Fog lights are necessary safety features for your cars, SUVs, and motorcycles. So, you must pick the right fog lights for your vehicles to ensure proper safety and illumination during bad weather. Vehicle owners often debate, “LED vs. Halogen fog lights, which is better? Which fog light offers better visibility, instant illumination, and increased durability?
LED fog lights have a cooler color temperature, making them easy on the eyes. Also, LED fog lights last longer than halogen lights. Nonetheless, your vehicles will have halogen fog lights as standard. So, you don’t need to spend additionally to upgrade the fog lights. They can reach their full brightness faster, so these fog lights are preferable during emergencies.
Does this discussion seem mindboggling, and you are in awe to select which fog light you should choose? If so, continue reading our comparative guidelines on halogen vs. LED fog lights.
What Is LED Fog Light?
As you see in the name, these fog lights are made with LED technology. The lights have LED bulbs, so they are highly energy efficient. The advanced light-emitting diodes used in the fog lights allow the bulbs to generate enough light to illuminate the road. Also, LED technology uses less energy, so it is useful in saving the vehicle’s battery.
With your LED fog light, your vehicle’s battery is likely to see a 10% increase in its lifespan. So, it puts less pressure on the battery and improves your vehicle’s health.
Benefits of LED Fog Lights:
In the last 10 to 12 years, LED fog lights have become immensely popular. It has been possible due to automobile and motorbike manufacturers’ focus on integrating LED lights with their vehicles. Also, updated LED technology has helped the fog lights deliver higher illumination.
Improved brightness:
Most vehicle owners prefer LED fog, thanks to their exceptional brightness. They produce a crisp and intense beam. The intense lighting effectively penetrates through fog, rain, and mist. It is crucial to improve your riding safety through better visibility.
Also, the brightness of LED light is eye-soothing. So, driving through low-light and bad weather conditions is less likely to create glares and distractions.
Cool and crisp lighting:
LED fog lights generate a cooler color temperature for their illumination. The cooler light spectrum creates crisp and white lighting. Hence, it is friendly for eyesight. Often, yellow and warmer lights are responsible for damaging eyesight.
So, with the cooler tone of the LED fog lights, you can avoid such inconvenience. On top of that, the cooler tone of LED lights is ideal for illuminating the road better. It helps you easily identify road signs and obstacles, even with the lowest light and worst weather conditions.
Higher energy Efficiency:
We all know that LEDs are highly energy-efficient. They consume significantly less power than halogen bulbs. In reality, LED lights only consume 25% of energy compared to halogen bulbs. It will further ensure that your vehicle’s electrical system remains in better condition for a long time.
What’s more, with less power required to illuminate the LED fog lights, it won’t drain your battery much. So, your battery will last longer without draining within a few months. Moreover, with the battery not draining so fast, your car’s electrical system will be in better health. It means you will have to spend less time and money maintaining your car’s electrical system.
Enhanced longevity:
LED fog lights have an impressive lifespan. Thus, you can expect to last up to 25,000 to 50,000 hours or even more. So you can spend less time on the maintenance of the LED fog lights. Also, it will reduce your replacement costs for the LED fog lights in the long run.
The smart LED technology ensures that the lights last longer without the filament of halogen lights. The lights don’t have any filament inside. So, there’s no risk of the filament getting broken or damaged to ruin the light. It will bring peace of mind to you, knowing that the LED fog lights won’t disappoint you even during the worst weather and darkest hour of the night.
Instant Illumination:
When the rain or snowfall suddenly starts on the road, you must turn on the fog lights immediately. Also, at such a critical time, you will need fog lights that don’t need any time to come to their full brightness. Regarding this, we highly recommend ELD fog lights.
LEDs light up instantly when you switch on the fog lights. They don’t need any warm-up time at all. This instant illumination is beneficial when driving in unpredictable weather conditions. You can enjoy the full brightness of the LED fog lights during sudden weather changes. It will save you from collisions in bad weather.
Drawbacks of LED fog lights
LED lights ensure maximum lighting and safety for you and your vehicle during the worst weather and lowest-lighting situations. However, before deciding on LED vs. halogen fog lights, you must know their disadvantages.
Higher Initial Cost:
The main drawback of LED fog lights in vehicles is their higher upfront cost. Their upfront cost can be 2X to 4X more compared to halogen bulbs. On average, LED lights for automobiles and motorbikes are priced around $10 to $25.
Also, most vehicles still need to integrate LED fog lights by default in their cars. So, you must change from the traditional halogen fog lights to LED ones. It will further increase the cost.
Complex Replacement:
You may find replacing the LED fog lights complex. You have to replace the entire LED set. So, it gets more expensive and time-consuming.
What Is Halogen Fog Light?
Halogen fog lights are made of conventional bulbs, as their name suggests. They will emit warmer and yellowish lighting to illuminate the road. You can expect to get 16-24 lumens per watt with the halogen fog lights.
Although it is enough for most cars and motorcycles, it’s nothing compared to LED bulbs. LED fog lights can generate 80-100 lumens per watt. Hence, halogen fog lights fall way behind LED ones regarding illuminating capacity.
Benefits of Halogen Fog Lights:
Halogen fog lights have been the mainstay of motorcycles and cars since their introduction in the early 19th century. Following this, halogen fog lights are still prevalent in most automobiles for their cost-effectiveness, ease of maintenance, and low repair cost.
Cost-friendly and affordable:
Halogen fog lights are cheaper than standard LED fog lights. So, you will find the halogen lights budget-friendly upfront. Since they come standard with your vehicle, you don’t need to spend additionally to install them either.
All these cost-effectiveness’s make halogen fog lights popular for those looking for a cost-effective lighting solution. Also, with affordable pricing, you can replace damaged or old halogen bulbs much more easily than LED ones in your vehicle.Â
Easy Replacement:
Talking about replacement, you will find replacing halogen fog lights way easier. It doesn’t need any knowledge of your automobile electronics at all. When the halogen bulb burns out, you can remove it and install the new one. It will take less than a couple of minutes.
Thus, most drivers find the convenience of replacing halogen bulbs appealing. If you prefer DIY vehicle maintenance, the easy replacement becomes more enjoyable.
Widespread Availability:
Halogen bulbs are widely available. Thus, you can find it in most auto parts stores for quick replacement during emergencies. It will save you time and money.
Drawbacks of halogen fog lights:
Although halogen fog lights are cost-effective and easy to replace, they are not all positive. It emits low brightness, which often can hinder your sighting in bad weather situations.
Lower Brightness:
Halogen fog lights are generally less bright compared to LEDs. At the same wattage, you will get 1/4th of the brightness from the halogen fog lights than the LED ones. Unfortunately, this low output will reduce your visibility and riding safety too.
Also, weather conditions might further reduce visibility in heavy fog or rain.
Shorter Lifespan:
Halogen bulbs have a shorter lifespan compared to LEDs. These fog lights will typically last around 500 to 1,000 hours. So, you will need to replace them more frequently, which can be a problem. However, they still run for years, which is a smaller issue. The bigger issue is their energy consumption.
Higher Power Consumption:
Halogen bulbs consume more power than LEDs. For instance, if your LED halogen consumes 12W, the halogen ones will need 50W to 60W to generate the same illumination. So, it will strain the vehicle’s electrical system and lead to reduced fuel efficiency.
It will further drain the battery faster, which is the last thing you want in longer rides.
LED Vs. Halogen Fog Lights: Which One You Should Use?
| Criteria | LED Fog Lights | Halogen Fog Lights |
| Brightness | 75-90 lumens per watt | 16-24 lumens per watt |
| Energy Efficiency | Uses 25% of the energy of halogen bulbs | Moderate to high |
| Lifespan | Long (25,000 – 50,000 hours) | Short (500 – 1,000 hours) |
| Instant Illumination | Yes | It takes 5 to 10 seconds to reach peak brightness |
| Initial Cost | Higher | Lower |
| Replacement Cost | Lower (bulbs), Higher (assembly) | Lower (bulbs) |
| Availability | It may not be available at all car shops | Halogen bulbs are widely available |
| Weather Dependence | Minimal | More pronounced |
| Power Consumption | It consumes only a little wattage, around 12-12W | It needs around 50W to 60W on average |
As the discussion shows, LED fog lights are a better vehicle choice. With LED fog lights, you can enjoy maximum brightness and longevity and don’t need to depend on the weather to see through the road signs. Although their initial upfront cost is higher, LED fog lights bring safety and comfort to your riding, which is worth their investment.
Final thoughts
LED vs. halogen fog lights, which one should you choose? You can choose both, but we recommend you get the LED ones. It will offer you better visibility in bad weather conditions, ensure higher brightness, and consume less power.
However, if you run tight on budget, you can still use the standard halogen fog lights. Just maintain the fog lights regularly to keep up their brightness.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
- Are LED fog lights brighter than halogen fog lights?
Yes, LED fog lights are generally brighter than halogen fog lights. LEDs produce a more focused and intense beam of light to improve visibility in foggy conditions. You can expect 5X to 10X more brightness with LED fog lights.
- Are LED fog lights more energy-efficient?
Yes, LED fog lights are more energy-efficient compared to halogen fog lights. They will only consume 25% of the energy required for the halogen fog lights.
- Is it legal to use LED fog lights instead of halogen ones?
You can install LED fog lights instead of the standard halogen ones. You will only need to choose between white or amber fog lights, and that’s all.
