The present invention relates to a lighting device (100, 200, 300) comprising a split lighting engine with at least two thermally separated sub-engines (104, 106, 202, 204, 206, 302). Each sub-engine comprises at least one solid state light source (114, 212, 306) and a component (118, 210, 304) adapted to regulate electric current or power to the at least one solid state light source (114, 212, 306), so that the sub-engines (104, 106, 202, 204, 206, 302) are individually drivable based on a thermal environment of each sub-engine.