adding Spots to a Civic

yak

Hey all,

Just looking for a bit of advice, I drive a 01 Civic saloon and i'm thinking about getting a set of front 'spots' but have no idea where to start or even if its a good idea?? I do a good bit of night driving would they help with visability or just be a hinderance? would they be expensive to install etc?

all information welcome...

Thnx

overdriver

Unless you're driving dark country roads wiuth no other traffic on them, I wouldn't bother.
They will be part of your next NCT, as regards focus etc.

yak

well a lot of it is country road driving... my lights arent the best at the moment, but service said there was no problem wtih them... that part of what put the idea of spots into my head.

would they be of any benifit? or are there other easier/cheap methods of improving light brightness/quality?

JHMEG

Cheapest way to improve lighting is to stick in a set of 100w/80w bulbs. I drove with them (perfectly legal in Ireland) for 3 years in my Civic.

Failing that, get the Honda fogs. Expensive-ish, but worth it.

jayok

The "spots" you mention won't throw that much extra light. They will simply illuminate the immediate front of the car. Not much use unless you are in heavy-rain or fog.

If you wish to improve the light output replace your existing light-bulbs with better output ones. You can technically got to 100/80Ws as they are not illegal here, but if your headlights are misaligned you'll really p1ss other drivers off. Alternatively replace the existing bulbs with super bright 60/55W ones, basically the will give a better dispersion of light and add a nice bit of luminance. I done this to my Civic and only cost €20 for the pair. I also have "front spots" / "fog lamp" they do little for regular driving - the lightbulb upgrade was far better.

Incidentally, the front fog alignment while specificed on the NCT has never been tested for me.

JHMEG

I'd have to disagree there with you jayo.. the wife's '03 Civic Saloon (which you only drove during the day:p ) has factory fogs which are super. They light up parts of the road that the main beams don't. Especially low down and into the ditches. Which makes them good for back roads.

Would have to disagree with you about the super bright lights too. If you want more light, you need more power, ie watts. The very very few bulbs that are 60/55 that put out more light don't last... "the light that burns twice as bright burns half as long" scenario.

jayok

Well it must be the speed that you are driving at!

At regular speed, fogs lamps don't throw light out to the same distance as dips, unless they are misaligned. Have had fogs on the 98, 00, 03 and 04 Civics, I can safely say the make feck all different to driving (unless in fog) In addition even the fogs on the folks HR-V make feck all difference to the drive, except of course in the first 1-2 meters in front of the car. Maybe its a comfort thing that people feel they throw out sufficient light, but personally I don't think they do.

As for the super-bright, yep the 100/80W will throw more light of course, but I wouldn't write the super brights off. I used to have 100/80s in the 98 and 99 Civic but the super brights I actually find better.

Jeez, now that I type the years of the Civic, I need to get something else beyond the Civic. Maybe a BMW

jayok

Could you be experiencing this?

"Some foreground light is necessary so you can use your peripheral vision to see where you are relative to the road edges, the lane markings and that pothole 10 feet in front of your left wheels. But foreground light is far less safety-critical than light cast well down the road into the distance, because at any significant speed (much above 30 mph), what's in the foreground is too close for you to do much about. If you increase the foreground light, your pupils react to the bright, wide pool of light by constricting, which in turn substantially reduces your distance vision—especially since there's no increase in down-the-road distance light to go along with the increased foreground light. It's insidious, because high levels of foreground light give the illusion, the subjective impression, of comfort and security and "good lighting"."

http://www.danielsternlighting.com/tech/lights/fog_lamps/fog_lamps.html

I'll get my coat...

bazz26

yak wrote:

Hey all,

Just looking for a bit of advice, I drive a 01 Civic saloon and i'm thinking about getting a set of front 'spots' but have no idea where to start or even if its a good idea?? I do a good bit of night driving would they help with visability or just be a hinderance? would they be expensive to install etc?

all information welcome...

Thnx

Honda do a front fog light aftermarket kit for 01 - 05 Civic saloon. They fit via a braket into the radiator vent located in the front bumper underneath the number plate.

Like this:


They may be expensive though. You could try eBay for a similar product that costs alot less.

Stephen

Cheapest and easiest way to improve light output: Clean your headlights regularly!

overdriver

It's illegal to have front fogs on, unless its foggy.

It BeeMee

jayok wrote:

I can safely say the make feck all different to driving (unless in fog)

jayok wrote:

"Some foreground light is necessary so you can use your peripheral vision to see where you are relative to the road edges, the lane markings and that pothole 10 feet in front of your left wheels. But foreground light is far less safety-critical than light cast well down the road into the distance, because at any significant speed (much above 30 mph), what's in the foreground is too close for you to do much about. If you increase the foreground light, your pupils react to the bright, wide pool of light by constricting, which in turn substantially reduces your distance vision—especially since there's no increase in down-the-road distance light to go along with the increased foreground light. It's insidious, because high levels of foreground light give the illusion, the subjective impression, of comfort and security and "good lighting"."

http://www.danielsternlighting.com/tech/lights/fog_lamps/fog_lamps.html

It's a pity a lot more people don't realise this.....

Henry Ford III

overdriver wrote:

It's illegal to have front fogs on, unless its foggy.

Excellent. Well said.

yak

thanx for all the input/information lads, I really appreciate it.

Looks like i will be saving myself a few quid, and just getting a couple of new bulbs, at least for the time being anyway!!