What is your choice of flashlight for your car?

Didn’t you make a post on this, or maybe I’m thinking of someone else?

I used to keep a C8 in my center console, but then got concerned about Li-ion battery safety. Then I stuck a smaller AA flashlight with an eneloop in the glovebox. And now I have a 3 AAA eneloop headlamp in the glovebox.

The last time I needed a flashlight in the car was when my wife’s car was making some strange noises. I got under the car about a mile from home to see what was going on. I struggled a little holding the flashlight and moving around.

And then I thought what if I needed to put a spare tire on in the dark. I guess I could put the flashlight in my mouth. :slightly_smiling_face:

That’s when I decided to put headlamps in our cars.

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It’s that time so I was going to look for this string (I swear there is a more recent string). I keep 2 of the least expensive light purchases I’ve made in my vehicle for their dual fuel capabilities and the HP12 was a low bid price on Ebay, also a dual fuel light.


I think having a good thrower in the vehicle is a must and the Utilitech, originally a 3C burner, is using a copper tubing spacer with an 18650 when it’s cool and 3x AA Energizer primaries for the heat. It has a 4A Convoy driver which is good enough to drive the XP-L HI.

A little over 100 if I remember correctly. In full sun.
And yes I did a post on this a few years ago - same graph.

One really scorcher of a day (like 115) - the asphalt outside my building got to 170!
Won’t fry an egg but will sure cook one.
All the Best,
Jeff

Dual AA option, not a headlamp

Convoy T4 dual AA or dual 14500:
available in Titanium:

(driver is updated to also work w Lithium primary, the ones on Neals site do not)

also available in Aluminum:

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Because temperature goes from -30°C up to 30°C here I prefer to cary a light in which I can but an Energizer Lithium AA. This battery can handle lots of temperature variation. Right now I cary an old Fenix L1D in one car and an old Fenix LD41 on the other car. Also, I cary myself with at least two EDC lights.

I think the best one would be a 1xAA headlamp.

the AA/14500 Skilhunt H150 is my choice, because it comes w 519a 4500K, which I like to DeDome:

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Dome light in my truck has been an Olight Swivel for the past two, maybe two and a half years. Doubles as under hood light, and almost any other work light(I Always have a headlamp and at least one handheld on me)

I’ve not had any usage or keeping a charge issues from 90F(ambient, no idea of in cab temp) to -35F. At -40 to -55 It would loose its charge in a couple weeks sitting as opposed to sitting for months… But once warmed up, it would double in shown charge, but still be lower than it would have been for the same time frame at say 0F. So effect of the cold directly on working voltage, not on actually lost capacity, at least not overall? Something like that lol. Generally I ignore it for months, use it maybe 5 minutes,10 minutes max a day, every day or two… Thats on medium, on the side COB emiter. Perfectly fine.

Not sure of effects on usage in the heat, since any time we get above 65F, it is literally light 24 hours a day. I never really need it much, it basically sits unused for about 3 months. Which I guess means its not losing much, any time I can remember checking its charge in the summer, its like 90%. (built in battery meter, sealed in battery, accuracy unknown lol)

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OLight Baton 4. More than enough lumens, small size so I can store it anywhere, magnetic tail cap and easy to clip to hat if need to go hands free. Great topic, I like hearing what everyone else prefers for their vehicle.

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Vehicles each have an old Streamlight 2xAA loaded with Energizer primary lithium batteries. I check them every birthday. I can’t remember when, if ever, I really used one of them, as if I need a light my EDC is first to be used.

No li-ions as summer van ne a real cooker and winters cold enough to reduce their crlls capacity…

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Never had a backup flashlight in the car…I think I would go with S2+ or FC11. Maybe I’d prefer the FC11 because with the magnetic tailcap you can attach it to the car if you need it.

I have an EagleTac with 2 x CR123A in my glove compartment. My trusted Fandyvoy (Fandyfire/Convoy Frankenstein) with 18650 in the center console. And of course the EagleTac D25C Ti with CR123A in my BOB.

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I’ll stick with my original reply #73 or whatever,

Whichever light is on me is my “car light”.

If I had to recommend one, it’d be a 2AA light with alkaleaks(!), but the “in use” cells kept outside the light in a baggie, and a 2nd set in a separate baggie.

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Convoy S2+ and a Li-Ion cell charged to 3.9v, checked every couple of months.

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Car lights for me are18650 lights I don’t like enough to use. 2 per car. Either I don’t like the size or UI or emitter. They have USB charging just because why not, the phone charger is there already. Never had issues with heat or cold here in Pa. Check them every time I’m bored waiting in the car for my wife to shop T.J. Max or the like.

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Nothing smaller than 18650. In the wife’s vehicle. wurkkos FC 11, Hd15 headlight and a lumintop GT mini.
In my vehicle I have all of those plus about four more including an acebeam w30 lep.
If the concern is heat and cold, just think of all the contractor vehicles out there to include carpenters, electricians, plumbers and other contractors that have all manner of lithium ion battery operated drills and saws ect. They are in there every day of the week all year long.
I keep battery operated tools in there as well as a Lithium-Ion jump starter.
The only extra precaution I take is that I only charge things to about 90 to 95%. So for the flashlights that’s 4.0 volts or maybe a little higher. For the jump starter that’s a little under 16 volts versus the 16.35 volts that it terminates at. The power tools get used often enough and the batteries are in sad shape so I don’t worry too much about them having to sit at full voltage.
Edit. Since the jump starter is a series of four pouches you would think that they would be terminating at 16.8 volts. So they may already be terminating things at 95% even though it reads full. I think my other jump starter might terminate at 16.5 or so but reads 100%. So they probably have already taken this into consideration.

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Reading you all’s responses does make me think about what I keep in there. I wouldn’t likely have a thrower if I lived in a densely populated place and I look forward to spot-lighting something… related to my post about wildlife. My SP31 just might get replaced with a magtail cap light. IDK. The headlight, still, is a must.
Like Henk4U2, I have some Eagletac lights that are perfect but expensive.
In reality, my car lights don’t get used much in the summer but it’s great to have good quality ones at the ready.

Headlamps are great for cars. Not as much fun as changing a tire in the dark with a mini-Mag in your teeth.
All the Best,
Jeff

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Joke’s on you. I don’t even have a spare tyre so I don’t have to worry about that, Ha! /s

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Although I’d rather sacrifice an older Li-ion, I measured 4.3A+ with some eneloops or 3A+ with some Amazon NiMH in the 3C thrower. Perhaps I need to look up NiMH and its tolerance for closed car temperatures.