For a long time, I used to wonder. Why are there so many bulbs in front of the car? I thought people install them to give the car a sportier look or to make the front brighter. I had this belief for a long time. But once I got the knowledge of the headlights, I realized that I knew nothing about them and their purpose.
Since I have gotten too much knowledge about headlights, I have decided to share that information with you. It will help you clear out most of your doubts and will surprise you at some points.
Types of Lights
Headlights are a broad topic and require a lot of time and space to cover. But we are not going to dig deep down this rabbit hole. I will cover the basic terms, and by getting familiar with those terms, you will be in a better position to differentiate the types of headlights and how to use them.
Every vehicle has headlights. They are standard and mandatory for every driver to use while driving at night. The headlights are divided into two categories:
- Dipped headlights
- High beams
Dipped Headlights
Dipped headlights, sometimes referred to as low beams. We usually drive with dipped headlights at night. Since they focus on the road, they give good brightness and don’t produce glare.
High Beam
High beams are used only when the visibility is below 100m. They are brighter, have high intensity, and produce glare if seen from the front. It is illegal to use them in all places.
Remember, If you live in a place where it rains a lot or the winter days are too foggy to see things, then the headlights stated above will not be able to fulfill your needs. We will need some special kind of lights to tackle these extreme weather conditions.
In the above scenario, we will need the fog lights. Unfortunately, Fog lights are not standard in every vehicle and most car owners have to pay extra money to have them installed on their automobiles. Many car dealerships try to increase their profit by taking out the fog light from the cars. This is the reason you will not see fog lights in every other vehicle.
Since headlights can’t pass through the fog they are not suitable for driving. This is why fog lights are produced. Fog lights can pass through dense fog easily. Fog light comes with different options from halogen bulbs to LEDs. Halogens remained famous for a long while but today LEDs are growing and will dominate the halogen industry soon.
How to differentiate the fog lights
Headlights are standard, so they are always present above the bumper on the body of your car. Fog lights on the other hand are installed on the bumpers. Some drivers do install them on the car grills. But mostly, you will find them below the headlights, close to the road. The main reason behind it is the road view. The purpose of the fog lights is to give a better view of the roads up ahead. Installing them on the grills will cause most of the light to go in the air, hence restricting the full potential of your fog lights.
Why we need fog lights
Fog lights are installed on both the front and back of your car to prevent road accidents due to poor visibility. As stated earlier, they can easily pass through the fog and give you a better vision of the roads. They must be utilized when the visibility is less than 100m, or it’s hard to see upcoming traffic due to fog.
There are also moments where using them can cause an adverse effect. Fog lights present at the back give a better indication of your position on the road. But if the visibility is good, then using them can confuse the traffic behind you. The traffic behind you will not be able to understand whether it’s a fog light or a brake light. This is dangerous for the drivers behind and could cause a road accident. So this is the difference between headlight and fog light.
Important
If you live in a place where visibility is poor, then you should plan to install fog lights on your car. But keep in mind that installing them is not enough; you will also need proper maintenance for your headlights or fog lights.
We have created a product called a headlight restoration kit. It contains a unique formula that will not only clean your headlight but will also increase its brightness. By removing fogginess from your headlights, more light will pass through the plastic hence a better view at night and in harsh conditions.
