Technical Bulletin

Globe Maintenance And Safety

Keeping vehicles safe and roadworthy – globe maintenance tips from OSRAM.

Regularly checking globe function should form part of any regular vehicle maintenance program whether for cars, motorcycles, trucks, agricultural and construction vehicles or recreational vehicles.

Checking globes is a fast and simple exercise and so should be applied to every vehicle going through the workshop for servicing

Not only are faulty globes a potential danger for the driver, their passengers and other road users – particularly heading into winter with reduced light and more challenging road conditions – if a globe is blown or not working properly, the vehicle becomes unroadworthy and your customer could be issued with a defect notice.

As a leading manufacturer and supplier of automotive globes, OSRAM has the following tips for maintaining and replacing globes.

Change In Pairs

OSRAM strongly recommends changing globes in pairs and encourages garage and service centres to take advantage of these profit opportunities. Both headlights are subject to the same stresses, so they’ll both be deteriorating together. Replacing just one failed globe can result in an unbalanced or unpredictable headlight beam that can cause serious hazards for the driver and other road users.

A vehicle is designed so that it works best when both headlights are functioning equally. Only then will the driver get the full advantage of the combined headlight beam on the road ahead.

If It’s Not Bright, It’s Not Right

OSRAM encourages periodic checking of all lights on a vehicle, including headlights, stop, tail and reversing globes. OSRAM testing shows that a standard halogen globe loses 30 per cent of rightness after 500 hours of use – therefore it makes sense to be proactive when it comes to checking that all lighting is functioning as it should be.

And with the average age of cars in Australia being over 10 years old and trucks almost 15 years old, it is essential that lights are regularly checked and replaced.

Upgrade To Better Vision

For these older vehicles in particular, OSRAM recommends a lighting upgrade. In many cases there are ‘plug and play’ solutions for these vehicle that can cost effectively see them upgraded to a higher standard halogen globe that offers increased/better quality light outputand longevity, or even to an L.E.D globe alternative which further lifts performance.

It’s common knowledge and well accepted that a brighter and whiter light output more closely resembling daylight, effectively reduces fatigue and assist vision on the road, keeping motorists and other members of the public safe.

For motorists living in more rural and regional areas, where roads are often unlit and there’s a risk of animal strikes, upgraded lighting is even more beneficial, so it is important that garages and workshops are proactive in this space and offer motorists lighting upgrade options.

When offered a lighting upgrade and the associated safety benefits are explained, customers are likely to go for the upgrade, according to OSRAM data.

Further information on the OSRAM globe range is available at www.osram.com/am

The OSRAM automotive lighting range is distributed in Australia by Brown & Watson International.

Contact 1800 113 443 or for more info mail on info@brownwatson.com.au

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