Xenon Headlights: Are They Blinding?

Hello fellow enthusiasts,

I have already been to Audi twice to have my xenon headlights adjusted.
I'm still getting flashed constantly at night, but I'm assuming...
'I wanted to make sure the headlights were properly adjusted and wanted to know if other people with xenon headlights were experiencing the same issue as me.'

Let me put it this way: I feel the same way as the other people you encounter. I generally feel blinded by xenon lamps in the dark. Furthermore, the bluish color of the light really hurts my eyes. But I don't immediately flash my headlights, because I know that it's probably supposed to be that way. So, I squint my eyes and hope it will be over soon. It only gets really annoying when, in the rain, the xenon lamps appear in the rearview mirror.

But Marco, don't let my opinion spoil your enjoyment of your headlights. It's just my highly subjective opinion on the matter.

mcgregg

No, I won't be blinking anymore.

It seems that, subjectively speaking (just by looking around), approximately 10-20% of my 'passengers' have opted for Xenon headlights.

Okay, so let's assume that, at least in my region, the adaptation effect (the difference between bright light and actual glare) has already been completed.

Best regards, Spip.

It occasionally happens to me with my Golf as well.
This is because the right side of the road is much more brightly illuminated than it is with incandescent bulbs. Especially on the highway, in the overtaking lane, this light shines directly into the rearview mirror of the vehicle driving on the right.
Even in right-hand curves, this cone of light can shift into the oncoming lane and cause glare. There's not much you can do about it; that's just the way the light pattern is. However, in most cases, oncoming traffic is less likely to be blinded compared to systems with reflector-based incandescent bulbs.
If someone flashes their lights at me, I'll flash my lights back in a friendly way, and they'll know that it's not high beams.

It's good to hear that I'm not the only one who's constantly being flashed by headlights.
What surprises me is that I'm also being looked at even when I'm walking on a straight path.
When I accelerate, for example, I have the feeling that the car doesn't dim the lights.
With a friend's BMW, you can really see how the headlights work.
'It needs to be constantly and precisely adjusted. With my Audi, I find the adjustment behavior to be rather sluggish.'

"When driving straight on the highway, the edges of the headlight beam are so clearly visible in the oncoming lane that I would argue that, at least when driving straight, no one is being blinded."

The Golf only has automatic headlight range adjustment, not dynamic headlight range adjustment. Therefore, it only adjusts the beam angle when the load changes. But that's fine with me; it's one less thing that can break. I wonder if it's the same on the A4?

Hello,

I would say it's a misconception that xenon headlights blind other drivers (if they are properly adjusted).

It is often claimed that xenon light is blue -->>> FALSE.

It has a higher yellow component than the normal one. Therefore, it is closest to daylight. Pleasant for the eyes . However, when you are in the sun during the day, you are also blinded. The same applies to xenon light, because it is so similar to daylight. Hold your hand in front of the headlight and you will see the yellow component.

The blue color comes from the glass lenses, which focus the light (prism effect).

...someone who deals with light generation on a (nearly) daily basis...

Hi,
It is correct that xenon headlights do not necessarily cause glare, but if they do cause glare, it is also correct (because they are simply brighter).
To me, xenon headlights appear blue when they are partially obscured and (for some reason) located further away.
Then I initially thought it was the flashing blue lights of emergency vehicles. But as the distance decreases or you are directly in front of it, the light is clearly white.
The explanation involving light refraction sounds reasonable. The question is why it occurs much more strongly with xenon lights than with incandescent bulbs. Could this be due to the sharp limitation of the spectrum towards shorter wavelengths in the light produced by a so-called continuous emitter, i.e., due to high temperature?

Hi,


The explanation involving light refraction sounds reasonable. The question is why it occurs much more strongly with xenon lights than with incandescent lamps. Is it due to the sharp limitation of the spectrum towards shorter wavelengths, a phenomenon called.............?

This is because xenon light is produced by a burning spark, not by a filament like in a normal lamp. This spark is generated by high voltage. That's also why there's a ballast .

My Golf also adjusts the xenon headlights rather slowly. You could try adjusting the basic setting downwards using VAG COM. I did that myself. Stand in front of a flat wall in the dark and then you can compare it to another vehicle. In my case, both were set a bit too high.

I can also confirm what you said about the color. Maybe it was a really unpleasant blue on the first BMWs and Mercedes, but if you stand about 20 meters in front of a Golf, it's probably more white than blue, which indicates a high yellow content.

Matthias.

Hi,
I understand that xenon headlights are gas discharge lamps and not incandescent bulbs.
However, I'm unclear as to why these refraction effects are so pronounced in xenon. Does the higher color temperature, despite the yellow component, cause this? Is the spectrum more line-like than continuous? Or is it simply due to the design (e.g., the extent of the arc)?

@ Madness

As far as I understand, it's only used for the ignition process.
High voltage is required (that's why you sometimes see a bright flash when you turn on the light). After that, the lamps are slowly adjusted to approximately 70V.
Okay, bitte gib mir den deutschen Text, den du übersetzt haben möchtest. Ich werde mein Bestes tun, eine korrekte Übersetzung zu liefern.

As far as I understand, it is only used for the ignition process.
High voltage is required (that's why you might see a bright flash when you turn on the light). Afterwards, the lamps are slowly adjusted to approximately 70V.
Please correct me if I've written nonsense!
something like that.

In terms of its operating principle, you can definitely compare a xenon lamp to a fluorescent lamp.

Inside a glass bulb (containing electrodes), a noble gas (usually a mixture) is sealed at low pressure. The normal operating voltage is not sufficient to ionize enough gas atoms (and thus create an electric current). Therefore, a few kilovolts are applied to ignite the lamp. Once the 'spark' has jumped, there are enough ionized atoms to sustain the electric current, and the lamp is lit.
Since an arc represents a significant short circuit from an electrical perspective, the current must be limited. The operating voltage then depends on the burner parameters. For example, the arc voltage during welding is typically around 2V. Fluorescent tubes operate at approximately 90V. The CFLs used in LCDs operate at around 90-110V, depending on their size.
Just plugging in a power supply and using a piezo lighter to ignite it will definitely go wrong...

A flash device is also a xenon lamp, but it doesn't operate continuously .

CU Gremlin.