Bulb replacement. Why should it be done in pairs?

Some drivers consider the recommendation to replace light bulbs in pairs as an unnecessary investment and additional expense. However, the stake in savings of a few zł can be the health and life of all road users.

Modern car headlights are designed to improve visibility on the road. The breakthrough patent was the idea of ​​the Philips brand, which introduced xenon lamps into mass production (in the 7 BMW 1991 Series model). Today, more and more new cars have lighting based on LEDs and even laser diodes.

However, the roads are still dominated by vehicles with traditional headlight designs and halogen bulbs. It is their drivers who are most often faced with a dilemma: replace one burned-out light bulb or a pair? The answer is always the same: we always change car headlight bulbs in pairs. Why?

Each element has a certain lifespan. It is not always identical, but in the case of a pair of light bulbs, we can safely assume that the burnout of one means approaching this boundary and the other. In such a situation, the driver still has to restore the car's lighting equipment, which is not always easy to do in current models. Moreover, it can be the removal of covers in the engine compartment and even wheel arches. In the near future, the work will have to be repeated. But that is not all….

“Over time, halogen lamps lose their properties. In this way, not only the light intensity is reduced, but also the length of the beam falling on the road,” says Violetta Pasionek, Marketing Manager for Central Europe at Lumileds Poland, the exclusive licensed manufacturer and distributor of Philips automotive lighting.

When replacing light bulbs, there are a few important tips to keep in mind. First of all, in no case should we touch the glass bulb with our fingers. Leaving traces on it, you can distort the emitted light beam. In addition, even a small layer of fat left when touched by the fingers acts as an insulator, preventing heat from dissipating.

Secondly, new lamps must be installed correctly.

Reversing the position of the filament will cause the light to reflect incorrectly towards the road, the roadside, and even the sky, leaving key areas in the dark. Thirdly, the design of the headlight itself is adapted to left-hand or right-hand traffic, which means the illumination is asymmetric - shorter from the road axis, longer than the curb. This arrangement allows the driver to obtain an optimal field of vision without dazzling other road users. We will not achieve this by replacing just one light bulb with a new one.

But that's not all.

After replacing the bulbs in the headlights, they must be properly adjusted. Even a slight deviation can blind other users.

The last argument for replacing light bulbs in pairs is their model and manufacturer. We don't always remember if we installed a traditional design or a longer or stronger beam of light. The use of different products will further exacerbate the disproportion in lighting properties and, consequently, the level of road safety.

It is worth choosing well-known manufacturers of automotive lighting. They guarantee the use of high-quality materials and the accuracy of workmanship required by standards and tolerances. This also affects the life of the light bulbs, and hence the frequency of their replacement.