The Marvelous Merits of LED Headlights

At Romeoville Toyota, we are strongly committed to providing top-quality service to our customers—and our dedication doesn’t end when you drive off our lot but continues with the routine maintenance essential to the longevity of your purchase.

Although fluids and tires are the elements our technicians most often address, headlight replacement is another critical aspect that can’t be overlooked. Your headlights are a crucial component that offers numerous benefits, so let’s explore them further…

The History of the Headlight

Headlights are a fundamental feature of vehicles, as they afford you visibility of the road ahead even when natural light is limited or non-existent. In the early days of automobiles, headlights—or, more aptly, headlamps—were candlelights encased in mirrored glass; these were essentially lanterns, and they didn’t fare well in swift speeds or rough weather.

Automakers sought a solution that could endure wind and rain, and in the last quarter of the nineteenth century, they embraced the acetylene lamp; here, a concave mirrored plate reflected an orange flame fed by an onboard tank of combustible gas. This lamp was later sealed by a lens that magnified the light source for greater spread.

Electric headlights were invented just prior to the turn of the century, but the size and output of electric motors and the delicate and fleeting nature of filaments at the time made them unwieldy to mass-produce. A decade and a half of innovation finally usurped acetylene, and electricity became the new standard, with quirky modifications to headlights allowing drivers to dim, tilt, or switch between three different beam intensities via a tertiary foot pedal.

Automakers became so playful throughout the 1930s—changing the sizes and shapes of headlights and occasionally adding a central third—inspired the federal government to mandate that all headlights be round, 7.0 inches in diameter, no more or less than two, and equidistant from the midline on the front end. This remained the case from 1940 to 1974, after which rectangular lights were allowed and maximum luminosity limits were doubled.

This decision was the result of innovations made in Europe, where typical lightbulbs were exchanged for halogen lamps, where a tiny glass enclosure of inert gas and halogen is excited by a thin strip of durable, conductive tungsten. These headlights were far more efficient and far more effective than their predecessors. In 1983, the US made replaceable halogen lamps the new norm; plastic became allowed for housing, which made headlight design more malleable and playful than it had been since the 1930s.

Increased interest in headlight design facilitated the adoption of HID (high-intensity discharge) lights from Europe, which saw tungsten reimagined as electrodes on opposite ends of a chamber filled with noble gas; this setup produced greater intensity, higher color temperature, stronger beam patterns, better durability, and longer lifespans, and for about the same cost as halogen bulbs.

HID lights were considered indomitable until the late 2000s when LED (light-emitting diode) technology crept into the automotive industry. LEDs are semiconductors that, when exposed to an electric current, will exchange electrons and consequently release photons—an elementary particle and the fundamental essence of light. This process is so energy-efficient (with low electric consumption and high output intensity) that, once mass production was deemed financially feasible, LED technology earned a huge investment.

Today, most headlights are LEDs—a technological achievement that came just in time for the eco-revolution and the prominence of electric vehicles. As for the future, the next advancement in headlight design will likely be laser lamps, which are comparable to cathode-ray tubes and see tiny mirrors move ultraviolet lasers across phosphor-coated glass-hybrid panels.

The Advantages of LEDs

As both HID and LED headlights essentially serve the same purpose, you might be curious about the advantages LED lights have over their HID counterparts. Having a better understanding of these makes all the difference in your search for your next vehicle, as when you hear “LED headlights,” your ears should perk with excitement.

Brighter & Longer

The main objective of a headlight is to provide substantial visibility. HID and LED headlights both accomplish this, but the latter produce more light and have longer lifespans. HID headlights generate 8,000 lumens (the amount of emitted light that’s visible to the human eye), while LED headlights generate 9,000 to 10,000 lumens. This might not seem like a huge difference, but when visibility on the road is limited, every boost in luminosity increases your likelihood of seeing an impediment and having the time to avoid it.

Both HID and LED headlights consume electric energy—and far less than the typical halogen bulb—and are energy efficient, but one of the key advantages to LEDs is how much longer they last. On average, HID headlights have a life expectancy of 15,000 hours; this is an exceptional length of time, but LEDs manage to triple it with an expectancy of 45,000 hours—so it’s a no-brainer about which is better.

Cost Effectiveness

There’s a well-known expression that’s often applied to the world of auto repair: “Pay a little bit now or pay a lot later.” When choosing headlights for your vehicle, think of it as a long-term investment, just as you would with the purchase of your vehicle.

While you might be paying more up-front, you’ll be reaping the benefits for far longer than you would with a substandard product. The price of your headlights will vary based on your brand of choice, but HID headlights will generally always be cheaper than LEDs—however, if you stomach the slightly higher price today, you’ll have brighter headlights that will outlast the three sets of HID headlights you’d need to cover the same period.

Technological Advances

Visibility on the road is crucial for safety, and headlights are integral to that and can be lifesaving in certain situations, like dark or foggy areas. A recent innovation in LED headlights is automated high beams, which turn on in low visibility and turn off when other vehicles approach, so as not to blind them. This feature ensures the safety of all drivers and their passengers by providing optimal visibility at all times.

The Ease of Upgrading to LEDs

With most contemporary vehicles, exchanging your headlights for an upgrade takes minimal effort. While this can be done on your own, we recommend you visit a professional to ensure it’s done correctly. Our parts and service center can take the necessary precautions to change your HID headlights to LED ones. Here’s how that process works…

#1) The technician will identify which bulb size and shape is correct for your vehicle and then acquire an OEM replacement—one purpose-built by Toyota, as opposed to a third-party aftermarket product.

#2) The technician will test the new bulb’s compatibility with a conversion kit before installing it.

#3) The technician will remove the halogen or HID bulbs, replace them with new LEDs, test the connection, and reset the housing.

Let Our Experts Light Your Way

If you’re looking to maximize your visibility—and, thus, your capabilities—your first step should be upgrading to LED headlights if your vehicle does not already have them. LEDs shine brighter, last longer, and are more efficient than their alternatives. Drop by Romeoville Toyota and let our technicians upgrade you to LEDs and light your way to a better life.