Night Driving Statistics Say Inadequate Street Lighting Causes Accidents
Driving at night can be stressful even when the streets are well lit, but driving through country roads or on streets with no lighting can be downright dangerous. Several consumer reports blame inadequate street lighting for over sixty percent of nighttime accidents and that percentage can be considerable higher in rural areas where dark roads and poor quality car headlights meet and create hazardous driving conditions. High Intensity Discharge (HID) headlights are designed to reduce some of the stress and danger associated with night driving. Recent studies indicate that installing HID lights helps drivers see better by providing brighter light for a longer period of time.
HID Kits are the Answer to Inadequate Night Vision
HID kits include two bulbs, two starters and two ballasts. HID lights perform better than any other lighting system because the starter takes the signal from the car’s headlight plug and efficiently sends it to the ballast. The ballast takes that signal and amplifies it to a high current and that message is sent to the bulb. There’s a plug in the bulb that recognizes the signal and creates the light. The bulb is energized using gases instead of a filament.
The HID bulb is filled with Xenon gases and metallic salts that produce light that is three times brighter than a conventional halogen bulb and the bulb lasts ten times longer. The beam produced by HID lights provides seventy percent more road coverage especially on the sides of the road which means nighttime images are easier to identify when there are no street lights. The durable white light produced by HID bulbs is almost blue and it is impervious to vibrations and shocks because there’s no filament to damage.
HID lighting kits usually come in six thousand to nine thousand K color ranges. K is a basic unit of thermodynamic temperature. It’s also known as color temperature. The higher the K number the bluer the light. Normal HID kits range from six to eight thousand K. That range replicates sunlight and is considered the best light for all sorts of driving conditions. Increasing the K number above that range may cause the light to scatter before it hits the road because the light is so blue. Those lights look good, but may not perform as expected in certain conditions.
HID Lighting is Easy to Install
Some people say that installing HID lights in their car is so easy anyone can do it, but it does take a little mental focus and the ability to follow simple directions. The first step in the installation process is to lay-out all the components so a good mounting spot for the ballast and starter is found. Make sure the wiring for both of them reaches without being too snug. Once the mounting spot is located securely lock them in place.
The next step is to remove the old halogen bulb from the headlight housing and unplug it. Take the plug you just disconnected and plug it into the HID starter. Then plug the starter into the ballast and then carefully plug the new bulb into the headlight housing. It will go in the same way as the old one came out. Once the bulb is in place secure the rubber garments around the bulb and plug the ballast into the bulb. The headlights may require some adjustment so they shine evenly. The manual has information about headlight adjustment if that step is needed.
The advantages of using HID lights are obvious once they are installed. They provide three times more light and use less power, plus they last for at least five years and in most cases they last for more than ten years. Xenon gas works best in HID lights, but other gases like krypton and argon are also used. Xenon gas is considered the best gas to use. Most HID kits come with Xenon gas and metallic salts.