Driving at night. - Page 2

Junkyard-Dog · 15-02-2018, 01:13 PM

Yep, I see it all the time.

commodorenutt · 15-02-2018, 01:49 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bevsta007

Auto leveling lights is a great feature. or self leveling suspension plenty of Caravaners out there unknowingly blinding people

Another good reason why I run airbags in the back - and pump them up when towing the car trailer.

Mercury Bullet · 15-02-2018, 04:12 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bevsta007

Auto leveling lights is a great feature. or self leveling suspension plenty of Caravaners out there unknowingly blinding people

These are fully adjustable.

Gives more control and a better option imo

S80 lighting switch panel.

au350hp · 15-02-2018, 04:16 PM

Would you believe the new Corolla has adjustable headlight levelling. Of all the cars it should be standard in, they fit a toy with it when most owners would not be aware of its function, much like headlights ha ha. Does the Ranger have this feature I wonder?

stefcio007 · 15-02-2018, 05:02 PM

My Focus LW has adjustable headlight level, seems like later models omitted the feature.

When I first got the car I was caught out once driving in an urban environment without mine on. My old car you couldn't see the cluster without them on and so straight away you knew you had to turn them on.

Auto headlights will probably become standard in all cars eventually.

roKWiz · 15-02-2018, 05:08 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by commodorenutt

NSw has annual inspections, and nobody checks the headlight aim.

or window tinting.

au350hp · 15-02-2018, 05:30 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by roKWiz

or window tinting.

Ironic that most tint shops happily supply & fit two unroadworthy/illegal shades. I remember borrowing a mates car in Melbourne. You had to wind down both front windows to see if there was anything coming before pulling out of a driveway. I have never understood why anybody would want that.

.:4:. · 15-02-2018, 05:37 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Roostercam

Ironic that most tint shops happily supply & fit two unroadworthy/illegal shades. I remember borrowing a mates car in Melbourne. You had to wind down both front windows to see if there was anything coming before pulling out of a driveway. I have never understood why anybody would want that.

Years ago i got illegal tint on a 1990 model. The tint guy just said it was legal when the car was new and if you get pulled up say it was like that when you got it.

happy1 · 16-02-2018, 01:21 AM

In my view it isn't the lack of Auto levelling headlights being the problem. Very few cars in the city are that heavily loaded. The height adjustable lights when at '0' in a car with no load should light up the road about 45 metres. When adjusting the lights down they should aim even closer than 45 metres. (so that when loaded the lights still reach 45 metres).
The problem is when people have forced the bulb into the reflector with incorrect rotation, and the tabs doesn't bottom out correctly, then the light will be totally random, most likely lighting up on road signs, and shining into your mirrors or windscreen. Or, the car has been in an accident causing the incorrect aim, or the adjustment screws are way out of alignment due to DIY with lack of understanding of correct adjustment. Then in addition you have all the HID-conversions which sends stray light in all directions. HID should only be fitted if it is projector design headlights with lens. Projectors will send the HID light to a much more correct aim, not a problem really. On top of that you have all the idiots with fog lights on when there is no fog. Fog lights just adds a lot of light just in front of the vehicle, which reduces the true visibility for the driver further away, where the low beam lights are needed, up to the 45 meter aim distance. The fog lights also sends lots of stray light in all directions, up on road signs, and up in your mirrors and windscreen, which is why they are annoying to others. Personally I purchase quality bulbs of the bright white +100% or +130% type, and I keep the headlights correctly adjusted. Those are legal, and gives good light output. And I keep getting annoyed by all the faulty / incorrect other cars around on the roads. If on the freeway and stray light is blinding me from behind, I change lane, or cover the side mirror with my hand for a moment, perhaps slow down or speed up, just to get away from the disturbing light. Cheers,

au350hp · 17-02-2018, 02:25 AM

[QUOTE=happy1;6086265
I agree with your comments on installation & maintenance. You can add car tyres too, its another thing often misunderstood or ignored by many drivers.

Ben73 · 18-02-2018, 07:18 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by lovford

The led driving lights (not fog lights) come on when ever the car is on. Maybe this makes them think there head lights are on when in actual fact there not.

Thing is you can't see anything at night with these lights.
These idiots driving with fog lights only on can at least see 3 metres in front of their car.

Recently I saw the dumbest driver I have ever seen, they were halfway between Sydney and Newcastle on the M1 at midnight with no lights on doing 100 in the 110 zone.
Not a street light in sight yet all they had on was the Day Running Lights in their brand new looking Mazda 3.
I was approaching from behind with my high beam on and only realized I was following someone from a distance when my high beam started to light up the rear of their car.
Flashed my light about 10 times at them and they didn't turn theirs on. After passing them I even quickly switched my headlights off and on again. When my lights were off I could barley see anything with my LED running lights on.
No idea how they managed to drive on the freeway at any speed with no lights.

**Rallye Sport** · 18-02-2018, 07:47 PM

Tried out my fog lights this morning, it was actually pretty thick and the XR50 is the first car I've had thats got them so what the hell... meh not overly impressed I'll just stick with headlights. Can't understand why people use them fog or not.

commodorenutt · 18-02-2018, 08:28 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by happy1

....Then in addition you have all the HID-conversions which sends stray light in all directions. HID should only be fitted if it is projector design headlights with lens..

Followed one of these in the early hours of saturday morning, through an area that had a lot of smoke from a nearby bush fire.

He had put HIDs in the lights, and you could clearly see the light going everywhere but the road, and it was that bad I thought he was on high beam. I went past him, and flashed my high-beam into the smoke to try to get his attention - thinking that would get him to dip the lights, but no.... his high beam was also a HID globe, which took a good 2-3 seconds to come on (after the existing light had extinguished) and it was worse than a 4WD with possum-spotters on.... Absolute imbecile with no idea.

I also see quite a lot of 90s hilux, rodeo etc modified utes with HIDs in them - if they want better light, why not buy something that will go straight in place of the original headlight, and is properly designed, rather than a bodgy HID conversion? Like these:
https://www.jwspeaker.com/products/l...0-evolution-2/

au350hp · 02-03-2018, 04:11 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Rallye Sport

Tried out my fog lights this morning, it was actually pretty thick and the XR50 is the first car I've had thats got them so what the hell... meh not overly impressed I'll just stick with headlights. Can't understand why people use them fog or not.

I was also under the impression fog lights needed to be yellow, to avoid reflecting off mist/fog etc. Can you shine any light on this?

sorry, that is really bad.

**Rallye Sport** · 02-03-2018, 05:20 PM

Not sure, I'm in the dark about that

Definately bright white in my FG.

stefcio007 · 02-03-2018, 05:37 PM

Yellow fogs is a euro thing IIRC.

au350hp · 05-03-2018, 07:03 PM

Has anybody with these 'fog lights' actually encountered any fog whilst driving in the dark? As the yellow globes are a Euro thing, I am wondering why they have white globes on cars sold here as A, they will reflect of the fog I believe & B, are not effective driving lights in normal conditions. Anyone?

whitelion65 · 06-03-2018, 06:51 AM

The second day I had my Berlina, driving from Blackheath to Sydney in heavy, low cloud or fog (who knows which), I switched from headlights on to parkers and fog-lights.
Visibilty was greatly improved!
Apart from using them occasionally in low-light, heavy rain on the North coast, that was the only time I ever used them.

OzJavelin · 06-03-2018, 08:03 AM

Followed a dark grey Colorado7 (wagon) into town - rural 100kph road - with no taillights in the dark the other morning. Going off my nut the whole way, wanting to give them a serve 'cos they were too lazy to put on their lights. When I got into town and infront of them "some" lights were on .. DRLs and what I thought were parkers or perimeter lights (light FGs have in the outer lights), so I'm assuming her instrument cluster was lit and she was blissfully unaware that no one could see her from behind ............... love technology.

78xcgxl · 06-03-2018, 04:18 PM

Personally i don't see the problem with driving with fog lights on all the time. They shine down and don't blind anyone. It's the people with headlights that are not adjusted properly and idiots that put HIDs in headlights with no projectors.

Ben73 · 06-03-2018, 07:42 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by 78xcgxl

Personally i don't see the problem with driving with fog lights on all the time. They shine down and don't blind anyone. It's the people with headlights that are not adjusted properly and idiots that put HIDs in headlights with no projectors.

There are only a few models of cars which have very bright fog lights which are annoying to drive towards at night.
Also every 4x4 that has an aftermarket bull bar has extremely bright fog lights.

But for most cars on the road I have no issue if they use fog lights day or night.

commodorenutt · 06-03-2018, 08:05 PM

FOG lights, yes, do have a low, wide beam.

But many of these so-called "fog" lights on the front of cars simply aren't fog light beams - they shine up like driving lights, which should be dipped when facing oncoming traffic.

95% of the population associate any additional factory-fitted light on the front of a car to be a fog light, because they are ignorant. Very few would actually know how to tell them apart from a driving light.

And that's another term that many can't seem to grasp - driving light does not = DRL (daytime running lights).

There's specifications for all 3 types of light when it comes to beam angle/direction, brightness, maximum wattage, angles of visibility etc.

But Joe/Jane Public mostly have no idea.

I was blinded today, in overcast weather, by a 1st Gen WRX with HIDs in the factory lights - all 4 of them (headlights and driving lights) and all on. I'd hate to be facing him at night on an unlit road. Absolute selfish pig.

XB GS 351 Coupe · 07-03-2018, 01:14 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mercury Bullet

A truck with a bullbar full of 150w hid's sorts those idiots out.

Living in the bush I love my lights on my 4X4..

300W Osram spot/spread LED light bar in grill, 2x100 watt road side illumination (for the roos) and 2x 100W Roof lights, all on separate switches, but I can set them so that I can flick my high beam and all will come on, night instantly turns to day

Never met my match yet, with these idiots driving around with fog lights or high beams on, even road trains bow down to me

Ben73 · 07-03-2018, 05:06 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by commodorenutt

FOG lights, yes, do have a low, wide beam.

But many of these so-called "fog" lights on the front of cars simply aren't fog light beams - they shine up like driving lights, which should be dipped when facing oncoming traffic.
.

How many cars have driving lights in the bottom bumper where fog lights usually are? Are these lights actually labeled as driving lights or fog lights?
I have personally never been in a car that has factory driving lights, they are always labeled as fog lights.
Manufactures either need to aim fog lights at a better angle, get rid of factory driving lights or label them in a way that lets people know they are basically high beam.

commodorenutt · 07-03-2018, 06:21 PM

Have a look at the reflector & lense in them - you'll see the FG Falcon/Focus/Transit/VE Commodore (same light fits all) is a multi-parabolic reflector, that spreads the beam low & wide.

On those with a fresnel lense, it's easy to tell, as the lense has a bunch of vertical lines to spread the beam. Clear lenses need to have the reflector do that task, and only the multi-parabolic ones can achieve it.

There's quite a few import SUVs around that are a simple single parabola for a reflector - same as old-style headlights, which simply sends the beam out like a torch - in all directions, when fronted with a clear lense.

Directing light is a real science. Look at H4 bulbs - they shield half of the output of the filament, to prevent light from blinding others on low beam. BMW used to put "panda" semi-circle masks in the bottom half of their early projector style lights. Ford used a "curtain" arrangement in the NA Fairlane headlight projectors.

Put a multi-direction LED in place of a H4, and there's half the beam control gone - may as well be on high beam. But I am digressing.....

One good example of a light that masquerades as a fog light, but doesn't have the correct beam, is on the front of a VY SS. I couldn't name the models, as they all look the same to me, but many of the cheaper small to medium SUVs are guilty as well.

**Mechan1k** · 07-03-2018, 09:02 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Roostercam

Has anybody with these 'fog lights' actually encountered any fog whilst driving in the dark? As the yellow globes are a Euro thing, I am wondering why they have white globes on cars sold here as A, they will reflect of the fog I believe & B, are not effective driving lights in normal conditions. Anyone?

Used tyo daily drive through the turf farms along Hawkesbury river at 5am in the morning. Pitch black ... fog so thick you nearly couldn't see the end of the bonnet.

foglight with parkers on was the ONLY way to drive .... low beam was blinding back.

It allowed me to be able to see the reflection of the cats eyes on the left shoulder line of the road ... just to know where I was in my lane .... so in the correct circumstances ... yes they worked perfectly and as designed.

They are not really needed in mist though. When used in the correct conditions they make life a hell of a lot easier.

Yellow was mainly used back in the day in more larger foglights with open lenses and not beam cut-off (like newer style foglights of today) ... so it was more of a glow that didn't reflect back off the fog.

Like the old big rectangle Hella/Narva style units.

Using the newer ones today like in the SZII Territory ... the beam is a flat cut-off low and wide ... and well below low-beam level.

**Mechan1k** · 07-03-2018, 09:04 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by OzJavelin

Followed a dark grey Colorado7 (wagon) into town - rural 100kph road - with no taillights in the dark the other morning. Going off my nut the whole way, wanting to give them a serve 'cos they were too lazy to put on their lights. When I got into town and infront of them "some" lights were on .. DRLs and what I thought were parkers or perimeter lights (light FGs have in the outer lights), so I'm assuming her instrument cluster was lit and she was blissfully unaware that no one could see her from behind ............... love technology.

Unfortunately DRLs don't turn the tail light cluster on at all.
Soooo many times I see newer Honda Civic with DRLs on in the dark ..... and no taillights.

It's a case of the owner having no idea at all.

**Mechan1k** · 07-03-2018, 09:09 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by commodorenutt

One good example of a light that masquerades as a fog light, but doesn't have the correct beam, is on the front of a VY SS. I couldn't name the models, as they all look the same to me, but many of the cheaper small to medium SUVs are guilty as well.

Not sure how Holden got away with that one .... I think it's similar to the VX SS models as well. Those things are bright-as. And not a controlled beam either.

The last territory foglights are excellent as they shine really wide as well. With a completely flat top on the beam

My old Territory (using an older round Hella-style) foglights had a shield over the H3 globe like a cap to produce similar results as well.

**ebxr8240** · 07-03-2018, 09:24 PM

M old WRX has fog lights.. Only 25watt globes.. Yet because the law is the law they are illegal have them on . They wouldn't blind you . They are facing 10m at most, very low to get UNDER fog when or if there is.. I find hey are helpful driving around streets as it shows the intersection like LEDS set up properly do.. Trouble is to make it easier to police they ban them all.. EASY !!

XB GS 351 Coupe · 08-03-2018, 12:32 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ben73

How many cars have driving lights in the bottom bumper where fog lights usually are? Are these lights actually labeled as driving lights or fog lights?
I have personally never been in a car that has factory driving lights, they are always labeled as fog lights.
Manufactures either need to aim fog lights at a better angle, get rid of factory driving lights or label them in a way that lets people know they are basically high beam.

They are high beam driving lights when they are connected to the high beam switch, not many cars come out with high beam driving lights any more.