Makita quietly launched 2 new cordless LED work lights that are designed for underhood lighting applications.
The new Makita DML818 light is coming to the 18V platform, and the ML012G is coming to the XGT 40V Max platform.
What’s the difference?
The Makita 18V underhood light delivers up to 1700 lumens of brightness, has 7 adjustable rotating angles, and folds in the middle.
The Makita XGT work light appears to be exactly the same, except for the battery interface.
From Makita’s specs comparison, the 18V and XGT are effectively the same.
The only difference I can tell, aside from battery platform, is that the XGT model costs $10 more. The 18V work light is $209, and the XGT model is $219.
These are both underhood-style automotive work lights, but you can use however you please.
Both lights come with a separate telescoping clamping hook.
Or, you can use a carrying strap to suspend the work light in midair while you work.
Makita also shows off the light free-standing on a shop floor.
Regarding the different positioning options, Makita’s product manager for drilling, fastening, and expansion is quoted in online press materials as saying:
These new lights are a technician’s best friend to provide hands-free, bright light where needed, and offer options to fit any almost any tricky mounting area.
Runtime for the 18V work light is said to be up to 31 hours on low and 6 on high with a 4Ah (72 Whr) battery.
Runtime for the XGT work light is said to be up to 65 hours on low and 13 on high with a 4Ah (144 Whr, 18V 8Ah-equivalent) battery.
Price: $209 (18V), $219 (XGT)
ETA: Available Now
Discussion
Objectively speaking, the designs look the part. You get multiple light outputs, 2 lighting bars that can illuminated separately or together, and 7 rotating illumination angles.
Personally, I really dislike multi-part underhood lights, as they take up a lot more storage space and require a couple of extra steps to attach to a vehicle hood. Makita shows the lights folded up for storage, but doesn’t show any clear images of the clamping hook by itself.
The best I could find is an online drawing of the light with its clamping hook, in an online copy of the user manual. It looks like the work light can fold for more compact storage, but the hood clamp cannot.
Maybe it could kind of work as an undercarriage light, for when the car’s up on a lift, but I find such positioning to look very precarious.
Makita USA says the lights are “rugged, adjustable, and provide plenty of light in all kinds of working environments,” but doesn’t mention anything about dust or water resistance. They don’t talk about anything that might make it “rugged” or suited for “all kinds of working environments.”
Makita says you can also attach it to multiple surfaces “including on a jobsite” or “a chain link fence,” but they don’t show any examples of this. How exactly is the underhood work light attaching to a fence?
Why does the XGT model cost $10 more for the same features, brightness, and dimensions?
Do you agree that this light is going to be “a technician’s best friend?”
Overall, this looks like a swing and a miss to me, but let’s try to be open-minded. If you’re on Makita’s 18V or XGT platforms, at least now you now have an underhood LED worklight option that works with your batteries.
