daytime running lights

[meyersnole]

Agreed, the Ford auto headlamps take a long time to activate and it is usually darker out than I like driving without lights so I'll have to manually turn them on.  I've owned about 8 Ford/Lincoln vehicles all with the auto headlamp function over the past decade and it always frustrates me the elongated delay built into the Ford systems.  My German cars on the other hand, as soon as I enter a traffic tunnel they switch on (which is GREAT as being a motorcyclist one of the things you learn is that visibility is critical).  My Ford Products won't even come on when going through most traffic tunnels.  I actually put a small piece of electrical tape over part of the dash sensor to help the auto lamps come on when I think they should.  I wonder if the delay/sensitivity is adjustable in these systems?

 

This is a frustration of mine as well. I would love for there to be a setting somewhere where you could make the sensitivity a bit more aggressive than it currently is. I reach down to turn on my lights at dusk manually, usually about 15-30 mins before the car feels it necessary to turn them on. Honestly, on those gloomy days where it is very overcast and darkish I wish they would turn on. And it seems hit or miss on the lights turning on when the windshield wipers go on. It is the state law in many places that if you are running your wipers they should be on... I am constantly looking down for the green headlight indicator.

[Hybridbear]

I am constantly looking down for the green headlight indicator.

And for me, instead of constantly looking for it I just turn my lights on all the time when I drive, like murphy.

[meyersnole]

I actually think that DRLs are distracting during the middle of the day when the sun is out. I just want them on when viability is impaired.

[Fat Fusion]

Since my car is gray, just like the road surface, I run either running or head lights at all times.  I've totaled two cars due to other people's failures.  I would rather not push my luck on # 3.

[Russael]

I personally never bought in to the daytime running light thing.  My own reasoning was, "What is a headlight going to do for you during the day?  It's a waste of energy."

 

I got curious about this yesterday and did a search for a highway safety study done of accidents with cars that have DRLs and cars that did not.  I found the study here, but it's old (2008):  http://www-nrd.nhtsa.dot.gov/Pubs/811029.pdf

 

Long and short of it, their summary is that DRLs have no real affect on the frequency of accidents (study also compares daytime with and without dawn and dusk included), and that seems to be the consensus on other articles I found online.  Some indicate that there are more accidents because of them.

 

Apparently, the DRL thing got started by the Greyhound Bus Company, promoting daytime headlight use as a safety feature.

 

Wikipedia indicates that they do improve safety, but mainly in 'dark' countries such as Scandinavia or Nordic areas.

Edited September 12, 2014 at 01:13 PM by Russael

[Rexracer]

I actually think that DRLs are distracting during the middle of the day when the sun is out. I just want them on when viability is impaired.

 

But this is the point, you notice them.

 

Just like the motorcycles with the strob'ing headlight, super annoying to look at, but the fact is you see it and your less likely "not to see the motorcycle". I have nearly been run off the road many times from cars not seeing my motorcycle, so as annoying as it is, the strobing headlight works.

Same with the DRLs.

[Rexracer]

I personally never bought in to the daytime running light thing.  My own reasoning was, "What is a headlight going to do for you during the day?  It's a waste of energy."

 

I got curious about this yesterday and did a search for a highway safety study done of accidents with cars that have DRLs and cars that did not.  I found the study here, but it's old (2008):  http://www-nrd.nhtsa.dot.gov/Pubs/811029.pdf

 

Long and short of it, their summary is that DRLs have no real affect on the frequency of accidents (study also compares daytime with and without dawn and dusk included), and that seems to be the consensus on other articles I found online.  Some indicate that there are more accidents because of them.

 

Apparently, the DRL thing got started by the Greyhound Bus Company, promoting daytime headlight use as a safety feature.

 

Wikipedia indicates that they do improve safety, but mainly in 'dark' countries such as Scandinavia or Nordic areas.

 

I could see people getting overly comfortable with "assuming" other people see them, thus causing bad judgement, but otherwise I can't see how having DRL would create more accidents.

 

Maybe I'm more of a fan here in the PNW where its often gray skied and plenty of dark spots for cars to be less visible in.

 

The solution is to have LED DRL's, extremely low energy usage, combined with visibility. Without that, I do not waste my energy to power my headlights, but if I had LED DRLs, I would run them.

[meyersnole]

I get it for the motorcycle and am totally bought into that. They are so small and can blend in. Cars usually are very visible during the daylight hours. 

 

For the DLRs I find my attention is pulled from the road, distracted maybe, by the lights. For a car I do not think this is great. Usually do not need that type of attention for cars.

[Fat Fusion]

One thing I'll point out is there are LOTS of people driving who's vision is no where near the avg person's vision.  Whether or not they should be driving is a topic for another day, but the fact of the matter is there's millions of people out there with suspect vision.  I used to work with a guy who's step father used to drive to KS or somewhere in the midwest to get his eye medication- from the west coast and the story was he could hardly see.  I'll take my chances with DRL's over nothing, especially in a gray car.  Where I think you'd see the most benefit is in the rain where people aren't smart enough to turn on their headlights.

[meyersnole]

 Where I think you'd see the most benefit is in the rain where people aren't smart enough to turn on their headlights.

 

And this is my major gripe... if the windshield wipers are running, the lights should be on. If the car has an auto setting for the lights it should handle this scenario.

[Hybridbear]

And this is my major gripe... if the windshield wipers are running, the lights should be on. If the car has an auto setting for the lights it should handle this scenario.

I believe the Fusion does this, right? I know that my parents' C-Max Energi does not do this.

[meyersnole]

If it is light out (raining while sunny) they may not turn on in practice. In hard rain I do not recall them ever not coming on.

[Kybuck]

From the Owner's Manual:

Note: If you switch autolamps on in conjunction with autowipers, your low beam headlamps will illuminate automatically when the rain sensor activates the windshield wipers continuously.

 

I couldn't find a statement around the headlights turning on when the manual wipers are activated, though.

[meyersnole]

Fairly sure I have seen the wipers go on and the lights not come on. Or at least the green light indicator does not come on.

[HotLap]

meyersnole, the key word (from kybuck's response above) may be "continuously" as the rain sensing wiper are sporadic unless it is fairly heavy rain and then they operate continuously...since we get virtually NO rain here in SoCal, it will be a while before I can test that theory.

[meyersnole]

I was in SoCal for most of Aug, do not think it rained once. Meanwhile my phone is going off everyday about flash flood warnings at home from all the rain we were getting.  Hope you get some rain soon!