LED running lights

dekez said:
When I learnt to ride a motorbike we were taught to always put your lights on.
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Wucked said:
If you're to blind or stupid to see a car in broad daylight then you have no business being anywhere near a road without adult supervision.
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ttaskmaster said:
Pretty much.
On the motorcycle I have more trouble being seen by everyone else because, even with fog lights on and mixed-colour hi-viz all over the place, I blend into the background of DRLs.
In fact, I get seen more often if I shift around in my lane, because drivers' eyes pick up on my movement more than my lights.

If you need DRLs in daylight, you're either blind or are not paying enough attention.
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I think the use of daytime lights on more vulnerable road users like motorcycles and bicycles is perfectly acceptable because they can be more difficult to see and the consequence of any accident is likely to be greater.

However, when cycling I only use my lights when I feel I need to be seen or I need to see where I am going. I do believe the proliferation of lights distracts from more vulnerable road users.

I am not a fan of DRLs on cars/buses/lorries simply because they are sodding great objects that should be visible in almost all light conditions. If it is dark enough to require any lighting, I believe dipped beam should be used. Auto lights may assist the lazy or forgetful.
 
Conscript said:
That's kind of the idea. Daytime Running Lights - they are designed to be bright enough to give enough contrast to make them highly visible even during the day.



It's not so much about seeing the car outright when you're already looking at it - it's about making the car quicker and easier to see in the periphery. No matter how observant you are, your eyes will pick out a car with DRLs in your peripheral vision much more easily and your brain will register it as a car much quicker than without. This could make the difference between pulling out of a junction or not.

You've kind of proved their usefulness in your second sentence..."they're more of a distraction than anything else". You are already noticing them much more readily and having your attention drawn to them; they're working as intended.

We're all only human, and mistakes like "looking but not seeing" are common, even for usually observant drivers. DRLs ensure that someone who makes the mistake of only making a quick glance "sees" the car, because it highlights it and makes the brain register what it is and identify it as a potential hazard much more quickly.

Have a read of this interesting article, it explains quite a lot about how the human eye works in relation to driving and peripheral vision: http://www.slobc.org/safety/documents/road-survival-guide.pdf
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I don't deny that they can be a valuable safety feature, but not in their current state. The intensity of the light is currently way to high. They draw your attention so much that you loose focus on the multitude of other things that you're required to monitor. They're so bright that at night time they're literally blinding. Even when they're not blinding head on, they're blinding in your mirrors. Or even worse, both at the same time.

And on a motorbike or as cyclist its even worse, not only are you blinded, but your own lights are masked by the intensity of the DRL's, making it easier for someone to completely miss that you are there.

If it was a competition I'd have to drive around with my headlights on full beam just to have a chance or breaking even.
 
DRL's really don't dazzle at night.
There is a legal requirement for them to switch off at night unless they also double-up as sidelights, in which case they must dim considerably.
The only ones that don't are the chav-fitted ones in various shades of white/blue, but then these are the same people with HID bulbs in reflector lenses - so already a hazard.
 
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Got some retrofit DRLs on the 350z. Not to everyone's taste but they are quite noticeable :p (which obviously is good)

They turn off when main beam is turned on.

I do think DRLs in general are good. We all make mistakes and sometimes you don't always spot what's right in front of your face, so some illumination helps.
 
Django x2 said:
Why can't the default DRL be all sidelights (front and rear) instead of just front
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The aim was to make vehicles travelling towards you more visible. There's also the risk I guess that having rear lights on would undermine the visibility of brake lights during the day.

It's already noticeable with cars that have front DRLs when indicating, though most newer vehicles seem to dim the DRL on that side in order to make the indicator more visible.

wilber said:
I think you're looking at it the wrong way.

With DRL's becoming more common, people without them are turning their lights on in the day because they can see how much more visible a vehichle is with the lights on, increasing safety.
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That seems like a distinction without a difference, really.
 
I do not see the point of running sidelights only. If you want/need your sidelights on, just throw the bloody dips on!

Other cars using DRL does not make non DRL cars less visible in my opinion. I think it takes a special kind of idiot to only acknowledge the presence of other road users by DRL alone. I just find DRL ridiculously bright and make the vehicle stand out even more so than those around it, not necessarily detracting from the visibility of others.
 
I only put my lights on if the sensor on the front of the car tells me its dark enough and switches them on for me. I don't understand the reason for putting your sidelights on as soon as there is a cloud in the sky.

I don't need lights to see a car, I'm not blind.
 
Wucked said:
I don't deny that they can be a valuable safety feature, but not in their current state. The intensity of the light is currently way to high. They draw your attention so much that you loose focus on the multitude of other things that you're required to monitor. They're so bright that at night time they're literally blinding. Even when they're not blinding head on, they're blinding in your mirrors. Or even worse, both at the same time.

And on a motorbike or as cyclist its even worse, not only are you blinded, but your own lights are masked by the intensity of the DRL's, making it easier for someone to completely miss that you are there.

If it was a competition I'd have to drive around with my headlights on full beam just to have a chance or breaking even.
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I disagree. I've never found DRLs blinding or dazzling during the day - bright yes, but as I said, that's the point, to provoke your peripheral vision to movement more quickly. I've personally never found them ever distract me enough to lose focus on anything else.

They can be blinding at night, but as someone else said, they should never be on at night because when the headlights or sidelights are on, they turn off or dim considerably. So this is only a problem when a driver does not turn on their headlights in the dark; but even then, I'd think I'd rather endure bright DRLs than missing a car in the dark entirely because of some moronic/forgetful driver.
 
MooMoo444 said:
..and the benefit of noticing it in the distance at 300m compared to 250m is what exactly? :confused:
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Well at 60MPH that's en extra couple of seconds to react.

Obviously not much when you use the distances you have. But when the distances are much smaller, that could be very beneficial.
Not quite sure why you chose such a large distance; presumably in an effort to nullify my point. But surely its obvious that spotting a car in the periphery even a few fractions of a second earlier can be very positive?

For example, pulling out of a junction, you're presumably moving your head back and forth looking for cars - which, as you quite rightly say, are easy to spot when you're looking at them. But your brain will also be using your peripheral vision to form your situation awareness and a car with lights on will be registered faster than one without. Giving you more time to assess the situation and act accordingly.
 
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No.

But I turn them on when it's starting to go dusky or bad weather in general.

Daytime, no point IMO.
 
DRLs are great and should be mandatory throughout the EU, rather than just the northern (and recently the Eastern) countries.

When I get around to coding my A6, I'll get the 'Scandinavian' DRLs coded so that the rear LEDs come on with the fronts.
Saves turning on the xenons in tunnels as well :p
 
To be fair some drivers don't seem to see me even with my fairly lights DRLs on.

I don't really miss auto wipers. After having the windscreen replaced in my old car they never worked properly.
 
Howard said:
Auto wipers are great - as said, when it's raining they are always adjusting depending on the amount of rain and your vehicle's speed.

Auto lights are pointless though IMHO and I don't use mine a) because I usually want them on before the car thinks so and b) I don't want to wear my xenon bulbs and ballasts out by having them come on for 20 seconds every time I go under a bridge.
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They don't come on just because you're under a bridge. Oddly, we live in a world were automotive technology is very advanced. The light sensor will have no doubt that you are going under a bridge, and not put your lights on. I can guarantee that my car puts its lights on before you would think it safe to do so, including in situations like driving into direct sunlight.
 
Driving with dipped beam on at all times has been a force of habit with me for years, coming from a biking background. I ride my bike with the dipped beam on at all times, when driving the car the same applies.
 
I always drive with side lights on, my Scania HGV has LED side lights yet still,to some drivers,it's invisible!

It's nothing to do with new style lights,some drivers are just not paying attention.
 
My car doesn't have DRL and I too don't see the point to having my sidelights on in the day time.

If other drivers are having issues seeing cars in the day time, then they shouldn't be driving.
 
Django x2 said:
They don't come on just because you're under a bridge. Oddly, we live in a world were automotive technology is very advanced. The light sensor will have no doubt that you are going under a bridge, and not put your lights on.
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My auto lights usually come on when I go under the railway bridge near my house.
 
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