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Beam pattern is important... Posted by PGAero [Email] ![]() ![]() In Reply to: Disagree with burt. Fogs can be clear OR yellow, Noel, Fri, 19 Sep 2008 05:53:34 Members do not see ads below this line. - Help Keep This Site Online - Signup |
and the beam pattern in our stock CS/CSE/Aero lights isn't that great. It is, however, a fog pattern for sure. White bulbs or yellow, our lights are fog lights and nothing different.
That being said, however, yellow lights penetrate further into the fog with less noticeable refraction, which means that less light ends up becoming useless by just spreading out and reflecting back to the driver via a large bright fog bank. The blue end of the spectrum is what bounces around so much, and we humans don't like looking at it.
The wavelength of yellow light is less noticeably affected by suspended water droplets (fog) and is the best choice for true, dedicated fog lights. Airport runway lights and street lights in fog-prone ares use sodium lights, which create that amber illumination, for a reason. (There's also the fact that Sodium lights are very efficient... as a light source).
I use white bulbs in my fog lights during the drier months because I use my fog lights to illuminate the shoulder and beyond on my local rural roads. Seeing those reflecting eyes is better than not when you're traveling at night on un-lit roads through the forest. It's also better to see that child in the shoulder when your moving slowly through a neighborhood. I'll probably put yellow bulbs in my car this winter when we get (occasionally) very thick fog.
I too am thinking about putting driving lights behind my grille. I just don't have the time to simply tinker, although I'd love to do it sometime.
Now every state makes its own laws about this stuff, but here in CA, it's technically illegal to drive with fog lights on unless you are in a low-light/poor visibility situation. It's also illegal to have more than four white road-illuminating lights on the front of your car. I have never seen or heard of anyone being pulled over to check their lights.
Cheers, and let us know how the lights turn out. I want to see pictures!
posted by 75.26.176...
Yellow Lights and their use in automobiles...
_______________________________________ Current: '03 9-5 Aero Wagon, 5spd, Polar/Black Past: '06 9-5 Combi, AT, Polar/Black '04 9-5 Aero Wagon, AT, Nocturne/Granite '03 9-5 Aero Wagon, AT, Steel/Charcoal '00 9-3 Viggen, 5D, Silver/Black '93 9000 Aero, 5MT, Cirrus/Black (Owned this one twice) '86 900 SPG, 5MT, Edwardian/Buffalo Grey
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