Anyone bothered by the poor front LED lights?

[raikobg]

Adaptive LED Headlights (matrix headlights) are, after the Head-Up Display, the car’s best feature.

You lucky

 

[chickdr]

I just did a little googling and while it seems matrix headlights were approved in the USA in 2022, there are special stipulations which keep them away from the market unless they are specifically designed for US cars. I don't think Mazda sells any cars in the US with matrix lighting. If they do, please link something to prove it. I couldn't find anything about it on the MazdaUSA web site and I think if they did offer it, it would certainly be listed on the features/specifications list. Of course they have auto hi-beam and AFS which pivots the lights around corners, but this is not the matrix feature we are talking about here. I don't believe the 22 on versions have this feature either, not does the CX-90, which is a much newer design.

 

[hsdejong]

Mazda CX-3 ALH in action (how it works)

 

[TheMAN]

Totally agree! This advanced matrix-type LED headlight setup, or adaptive driving beam (ADB) headlights, is so much better than all the LED headlights we can see here in the US. And it’s been available in Europe and Asia for more than 10 years now but we can’t have it here until recently due to our outdated DOT headlight regulations.

US DOT and NHTSA finally updated the headlight regulations in 2022 which will let this advanced matrix-type LED headlights become legal like Mazda’s ALH which has been available for many years outside the NA market.

You can see this feature as an optional equipment in Lexus vehicles in the US if I remember it correctly.

no it's not... NHTSA is part of "DOT" and the updated FMVSS 108 does not harmonize nor allows the use of ADBs that follow UN regulations, completely ignoring congress's mandate... they decided, despite all automakers and SAE lobbying that because UN ADBs weren't invented here, they weren't good enough/safe and decided to dream up with their own crazy design spec that no automaker has made a single headlamp that follows those regulations... thus, the US has no ADB headlights on the market

Canada's CMVSS 108 does allow UN ADBs though, and a very small number of cars sold there now have those proper ADB headlamps

 

[TheMAN]

I just did a little googling and while it seems matrix headlights were approved in the USA in 2022, there are special stipulations which keep them away from the market unless they are specifically designed for US cars. I don't think Mazda sells any cars in the US with matrix lighting. If they do, please link something to prove it. I couldn't find anything about it on the MazdaUSA web site and I think if they did offer it, it would certainly be listed on the features/specifications list. Of course they have auto hi-beam and AFS which pivots the lights around corners, but this is not the matrix feature we are talking about here. I don't believe the 22 on versions have this feature either, not does the CX-90, which is a much newer design.

correct, "not invented here" syndrome at play again, despite lobbying efforts and proven safety effectiveness (everyone was screaming to NHTSA to adopt/allow UN ADBs)... the US regulations knee caps ADBs to the point that it's not worth making them and putting them on the market

 

[TheMAN]

Mazda CX-3 ALH in action (how it works)

that's not in the US, so it doesn't matter for americans except adding more jealously lol... US regulations are very different, and so headlight beam pattern are very different compared to the UN (European) ones... so, the headlight performance will be quite different

 

[ADS-B]

Just to understand...Is everybody talking about the low-beams, right? Right...
I actually believe that the old halogen bulb has more throw than the LED. But LED is bright, white, fancy, cool, modern, last longer...

 

[N7turbo]

That was not the case on my 2014, however I did not have the "tech" package, if that had fancier headlights.

 

[yrwei52]

Just to understand...Is everybody talking about the low-beams, right? Right...

No, not just low-beams and high-beams. Watch the CX-3 ALH video in post #23 above.

 

[yrwei52]

correct, "not invented here" syndrome at play again, despite lobbying efforts and proven safety effectiveness (everyone was screaming to NHTSA to adopt/allow UN ADBs)... the US regulations knee caps ADBs to the point that it's not worth making them and putting them on the market

Wow, that’s too bad! I always thought DOT / NHTSA has approved the adaptive matrix LED headlights and we eventually will get it very soon, NOT!

 

[ADS-B]

No, not just low-beams and high-beams. Watch the CX-3 ALH video in post #23 above.

I know the video, I've seen it before. Maybe I misunderstood the thread name, "bothered by the poor front LED lights". I assumed that the driver would like to see the road better, poor visibility. And I think LED is not the solution, not the current LED bulbs, anyway. By comparison, a halogen bulb (low beam) has a longer throw, you can see further down the road. And the high-beam halogen, pff, miles apart from the LED high-beam.

 

[yrwei52]

I know the video, I've seen it before. Maybe I misunderstood the thread name, "bothered by the poor front LED lights". I assumed that the driver would like to see the road better, poor visibility. And I think LED is not the solution, not the current LED bulbs, anyway. By comparison, a halogen bulb (low beam) has a longer throw, you can see further down the road. And the high-beam halogen, pff, miles apart from the LED high-beam.

Somehow I have to agree with you on this. But ALH with no moving parts is a lot more advanced for headlight design, even if it uses LED arrays.