automobile lights

fmlondon | 02:02 Sun 08th Apr 2007 | History

2 Answers

When did headlights first appear on automobiles?

Civics and economics

automobile duel tail lights

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jno

1880s

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Headlights

fmlondon

Question Author

Thank you. But do you mean head lamps, or carriage lamps, on each side of the firewall?

I guess what I mean by head lamps is that they were brighter than kerosene lamps, as used in carriage or side lamps and tail lamp. Somewhere, in the 1890s, carbide generators were placed on running boards, water was dripped on calcium carbide in the generators, creating a gas which glowed much brighter than previous lamps. As far as I know, these carbide lamps were the first bright head lamps. However, if there were earlier versions, I would love to know about them. If the carbide lamps were the first, in what year were they first used on cars, and which car first offered them as either standard equipment or options when you purchased their cars?

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