In the era of Zeus and Hercules, every earthly day began with the fact that the goddess of the dawn Eos went to heaven. She was carried by two immortal horses - Phaeton and ... Lamp. Note that there was definitely no horse named LED on Olympus. However, mankind has decided to abandon incandescent lamps and gas-discharge analogs in favor of more economical and durable semiconductor light sources. Today they are installed in the head lighting equipment of even relatively inexpensive cars.
Down with halogens!
Automotive LEDs at the beginning of their career ruined their reputation: the aftermarket was flooded with an outspoken "leftist". As a rule, the light source for head optics consisted of a dozen dead LEDs shining in different directions - it was not worth dreaming about the correct light distribution. However, the Philips LED headlight soon appeared, in which the narrow strips of LEDs exactly matched the position of the filament in a conventional light bulb. And soon many Chinese manufactories began to produce similar in design.
Actually, you cannot install LEDs in headlights that are homologated for halogens, and we have talked about this more than once. But eastern manufacturers persistently write H4 or H7 on the packaging of their products! Is it illegal? Undoubtedly. However, let's leave the legal side of the issue for now. Our main task is to test LEDs for professional suitability. To this end, we have purchased five headlamp mounting kits designed to work with H4 bulbs. Please note that all purchased LEDs are capable of operating at both 12 V and 24 V. This means that they use solid power stabilization units - the so-called drivers.
The difference between a lamp trying to be correct (top photo) from a completely unusable one: in the correct lamp there are separate lines of LEDs for high and low beams. These rulers are similar in size and location to an incandescent spiral in a conventional lamp. The correct lamp has a screen covering the lower hemisphere of the dipped beam luminous element. Moreover, correct lamp equipped with a driver that allows operation at a voltage of 12-24 V, as well as a cooling radiator.The difference between a lamp trying to be correct (top photo) from a completely unusable one: in the correct lamp there are separate lines of LEDs for high and low beams. These rulers are similar in size and location to an incandescent spiral in a conventional lamp. The correct lamp has a screen covering the lower hemisphere of the dipped beam luminous element. In addition, the correct lamp is equipped with a 12-24 V driver and a heatsink.
Regloscope is listening
Let's start with a simple check - perhaps it will all end there. We go to the service station to an old friend of the magazine Anatoly Vaisman to test the LEDs directly on the car. We took the popular Kia Rio as a carrier. This car was also chosen because. By the way, many people put LEDs instead of halogens solely in order to change lamps less often, because on some cars this operation is laborious (for example, you have to remove the bumper) and, accordingly, expensive.
The master of the car service drives the car onto the site and installs a regloscope in front of the headlight - such a device is used to check the lighting equipment during a mandatory technical inspection. We start with a standard halogen lamp. Everything is okay! Now let's see what kind of light distribution the luminous semiconductors will give.Three products out of five failed: instead of an exemplary checkmark, something resembling a UFO from a television horror story appeared on the screen. But two subjects - Philips LED headlight and G7 Head light conversion kit - gave an acceptable picture. And if, during the inspection, the checking inspector does not carefully look through the transparent cap of the headlight, which lamp is installed in it, then, in theory, he should not have any complaints. In addition, in headlights with a diffuser or lensed optics, it will not be possible to see the bulb from the outside! In general, the likelihood of missing a vehicle inspection is very high.
It turns out that some LEDs can still be installed (at least from a technical point of view) in headlights? To get an accurate confirmation, we turned to the "supreme court" - the testing center of LLC "STC AE", where they conducted control tests of LED sources for compliance with the requirements of UNECE Regulation No. 112–00 in relation to dipped beam.
| approximate price 2000 RUB Consumption current - 1.37 A (standard "halogen" eats about 4.16 A). The regloskop immediately caught the illumination on the left in the headlamp. Laboratory measurements confirmed: at point B50L, the luminous intensity is 2.0 cd instead of the permissible 0.6 cd. In zone III - seven times the luminous intensity. The only advantage is that the cover on the Kia headlight was closed. | approximate price 4650 RUB The current consumption is 1.57 A. The Kia headlight cover is closed. The lamp makes it possible to adjust the angular position relative to the holder. Checking in a garage gave the product a green light: I liked the light distribution. However, more careful measurements in the test center still revealed deviations from the norm: at point B50L it turned out to be 0.8 cd instead of 0.6 cd, in zone III - 1.6 cd instead of 1.0 cd. It is a pity, but - does not correspond to the norms. |
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| approximate price RUB 10,000 The current consumption is 1.65 A. The description honestly says that free space is required: 70 mm behind the headlight and 60 mm in diameter. The lamp allows you to adjust the angular position relative to the holder. The lid on the Kia didn't close due to the huge driver unit. The light distribution according to the regloscop made the product a leader. However, all at the same points the experts revealed deviations from the tolerance: 2.0 cd instead of 0.6 cd at point B50L and 2.82 cd instead of 1.0 cd in zone III. In general, these lamps shine better than other proven ones, but you cannot go on public roads with them. | approximate price RUB 2300 The current consumption is 1.35 A. The Kia headlight cover is closed. But the parameters are worse than ever. Deviations were noted at points B50L, 75R and in zone III (as much as 13.2 times!). Verdict: refuse! | approximate price RUB 4500 The current consumption is 1.48 A. The Kia headlight cover was closed. The mount sways a lot. The light distribution does not correspond to the norm at point B50L and zone III, exceeding the permissible limit many times. Is it possible to expect otherwise from a lamp, the LEDs of which are in the form of bold circles that do not in any way resemble spirals? Sentence: do not buy. |
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Refuse!
Semiconductors ... have failed. The whole crowd. All LEDs, alternately placed by the employees of the testing laboratory in the headlight of the GAZelle, blinded the oncoming driver, and the cheapest ones, in addition, refused to properly illuminate the right side of the road. Better than others, naturally, looked those that showed a normal picture on the regloscope - Philips LED headlight and G7 Head light conversion kit. By the way, their luminous intensity is amazing: for example, Philips at the 50R point gave 100 cd (candela is a unit for measuring luminous intensity), exceeding the standard tenfold. But they also turned out to be illegal, the results are in the table.In addition, some light sources do not sit tightly in the workplace and rotate slightly around their longitudinal axis. It is clear that when moving, the light distribution picture will go astray. And the operating temperature of the different-sized cooling radiators is such that we even got scared for the safety of the plastic headlight casing.
We also note that in most cases, the back cover of the Rio headlight can be closed when installing the LED bulbs - only the huge Philips lamp unit simply did not fit under the cover. The headlight of the GAZelle, on which the bench tests were carried out, turned out to be less hospitable. How to ride without a cover? The headlight will quickly turn into a waste basket.
LIGHT DISTRIBUTION ON THE SCREEN OF THE REGLOSCOPE |
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As for the statements of the manufacturers of LED light sources about full compliance with their original, as well as the H4 inscriptions on the boxes, this is an outright deception. Only the letter L should be used to designate LEDs, and only the car manufacturer or the car manufacturer has the right to approve their installation instead of halogen lamps.
By the way, to our request, representatives of Philips officially answered that one should not drive on public roads with such a light. These lamps are designed primarily for ATVs, snowmobiles and other off-road vehicles. However, the sellers of oriental lamps, all these subtleties, excuse the pun, to the light bulb. Is it shining? Does the connector fit? Use it to your health!
In general, it was no coincidence that there was no LED horse in the Olympic stable. The gods preferred to use the services of the faithful Lamp ... Which is what we advise you too!
TEST RESULTS OF HEADLIGHTS WITH LED LIGHT SOURCES
| Control points | The normalized value of the luminous intensity, cd | The actual value of the luminous intensity, cd |
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| Clearlight | V16 Turbo |
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| B50L | ≤ 0,4 (0,6)* | 2,0 | 0,8 | 2,0 | 0,6 | 4,0 |
| ≥ 12 (9,6) | 34,6 | 27,0 | 50,0 | 4,4 | 33,4 |
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| ≥ 12 (9,6) | 55,0 | 36,0 | 100,0 | 12,4 | 47,6 |
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| ≥ 6, 0 (4,8) | 42,22 | 24,0 | 66,0 | 45,6 |
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| Zone III ** | ≤ 0,7 (1,0) | 7,0 | ||||
Good afternoon. In today's article, I will tell you everything about LED lamps in headlights, you will find a comparative analysis of LED H4 lamps, a short review of sellers and manufacturers and find out the opinion of the traffic police about such a redesign.
How does an LED lamp differ from a conventional H4 lamp from a layman's point of view.
We will not go deep into technical subtleties and physics, just compare 2 pictures:
H4 halogen and LED bulbs.
Naturally, without a headlamp reflector, the lamp will shine in all directions. Thanks to the reflector, the light gathers in a beam and illuminates the road.
Obviously, the headlamp reflector and lamp are calculated and manufactured very accurately, otherwise the quality of the light will be unsatisfactory.
Thus, when installing a lamp (xenon, halogen) not intended for this particular headlight, the light will not be optimal.
If everything turns out to be relatively accurate- lamps will illuminate the road with sufficient quality and will not blind the drivers of oncoming cars.
An overview of the types of LED bulbs in headlights.
We will agree on the shore - even halogen lamps are not produced in Russia in the headlights. All have been brought from China for a long time, so we will not feed the greedy intermediaries, we will look directly at the heavenly Empire.
LED lamp, which definitely cannot be bought for a ride in the town:
Lamps of this type will shine anywhere except the road, and since the LEDs are not in focus, the headlights and they do not differ in workmanship.
Such lamps will give only white light, a wide beam, but driving on public roads with such lamps is disrespect for other drivers and your driving license!
When traveling in the woods lamps have a right to exist, since their price is not high, and the headlight glass does not heat up, so there is no risk that it will crack when water gets in.
LED lamps that "can" be installed in the headlights:
Let's clarify one point - lamps of this type will shine relatively correctly, but as expected, they will not shine, since the lens is out of focus and there will be no clear border!
How should the headlights shine:
If you set up such lamps well- they will shine and will not attract the attention of the traffic police, but this is not respect for other road users, without a clear border you will not see the "edge" of your light beam badly, and this "edge" will already blind oncoming drivers!
So either to lower the light under your breath, which makes the whole idea meaningless, or to do it according to your mind.
The best choice in terms of lamp quality, luminous intensity and "beam accuracy" I see the following lamp:
Operated similar ones from May 2016 to December 2017. They shone well and the traffic police did not have any questions!
Here's a short demo video:
You can buy these lamps here (directly in China).
No need to buy lamps for $ 10-20, this is throwing away money - good things are never cheap!
I gave up the use of such lamps, since I need rights to work, and on the drive I read about a case of deprivation of rights for installation LED lamps in the headlights, although there, the driver himself did not behave correctly, but nerves are dear to me.
I replaced the standard headlights with LED optics, but I was lucky as Niva's headlights are standard and compatible with many cars. We have a separate article about this.
What does the traffic police think about LED lamps?
In short, nothing good! If the inspector of technical supervision (they are rarely on duty on the roads), reveals the installation of LED, just like gas-discharge (xenon) lamps in the headlights that are not intended for this, the driver of such a car will probably be deprived of his license.
The driver by installing LED lamps in the headlights not intended for them violates paragraph 3.1. Traffic rules of the Russian Federation
Quantity, a type, color, location and mode of operation of external lighting devices do not meet the requirements of the vehicle design.
The key here is the TYPE of lighting devices, the headlight is halogen, and the lamp is LED, or xenon ...
The inspector will try to break you into Part 3 of Article 12.5 of the Administrative Code
Driving a vehicle on the front of which light devices with red lights or red reflective devices are installed, as well as light devices, the color of the lights and the mode of operation of which do not meet the requirements of the Basic Provisions on the admission of vehicles to operation and the duties of security officials road traffic, entails deprivation of the right to drive vehicles for a period of six months to one year with the confiscation of these devices and devices.
Initially, this article was used to prevent drivers from installing sirens, beacons, etc. specialist. signals, but in view of the worst law enforcement and the corruption of courts and law enforcement officials, this article applies to everyone.
See:
- the color of the headlights has not changed - WHITE.
- the operating mode has not changed - as they shone with light, they shine, do not blink.
Get out of the way of the inspector and leave with a fine of 500 rubles. you can, but why take risks and spoil your nerves ... better to install LED optics! So you are guaranteed not to lose your rights and save your nerves.
Here is a photo of the court decision - they will not deprive you of the rights for LED lamps, but they will fray your nerves.
But there is an option - he will lose his rights! here is an example of another solution:
Brief conclusions:
- you can put lamps in the headlights, they will shine.
- the quality of the light is questionable.
- if you do not install "blue" LEDs and do not turn up the light, everything will be OK.
- The traffic police will not deprive you of your rights, if you correctly build your defense, but it will flatter your nerves, you may even have to go to court.
That's all for me today. I hope that the article was useful to you and you no longer have any questions about installing LED lamps in headlights.
27.05.2017
In this article, we will talk about where to use LED bulbs, and where it is better not to use them. Let's start our conversation with where it is better to put LED lamps, and where they will give the maximum increase in road illumination.
Installation of diode lamps in a headlight with
Installation of diode lamps in a headlamp with an H4 base in 99% of cases will give a significant increase in illumination, as a rule, 2-3 times. That is, H4 and LED bulbs are a must have! The whole problem is that the LED itself is made competently and efficiently, that is, it gets into focus and has chips with a small area, and not with a large one, like in cheap LED lamps. If these conditions are met, you will receive an unprecedented increase in light on the road.
Why is the H4 base the most major in terms of the increase in illumination? This is due to the fact that the H4 halogen itself was designed a long time ago and its design is not optimal. Therefore, it turns out that the efficiency of the lamp is small. But, since the efficiency of a halogen lamp is small, the LEDs, correcting the flaws of this design, very well replace the halogen in this base and you, as a user, get at least 2-3 times improvement in illumination on the road. In addition, the H4 LED lamp, thanks to its very large size, is the least thermally loaded. This also, as you understand, has a positive effect on the characteristics of LEDs.
Installation of diode lamps in a headlight with a base,
The next type of headlights in terms of the efficiency of LED lamps are the so-called "mono bases" in reflector headlights. Mono-sockets are H7, HB4, H11 socles, that is, separate light, separate section low beam. In them, too, LED lamps shine quite well, but the gain is already somewhat less. What is the reason for this? First of all, due to the fact that the very design of the halogen was developed after the H4 lamp, and in this design the disadvantages of the H4 lamp were already taken into account, and the efficiency of the incandescent lamp itself, that is, the halogen, became much higher. The halogen began to shine brighter, and that is why this standard replaced the more outdated H4 lamp standard. Therefore, it is already more difficult for the LEDs in these bases to compete with the halogen. But all the same, we can improve the illumination by 1.5-2 times, using good and high-quality lamps, with a well-thought-out heat dissipation system and with correct focus.
A special subgroup are headlamps, in which the base is not installed vertically, but at a certain angle. The bottom line is that in such headlights, where the seat is installed at an angle, even high-quality LED lamps can shine completely incorrectly. This is due to the fact that the halogen itself, installed in the headlight, shines 360 degrees, regardless of whether the base is set straight or at an angle. LED bulbs have not yet learned how to light 360 degrees, so when we put an LED bulb in a headlamp with an angled seat, we can get an incorrect, distorted cut-off line. For such headlights, it is better to use LED lamps that allow the base to rotate relative to the lamp itself, or modify LED lamps where there is no turn.
Installing diode lamps in a headlight with a lens
One of the most challenging sites for LED headlights is lenticular optics and lenticular headlights. If you have a lens in your headlight, then the gain from using LED headlights will be the smallest. This is due to the fact that the reflector of such headlights is the smallest, and even half of this reflector is covered by a curtain that forms the cut-off border. The quality of the cut-off line for such headlights will always be perfect, even by installing LED lamps in them, you will not worsen this indicator in any way. But, often, there is a tendency that after installing LED lamps, the illumination in front of the car remains the same as that of incandescent lamps. True, it is worth noting that at the edges it increases significantly due to the peculiarities of the light distribution of LED lamps.
Installation of diode lamps in a headlight with a base and
Well, the most difficult option for LED lamps is the H1 and H3 caps. Why base plinths H1 and H3? Because those who have seen the H1 and H3 light bulb understand that it is the smallest of all filament lamps. This is extremely important for LEDs because heat dissipation is important to them. It is one thing to remove heat from chips on a board with a width of, for example, 1-1.5 cm, and another thing on a board about 5 mm wide. Accordingly, the higher the temperature of the chips, the worse they shine, and their service life is also shorter. Therefore, it is extremely difficult for manufacturers to make a well-luminous, high-quality and long-lasting LED lamp. Chip manufacturers are certainly working on such parameters as increasing the operating temperature of the chips and their lifespan, but work in this area is not going as fast as we would like.
Today, many car owners install LED lamps instead of standard halogen lamps. They are more durable, have a better color temperature, which improves road visibility.
But according to the existing laws, the installation of light not provided for by the standard design, which should be indicated in the operational documentation, will be regarded as an administrative offense.
The owners of such converted vehicles can be fined. In a number of cases, in case of gross violations of the operating mode of the headlights, the sanctions will be more serious, up to deprivation of rights with dismantling and confiscation of the subject of violation.
Legal aspects of retrofitting vehicle lighting
Is it allowed to install LED lamps on cars?
Part 1 of Art. 12.5 Administrative Code of the Russian Federation
It is possible to install a hinged spotlight on almost any car, if this option is allowed by technical specifications car manufacturer. Additionally, the car can be equipped with one additional emergency brake light, a pair of additional fog lights and a pair of fog lights.
Installation of other lighting sources, both built-in and mounted (not specified by the manufacturer in the operational design documentation for vehicles) unacceptable... If such changes are detected in the design, it is regarded as a violation of the vehicle's operating conditions and will lead to an administrative fine.
Are LED low beam bulbs allowed?
Part 3 of Art. 12.5 Administrative Code of the Russian Federation
Installation of LED lamps in the headlights of the high and low beam when they are not structurally provided for in the operational documentation is an administrative violation and entails an administrative fine or withdrawal of the right to drive a car for a period of up to one year.
A precedent for an administrative offense will arise if the installed LED lamps violate the statutory light signaling modes.
Can LED bulbs be installed in size?
By law, it is not allowed to operate vehicles if the available parking and running lights do not fit according to the following criteria:
- fog lamps of standard white or yellow, other color is not allowed;
- light-reflecting devices of exclusively white color;
- reversing lights and white license plate lights;
- direction indicators with only yellow or orange lights.
Real operating conditions of LED lamps
Replacing halogens with LEDs in a car in side lights with conventional white LEDs that do not change their color (like decorative lighting or installing LED lighting in the cabin) cannot be regarded as a violation of the light indication mode.
The presence of an LED lamp in the side light can only be proved when the headlight cover is dismantled, naturally, no one will do this. Therefore, the answer to the question whether it is possible to put diode lamps in size is definitely "YES".
The main problems arise when installing headlights in headlights. The angle of the light beam of a conventional LED matrix is about 120 degrees, which is significantly less than that of halogen lamps.
A standard reflector in a headlamp is not capable of providing the required focusing of the light flux under such conditions; this worsens the illumination of the roadway and can dazzle the drivers of oncoming vehicles. Naturally, such a car owner will inevitably be held accountable.
To date, the standard configuration of LEDs in headlights is installed only on electric vehicles and some hybrid vehicles. Therefore, in the operational documentation of the vast majority of cars, the class of LED lamps is absent as such.
Installation of LED bulbs in headlights
Retrofitting headlights with LEDs is the most problematic issue. For high and low beam, only special lamps with reflectors can be used. Any other option will not be focused by the standard reflector.
Among the budget models imported from China, there is still no worthy replacement for halogen lamps. Their actual brightness can be higher than halogen, but often the LED does not fall into the focus of the reflector. This reduces visibility and lighting quality.
Should you fool your head? Their cost is quite high, even budget options from China start at $ 50 per pair. In this case, you run the risk of getting a lamp with a lower brightness than a halogen one and, in addition, does not correspond to the focal point of the reflector.
In such models, the low beam is usually not bad, but the high beam does not stand up to criticism. Headlights from Cree and Philips are now over $ 100. Their design is much more perfect than copies from China, but even so there is no guarantee that they will definitely fit your reflector.
Should you put LED bulbs in your headlights? Chinese copies are definitely not. Even if you put up with some "shortcomings" in their work, the car inspector is unlikely to turn a blind eye to it. Brands are indeed capable of providing high-quality replacement for halogen, but it is still recommended to first look for a successful experience in the conversion of similar vehicles.