In 2009 ARB engineers started a development program to produce an ARB driving light with a completely new design
incorporating the latest LED technologies.
Unlike light bars that were growing in popularity, ARB required a light that was compatible with current bull bar designs and
traditional driving light mounting points. They also needed to be a legal fitment which, in many countries, light bars are not.
Many ARB customers prefer a combination of a spot and spread driving light due to the various driving conditions
encountered in general 4WDing. Most LED light bars on the market are considered great lights for slower off road driving
where the ability to see great distances is not so critical. For ARB’s new light to compete with the best the market can offer in
Halogen and HID lighting, it needed to give not only the broad flood beam associated with light bars but also a spot beam with
the ability to penetrate longer distances.
Integral to the design was the need for the light to be robust and suited to the conditions encountered off road like the
constant vibrations of corrugated roads, animal strikes and the ability to be submersed. With the general abuse that off road
driving can dish out, the light also needed to be serviceable.
During the development stage, many advances in LED and optics design meant that the LED array and circuitry changed
numerous times. With many tens of thousands to be invested in tooling, this meant that the design of the light body needed to
be ‘future proofed’ so that further advances in technology would not require re-tooling.