Lighting My Way Home.

[jonesfam]

As some of you may know I work In Doomadgee & drive home every 2 or 3 weeks for a couple of days rest & chasing kids.
When I drive home I leave here about 10am so end up doing the last 300k or so after dark.
I'm not complaining about the D3's lights or my Extreme 600 spot lights but there are an awful lot of animals on the roads this time of year, especially between Georgetown & Mt Garnet & hitting a beast or large pig could really ruin my day even with the bar.
So, if I fitted a LED Light Bar as well as the spotties would that be to much for the battery & alternator?
My understanding is that LED bars don't draw much power but I don't want to cook things.
Alternatively, if that would draw to much power would I be better off replacing the 2 pencil beam spots with a combination spot/spread light bar?
I try not to out-drive my lights but it still worries me, a white bull against dead grass in a hill cutting is bloody hard to see.
Any advice would be greatly appreciated before I go & spend money on this.
The car is a 09 D3 SE TDV6.
Thanks
Jonesfam

[Mungus]

Hi JonesFam, Nice bit of country over there. My Mum was born in Georgetown. I don't think you need to worry too much about your battery or alternator. What is the current draw of the LED bar. If you have just hooked them up to/with your spotlights you may be overloading the cable/relay to your spotlights.
Cheers Mungus

[BMKal]

I run a couple of Britax X-Ray Vision HID spots on the bullbar, and up until not long ago (when some arsehole stole it), had a 40 inch Baja Designs "stealth" LED bar mounted up under the roofrack.

Was a brilliant combination for the night time runs between Perth & Kalgoorlie, where there is often a bit of wildlife about. No problems with the battery / alternator etc at all. I ran two separate wiring circuits - one for the spots and another for the LED bar. Each circuit has its own relay and separate isolation switches on the console.

Sooner or later I'll get around to replacing the LED bar - but will have it mounted so that it's a little more difficult for light fingered mungrels to get it off next time.

[Bigbjorn]

A good solution is to aim your long range narrow beams slightly cross-eyed at near maximum range. This gives more area illuminated at roadsides and also as a bonus you get an around the corner line of vision. If you have the space to mount them, use the big Hella searchlights, P/Nos 1503 (270mm) and 1507(250mm). These have the longest range and widest spread of any long range auxiliary lights available here. You can get HID or QH bulbs for them. QH are available up to 150 w.

[BMKal]

A good solution is to aim your long range narrow beams slightly cross-eyed at near maximum range. This gives more area illuminated at roadsides and also as a bonus you get an around the corner line of vision. If you have the space to mount them, use the big Hella searchlights, P/Nos 1503 (270mm) and 1507(250mm). These have the longest range and widest spread of any long range auxiliary lights available here. You can get HID or QH bulbs for them. QH are available up to 150 w.

I disagree with this Brian.

Was told this many years ago (when I was running Cibie Super Oscars). Have tried it a couple of times with different pencil beam lights, and I find that it gives a poorer field of vision, and can be very annoying at times (when the two beams converge and then separate again).

I've always preferred aiming two pencil beams parallel to each other, straight up the road.

[jonesfam]

If I put in the LED light bar, which from these replies I will, I will put it on separate wiring & relay to the spots with a separate override switch.
Thanks
Jonesfam

[Lionelgee]

I had a 40 inch Baja Designs "stealth" LED bar mounted up under the roofrack.

Hello BMKal,

Just wondering if anyone heard a loud clunk? It was me falling off my chair after the price popped up for what a 40 inch Baja Designs "stealth" LED bar is worth! :eek:

It must be some special light and I hope it was covered by your insurance policy? Then again making a claim would exacerbate the cost of what some low life's action has already caused you.

Kind Regards
Lionel

[unseenone]

I've ordered a Rigid 40" SR2 combo, there is a rigid guy there, I've seen all his entertaining videos on youtube. You might check him out. Also extremely pricey, but bulletproof, and very very nice.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MnyxmteSviY


Sadly, I invested in a pair of ARB Intensity LEDs but have no bull bar. I have been unable to find a mount for the front end, without a bull bar, so unless anyone has any ideas, I don't to have to try to fabricate something.

[Graeme]

For my D4 I initially fabricated a bar that mounted behind the grille with 2 brackets coming out through gaps in the grille.

[nat_89]

I've ordered a Rigid 40" SR2 combo, there is a rigid guy there, I've seen all his entertaining videos on youtube. You might check him out. Also extremely pricey, but bulletproof, and very very nice.


Sadly, I invested in a pair of ARB Intensity LEDs but have no bull bar. I have been unable to find a mount for the front end, without a bull bar, so unless anyone has any ideas, I don't to have to try to fabricate something.

My dad has a pan tech MAN truck with a 40" Rigid Industries led light bar on the roof and i had to talk him into it as he has 2 Hella Rallye 4000's on the front and now he just loves the light bar just swears by it you can turn the Hellas off and not even know they were on!! He often passes other trucks on the highway and they call him up and ask where he got it from and usually comment you can keep going just leave the lights here AHAHAHA

[AndyG]

I disagree with this Brian.

Was told this many years ago (when I was running Cibie Super Oscars). Have tried it a couple of times with different pencil beam lights, and I find that it gives a poorer field of vision, and can be very annoying at times (when the two beams converge and then separate again).

I've always preferred aiming two pencil beams parallel to each other, straight up the road.

I have never understood the preference for pencil beams, the Super Oscars (spread) have a nominal range of 1800 m and the Super Oscar Spot, 2900 m, and that's based on the old H4 bulb, not 75w HID:twisted:

So i am fitting the Spreads, (purchased new recently for $700)
And i cant see LED coming close to either of those distances.

[ade]

Try brightlightautoparts I bought a pair of their 160watt 9 inch spotties. Great price and great units

[BMKal]

I have never understood the preference for pencil beams, the Super Oscars (spread) have a nominal range of 1800 m and the Super Oscar Spot, 2900 m, and that's based on the old H4 bulb, not 75w HID:twisted:

So i am fitting the Spreads, (purchased new recently for $700)
And i cant see LED coming close to either of those distances.

Depends on where you're driving. ;)

I'm sure that long range spots wouldn't be of much use up where you are.

A while back, I was in Tassie in a work Prado with a couple of HID converted Hella Rallye 4000 spots - they were an absolute pain in the butt and not at all suitable for the terrain.

But driving across the Nullarbor, or between Kalgoorlie & Perth, different story.

And you're right about LED not coming close to the distance - there's not a LED light on the market that's capable of coming even close to the range of a decent set of spots (or the Cibie Super Oscar spreads). Hell, even the comparatively cheap Britax X-Ray Vision HID spots that I'm running at the moment will out perform any LED light over distance - the Hella Predators that I've got sitting in my shed will completely blitz an LED over distance. But in the area that a decent LED light does light up (in my experience, up to about 300 metres) - they do it so much better than ANY conventional driving light, whether Halogen or HID.

I'll eventually replace my missing LED bar, though I'm still undecided on what with. Loved the Baja Designs unit, but very expensive to buy - so unless I can get onto another "good deal" through work (I never paid anywhere near the asking price for the first one) - think I'll be looking for something different.

Lionel, if you think the Baja "Stealth" is expensive - have a look at the new Baja "OnX". Would want to be something very special for the price that they're asking for them (about double the price of a similar length Stealth). Having used the Stealth, I really can't imagine something the same size putting out double the light of one of them. Would love to try one, but won't be forking out that sort of cash. :o

[AndyG]

HID-Lightsdownunder - HID Driving Light DIY conversion kits (http://www.hid-lightsdownunder.com/service3.html)

I found this site informative, well priced & prompt