Xenon Lamps - BMW SERIE 7 2001 Manual

Xenon lamps

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194n
The xenon lamps light up the side and
front areas of the vehicle with signifi-
cantly more brightness and uniformity
than the traditional halogen lamp.
In a xenon lamp, an electric arc re-
places the filament in order to generate
intense illumination. A gas mixture in a
quartz glass tube with metal vapor is ig-
nited by a high electric voltage. The arc
that is generated is then sustained by a
lower voltage. When the lamp is turned
on there is a brief warm-up period.
Maximum brightness is attained in ap-
prox. 15 seconds.
Xenon lamps provide significantly-im-
proved visibility, especially during ad-
verse weather conditions and driving
situations (driving at night in heavy rain
or through road repair areas where
there are no lane markers, for instance).
Vehicles with xenon lamps are
equipped with automatic-dynamic
headlamp range control. As a result, the
highway is always optimally lighted, re-
gardless of load conditions, and drivers
in oncoming traffic are not blinded.
Xenon lamps make a significant contri-
bution to highway safety since other
highway users, bicyclists and motorcy-
clists in the right lane, and pedestrians
are more easily detected.
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