Zachariah Kelly
Posted 25 minutes ago: April 3, 2023 at 11:43 am
It’s time for another Ask Giz, where we take questions submitted by readers from around the tech and science world and answer them.
If you’d like to submit a question, we’d love for you to do so on the official submissions page.
Today’s question comes from Nathan in Sydney. Nathan wants to know: Why are the headlights so bright on new cars?
Good question, Nathan. Let’s dive into it.
Why are the headlights so bright on new cars?
It’s one thing to assume that headlights are now brighter than they used to be simply because of technological advances, but it’s another thing entirely. to understand what is causing the shine.
As Slash Gear reported, the introduction of bright LEDs (and high-intensity discharge lights) in new car headlights is the main factor, given that LEDs shine brighter, project farther, and are much more efficient (if they are more expensive to replace). High Intensity Discharge Lights have been around for decades, but are growing in adoption among newer car models.
However, they can be too bright lights, which can disturb oncoming traffic and cause them to squint uncomfortably. While these brighter lights have an obvious safety advantage for the driver, the same cannot be said for pedestrians and other drivers on the road. Avoid having lights so bright that they could dazzle an oncoming driver.
But we can take a step back and see why headlights look so bright now on new cars. Slate posits that it’s because of the boom in popularity of large cars.
Because SUVs and large vehicles have taller bodies, bright LED lights shine more directly into the eyes of drivers of low-slung cars or pedestrians on the road. The center of the lights are aligned so that oncoming traffic looks directly at them, making the lights appear brighter than they would be if they were shining indirectly ahead.
In 2020, the ABC reported that it is often the aim or position of lights that causes uncomfortable glare. With the highest lights on the floor, they aim directly into your eyes.
So there you have it: it’s a combination of two things. The introduction of LEDs and high-intensity discharge lights, mixed with the physical lifting of car headlights as they grow in size. Either way, it’s awful.
To shine
If you’d like to submit a question to be answered in a future installment of Ask Giz, we’d love to hear it.
Ask Giz is a bi-weekly series where we answer your questions, be they related to technology, science, gadgets, health or gaming. This is an engaged reader series where we rely on the Gizmodo Australia audience to submit questions. If you have a question for Giz, you can submit it here. Or check out the answer to our latest Ask Giz: Can you get sick from a toilet seat?
