LED Tail Light Bulbs

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monkeyhanger
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Re: LED Tail Light Bulbs

Post by monkeyhanger »

vc-10 wrote: Sun Feb 17, 2019 1:08 pm LED brake lights react quicker, that fraction of a second could help give people following more reaction time. I thought the Polo had LED tail and brake lights, but looking over the price list it seems like it's only the R-Line and GTI/GTI+ get them standard. If you spec the LED headlights though they fit the LED rears. Interestingly, the Ibiza gets LED rear lights as standard!
People rear-end other people because they're tailgating and fail to stop in time despite seeing and reacting to the brake light in good time (gap too short), or they're maintaining a decent gap but fail to notice when the far ahead slows or stops.

The difference in light-up time between LED or Halogen is tiny - no more than a few 1/100 of a second is not going to make the difference between a smash or not, or a major smash vs a minor smash.

The gains in LED use are consumption and lifespan. LEDs use about 1/9 The energy of halogens because there's hardly any heat generation in their output.
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Re: LED Tail Light Bulbs

Post by vc-10 »

Oh I totally agree that people should be leaving decent distance- but they don't. The increased reaction time was something I'd seen quoted as a benefit of LEDs elsewhere, that's all.
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Re: LED Tail Light Bulbs

Post by mike sel »

fazzy wrote: Sat Feb 16, 2019 11:19 pm
mike sel wrote: Fri Nov 23, 2018 6:12 am Cheers for that, yes of course I would think there would be an issue changing the headlights over to LED. No such issues with the tail lights though. I may make this change IF an when I finally see an LED version of the tail light in real life. (just have not seen one yet). I just want to see if the LED ones are actually more visible to the vehicle behind, just may stop then rear ending ? im really not interested in the whole "I have LEDs thing" I am looking for tangible benefits. so if LED gives clearly better visibility then I may change, if it don't I wont.
Seriously...? Every car has at least one brake light at either corner and a third brake light in the middle... If somebody thinks that changing a 21W bulb to LED will stop anybody from rear ending you, then I wonder who are you trying to fool? :) Please... people change to LED because they reckon it looks cool/good/better or whatever... I can understand that. But please, let's not talk about safety and visibility of standard rear brake lights.
As the driver, I cant see the rear lights whether they are LED or not, why would anyone have them just to look cool? you cant see them sitting in the car??? I cannot believe the only reason all car manufacturers are fitting LEDs as standard or offer LEDs as an option is because they think they look cool? seriously, there must be a practical reason or several for an entire industry to change over to them. Either reduce strain therefore size the battery? offer better light clarity or reaction? or the LEDs last longer than bulbs? or they are cheaper to make or fit? Most LEDs I see out there do not look good, prime example was the first Lexus I owned from new in 2006 it had rear LEDs as standard, huge TV add campaign about it all based on digital lights and stuff but seriously A) I did not think it looked good let alone cool B) I could never get anyone at Lexus to clue me up as to the reason for having rear LEDs. These days LEDs seem very Common place and still I cannot work out as to why. I still haven't followed a new Polo with rear LEDs, when I do see one in the wild I can at least figure out if I think they are more visible or brighter, if they are then I may change the whole rear cluster over to LEDs but I think its a few hundred pounds and to be honest and for me the only reason would be added safety, If they show up better in bright sunlight and stop an artic from rear ending me one day then then are worth having. If they only so called benefit is that it makes an airhead think they are cool...im not interested.
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Re: LED Tail Light Bulbs

Post by fazzy »

Mike, there is a few reasons why manufacturers fit led light. First of all, they are much cheaper to produce. That alone is a huge reason why the industry is moving towards this technology. Secondly, when you drive, there is no strain on your battery. As a matter of fact, after you start your car, you can in fact take out the battery in your car and everything will work just fine. When your engine is on, your alternator is generating power in your car and not the battery. Thirdly... do they last longer? I could argue that. How many modern cars have I seen with singular leds or entire parts of lights failed? By comparison, I also own a 2001 Audi TT. The car is 18 years old and I'm still on original set of bulbs in the tail lights. Not one has given up. Fourthly... and I think most importantly... In many cases, in the cars fitted with leds when there is a failure, you have to change the entire light cluster and not just the bulb. Think about the revenues to the manufacturer in such a case instead of just a Pound or two for a simple bulb which you could get anywhere, not even necessarily at the agent.
As far as looking cool... have you noticed how manufacturers show off their led light "skills" at the motor shows? Even Audi showed some model, where the entire rear panel is a led display and you can program then such a panel to light up and display anything you want. What about production Audis? Indicator which is lightning up from inner to outer side of the tail light? Really? So when a left indicator is on people don't know the driver wants to turn left? You also have to have the left indicator moving while it's lightning up? Mike :) Feel the sarcasm there :) But in no way is the sarcasm directed at you. Quite the contrary. The manufacturers priority is to make as much profit as possible on us, the consumers. They will tell us anything in order to achieve that target. They will even tell us that the led diode lights up 1/100 of a second faster than a normal light and that will SAVE LIVES, and that is SAFER, because the SECURITY of you and your FAMILY is most important. ... These words work on a human brain and in no time everybody says the same. But in fact it's just good marketing.
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Re: LED Tail Light Bulbs

Post by Andy Beats »

LED is the future of car lights, simple as that.
They don't need to be as bulky as normal headlights, so allow the car stylists more freedom.
They're more reliable, they're brighter.
Oddly, my car has LED rear numberplate bulbs as standard...which is weird of VW... :?
I really do miss the LED (dipped) headlights of my Leaf, as good as any dipped headlights I've ever had, including active HID lights in one of my BMWs.
LED brake lights are a different issue, I can't help thinking manufacturers go overboard with those.
If you've ever sat behind a Merc or an Alfa Giulietta at traffic lights and the owner doesn't use the handbrake, the dazzling is unbelievable, you could see those cars braking from the moon. :cry:
There's really no need for LED brake lights that stretch over the entire width of the car.
Mind you, you could argue there's no need for people to just lazily stand on the brake pedal at traffic lights and dazzle people behind them. :!:
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Re: LED Tail Light Bulbs

Post by SRGTD »

I was behind a new Audi A7 recently at a set of temporary traffic lights at night. The driver was sitting with their foot on the brake pedal and the LED brake lights were almost of retina burning intensity!

Here’s a YouTube video that shows how bright the rear lights are - and when the brake lights are lit, they’re blindingly bright. Unnecessary IMO.

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=RAv7f-ptA74
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Re: LED Tail Light Bulbs

Post by Andy Beats »

SRGTD wrote: Mon Feb 18, 2019 2:54 pm I was behind a new Audi A7 recently at a set of temporary traffic lights at night. The driver was sitting with their foot on the brake pedal and the LED brake lights were almost of retina burning intensity!

Here’s a YouTube video that shows how bright the rear lights are - and when the brake lights are lit, they’re blindingly bright. Unnecessary IMO.

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=RAv7f-ptA74
That is ridiculous, why the hell would anyone need brake lights like that? :evil: :evil: :evil:
I will often go on full beam behind them.
Probably pointless, you can see them looking their rear view mirror and wondering what I'm doing, but it makes me feel like I'm getting my own back on the lazy twits a bit.
If anyone was to get out and ask what I was up to, I'd happily say I was being dazzled and I'm just returning the favour.
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Re: LED Tail Light Bulbs

Post by fazzy »

Andy Beats wrote: Mon Feb 18, 2019 1:08 pm LED is the future of car lights, simple as that.
Andy, with all due respect, I beg to differ on that opinion :)
Leds are just a step in the ladder, just like Xenon was. Already laser lights are available in some cars and that will be the next step and the future will see digital lights.
In 20 years time we'll look back at leds as a hurdle in the ongoing technological progress, which had to be overcome.
In the next 5-8 years all cars will come with leds as standard and better lights will need a tick in the optional extras box :)
It's all about the money :)
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Re: LED Tail Light Bulbs

Post by Andy Beats »

fazzy wrote: Mon Feb 18, 2019 4:22 pm Andy, with all due respect, I beg to differ on that opinion :)
Leds are just a step in the ladder, just like Xenon was. Already laser lights are available in some cars and that will be the next step and the future will see digital lights.
In 20 years time we'll look back at leds as a hurdle in the ongoing technological progress, which had to be overcome.
In the next 5-8 years all cars will come with leds as standard and better lights will need a tick in the optional extras box :)
It's all about the money :)
Ok, the 'immediate' future then.
I obviously wasn't meaning decades into the future! :?
Maybe we won't even have cars with lights decades in the future, as autonomous cars won't need them to see the road or each other.
So light pollution would be eradicated, or at least greatly reduced by only needing small lights to warn pedestrians.
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Re: LED Tail Light Bulbs

Post by fazzy »

Andy Beats wrote: Mon Feb 18, 2019 4:27 pm
Ok, the 'immediate' future then.
I obviously wasn't meaning decades into the future! :?
Maybe we won't even have cars with lights decades in the future, as autonomous cars won't need them to see the road or each other.
So light pollution would be eradicated, or at least greatly reduced by only needing small lights to warn pedestrians.
I was thinking about that a few years back, but we will need lights. Well... errr... not us, but the car - even if it is to communicate with other cars and especially pedestrians. That is what digital lights will do in the future. Valeo is already working on such things as a display of a pedestrian crossing ahead of the car. So I reckon lights will stay. Not exactly in the form we know them today, but the cars will have lights :)
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Re: LED Tail Light Bulbs

Post by Andy Beats »

fazzy wrote: Mon Feb 18, 2019 4:34 pm
I was thinking about that a few years back, but we will need lights. Well... errr... not us, but the car - even if it is to communicate with other cars and especially pedestrians. That is what digital lights will do in the future. Valeo is already working on such things as a display of a pedestrian crossing ahead of the car. So I reckon lights will stay. Not exactly in the form we know them today, but the cars will have lights :)
Of some sort, yes.
But they wouldn't need to be anything like as polluting as they are now.
I'm thinking of scenarios where the cars don't actually power up any lights at all until it senses a need for them.
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Re: LED Tail Light Bulbs

Post by fazzy »

Andy Beats wrote: Mon Feb 18, 2019 4:40 pm
Of some sort, yes.
But they wouldn't need to be anything like as polluting as they are now.
I'm thinking of scenarios where the cars don't actually power up any lights at all until it senses a need for them.
That is a possibility :)
Andy Beats
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Re: LED Tail Light Bulbs

Post by Andy Beats »

fazzy wrote: Mon Feb 18, 2019 4:46 pm That is a possibility :)
It's a future I like the look of.
Electric cars, only powering up lights when needed.
It'll make urban living so much nicer, with hugely reduced noise and light pollution.
DEATH TO SUBARUS AND HID KITS!! :D
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Re: LED Tail Light Bulbs

Post by vc-10 »

LEDs are very definitely the future. The efficiency gain versus any kind of incandescent or high-voltage system is just ridiculous, not to mention the improved reliability. LED lights also tend to have the advantage in that they are separate segments, and if one fails, the rest of the light is maintained.

Regarding Laser lights- they're kind of a subset of LED, using a laser diode. Laser diodes and regular LEDs both turn electricity into light through electroluminescence.
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Re: LED Tail Light Bulbs

Post by mike sel »

On the home from work last night I was behind a Polo R line in the rain. It is the first time I have seen the rear LED in the wild and it looks different from the std but in my honest opinion not better or brighter.

So I will not be spending a few hundred £ to swap my standard rear clusters to LED.
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