How Xenon Headlights Step up on Road Safety
Guest Post
A recent study from Germany has proved that Xenon headlights, which are extremely bright lamps, can reduce road collisions at night by 50 percent. Two Australian-made cars, the Holden Caprice and Statesman are the only vehicles fitted with these lamps, however there is an increasing number of European and Japanese imported cars use them for high and low beams.
Although Xenon lamps—named after the gas that is used for these lights—have been criticized by Carsguide readers for the excessively bright light reflecting on oncoming cars, the Allgemeiner Deutscher Automobil Club (ADAC or German Automobile Club) is a staunch supporter of the lamps after doing extensive research on them for several years. According to ADAC’s research in the Rheinland region, if cars were to have Xenon headlights, the number of severe road mishaps would be diminished by half, and the cases of road fatalities would be down by 18 percent at the minimum.
The main advantage of Xenon lamps is that they are two to three times brighter than halogen lights. Even though Xenon headlights are limited by European law to reduce dazzling, they offer a longer range and can efficiently light up at the side of a car.
Hella Australia spokesman Tomas Plessinger says that fifty percent of all car drivers worry over driving in poor visibility and this is so because grave road accidents are more likely to occur in such conditions. ‘Xenon can help raise drivers’ feeling of security when the road they are treading on are better illuminated,’ Plessinger states.
Even so, Xenon lamps are not the absolute or perfect solution to driving after-dark.
‘Halogen headlights found in Australian cars in fact give more distance, however they do not have the same accuracy as Xenon,’ Plessinger adds. On the other hand, xenon lamps are costly. Known European car makers like the Audi, Volkswagen, and BMW add a bi-Xenon light system for about $2000 to $3000 extra.
Plessinger says a Xenon light system that’s factory-standard should also have a self-leveling device and washers. These will help maintain the lights in the right focus and avoid dirt from scattering or dispersing it. Thus he advises against retro-fitting Xenon lamps even if there have been established benefits.
Plessinger believes that motorists in Australia should be educated about the fact that Xenon lights system is manufactured purposely for Xenon application. ‘Retro-fitting any Xenon application into an existing halogen headlight system is prohibited as they do not have the proper cleaning and self-leveling devices. This is the reason why Hella does not offer Senon retro-fit kits to its customers,’ he says.
Nevertheless, Plessinger foresees an increasing number of Xenon headlights systems being marketed in Australia in the near future. ‘Xenon headlamps have visible advantages and the research in Germany attests to this.’
Hella and recognized car makers continue to develop several intelligent light systems including dynamic bend lighting and the adaptive cut-off line (aCoL). Both lighting systems make use of a camera attached atop the rear-view mirror, a control unit attached to both left and right swiveling headlamps and a projection module. The control unit is sensitive to a number of factors such as oncoming and in-front traffic, topographical conditions, road bends and curves, driving speed and many others.
Karla Pincott is a full time writer for Carsguide.com.au, Australia’s leading motoring authority. She is a motoring fanatic who writes about car safety among other automotive topics.
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