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Car headlights don't have to be this blinding

theatlantic.com

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Re: Car headlights don't have to be this blinding

#91

Post by bluGill »

Melatonic wrote: post #85
bluGill wrote: post #78

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I don't, but I need to see things an inch away. I need to see the lines which are often close to my car as well. Meanwhile when parking I don't need to see things more than a couple feet from my car.

So you also angle the mirrors down a ton ? My old car (a VW) had an option to automatically do this on the passenger side mirror when in reverse. Not sure id want to do this manually each time though (up and down)

With manual mirrors I aim for driving and 'hope and pray' when parking.

My current car has cameras which show me the ground around it when I press a button which solves all my needs. Probably a better solution, but not on most cars from what I can tell.

Re: Car headlights don't have to be this blinding

#92

Post by tristor »

njarboe wrote: post #69

A big problem is bright screens and displays inside of cars at night. Your night vision never kicks in so you need extra bright lights to see, thus these bright lights that only light up a small section of the road. The more dispersed and even lighting of the old lights is so much better.

One of my favorite features of my Mazda 3 is that it has a HUD projector in the windshield that gets turn by turn directions via Apple CarPlay so I can turn off the screen and still get navigation.

Re: Car headlights don't have to be this blinding

#93

Post by glitchcrab »

logancbrown wrote: post #72
jasonlotito wrote: post #60

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It doesn't help your case when you state inflammatory comments like "If you are so knowledgeable, then what argument am I making?". This isn't reddit.

[flagged]

How is this helping? We're not on the playground here.

Re: Car headlights don't have to be this blinding

#94

Post by jerlam »

There's an interesting trend of some cars having their daytime running lights and their low beams in completely separate positions, with the car design only emphasizing the former. This effectively reduces the height of the headlight even if the car is taller. Here's an example:

https://youtu.be/KGhycuensJw?si=ZCycH7l5hQDktqqK&t=54

Surprisingly the Cybertruck also has this layout.

Re: Car headlights don't have to be this blinding

#95

Post by SkyPuncher »

lifestyleguru wrote: post #81
creaturemachine wrote: post #66

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That was me, sorry. My car has automatic high-beams that only turn down for other vehicles.

I'm ecstatic every time I'm blinded by laser strong strobing light from the approaching vehicle, especially in the pitch dark country side. Thank you.

As someone who often drives pitch dark country sides, you'd be surprised how hard it is to see people on the side of the road at night. Those blinding lights make a huge difference between you blending into the dark background and seeing you early enough to react (if needed).

Re: Car headlights don't have to be this blinding

#96

Post by dylan604 »

bradfa wrote: post #32
mitthrowaway2 wrote: post #24

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I don't understand why headlight elevation isn't standardized.

It was. We had sealed beam headlights for a while till we didn’t. There were common rules for aiming and it worked. The lights weren’t all that bright and the styling was not stellar, however.

I remember having to take my car in to adjust the aiming of the headlights after it didn't pass inspection. So we used to take things like this seriously. I just had my car inspected last month, I don't even remember them hitting the horn. I'm guessing they pretty much just shove a sensor up the exhaust pipe and call it a day while accepting your payment.

Re: Car headlights don't have to be this blinding

#97

Post by usrusr »

calmbonsai wrote: post #18

This is largely poor regulation. The assumption that "more bright = more safe" and the lack of enough real-world testing. The only other product analogy that comes to mind is "thicker = better" for hiking socks. When they got too thick, they applied too much pressure to the heal and also provided additional moment distance making it far easier to roll an ankle.

I believe that it's more nuanced than that (this is from the context of German regulations):

In the old days, reflectors and diffractors were rather crude and light distribution wasn't even at all. Regulation was setting a light intensity limit for the arc above the cutoff, assuming that the brightest spots would be just that, unintended brightness outliers. And when those would comply with the limit, the typical brightness hitting the eyes of oncoming traffic would be much lower.

Now reflector design is SO much better manufacturers striving to make their buyers happy can make lights pushing out photons exactly at that old regulatory limit over the entire cutoff area, and with a precise jump where the cuttoff stops. That's awesome for the person behind the wheel ("best lights I ever had!"), technically within the old limits and a terribly blinding for everybody else.

Re: Car headlights don't have to be this blinding

#98

Post by tstrimple »

realo wrote: post #49
jader201 wrote: post #40

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Yet all car safety regulation on the 59% that are I don’t think you meant literally “all”, but one that comes to mind that definitely is intended for pedestrian safety is around requiring that EVs make audible noises when they’re moving at slow speeds (the fake humming as they move forward, and the beeping as they reverse).

Forget about EVs. Most regular SUVs should be taken off the road. Look at this example: a dozen kids aligned in a neat row in front of the SUV and the soccer mom drivers can see none of them! https://www.nbcwashington.com/investigations/driveway-danger...

This is one of the things I really like about driving a minivan. Excellent visibility compared to just about any other vehicle, including sedans. A combination of higher sitting position with larger windows and sloping hood really opens up sight lines. My son has a Mazda 2 and I hate driving that thing. Feels like the columns and ride height really kills visibility.

Re: Car headlights don't have to be this blinding

#99

Post by creaturemachine »

SkyPuncher wrote: post #95
lifestyleguru wrote: post #81

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I'm ecstatic every time I'm blinded by laser strong strobing light from the approaching vehicle, especially in the pitch dark country side. Thank you.

As someone who often drives pitch dark country sides, you'd be surprised how hard it is to see people on the side of the road at night. Those blinding lights make a huge difference between you blending into the dark background and seeing you early enough to react (if needed).

True, but once you can see the whites in their eyes it would be nice if the beams lowered.

Re: Car headlights don't have to be this blinding

#100

Post by HeyLaughingBoy »

realo wrote: post #49
jader201 wrote: post #40

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Yet all car safety regulation on the 59% that are I don’t think you meant literally “all”, but one that comes to mind that definitely is intended for pedestrian safety is around requiring that EVs make audible noises when they’re moving at slow speeds (the fake humming as they move forward, and the beeping as they reverse).

Forget about EVs. Most regular SUVs should be taken off the road. Look at this example: a dozen kids aligned in a neat row in front of the SUV and the soccer mom drivers can see none of them! https://www.nbcwashington.com/investigations/driveway-danger...

How often do you come across kids sitting on the ground in a parking lot? If they want to make a point about visibility at least have them standing up.
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