Are car headlights too bright nowadays.......

[the_mikey]

Daylight running lights when implemented correctly are not controllable by the driver other than by turning the key in the ignition or starting the engine.

 

[DaveReading]

while one big 4x4 thing came by as I simply could not see past the end of the bonnet

Interesting that you should mention 4x4s. The fad for stupidly bright headlights is the logical extension of the philosophy that yummy mummies and their darlings should be protected by encasing them in something sufficiently huge and heavy that the other guy is guaranteed to come off worse in a collision (arguably made more likely by the way many of them drive).

So, by the same argument, an approaching driver being blinded by one's headlights is of no consequence whatsoever.

 

[Paul.G.]

Take advantage of it by wearing more reflectors!

Yes I think they are too bright and people driving with fogs on when it's clear as a bell need taking to task.

Almost every other car I see o my way home has its fog lights on but who is going to take them to task, the Police? I suppose they could if they could actually be a*#ed to get out onto the streets and do the bloody job we pay them for instead of sitting on their far ar#*s in the station watching TV, drinking coffee and eating piza. Lazy good for nothing drain on tax payers. Around here you can drive what you like, as fast as you like, as "off your face as you like" safe in the knowledge that you will never get caught. Lazy rozzers!!!

 

[classic33]

Almost every other car I see o my way home has its fog lights on but who is going to take them to task, the Police? I suppose they could if they could actually be a*#ed to get out onto the streets and do the bloody job we pay them for instead of sitting on their far ar#*s in the station watching TV, drinking coffee and eating piza. Lazy good for nothing drain on tax payers. Around here you can drive what you like, as fast as you like, as "off your face as you like" safe in the knowledge that you will never get caught. Lazy rozzers!!!

I don't jump to their defence that often, but the amount of paperwork involved, when stopping someone has to be seen to be believed.

 

[speccy1]

I`ve come to the conclusion that car drivers enjoy blinding us with their headlights, they seem to get a sad thrill out of it to enhance their sad car loving lives. The sooner the government does something useful like making cars illegal the better

 

[Paul.G.]

I don't jump to their defence that often, but the amount of paperwork involved, when stopping someone has to be seen to be believed.

I have paperwork to do in my job but it does not stop me doing the work Im being paid to do. Take a poll, I guarantee the vast majority will agree that one of the main contributing factors to the increase in bad and dangerous driving is the complete lack of police presence on the roads. Here is a very simple example. Your house catches fire, you call 999 and the fire brigade arrive quickly and put the fire out. You fall down and break your leg, you call 999 and the ambulance arrives quickly and takes you to hospital. You suffer or report a crime, you call 999 and then you wait. You wait a bit longer, a bit more waiting, you get bored and give up!! Perhaps its all a big plan to avoid all that paperwork

 

[classic33]

I have paperwork to do in my job but it does not stop me doing the work Im being paid to do. Take a poll, I guarantee the vast majority will agree that one of the main contributing factors to the increase in bad and dangerous driving is the complete lack of police presence on the roads. Here is a very simple example. Your house catches fire, you call 999 and the fire brigade arrive quickly and put the fire out. You fall down and break your leg, you call 999 and the ambulance arrives quickly and takes you to hospital. You suffer or report a crime, you call 999 and then you wait. You wait a bit longer, a bit more waiting, you get bored and give up!! Perhaps its all a big plan to avoid all that paperwork

And when the other two services return to base, the first thing they do is get the vehicle ready to out as soon as possible.

 

[mcshroom]

Yes some lights are, and they are also getting bluer which is more dazzling IMHO. For some reason though drivers seem far more upset by a 3W bike LED set slightly too high on a fork crown than they are while being blinded by the two 55-60W lights used by other drivers.

 

[Tin Pot]

I`ve come to the conclusion that car drivers enjoy blinding us with their headlights, they seem to get a sad thrill out of it to enhance their sad car loving lives. The sooner the government does something useful like making cars illegal the better

Sweet idea - I'm jumping in the motor now to try it out!

 

[slowmotion]

The problem is that modern car headlights are tiny compared to the incandescent light clusters of the past. They are a "point source" of absolutely blinding and dazzling light. They probably don't actually illuminate the road that much more than the older ones, but they make it blooming unpleasant for the driver/rider of an oncoming vehicle.

I think.

 

[summerdays]

Whilst I agree that they are becoming more blinding, my main problem with the new ones is when they go over a bump, I've been caught out by it once nearly having an accident when I thought a car flashed me to go and then at the last moment I realised it was just an uneven road surface.

 

[Pale Rider]

There is an arms race among some drivers to get brighter and brighter lights.

There is also an arms race among some cyclists to get brighter and brighter lights.

Taking part in either competition is irresponsible.

 

[shouldbeinbed]

Totally agree @Pale Rider I have lights to see by in 1) a cateye volt 300. It works enough on a slow bike/rider to see in proper dark on tarmac, yet cateye have now brought out a volt 700. Its not an off road light so why? Rhetorical why, we all know why they've done it, but it falls between two appropriate markets.

I also have a magicshine a-like stupid lumen dealextreme import for my faster bike & MTB off piste but I ordered a £5 Fresnel glass along with it to make all that light work for me not work to blind the person driving 2 tons of metal towards me & signal passing aircraft with the overspill. Along with considerate and common sense orientation on bars or helmet, I would advocate Fresnel glass as at least a point of purchase option for any decently bright bike light

Headlight design, build and imposed in car orientation could be amended to allow manufacturers and gullible consumers to participate in a brightness arms race to their idiot hearts content as long as all that light is thrown into the right place. Wonder if part polarised or tinted glass would work for eye level light throw?

 

[Brandane]

I have paperwork to do in my job but it does not stop me doing the work Im being paid to do. Take a poll, I guarantee the vast majority will agree that one of the main contributing factors to the increase in bad and dangerous driving is the complete lack of police presence on the roads. Here is a very simple example. Your house catches fire, you call 999 and the fire brigade arrive quickly and put the fire out. You fall down and break your leg, you call 999 and the ambulance arrives quickly and takes you to hospital. You suffer or report a crime, you call 999 and then you wait. You wait a bit longer, a bit more waiting, you get bored and give up!! Perhaps its all a big plan to avoid all that paperwork

If you want to blame anyone, blame the cutbacks and increased workload on the few remaining Police Officers. I can tell you from experience, they are not lazy; they are getting run ragged and there is no space for freeloaders. The reason you don't see much Police presence any more is because they don't exist to the extent they did. Simple.

Almost every other car I see o my way home has its fog lights on but who is going to take them to task, the Police? I suppose they could if they could actually be a*#ed to get out onto the streets and do the bloody job we pay them for instead of sitting on their far ar#*s in the station watching TV, drinking coffee and eating piza. Lazy good for nothing drain on tax payers. Around here you can drive what you like, as fast as you like, as "off your face as you like" safe in the knowledge that you will never get caught. Lazy rozzers!!!

Methinks someone has been watching too many American "cop shows" from the 70's. You forgot about the doughnuts BTW .

 

[Brandane]

Back to blinding lights, as an HGV driver, the ones that boil my P are the increasing number of selfish motons who drive on dual carriageways/motorways on constant full beam. Yes the central barriers might protect your fellow oncoming car drivers from the glare, but they don't help us who sit much higher.

Front fog lights also get on my nerves. In my previous life (as hinted at in previous post) I used to dish out £30 tickets to anyone I saw using them unnecessarily. I appreciate that the Police have more important things to prioritise their time with these days though.