[S_Cal968]

I've seen overlays for the headlights. Has anyone seen an amber cover for the driving lights? I drive along the coast every morning and often hit fog.

I have a feeling this is another European option and I'll have to buy another light... <img src="/forum/images/smilies/968/rolleyes.gif" class="smilie" alt="" />

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[flash]

i haven't seen amber "covers", but i have seen amber fog lights



a great idea, but the vinyl covers, like the clear ones i have, will not help much with optics, but really only act as filters, cutting down and scattering the light - to get a good amber light, which is the best for driving, especially in fog, you need either an amber bulb, or better yet, an amber lens



dave found the right amber bulb



i too am contemplating this idea, as i am also frequently in fog here, but have not located the right lens yet

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[Alter Ego]

Given the scarcity of the amber fog light covers and expense, perhaps spray painting them would do the job on the cheap to boot.



I did just that on my previous Nissan 200SXser, i bought some japanese-brand lens paint from a hobby shop and then clear coated it as well. No problems with dripping or rubbing off at all. If you ever need to take it off later, just use some 'goof-off'.



Tell you the truth, it looked exactly like the OEM euro amber ones you guys are all looking for. Didn't look ghetto either. No more than 1 hour job plus drying time of course.



Just an idea. Figured worth a shot perhaps...

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[Anchorman]

By going "amber", you're achieving look at the cost of performance. White fogs work best.

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[S_Cal968]

Actually I've heard just the opposite; the white reflects off the fog and doesn't cut through it like the amber frequency. That's why it's recommended that brights shouldn't be used in fog. I don't care about the look - I'm after a better light for the application.



Perhaps I'll e/m Dave to see what he's found...

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[flash]

agreed - having had both, the amber always worked better for me - i know the pattern plays a lot into the effectiveness of a fog light, but i've used both and felt there was better lighting and less glare with amber



the problem we have though, is that we have both fog and driving lights in one housing

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[Anchorman]

Here's what Dave found:



Yes, the Bosch Automotive Handbook, 5th edition, says the same thing:



"Most fog lamps are designed to project a white beam. There is no substantive evidence that yellow lamps provide any physiological benefits".



My basis is the following: Quite a few years ago, when I was fitting Hella fog and driving lights to my Corvette, I read that the primary reason for the yellow lights is that they decrease reflected light coming back to the driver. The article went on to say that the best fog lights are white lights - provided they are true fogs (flat top beam pattern) and aimed properly.

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[flash]

fair enough - i'm only reporting personal expeience with aftermarket fog lights i've used over the years



one other note - yellow (not red as commonly thought) is the color that the human eye sees best - that may be why yellow light works well - there may well be an element of white light (having all colors in it) that causes an issue with the human eye



to create an analogy in sound, my thoughts are that using white light would be like turning up the entire volume just to hear a voice better, where just pushing up the 1k band on an EQ would do a better job

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[sbdrivingdotcom]

Longer wavelengths of light cut through the atmosphere, and likewise fog, more easily. This is why sunsets appear orange/red in color. At sunset, the sunlight has to travel through significantly more atmosphere and the shorter wavelengths of light are dispersed (blue and violet). This leaves the longer portions of the spectrum left (red and orange). Sunlight, which contains all colors of light, is brightest in the yellow portion of the spectrum. Our eyes do not detect yellow light as the brightest color. Rather yellow is the brightest portion of the spectrum of light from the sun and as such, objects that are yellow (the new school zone signs and tennis balls) reflect more light from the sun than any other single color and appear brighter to our eyes. We only see the light that objects reflect.



That being said, the purpose of fog lights is to illuminate the road and that is why they are mounted as low as possible. Since there is little light from the sun visible in foggy conditions, white light will be most effective in illuminating the road. Placing an amber filter or coating on the lens will only block out all other colors and allow only the orange/yellow portion of the spectrum through. This will not make the road more visible as less light is leaving the lens. If you want to see the road you want as much light as possible as low as possible so that it will reflect off the road surface.



Amber lights are simply for aesthetics not for practicality. Otherwise, don't you think auto manufacturers would have been using them long ago?

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[flash]

all that makes sense -



now, why do i see better in fog with an amber lens with the same wattage and model of light - is it just the lines on the road reflecting the light better? is the glare causing dilation that reduces the acuity? i know that i see better with the dash lights off - perhaps the refection of the white light is doing the same thing

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[Anchorman]

You may not be seeing "better" - where "better" means further down the road. You may be seeing "better" because the reflection is less (are the lights really aimed correctly - not "up" at all?) and you think you're seeing better. Without a direct comparison, the subjective conclusion likely is not the correct one.

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[flash]

i am extremely anal about the aiming of my lights - as an example, i am jut about to take the delai back a third time for an adjustment, becasu one of them i soff to the right 6 inches at 40 ft



anyway - i did a direct comparison years ago - i used to have lots of lights on all my cars - i was one of those guys - i went through quite a few different units until i landed on the ones that gave me the best light in fog - they were always very different units than auxilliary low beams and different than driving lights



in fog, white light was bad - yellow light was good - it reduced the glare i was seeing



perhaps i have an unusual case - when i was 17 i had a gas fireplace blow up in my face and resulted in a slight hardening of the corneas - i am extremely subject to glare - consequently, this is a very big issue to me - i avoid driving at night altogether because of it



here's my theory on this:



any light being sent toward the pupil causes dilation - dilation reduces the amount of light that can get into the eye - this causes a reduction in visual acuity - we've all walked into a dark room from a light room and know how hard it is to see - we've also all had an oncoming car with brights on and know how long it takes for the eyes to readjust to where the pupil aloows us to see clearly again



dash lights do it - oncoming lights do it



i suspect the light coming back from the fog does it - yellow light, possibly by the nature of being less intense, reduces the reflected amount of light



all i know is i that tested a lot of lights over the years, and always see better in fog with yellow



however, i always choose white for driving lights



unfortunately we have both in one housing, so, i'm pretty stuck, unless i just change the fog bulb



i hope that clarified what i was trying to say

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[BigL2U]

You could add a set of oval amber PIA's behind the opening in the bumper cover.. Then you wouldn't really notice them unless they were on. When they're off the lense is kind of dark.



I use to live in San Diego and sometimes driving near Mission Bay or on I-5 at night you could not see your hand in front of your face. I had some amber PIA's on my Maxima at the time and they made a big difference. Once (when I was parked), I turned off my head lights and just used the PIA's in the fog and the difference was amazing.



The Camen uses those round fog lights that Porshe borrowed from the VW Beatle but something that overt takes away from the astetics of the car IMHO.

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[flash]

thought about adding lights - i could find no place that wouldn't reduce airflow to areas that really needed it



i am contemplating it though on the next round of body mods - i'm thinking seriously about changing the look of the front end of the car, even more than i already have - that big wide stretch across the middle looks ripe for some changes

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[Anchorman]

BigL, you've hit on an important point. Leaving the headlights on when the fogs are needed is very self-defeating. For the fogs to be effective and helpful, the headlights must be turned off.

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[flash]

yup - and that is one that is most often goverened away from us



for example, here in california, it is illegal to run with fog lights without the low beams - in fact, it is illegal to run any auxilliary light without the low beam



i see plenty of people running with parking lights and either fog or driving lights (or even just parking lights alone) - sooner or later many of them get a ticket (i have one in my collection) - i have a buddy here who insists on leaving the headlights down and running the fogs with the parking lights - russian roulette

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[Anchorman]

In daytime rain, or in early morning and late afternoon, when I need lighting to be seen, not because it helps me to see, I'll run with the fogs and parking lights. Once it starts becoming dark, though, the headlights come on - even though I dislike them.

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[flash]

yup - plenty of folks feel that way - just had a friend get a ticket for it here though - we have an additional new law about headlights in the rain, and the cops are watching for it - they had thier daytime running lights and parking lights on, but no low beams - nailed - rather pricey ticket too

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[S_Cal968]

I may see if there's a bulb available. It shouldn't cost much to try it out...



Ah yes the chp [calif h/w patrol] has found another way to make $$ [buggers!].

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