DRL’s how not to be seen in public.

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It's an offence in this country to drive with fog lights when they are not needed but I imagine very few if any have been fined for it. You need a certain level of IQ to realise inappropriate use of fog lights creates a hazard rather than alleviates one so the idiots will not stop doing it. I don't buy that it's accidental because cars have a bright warning light when they are on.

I can't help thinking that one thing behind inappropriate use of lights that over rides common sense is insurance i.e. I can't be in the wrong if I put all my lights on.
 
quote:-_
European Union Directive 2008/89/EC requires all passenger cars and small delivery vans first type approved on or after 7 February 2011 in the EU to come equipped with daytime running lights.[14][15][16] The mandate was extended to trucks and buses in August 2012.[17] Functional piggybacking, such as operating the headlamps or front turn signals or fog lamps as DRLs, is not permitted;[18] the EU Directive requires functionally specific daytime running lamps compliant with ECE Regulation 87 and mounted to the vehicle in accord with ECE Regulation 48.[19] DRLs compliant with R87 emit white light of between 400 and 1,200 candela.[20]

Statistically from various surveys it would appear that the safety gains from DRL's are what might be described as "twilight dependant" In other words the greatest safety gains were to found in countries with prolonged periods of reduced light such as Scandinavia in winter but their safety effect was reduced in countries where it was either "dark or light" .
One downside of automatic DRL's is of course their finite power demand which may have an influence on manufacturer's thinking on emission reduction- more lights- more power- more fuel - more emissions---altho with the increased lighting efficiency of LED's the argument there diminishes.

One suspects that the presence of DRL's on vehicles stems from two motivations and/or a combination of both depending on country
1. a genuine concern for increased safety.
2. compliance with legislation
 
So here we go again. Really poor rainy weather with large amounts of spray hanging behind cars. But today (like most days now) the roads are full of cars like this. Front lights on (good) but no tail lights on (scary) and I’m told a feature of DRL’s

How can it correct & legal to design into a car no rear lights? Or have I got this wrong?

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That's the EU for you - just do as they say and don't ask questions. You have no right to ask questions!
 
The other little thing is RVLR : from an hour before sunset until an hour after sunrise , vehicle lights must be used .

On roads with speed limit up to 30mph , sidelights are acceptable.

If the speed limit is greater than 30mph , then dipped headlamps MUST be used . The only exception being where visibility is seriously reduced by fog or falling snow ( used to say to less than 100m ) in which case fog lights may be used either instead of dipped headlamps , or in conjunction with them .



Very simple really .
 
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1/2 hour before sunrise/after sunset when I took my test.
 
1/2 hour before sunrise/after sunset when I took my test.
Yep , I remember that too .

However , thinking about it , it was crazy to be allowed to drive unlit for half an hour of darkness at each end of the day .

The new rules , requiring people to light up before it gets dark , and to remain lit until properly daylight , is much safer .

The ‘twilight zone’ is one of the most dangerous times of the day .

Cue ‘twilight zone’ music ...
 
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You've now got me trawling regs to find it myself , but I have read it somewhere and heard it from traffic police , so I'm sure it's right .

It does make sense , because under the old rules you could be driving around unlit half an hour after sunset , by which time it is pitch dark this time of year - it makes much more sense to turn lights on an hour before sunset , at a time when the sun is low in the sky , or light can be failing and unlit vehicles can be that much harder to see .
 
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When I read this again the requirement for side lights is between sunset and sunrise. It's night that is defined as the period between half an hour after sunset and half an hour before sunrise in relation to the requirement for using headlights.

The reference to using headlights and fog lights when visibility is seriously reduced is defined under rule 226 as visibility less than 100m.


You MUST
  • ensure all sidelights and rear registration plate lights are lit between sunset and sunrise
  • use headlights at night, except on a road which has lit street lighting. These roads are generally restricted to a speed limit of 30 mph (48 km/h) unless otherwise specified
  • use headlights when visibility is seriously reduced (see Rule 226).
Night (the hours of darkness) is defined as the period between half an hour after sunset and half an hour before sunrise).
Laws RVLR regs 3, 24, & 25, (In Scotland - RTRA 1984 sect 82 (as amended by NRSWA, para 59 of sched 8))
 
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Thank God for automatic lights.
 
As has been said before, unfortunately Auto lights only seem to work in darkness, not in reduced daylight visibility, such as spray-affected motorways.

Over hundreds of thousands of motorway miles I've not felt endangered by this problem, in fact, in the OP's photo the car in question is clearly visible.
 
There’s a simple answer to this problem.

Why don’t ALL cars have their side & tail light wired to come on with the ignition. Why can’t they !

We should have taken a lesson from Volvo & Saab way back in the 70’s where safety was paramount.
 
There’s a simple answer to this problem.

Why don’t ALL cars have their side & tail light wired to come on with the ignition. Why can’t they !

We should have taken a lesson from Volvo & Saab way back in the 70’s where safety was paramount.

DRLs are LED, so energy-saving.

Halogens and incandescent bulbs are Watt-hungry... so the idea that we should driving with all lights turned-on all the time will be shot-down by the Greens.
 
Halogens and incandescent bulbs are Watt-hungry... so the idea that we should driving with all lights turned-on all the time will be shot-down by the Greens

They have a point in some circumstances. A common scenario I see is a mile long queue comprising hundreds of cars nose to tail doing 0 - 10 mph in a 30mph urban area with street lamps and they all have headlights on burning lots of kW. The headlights are serving no useful function in terms of improving visibility, in fact the opposite. The law doesn't require them to be on so basically what I see is hundreds of sheep.
 
Pontoneer made a point earlier about the fools who drive around in the dark with the interior of the car lit up like a Christmas tree. I see it all the time, just the other night on a 'quiet; M4 at around midnight I became aware of a car approaching from behind that seemed strangely illuminated. I slowed in lane one to let it pass and it was a new Citroen thingy bob with a screen on the dash , (a bit like modern MB) lit up absolutely white with some writing on it , not a sat nav picture . The whole of the interior of the car was awash is white light , how the driver could see the road ahead was a mystery to me. On a dark road I think my display is a little too bright even when turned right down.

Not sure if it was aftermarket thing as I am pretty sure even Citroen would not design such a distraction.
 
When a tree falls in a forest and there is no one there to hear, does it make a sound ? Does the fridge light really go off when you close the door ?

.........Er...Yes. :banana:
 

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