headlight braking - it works for NASA...
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Joined: Oct 2000
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From: Austin
For maximum efficiency in braking your vehicle you should use your headlights in addition to your normal brakes.
When you turn on your HID's you are exerting the same type of force as solar sails use. Of course, that might be in absence of all matter out in space, but small factors should apply. If you fiddle around with E=mc2, you find that the force light exerts is the power of the sunlight divided by the speed of light. For light in particular, that little bit of mass moves very fast through space; when it is emitted from your headlights it exerts a force, just like fast ping-pong balls bouncing off a wall. So just turning on your headlights will slow you down by the act of the light hitting something in front of you, even just the air. The mass of your car is also lowered by losing all the photons that you are emitting. And we all know that lowering your mass is a good thing and allows for better braking and accelerating as well as better over all handling.
By this logic, you are better off with the brightest headlights you can get and the more the better. Ideally you would have a car with lots of headlights and driving/fog lights. So, when you see the cars with lots of lights on the front you will now know that they are just adding to the safety of their cars by having additional braking.
When you turn on your HID's you are exerting the same type of force as solar sails use. Of course, that might be in absence of all matter out in space, but small factors should apply. If you fiddle around with E=mc2, you find that the force light exerts is the power of the sunlight divided by the speed of light. For light in particular, that little bit of mass moves very fast through space; when it is emitted from your headlights it exerts a force, just like fast ping-pong balls bouncing off a wall. So just turning on your headlights will slow you down by the act of the light hitting something in front of you, even just the air. The mass of your car is also lowered by losing all the photons that you are emitting. And we all know that lowering your mass is a good thing and allows for better braking and accelerating as well as better over all handling.
By this logic, you are better off with the brightest headlights you can get and the more the better. Ideally you would have a car with lots of headlights and driving/fog lights. So, when you see the cars with lots of lights on the front you will now know that they are just adding to the safety of their cars by having additional braking.
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Joined: Oct 2000
Posts: 7,134
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From: Columbia, MD
This is why I don't run at night with my headlights on (it slows me down). I just removed my emergency brake and replaced it with one of those Hollywood spotlights...a dear runs into the road, and I click the light on...so far I've missed hitting three deer (and got a nice Bar-B-Que dinner out of it...vennison anyone?) 
Joined: Feb 2001
Posts: 4,063
Likes: 365
From: Redondo Beach
Originally posted by Tedster
Hmmm, how about disconnecting the wiring to the brake lights, and hooking it up to the headlights? I think we're on to something here...
Hmmm, how about disconnecting the wiring to the brake lights, and hooking it up to the headlights? I think we're on to something here...
Another tip: in addition to using the HIDs, pull and hold the hi-beam switch during braking: this keeps BOTH sets of headlamps on!
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