When you look at your car or other vehicles on the road it's easy to take the spotlights for granted, but if you're like me then you might see a little bit more the next time you're blinded by an oncoming driver.

Car Spotlights are often times mistaken as having always been electric, and if you're one of the people who thinks this, you would in fact be wrong. The very first spotlights for cars were actually created back in the late 1800's which were acetylene and/or oil fueled. This was the best option at the time because the fuel was able to burn through the harsh winds and rain elements (unlike a traditional wax candle).

Even when electric headlamps were finally invented, they weren't mass produced for another 10-15 years because the necessary resources and technology just wasn't around to make this a viable enough option for day to day use. It wasn't until Cadillac brought the fully electric car wiring system to market in 1912 that Car Spotlights became more widespread and standard.  

Headlights have come a long way since the primitive days of acetylene and oil but the overall goal of the headlamps has remained the same; illuminate dark roads, and increase the drivability of all vehicles with intentions of creating a safer operating environment for everyone.

Nowadays, not only are there regular spotlights, but there’s high beam spotlights and low beams. The low beam spotlight is designed with other drivers in mind and it’s  required by law for all vehicles to have these. If you’ve ever been driving at night and had a blinding light shining in your eyes, the chances are, the oncoming car had their high beams on, and not their low beams.

What the low beams do, is they allow you to illuminate the road that’s immediately in front of you so you can safely navigate without endangering oncoming traffic. These low beams are also sometimes referred to as ‘dipped beams’ because of their design and the way they illuminate. In North America, for example, the low beams are dipped to the right because you’re only ever going to have oncoming traffic from your left, where as, in parts of Europe the low beams are dipped to the left in order to accommodate the oncoming traffic from the right side of the road. Which ever side of the road you’re driving on, that’s the direction in which your low beam car spotlights are most likely dipped (unless of course you’re driving your car from England in the US).