When looking to customize your diesel truck, replacing the OEM lights with aftermarket lights is a great first step. Whether you own a Ford Super Duty, Chevy Silverado, GMC Sierra, Dodge Ram, or Jeep, custom lighting can enhance its appearance. Swapping out your tail lights, headlights, and adding accessory lighting helps your truck stand out, not only at night, but during the daytime too. Many aftermarket lights feature a plug-and-play design that makes installation simple. As a result, these upgrades are great not only for someone with experience working on vehicles, but also the novice DIYers too. Replacing your tail lights is a great starting point to customizing your ride.
The Importance of Tail Lights
Tail lights are more than just red lights at the back of a vehicle. They serve several critical functions. The most obvious role of taillights is visibility. The lights ensure that your vehicle is visible to other drivers, especially in low-light conditions such as dusk, dawn, fog, rain, or snow. They help other drivers gauge your vehicle’s size, shape, and direction of travel. Tail lights also serve as important signal lights to the vehicle behind you. They work in conjunction with brake lights and turn signals to communicate your intentions to other drivers. When you apply the brakes, the brake lights illuminate, signaling those behind you to slow down. While many drivers don’t seem to use them enough, turn signals are integrated into taillights to indicate your intended direction when changing lanes or turning. In the event your tail lights are damaged or malfunctioning, it is important to promptly repair them. Properly functioning tail lights are a legal requirement. Driving without them can result in fines or penalties. More importantly, it can lead to accidents and endanger lives.
The Evolution Of Tail Lights
Tail lights have come a long way since the early days of automotive history. In the late 90’s Altezza and Euro Style lights gained popularity in the import scenes and then lighting upgrades became readily available for many models. From there, lighting technology, design, and style, have grown. Vehicle owners started to replace the boring OEM lights on their rides with replacement lights that delivered a custom look that helped their vehicle to stand out. This approach quickly spread through the automotive world and now the lighting aftermarket is one of the largest and most popular markets in the industry. Tail lights are now available with various kinds of bulbs and multiple colors of housings and lenses to deliver the perfect look for your ride.
Incandescent Bulbs
Early tail lights used incandescent bulbs, which were simple and effective but had limitations such as a relatively short lifespan and high energy consumption. These bulbs, however, were easy to replace. They could be swapped for alternatives.
Halogen Lights
The introduction of halogen bulbs provided a brighter light and longer lifespan compared to incandescent bulbs. Many vehicles still come from the factory with halogen lights. However, they still consume a significant amount of power. Halogen lights are a type of incandescent lighting that contains a tungsten filament within the bulb. When an electric current flows through the filament, it heats up and emits light. Unlike regular incandescent bulbs, halogen bulbs contain halogen gas rather than argon gas. This difference allows halogen bulbs to produce brighter light and typically have a longer lifespan compared to regular incandescent bulbs.
LEDs (Light Emitting Diodes)
Light Emitting Diodes (LEDs) revolutionized tail light technology. LEDs are more energy-efficient, have a longer lifespan, reduced heat generation, and provide brighter and more consistent illumination. Additionally, LEDs offer more design flexibility, allowing manufacturers to create unique and stylish tail light designs. LEDs produce light by passing an electric current through a Diode. They are approximately 90% more efficient than incandescent bulbs. Due to their lower heat output, LEDs have a longer lifespan compared to other lighting types and, unlike incandescent bulbs, they don’t burn out but gradually dim over time. Their compact size allows for greater design flexibility in tail lights and other vehicle lighting applications.
OLEDs (Organic Light Emitting Diodes)
The latest advancements include Organic Light Emitting Diodes (OLED) and laser lights. OLEDs provide uniform light distribution and can be molded into various shapes, enhancing design possibilities. Laser lights offer even greater brightness and efficiency, although they are still in the initial stages of automotive applications. The key distinction between LED (Light Emitting Diodes) and OLED is that LEDs are point light sources, while OLEDs are surface light sources. A notable advantage of these technologies is their ability to be segmented and individually controlled, allowing for precise adjustment of brightness levels. OLED lighting technology utilizes multiple layers of organic semiconductors, which emit bright light when an electric current passes through them. These semiconductors are termed “organic” because they are composed solely of carbon and hydrogen.
Modern Tail Lights
Today’s tail lights incorporate various advanced technologies to enhance safety and aesthetics. Adaptive taillights are beginning to appear on the market. These lights adjust their brightness based on the surrounding light conditions. For instance, they become brighter in low-visibility conditions and dimmer in well-lit environments, ensuring optimal visibility without causing glare. One of the most popular kinds of tail lights in the aftermarket are sequential turn signals. Found on some stock vehicles, these lights illuminate in a progressive pattern, creating a dynamic and eye-catching effect. This not only adds a stylish touch but also improves the clarity of signaling. Integrated light bars combine multiple lighting functions into a single unit, providing a sleek and cohesive look. These bars often include tail lights, brake lights, and turn signals in one streamlined design. Many automotive manufacturers are beginning to integrate blind spot monitoring sensors into the tail lights of their vehicles. These sensors notify the driver to vehicles in their blind spot. They enable the driver to keep their eyes forward instead of turning their head back to check their blind spot.
Maintenance Tips for Tail Lights
To ensure your tail lights are always in optimal condition, follow these maintenance tips:
- Regular Inspections: Periodically check your tail lights for any signs of damage, cracks, or burnt-out bulbs. Make it a habit to inspect them every time you wash your vehicle.
- Cleanliness: Keep your tail lights clean from dirt, dust, and grime. A clean tail light is more visible and effective.
- Prompt Repairs: If you notice any issues with your tail lights, address them promptly. Whether it’s a burnt-out bulb or a cracked lens, timely repairs can prevent further damage and ensure your safety.
- Professional Servicing: For more complex issues or if you’re unsure about the condition of your tail lights, seek professional help. Qualified mechanics can provide thorough inspections and necessary repairs.
Tail lights may seem like a minor component of your vehicle, but their role in ensuring road safety cannot be overstated. From making your vehicle visible to communicating your intentions to other drivers, they are indispensable for safe driving. As technology continues to evolve, taillights are becoming more advanced, efficient, and stylish, contributing to both safety and aesthetics. At XDP you can find aftermarket halogen, LED, and OLED tail lights from manufacturers such as Alpharex, Anzo, Spyder, Recon, Morimoto, and Oracle. If you want to maintain a look like the factory, Dorman taillights deliver an OE-style look that makes replacing damaged lights simple and easy. For Dodge Ram owners that want to maintain a factory look, XDP has the Mopar lights they need to ensure their Ram looks like it just rolled off the assembly line. Enhance the look of your ride, with tail lights from XDP.
References:
https://www.luminitco.com/blog/history-LED-tail-lights/148
https://www.cars.com/articles/led-vs-halogen-headlights-whats-the-diff-420551/
https://www.arrow.com/en/research-and-events/articles/oled-digital-car-lights-illuminate-the-future-of-the-automotive-industry