Halogen vs. LED Fog lights

[Kevin_D]

I have LED bulbs in my Sport S stock halogen fog lights, and I’ve been pretty happy with the results.
I just received a set of OEM LED fog lights.
Anyone care to speculate which will be better: the halogen housings with LED bulbs, or the LED fog lights?

Kevin

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[Sandevino]

I speculate the stock LED's will work just a well as the halogen housings with LED bulbs.

 

[Minty JL]

OEM LED will be far better, the output will be focused as opposed to being scattered

 

[Kevin_D]

Well…

There is certainly a more focused beam with the LED light.
The illumination to the side looks to be slightly less.
I’ll reserve final judgment until I get them both installed and go out for a drive.

Kevin

 

[wildtaco]

Definitely OEM LEDs. LED bulbs don't belong in a halogen housing. LED bulbs will scatter light in all directions. Fog lights are designed to keep the light low to the ground.

 

[ATL_Rubi]

Definitely OEM LEDs. LED bulbs don't belong in a halogen housing. LED bulbs will scatter light in all directions. Fog lights are designed to keep the light low to the ground.

I think automotive manufacturers skew this old belief of fogs. True fog lights should never be any more blue than ~4,500k, yet most manufacturers now offer LED packages. I truly believe most people, I'm included, will never see the fog that requires a true fog light (2,500k-3,500k). Therefore, I use my fog location as an auxiliary lighting source. But I will agree with your sentiment, a led bulb in a halogen housing, no matter how good the bulb is designed, will throw light everywhere.

 

[Rahkmalla]

I think automotive manufacturers skew this old belief of fogs. True fog lights should never be any more blue than ~4,500k, yet most manufacturers now offer LED packages. I truly believe most people, I'm included, will never see the fog that requires a true fog light (2,500k-3,500k). Therefore, I use my fog location as an auxiliary lighting source. But I will agree with your sentiment, a led bulb in a halogen housing, no matter how good the bulb is designed, will throw light everywhere.

my fog lights are definitely first and foremost "auxiliary lighting source" like most OEM fogs, but i chose 3Ks also so i'm prepared should they ever need to be used for their stated purpose.

 

[Kevin_D]

LED bulbs don't belong in a halogen housing. LED bulbs will scatter light in all directions.

If the LED bulbs are designed properly, this isn’t necessarily true.
I improved the performance of my fog lights with the LED bulbs: brighter and more focused than the halogen bulbs.

Kevin

 

[wildtaco]

If the LED bulbs are designed properly, this isn’t necessarily true.
I improved the performance of my fog lights with the LED bulbs: brighter and more focused than the halogen bulbs.

Kevin

Let's see them. What are the bulbs and post up some output pictures of them with OEM LEDs side by side. Or even side by side with the halogens.

 

[Rahkmalla]

If the LED bulbs are designed properly, this isn’t necessarily true.
I improved the performance of my fog lights with the LED bulbs: brighter and more focused than the halogen bulbs.

Kevin

I was sold the same line by many a poster here and even some Voldemort-esque youtubers. "Buy Brand X, they really fixed the 'LED bulb in a reflector housing' problem". So many people convincing me that LED reflectors were a solved issue and i was stuck in the past.

So off i go to buy Brand X. Aim them a touch low even. Couple flashes in the first few weeks but nothing to make me think it's that terrible. My old sedan with OEM LEDs got flashed the same amount.

Then we switched from daylight savings to standard time and suddenly i was driving at night much more often... flashes went up. Then i had to follow my wife somewhere... she called mid-drive and asked why i was blinding her. "When i hit bumps and hills, or all the time?" All the time. "right now?" Right now. "Very bright headlights or 'who's this asshole' bright ?" Who's this asshole.

I took those bulbs out the very next morning and went back to stock halogens then waited for the Diode Dynamics Elites to release.

For what it's worth, i thought my LED reflector cutoff was pretty clean. And during the drive behind my wife when i asked "right now?" that cutoff was very clearly below her rear windshield. But still hurting her eyes.

Don't be me, skip step 1 where you blind everybody and step 2 where you have to admit you were wrong.

Buy once, cry once.

 

[Kevin_D]

Let's see them. What are the bulbs and post up some output pictures of them with OEM LEDs side by side. Or even side by side with the halogens.

The picture above shows the OEM LED (left) vs. halogen with LED bulb (right.)
I don't have a picture comparing the halogen vs. LED in the halogen light, but the beam pattern was a bit better with the LED bulbs (you'll have to take my word for it.)

Kevin

 

[Kevin_D]

I was sold the same line by many a poster here and even some Voldemort-esque youtubers. "Buy Brand X, they really fixed the 'LED bulb in a reflector housing' problem". So many people convincing me that LED reflectors were a solved issue and i was stuck in the past.

So off i go to buy Brand X. Aim them a touch low even. Couple flashes in the first few weeks but nothing to make me think it's that terrible. My old sedan with OEM LEDs got flashed the same amount.

Then we switched from daylight savings to standard time and suddenly i was driving at night much more often... flashes went up. Then i had to follow my wife somewhere... she called mid-drive and asked why i was blinding her. "When i hit bumps and hills, or all the time?" All the time. "right now?" Right now. "Very bright headlights or 'who's this asshole' bright ?" Who's this asshole.

I took those bulbs out the very next morning and went back to stock halogens then waited for the Diode Dynamics Elites to release.

For what it's worth, i thought my LED reflector cutoff was pretty clean. Turns out i was wrong.

Don't be me, skip step 1 where you blind everybody and step 2 where you have to admit you were wrong.

Buy once, cry once.

I installed LED bulbs in the fog lights, and got the results seen above.
I had LED bulbs in the headlights, and had no issues with being flashed.
If the light source of the LED bulb is in the same location as the light source for the incandescent bulb, the difference in beam pattern will be negligible.

I will admit that the beam pattern was improved when I went to true LED headlights.

Kevin

 

[Rahkmalla]

If the light source of the LED bulb is in the same location as the light source for the incandescent bulb, the difference in beam pattern will be negligible.

This is the kind of thinking that that convinced me into LED bulbs in a reflector housing in the first place. And while it's not an incorrect statement, it is an incomplete statement.

The root of the problem is reflectors scatter. It's a reflector housing, it can't help it. halogens scatter, HIDs scatter, LEDs scatter, and whatever type of lighting they invent next will scatter because the housing itself is not designed to produce a clean beam pattern. You'll see a cut-off because you can aim it mostly, but the beam is "shaped", not formed.

Reflector housings are used with halogen bulbs because with lower light output the scattered light is negligible to surrounding drivers. It's not a good solution, it's a "good enough" solution. Low powered lights don't generate enough lux/lumens/however-you-wish-to-measure to create blinding scatter. As you ramp up the brightness, the blinding power of the scatter increases.

Generally fog lights don't output as much as headlights so LED fog bulbs may be less of a problem than LED headlight bulbs, in which case you'll get away with it. But that doesn't change the core of the problem with LED bulbs in reflector housings.

 

[ReidJustin]

I've had a similar experience with my fog lights, and it's great that you're exploring different options. In my case, I found that using LED bulbs in my stock halogen fog lights gave me good results, too. However, OEM LED fog lights might have some advantages, like a more precise fit and potentially better performance. It's always fun to experiment and see which works best for your needs.
If you're into exploring lighting options, you might want to check out stadium lights wholesales. They often offer some exciting choices that can be adapted for different purposes.

 

[Rockabillyroy]

I use LED switchback bulbs in stock halogen housing.
Toggle the switch and they turn yellow.
No need to use yellow film to filter the light.
And importantly, the cut off is clean.

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