Audi R8 received widely note due to the LED lighting products in the entire car. Lumileds and Osram are two major LED providers for them. Cadillac EscaladePlatinum is the first SUV that used LED as headlights. After the initial development stage, like technology validation, concept car show, etc. vehicle LED lighting products have stepped into the final stage before getting into the market. The landmark event: Toyota Lexus LS600h is the world’s first listed automobile that applied LED lamps, but only for dipped headlights, high beam lights still used halogen lamps.
Exporters denied the possibility that LED head lamps will become the dominate vehicle innovative technology immediately. They believed that even if the cost of LED lights would drop continuously in accordance with Moore’s Law, it still will cost them a long time to get to the same price level with HID lamps. Not to mention halogen lights.
In Mr. Fischer’s (CEO of Hella) words, vehicle LED lighting applications shared only a few percent lighting source market. Many LED providers have indicated interest in large quantity modes, such as GM/Chevrolet Ministry Malibu models. However, LED still needs to overcome a series of technical and cost problems to become high-volume suppliers to large quantity modes, like Malibu.
The market pace of LED was indeed slower than originally expected in 2004. It is predicted in 2004 that LED automobile lights would rush into market quite near. Obviously, the current situation is not the case. Experts believed that it is the expensive costs that keep LED from market. The technical performance is always the biggest challenging problem which needs to be overcome. In terms of current technology, the light intensity of single LED source is insufficient. This the main reason for the souring costs of vehicle LED lamps. Reduction of lighting sources of LED car lamps will contribute to enlarging space of automobile and making the design and arrangement more flexible, simplifying the installation and reducing production costs.
At present, there are several major LED providers for vehicle LED lighting applications: LED light sources equipped on Cadillac Escalade modes were produced by Osram, while Koito’s LED lamps were from Nichia, these lamps were mostly installed in Toyota’s LS600h models; LED lamps used on Audi R8 came from Lumileds.