Rechargeable LED flashlight for vehicle?

Was out the other night on a quick trip to a friends,well I left the house with only my wallet and wouldn't you know it. I needed a light and my Ray o Vac 3C was in the truck. Anyway,the batteries in my R.O.V. were dying fast. My fault. It got me thinking about getting a new light for my truck. Any suggestions?

Inova T4

Rechargeables are not a good choice if it's for emergency use. I'd only use rechargeables on a light that will see a fair amount of use. Why? Even low self discharge NiMH's have a fair amount of loss, especially at high temperatures. I'd go with a Lithium powered light for glovebox emergencies using either CR123's or AA Lithiums.

I'd caution against rechargeables for your vehicle light because they'll tend to lead to the very problem you just experienced: dead batteries! Most rechargeable chemistries tend to self-discharge over time, so the longer you leave them in there, the more likely it is that they'll be depleted when you need them most. Since you only use the car lights once in a blue moon - but when you do, you really need them to work - I'd consider buying something that takes lithium batteries, which can sit for years and still be ready to power the light.

That said, are you looking for something with a lot of brightness - a "spotting" light - or something with extended runtime for emergencies? I generally have a Surefire 6P and a Fenix P3D in my cars. The Fenix has a loooong runtime on low, so if you're ever caught out for a night, you'll have illumination the entire time. The SF is an incan, which - for me at least - better cuts through fog and has a more tightly focused beam. In any case, with a little more info on what you want the light to do, I'm sure CPF will be able to provide you with a lot of great suggestions!

- FITP

There are a lot of good lights that will take a lithium primary. I keep a Nitecore E10 in my cars.

Alan

MagCharger is a good standby.

Inova T4 and Streamlight Strion never leave my car.

Pelican 7060, wire the charger to a circuit that's only on when the engine is running.

ledaholic said:

Inova T4

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Ditto that.

I have a T4 mounted onto the center console of my car. And a SL Stinger mounted right beside it. Always ready.

Every car needs one of these little Spotlights. I just got one last week and it's much better than I expected.
If you want a lot more power, check out this automobile rechargeable light from Kaidomain. I've had one for a few months and really like it. Runs on an 18650 cell and comes with both car and house chargers. It does use the standard P60 size drop-ins so you could switch to a different drop-in that supports 2xCR123 cells if you don't like 18650 cells.
I would recommend you stick with lithium type cells rather than alkaline or NiMh. The lithium and lithium ion rechargeables will hold their charge much longer than the other types so are a better choice for the glovebox.
Of course, that's not an issue for the Spotlight mentioned above since it's always plugged in and ready to go.

LukeA said:

Pelican 7060, wire the charger to a circuit that's only on when the engine is running.

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Yep, they also make products that will turn off things if the battery charge gets too low. So you can just leave it on the charger all the time and have a fully charged light the instant you need it.

Streamlight, Pelican, Inova, ect all make good rechargeable LEDs.


You also may wait for 5.11s new capacitor LED rechargeable light. I obviously can't recommend a product I don't own, but a 90 second charge light that doesn't self discharge sounds pretty cool.

pfccypret said:

Yep, they also make products that will turn off things if the battery charge gets too low.

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I'm interested. Where can I find something like this?

Here is one such product:

http://www.prioritystart.com/

My police department was looking at another brand that was a bit more flexible. But for the life of me, I can't remember the company name. I'll shoot you a PM if it comes to me.

pfccypret said:

Here is one such product:

http://www.prioritystart.com/

My police department was looking at another brand that was a bit more flexible. But for the life of me, I can't remember the company name. I'll shoot you a PM if it comes to me.

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Thanks! :thumbsup:

Personally, I would choose a headlamp first, preferably one that can run on lithiums such as the newer version of the PT Eos or Apex so you can avoid having to "mouth" an aluminum or oily flashlight, not so tasty or good for your teeth. You can hold a headlamp in your hand for quick tasks or wear it on your head for extended hands free work. Headlamps quite often have flashing feature and many of them are available with colored lenses for drawing attention to your presence on the side of the road and for your general safety.

Now you will notice that I said "first" about the headlamp because I always carry two lights in my car plus my keychain lights. One thing to consider is how do you feel about the safety of leaving a high price light in your car? Prime example being that my car was just broken into two nights ago and while neither my headlamp or handheld were stolen, the possibility still does exist.

I carry an Eos headlamp, old version, although I am thinking of switching to their Quad Tactical for the colored lens option as a safety feature and its increased output. I also carry a Princeton tec Impact XL, not really an impressive thrower or output monster but If I lost the light, replacing it would be quite easy and readily on sale.

A C/D cell Maglite with a decent upgrade or their led versions seem like nice options to me for the price point and replaceability factor as well. The Nuwai Q3x2Cr123A with a high/low mode would also be a nice option IMHO for the output, dual levels, and sale price at Battery Junction.

Interested in hearing what others may be thinking.

All five of our cars have only lithium powered lights in them. At least two each, one for longer runtime, one for power and throw. I've way too many non-lithium powered lights leak or be dead when I needed them. Not anymore. Skip rechargeables unless youll be using the light at least a couple of times a week.

How about the new dorcy rechargeable. www.dorcy.com/products.aspx?p=414299 It can be charge in the car. I think someone has a review on it out.

+1 Inova T4. I just got one and it is amazing. Built like a tank and comes with both AC and DC charging capability!

Beats the heck out of the one it replaced!

saabgoblin said:

my car was just broken into two nights ago

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As a fellow saaber it pains me to read this. What do you drive?