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| 2017 Honda Ridgeline - LED headlights don't melt frost or snow. |
New vehicles come with an impressive array of tech and convenience features, some of which may have unexpected benefits or even drawbacks. You can read my thoughts on some of these items in my AutoTrader article here.
One such drawback belongs to LED lighting, as exemplified by the low-beam headlights of Honda Ridgeline pictured above. This vehicle made the 15-plus minute commute to my workplace with the headlights on and still had the healthy layer of frost you see, even directly over the output area of the projector-beam lamp itself. As it turns out, part of the efficiency of LED's is a greatly reduced amount of waste heat production relative to even Xenon HID lamps, let alone conventional incandescent bulbs.
Some aftermarket LED replacements for sealed-beam style bulbs are actually offered with optional heated lenses, a useful feature as they're often used in transport trucks and emergency equipment. I'm not aware of any original equipment headlights that include that function.
This is a far greater concern with LED tail lights, which are prone to getting covered with snow in certain driving conditions. Just one unanticipated quirk of a new and improved technology...
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