Sometimes I have to drive after dark in my city, and it never fails that if I drive any appreciable distance that I always see at least one person (often more) driving with their lights off. I do not need to tell y’all why this is dangerous. We’re a community of enthusiasts. We know. Plenty of us are driving older cars that predate the tech.
It’s not like they don’t mandate lots of shit already. Seatbelts, head restraints, airbags, and backup cameras are some of the most sensible things ever required for cars to have. Why are automatic headlights not on this list? There also needs to exist a mandate whereby the lights turn on if the driver turns on the wipers. Because if you need your wipers, you need your lights too. It’s common freaking sense.
Your headlights aren’t just for seeing, but for being seen. Ambient light sensors are so cheap that they end up in midrange TVs all the time. I blame the backlit gauges and myriad other interior lights. Ergo, it’s time to mandate automatic headlights. There’s no reason not to.
I’ll get off my soapbox now.
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I want a super version of this. I want headlights that dim several lumens when I slow down and when I stop. I drive a massive truck with headlights that blind the shit out of people. I wish it would slowly dim them as I slowed and would basically turn them off or point them down when I’m stopped. I don’t need to see 500ft ahead at that point. We have the tech, and LEDs are perfect for that.
Perhaps you don’t need to drive a massive truck? Or you can change your headlights? Semis don’t blind me like modern trucks do.
I get blinded in the highway as much as in the neighborhood.
We don’t know what they use the truck for. What we do know is that semi trucks have fairly low-mounted headlights whereas pickups and SUVs are in a race to see who can mount their lights the highest for that road presence and offroad clearance (as long as you ignore how low the air dams are on recent trucks). Part of the issue is that the US code FMVSS 108 requires low beams must be mounted higher and/or outboard of the high beams. This increases the height of the low beam of any dual-unit headlight. Aside from that, just about every nifty trick to hide lower headlights gets hit with criticism. The first gen Jeep Cherokee (2015, not the Grand) had slim faux-headlight DRLs in the hood line and snuck the real headlights in the middle of the bumper. The Chevy Bolt did the same. The Nissan Juke is even more notorious for that. Even the 2008-2016 Ford F-250/350 (especially 08-10) gets flak for its huge upper parking light feigning a headlight bucket. Unfortunately, consumers are emotional
One thing that has contributed to this problem is daytime running lights. I haven’t owned a car with them yet, but I routinely see people driving at night with only the DRL’s and no tail lights.
I’m not sure if the dash is illuminated in that situation, but it shouldn’t be. There probably needs to be an obnoxious warning chime at the very least.
Spot on. In the Good Old Days ™ the dashboard was only lit when headlights were on. You got instant feedback if your light weren’t on - you couldn’t see how fast you were driving etc.
I don’t know if there is already some light sensor in the car but on my 2015 VW Polo (which doesn’t have automatic headlights) if its too dark outside (even in daytime, due to bad weather or early nights) the lights of the dash are dim (you only see the needle of the speedometer and tacho). So there is still the obvious cue to turn them on. Perhaps its more common in European cars?
The dash is often much more dim in these situations, or at full brightness. Either way drivers should be looking for a green light indicating their headlights and taillights are properly illuminated. I don’t need cars overcoming this, I need police to do their job and ticket those people and force them back to driving school or to takeaway licenses here in the states.
The problem is we’ve removed the cues to turn the lights on.
Normally it gets dark and you know it’s time to turn the headlights on because none of the dash lights are illuminated. You can’t see the speedometer. Unfortunately with the advent of LCD dashes and touchscreens the default has become leaving everything in front of the driver lit, and that includes analog instruments. Add fairly bright DRLs people have lost the visual prompt to flip the switch on.
Backlights, where not necessary for operation, should remain off until lights are turned on. Getting rid of touchscreens for everything and going back to push buttons. That would help a lot with headlights as well as being distracted flipping thru menus to turn the AC on or something.
Here in Sweden we have laws requiering headlight to be on when the car is moving, regardless of the time of day or year.
All cars for the last several decades have automatic headlights that turn on when the ignition turns on.
It is brilliant, it makes it so easy to dstinguish between parked cars abd cars that are moving, both as a driver and as a pedestrian.
Automatic full beams are also standard these days.
It is brilliant
I agree! But hey, this is America. Did you know some cars are still being made with brake lights that function as turn signals instead of making turn signals a separate amber lamp on the rear of the vehicle like the rest of the world has been doing for decades? Cars and trucks like this are still everywhere here. It’s not required. It’s baffling!
There’s a couple dick moves like with the upper trim Jeep Cherokees and their super cool “switchback” LED tail lights. Red for brake, yellow for signal, BUT WHY DID YOU MAKE IT SO THE SIGNAL STILL OVERRIDES THE ENTIRE BRAKE LIGHT?
I hate it when people import these shitty cars and jump through some loopholes to keep their stupid ass red blibkers. Go move there please.
Automatic full beams are the work of the devil. I tried them and the number of times I blinded some poor driver, cyclist or pedestrian because they were too slow to react were numerous. Now have them on manual
Auto highbeams can be amazing, or absolute ass. In my RAM 2500 they’re awful. They often blind people (which is already bad enough for a RAM 2500, I don’t need to make it worse). However in my AMG they’re amazing. They turn on in a Hollywood light pattern and sweep across the road as I’m driving and they’re super quick and sensitive to react. The same headlights in Europe can even be configured to leave highbeams on and black out areas where it detects people and cars.
I have a 2021 Seat Leon Hatchback, unfortunately I don’t have those LED matrix headlights, I would love to try them, but the automatic headlight feature is awesome.
Except for all the twats in my neighborhood that drive around town with full beams on permanently.
Occasionally they turn then off when you flash them, but most are just oblivious. Automatics would at least solve that…
The stock needs a small solenoid that can kick the high beams off when the system sees another car, but cannot turn the manual override back on. You’d have to push the stock back again yourself. I love it. I don’t even think the people who drive with their high beams on all the time would know. If they can’t notice you flashing them, they sure as shit ain’t noticing their lights suddenly dimming
Stalk*
I thought you were messing with me at first but TIL.
yeah, i don’t have automatic hi-beams in my car, and i don’t see how i would need them. i often see the headlights of other cars through the trees (when driving on a Landstraße) and preemptively turn them off. i’m already supposed to be paying attention to the drivers around me, so why would i let a computer do it?
I hate daytime running lights, because people will think their lights are on, but it’s only the headlights. It isn’t uncommon to see people driving around in total darkness with only headlights on.
I disable DRL and only use manual lights, turning on for weather or dark. It’s not possible to think you have them on this way.
I have no idea of what you mean, what more lights are you refering to that should be on other than the headlights?
The only thing I can see that would cause this annoyance could be is the tail lights are off when it is dark…
Taillights are only illuminated when headlights are turned on. Daytime running lights only illuminated the front, so it appears that headlights are on, but taillights remain off.
I have never hd that issue, possibly since headlights are automaticly turned on when you start the car, but most tail lights these days will be turned off when it is bright outside.
Because if you need your wipers, you need your lights too.
If you have trouble seeing the road, people will have trouble seeing you. Do they not teach that in drivers ed these days?
And somehow it’s always the grey cars…
my driving school taught me to keep the setting on automatic.
my car doesn’t have an automatic setting.
i was immediately told by my dad to always keep the lights on, like any sensible driver in germany does. there is literally no benefit from keeping the lights off.
I do not like having headlights being forced on. There are situations often enough where either I don’t want to unnecessarily light up someone’s place or I simply want to be inconspicuous. But I absolutely support the option to use an ambient light sensor to darken the dash in that situation. Pretty sure that was one of the options in new legislation a few years ago. It was either force lights on with the uv sensor (Toyota?), add tail lights to the drl function (Mazda?), or turn off the dash lights if headlights are off and it’s dark out (haven’t seen this one). There are many streetlights in my area so missing headlights aren’t obvious for miles at a time to a less-knowledgeable driver
My car from 2006 has daytime runners and headlights that turn on automatically. Either can be turned off at any time with the press of a button.
My 2000 Camry did not allow the driver to disable the auto drl/headlights, only turn the headlights on manually. Every other auto-capable car I had though has been like yours, just an optional setting. That was a fluke at the time, but now it’s one of the valid ways to meet regulation in the US and has become more common. I want to say it was changed in 2019
i think they should have the default be “on” when the car is started. then the driver can actively turn them off if they choose to do so. most people just throw it into “automatic” mode and assume it’s the correct thing to do. we even get taught to do it that way.
Canada has had it mandatory since 1989, It is a good thing to have multi-ton objects whizzing around you clearly marked.
It’s like the third last thing you’d ever want to sneak up and catch you off guard.
I love that we have this but they are not at full brightness and I still see people driving with only these daytime headlights at night with no parking or rear lights.
I’m assuming they have digital cluster on these newer cars which are on all the time, unlike older cars where the instrument cluster is dark when only the daytimes are on and it kind of says hey dummy your lights are off, let’s turn them all on and at full brightness too!
I daily a '97 Prelude. If I can’t see my gauges, it’s a pretty good indicator that my lights should be on. Like I said in the post, it’s the backlit gauges and other interior lights. I don’t blame the drivers. I blame the half dozen screens the manufacturers seem to think we just cannot live without these days. And that’s one reason why I daily a 90s car.
Love the vintage. I drive a 97 Volvo 850 and 2000 F150. They have nice analog turn controls and guages.
I agree with you. I love most tech but I do not think screens are the way to go in a vehicle. They look nice on Star Trek NG or in a video game but they aren’t safe in a car especially as we expect older generations that aren’t use to the tech to scroll and punch through menus while driving to turn off their heated seats or adjust the temperature.
I don’t know for how long I can buy older cars without screen or too many push buttons. Even after 12 years I still need to look down at the buttons on my 11 Ford Fusion to figure out which is the defrost or the heater selection controls.
I’m thankful to read the manufacturers are starting to realize they have gone too far with some of these things and are planning to dial it back some in the future. I suspect they still see it as another change they can sell
For some reason, I love the irregular ti-tick, ti-tick, ti-tick of analog turn signals.
Same here. I still recall falling half asleep as a child in the back seat of older cars and that sound being apart of it as your parents drove home in silence.
I have a 2023 Outlander and am incredibly glad that Mitsubishi used real physical buttons and knobs for all driving, safety, and comfort controls.
That reminds me of a nice blend of knobs and tech that Dodge and Jeep were using just a few years ago. I really liked the blend they had in a couple of the rental cars I used.
What type of guages do you have?
Gauges are a fully digital 12" display, plus a heads up display for speedometer and navigation.
once square, simple, and most importantly, small cars come back, i will think about “upgrading”. but until then my 02 Yaris will wait for its “historical” registration (in germany we get a “H” behind the text on our number plate when the car is 30(?) years old and is in a certain condition. this means i pay less taxes and get to go in “environmental zones” where older cars typically aren’t allowed)
I still see people driving with only these daytime headlights at night with no parking or rear lights.
One of them was probably my ex.
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i got taught to ALWAYS drive with the lights on. and since i drive a 20 year old “microcar” with H4 bulbs, i don’t think i’m blinding anyone either. headlights should be on by default, no automatic bullshit needed.
There is precedent for this feature. Motorcycles have head/tail lights at startup.
Let me know how I am supposed to install automatic headlights in my 1968 Ford Galaxie 500. So old I have a knob I pull out to turn on my headlights.
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This is usually the case, but not always. There are some changes that do need to be applied or an exemption requested if the vehicle can’t comply. Be sure to follow local laws and don’t take anything said online as legal advice.
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I was thinking about the high middle brake light on the back of cars. In many places in Europe these used to be outlawed, but people put them on anyways cause they looked cool. When it turned out they were safer as well, they became mandated. At first they were mandated for all cars approved after that point, but some time later it was mandated all cars built after a certain date many years in the past should comply from that point forward. People had about a year to either apply for an exemption or make their car compliant. At that time you would see a lot of cars with a loose brake light on a wire in the back, just to comply.
I also remember a whole thing around right hand side rear view mirrors, which were in legal limbo for a while and people had to retrofit them to older cars at one point.
This is all decades ago, I can’t remember recent large scale stuff. Usually the government talks to the constructor, the constructor does a recall and the next time the car is in the shop it gets fixed.
Same way you installed the legally required airbags, abs, backup camera… You just hire old grandad to clause it up for ya.
He sees you when you’re crashing,
He knows you’ve locked your brakes.
He’s there when you back into folks
And when your lead fuel gives you shakes.So, until you buckle up,
Until you burn clean,
Until you limit drunks
And embrace the green:Grandpa Clause is saving your Ford
Hats off to ya friend, that was absolutely beautiful :)
turn them on when starting your car, like i’ve been doing since forever. no downside in turning them on.
Bypass whatever the knob is doing and have them wired directly to the alternator.
With daytime lights there’s usually a module that can be added that always runs power to the lights when the engine is on. On older vehicles with regular bulbs the voltage was like 7 volts instead of the full 12 volts.
However this causes issues with the first couple of generations of LED bulbs. They usually don’t come on or flicker due to low voltage.
With the newest cars this is programming option in the car menu as there are a few markets that requires daytime running lights. Sometimes it requires a dealer to make the change with the computer.
