Lighting car dealerships is a double-edged challenge. The showroom and workshop require distinct lighting. Automobile dealerships must equip themselves with high-end lighting systems to ensure that their vehicles are showcased in the best possible light and that the repair and maintenance installations have proper lighting to carry out repair work. Each one of these spaces has a separate function, which raises the bar for lighting up automobile dealers!
The Showroom
This is the area where automobiles need to look their best to attract customers and deliver a sale at the end of the day!
The selected lighting system for your car dealership has a formidable role to play. Light that shines down on the cars must reveal their finest features flawlessly.
To achieve this desired result, the dealer will need to opt for several strategies:
- Intermix direct and indirect lighting
- Select distinct light colors and intensities
- Make optimal use of the color rendering index and color temperatures
Specialists recommend that car dealerships choose a lighting system that allows potential customers to discern various automobile colors. Both a Color Rendering Index (CRI) of 90 or higher and a light level between 800 and 1100 lux (80 and 110 foot-candles) give a clearer visual appreciation of color shades.
Highlighting the car’s colors is done carefully to avoid needless glare and undue luminosity on other surfaces. To achieve the best visual effect, lighting specialists recommend the installation of beams coupled with projectors in your car dealership’s showroom lighting system.
Ultimately, we highly recommend the installation of an adaptable lighting system, as vehicles and showroom installations are often rearranged. A flexible system is easier to adjust and control.
The Garage
For this area of a dealership, the ideal lighting arrangement is one that ensures that each mechanic’s work space is optimally illuminated. As is the case for work spaces such as a garage, there is also a need to ensure workers’ safety. Thus, the lighting system of your car dealership must satisfy this requirement.
Considering the type of work that is done in this space, all luminaires installed must be vapor-tight and water- and dust-resistant. With this in mind, luminaires with an Ingress Protection Index (IP) of 65 or higher are the ideal choice. Moreover, these luminaires have a longer life span and require less maintenance.
Lighting specialists will invariably recommend that dealers install a variety of lighting across their dealership. Bright lights are best for work with special auto parts that are small or difficult to distinguish. In these cases, lighting with a minimum of 500 lux (50 foot-candles) may be the best option in workshop garages.
Particularities
LED options are the most recommended for the dealership showroom or the workshop garage. This technology allows users to better control and adjust light levels to suit their needs. In addition, it requires far less maintenance than the traditional technologies as its life-span is much longer. This is a major feature because both automobile dealership showrooms and their workshop garages have very high ceilings; access to luminaires can be difficult.
This is why LED lighting systems are the most recommended durable and economical solution for car dealerships.
As you can see, automobile dealers are faced with a host of choices. In the end, though, better lighting means greater savings! Contact us for a free energy audit and we’ll help you select the best lighting for your car dealership.
