common halogen bulbs, they range from 30 yuan to 400 yuan a pair. Bad off-brand bulbs not only have low brightness and limited life, but may also burn out the circuit. As for HID xenon headlights, the price difference between different brands is also very obvious. Since HID xenon headlights are spare parts with very complex processes and technologies, bad HIDs often have a short lifespan, and the stabilizer and bulb are easy to burn out. Bad, and the color temperature, brightness and scattering angle often do not meet the requirements, so it is best to choose products from well-known manufacturers, such as Osram, Hella, Philips, Koito (mì), etc., so as not to be petty and lose the big.
☆ Modification of headlights must be based on safety
Some car owners who have modified HID lights often arouse the disgust of passers-by. On the one hand, some people choose HID lights with too high a color temperature and a bluish color in order to be cooler. Then this blue light will particularly irritate other passers-by and drivers. Not only does it make people unhappy, but it also affects safety; on the other hand, many car owners do not pay attention to the rules for using lights when driving at night, such as turning on high beams when passing the wrong car, flashing the lights at will, etc. In fact, there are many overseas regulations and restrictions on car headlights, especially xenon headlights, which have clear regulations on their color temperature, brightness and angle. Although the current domestic regulations in this area are not complete, we should also choose modified HIDs that comply with overseas safety regulations, because these regulations are formulated based on the bottom line requirements of safe driving, and you should not take your own life as a joke.
