Seat: This is how the light of your car 🎥
TESTING IN BLACK DARKNESS Seat is testing a new full-LED lighting concept in Alqueva, Portugal, where the nights are particularly dark. The ambience lighting of upcoming models from the Spaniards is also being revised. The pitch-black darkness in Portugal offers ideal test conditions for new lighting systems. The Alqueva Dark Sky Reserve in Portugal is a special place. Due to the low light pollution, the [...]
The deep black eclipse in Portugal offers optimal test conditions for new lighting systems.
The Alqueva Dark Sky Reserve in Portugal is a special place. Due to low light pollution, the nights there are extremely dark, the starry sky clearer than almost anywhere else on the continent.
But this inky blackness doesn't just attract scientists and tourists - Seat engineers also find good test conditions for new lighting systems there.
Fourth generation lighting concept
The points of light that the Seat team observed in Alqueva were the LED lights of the headlights and taillights of the current Leon model.
Team leader Carlos Elvira: "In the darkness of Alqueva, we were able to see that the lighting concept of the fourth generation Seat Leon shines even in the most difficult visibility conditions. This is due to the range and diameter of the headlights' light cone."
More light points on a much smaller area
The Leon's all-LED technology meets high standards of safety and comfort and also opens up new possibilities for designers.
Magnolia Paredes, head of electronics development and lighting, says, "Thanks to all-LED technology, we can fit many more light points into a much smaller area, allowing us to develop more efficient lighting concepts."
In total, the team invested around 2,500 working hours in perfecting the Leon's vehicle lighting. A further 800 hours were taken up by testing - either in the company's own light tunnel or on public roads.
LED lights are characterized by higher performance compared to the conventional lighting. In addition, their light cone can be aligned more flexibly and precisely, and the white light almost reaches daylight. The shorter response time of the LED also provides additional safety in the vehicle.
Important safety functions in the interior
LED lights also perform important safety functions in the interior. The current fourth generation of the Leon is equipped with all-round ambient lighting that runs in the form of an arc from the front doors to the top of the dashboard.
Says Magnolia Paredes, "This ambient lighting combines light signals with audible warnings to alert drivers, for example, that a vehicle door is not properly closed or that a vehicle is approaching from behind when they are about to get out of the car." The hue of the ambient lighting can also be varied.
Carlos Elvira: "The light intensity will increase the faster the vehicle is traveling. In this way, we want to make the driver more aware of his driving speed."
