LEDs also illuminate more quickly than conventional bulbs, which means a fraction of a second of extra reaction time for a driver behind you.

If you ever watch a car that has a mix of both types of lights, you can see the difference. For instance, I think some of the GMT800 pickups/suvs have arrow-shaped LED indicators in the side mirrors, along with regular bulb rear taillight/brakelight/indicator assemblies. You can see the arrow light up a bit quicker than the normal turn signal.

 

Turning into the most intresting & informative thread here in awhile.

Actually we used the red flashlights because the light didn't spread out and wasn't as visible at distance as white lights are. At sea on a clear night, the visible range of a cigarette lighter is 15-20 miles.

Eric, you're right about green lights (our night vision binoculars were green because of this). My reference to red should have been more specific.

 

I thought one of the reasons was also that red does not spoil your eyes' night vision like white and other colours do.

 

Actually some cars and SUVs have rear fog lights that are red. They are usually seperate from the taillights, and placed lower. The last generation of Olds Aurora had them, they seem to be somewhat brighter than the brake lights.

 

Red light better preserves night vision, but isn't much good at lighting up green things like grass and trees. Matching light color to subject increases effectiveness for objects of that color. For hiking in the woods, a green light would work great. If you're trying to find something red in the woods, use a red light.