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Vehicles with all lights on.

Posted: Tue Nov 30, 2021 8:04 am
by bmwx5
Every evening I seem to get several oncoming vehicles either with Ultra bright LED headlights or combined with fog lights, spot lights on which are distracting and in some cases dangerous causing you to close for eyes for a few seconds.
Seems to be acceptable to many drivers but surely not legal.

Re: Vehicles with all lights on.

Posted: Tue Nov 30, 2021 8:51 am
by WHL
bmwx5 wrote: Tue Nov 30, 2021 8:04 am Every evening I seem to get several oncoming vehicles either with Ultra bright LED headlights or combined with fog lights, spot lights on which are distracting and in some cases dangerous causing you to close for eyes for a few seconds.
Seems to be acceptable to many drivers but surely not legal.
Many new cars now, have their lights come on automatically I found this out last week with my rental in London, they upgraded me to some super duper model, I didnt have a clue, how to work the lights, they just came on by them selves, even going from full beam to normal, car was smarter then me by a long way. :o

Re: Vehicles with all lights on.

Posted: Tue Nov 30, 2021 9:10 am
by Kili01
Yes, I have noticed this too, and wearing glasses makes it seem worse. I tend to look towards the kerb to avoid the dazzling effect of those lights. Are they either necessary or even legal?
The other thing noticeable seems to be an increase in the number of vehicles with blacked out windows, is that legal either?
Who knows!

Dee

Re: Vehicles with all lights on.

Posted: Tue Nov 30, 2021 9:17 am
by WHL
Kili01 wrote: Tue Nov 30, 2021 9:10 am Yes, I have noticed this too, and wearing glasses makes it seem worse. I tend to look towards the kerb to avoid the dazzling effect of those lights. Are they either necessary or even legal?
The other thing noticeable seems to be an increase in the number of vehicles with blacked out windows, is that legal either?
Who knows!

Dee
Have you ever thought about joining the Traffic Police :lol:

Re: Vehicles with all lights on.

Posted: Tue Nov 30, 2021 2:46 pm
by Devil
Talking about standard cars and SUVs without modified lights, for me the biggest sin is running with both headlights and fog lights. Dipped headlights are designed to give a reasonable forward view with sufficient peripheral lighting to take care of many possible widths of view. Fog lights, as the name implies, are designed to give a low (in height), flat, wide lighting with as little backscatter as possible. This wide beam lights up to the same height over the near-180°, so is dazzling to traffic heading in the opposite direction. I have never understood why manufacturers have never added a switch between headlights and fog lights, so that you could always use the optimum for the given conditions. Never use both together!

Re: Vehicles with all lights on.

Posted: Tue Nov 30, 2021 2:49 pm
by Kili01
No, but I wish there were more policemen to do all their many tasks....

Dee

Re: Vehicles with all lights on.

Posted: Tue Nov 30, 2021 6:00 pm
by Lincoln
Because of the very bright lights, I have bought a pair of spectacles that fit over my own specs. They are a yellow coloured lens and stop all glare. perfect for night driving. Only €10.00 off a stall in the duckpond.

Re: Vehicles with all lights on.

Posted: Tue Nov 30, 2021 6:27 pm
by WHL
Lincoln wrote: Tue Nov 30, 2021 6:00 pm Because of the very bright lights, I have bought a pair of spectacles that fit over my own specs. They are a yellow coloured lens and stop all glare. perfect for night driving. Only €10.00 off a stall in the duckpond.
I bought a pair of those from amazon, these were a pair of glasses meant to stop glare,,,,I tried them i the Uk, couldn't see a thing out of them, binned them, and They cost 30 pound. :(

Re: Vehicles with all lights on.

Posted: Wed Dec 01, 2021 5:47 am
by jeba
In some countries (e.g. Sweden) it´s mandatory that you have your headlights switched on even during the day and it doesn´t seem to be a problem there. I guess the problem is that M.O.T doesn´t check whether your lights are adjusted correctly.

Off topic: my spellchecker suggests replacing "problem" by "issue" in the last sentence. What´s wrong with using the term "problem" in this context?

Re: Vehicles with all lights on.

Posted: Wed Dec 01, 2021 8:30 am
by The Aquila
Perhaps Sweden don’t have an aging expat community that like to complain about everything Jeba? ;)


There is nothing wrong with using either problem or issue in the context you’ve used it in.

Re: Vehicles with all lights on.

Posted: Wed Dec 01, 2021 9:35 am
by trevnhil
By the way, as far as I know the MOT does check the main built-in lights on a car

Re: Vehicles with all lights on.

Posted: Wed Dec 01, 2021 9:44 am
by WHL
jeba wrote: Wed Dec 01, 2021 5:47 am In some countries (e.g. Sweden) it´s mandatory that you have your headlights switched on even during the day and it doesn´t seem to be a problem there. I guess the problem is that M.O.T doesn´t check whether your lights are adjusted correctly.

Off topic: my spellchecker suggests replacing "problem" by "issue" in the last sentence. What´s wrong with using the term "problem" in this context?
My headlights are checked every time I get our cars MOT,

Re: Vehicles with all lights on.

Posted: Wed Dec 01, 2021 9:53 am
by PolemIan
People driving with rear fog lights on when it’s just dark or a bit wet has always been one of my biggest bugbears, both in U.K. and here, but way more noticeable in U.K. than here. Makes it so much harder to see brake lights come in so I don’t know who they think they are helping.

Multiple studies around the world have shown that the use of daytime running lights significantly reduces the risk of accidents.

Ian

Re: Vehicles with all lights on.

Posted: Wed Dec 01, 2021 9:57 am
by bromerzz
Personally in favour of dimmed headlights being on at all times when driving, in fact that is the default setting on my car.

Re: Vehicles with all lights on.

Posted: Wed Dec 01, 2021 11:04 am
by wantoosoon
Kili01 wrote: Tue Nov 30, 2021 2:49 pm No, but I wish there were more policemen to do all their many tasks....

Dee
According to Eurostat, Cyprus has the highest number of police officers per capita of any EU country. Makes you wonder what they're all doing!

Re: Vehicles with all lights on.

Posted: Wed Dec 01, 2021 11:17 am
by wantoosoon
PolemIan wrote: Wed Dec 01, 2021 9:53 am People driving with rear fog lights on when it’s just dark or a bit wet has always been one of my biggest bugbears, both in U.K. and here, but way more noticeable in U.K. than here. Makes it so much harder to see brake lights come in so I don’t know who they think they are helping.

Multiple studies around the world have shown that the use of daytime running lights significantly reduces the risk of accidents.

Ian
Actually, results have been mixed and the benefits seem to vary with regard to the usual ambient light levels. In a bright, sunny country like Cyprus, DRLs are likely to be of marginal benefit in reducing accidents. In gloomy Scandinavia (where DRLs originated), the effect is much more pronounced.

Re: Vehicles with all lights on.

Posted: Wed Dec 01, 2021 11:31 am
by WHL
wantoosoon wrote: Wed Dec 01, 2021 11:04 am
Kili01 wrote: Tue Nov 30, 2021 2:49 pm No, but I wish there were more policemen to do all their many tasks....

Dee
According to Eurostat, Cyprus has the highest number of police officers per capita of any EU country. Makes you wonder what they're all doing!
Question, Makes you wonder What they're all doing, ? simple question for you, do you feel safer living here or the UK, there's your answer to your question.

Re: Vehicles with all lights on.

Posted: Thu Dec 02, 2021 7:41 am
by jeba
WHL wrote: Wed Dec 01, 2021 9:44 am My headlights are checked every time I get our cars MOT,
THat´s not my experience. They only checked whether they were working, not whether they were adjusted correctly. In fact, I haven´t even seen the device needed for that which measures the angle of the light beam.

Re: Vehicles with all lights on.

Posted: Thu Dec 02, 2021 8:39 am
by Uncle D
I have had Mots done at three different stations over the years, they all checked the headlamp beams with their equipment

Re: Vehicles with all lights on.

Posted: Thu Dec 02, 2021 8:58 am
by WHL
jeba wrote: Thu Dec 02, 2021 7:41 am
WHL wrote: Wed Dec 01, 2021 9:44 am My headlights are checked every time I get our cars MOT,
THat´s not my experience. They only checked whether they were working, not whether they were adjusted correctly. In fact, I haven´t even seen the device needed for that which measures the angle of the light beam.
change your garage then, to be registered for carrying out MOTs the garage needs to have all the equipment,