It can't be that hard to use automatic headlights...

ozbargainsam on 24/03/2021 - 21:33
Last edited 25/03/2021 - 22:26 by 1 other user

Been wanting to rant about this one for ages, but it seems like the perfect time for it:

Cars that clearly have automatic headlight systems without their lights on in the rain/night etc.

My lights are always on 'auto' mode and the only time I have to change it is back to auto because car services always set it to off.

It's even less work than filling up on indicator fluid or driving with self-awareness.

Secondary rant: you flash people to get them to turn their lights on, but it's like yelling at a deaf person because they just aren't aware they're doing anything wrong.

Edit: do we do edits on OzB? Anyway…the rant is about those driving at night or in the rain with no lights/DRLs.

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        nickj on 25/03/2021 - 20:33

        Exactly, they're both a fool's errand.

        My favourite is the guy sent on a fool's errand to develop a lightbulb frosted on the interior, who actually succeeded, to the astonishment of his peers.

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          pegaxs on 25/03/2021 - 21:39

          @nickj: Get the apprentice to pack the muffler bearings with new elbow grease…

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  knasty on 25/03/2021 - 21:05

  +4

  You speak my language. I was once in an Uber and he didn't have his lights on at night.

  Me: You dont have your lights on.
  Him: Oh..[Turns them on]
  Me: You know you have auto headlights right?
  Him: No this car doesn't have that.
  Me: It says Auto on your headlight stalk.
  Him: Yeah that doesnt work.

  I was glad to get out of that car.

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    DJR9000 on 26/03/2021 - 08:18

    +2

    hope you left a 1-star for being a incompetent driver.

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  Deuce on 25/03/2021 - 21:16

  My car has auto, parker or on. Don't even get the option of off. Only time I have to manually set it to on is in the rain.

  The only thing that annoys me is when people flash me to tell me to turn off my high beams. Which aren't even on, because they all assume it is on due to the vehicle height (4WD - stock vehicle height and stock standard headlights and still using bulbs from factory).

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    MS Paint on 25/03/2021 - 23:33

    +1

    Your headlights probably need a realignment

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      Deuce on 26/03/2021 - 08:58

      Alignment is correct. I've checked it against a wall and measured the height difference (I used 2 other 4wds of the same spec and model to check this). I also adjust the lights manually to account for extra weight.

      -edit- I should add, this no longer happens anymore since I have fitted a rear canopy on the tray. I adjusted the light manually inside the cab to account for the canopy weight.

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    bobwokeup on 26/03/2021 - 00:16

    Something is not right with your lights then. We’ve got a high 4WD and never been flashed for that. I know this because I hate cars that high beam me so if I was doing it I’d be embarrassed.

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  DonWilson on 25/03/2021 - 22:22

  My car turns on the headlights if I go under a bridge or there's something on the side of the road casting a shadow. I do it manually because I'm worried people will think I'm shining my lights at them deliberately.

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    bcarp on 25/03/2021 - 23:23

    +1

    So many cars do this now that you shouldn't worry. People are used to seeing it.

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  whitelie on 25/03/2021 - 22:53

  +1

  I think DRL's play a big part in this too.
  See so many people that think their headlights are just a bit average when they're not on at all. It's just the DRL's and they think they are on because the dash lights up automatically.

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    SlickMick on 25/03/2021 - 23:16

    aha. Thank you, you solved the mystery of why our headlights were so dim after a service. Dash lights were on. There was definitely some light on the road.

    I never really understood what DRLs are. I thought why don't they just say "aways on" if it's just lights on during the day? So they are separate bulbs. I'm going to have to google now why they are even a thing.

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      whitelie on 25/03/2021 - 23:28

      Daytime Running Lights
      But they are generally an LED so lower power consumption and longer life globe than regular headlights. You also don't want it blinding like leaving headlights on all the time for instances where you might be in fog. Low and high beams will reduce visibility in that situation.

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  Poor Ass on 25/03/2021 - 23:46

  Kinda like people leaving their indicators on not knowing

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  bobwokeup on 26/03/2021 - 00:11

  I agree with you, I was taught to turn my lights on in the wet and once the suns down but people are stupid now. It does make it even harder when you constantly see newish cars that would have auto lights and they don’t use it. If only they knew it was for safety!!!

  edit and country driving I always put my headlights on but that seems to hardly happen now too.

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    [Deactivated] on 26/03/2021 - 22:10

    +1

    I agree with you, I was taught to turn my lights on in the wet and once the suns down but people are stupid now.

    I think it's more dumb to assume someone, who obviously drove just fine at least some distance before I saw them, suddenly turns blind and will careen across the road because I happened to be the one who noticed their lights aren't on. It can only be that, because you obviously saw them just fine without their lights on, otherwise you wouldn't have seen them to flash at them.

    They've probably been driving for some time, the light is gradually reducing, they've already seen a few cars including yours coming the other direction with lights on, so they're probably about to turn theirs on anyway. Their eyesight could be better than yours. The position of the Sun might mean it's darker in the direction your driving but still quite light to them. They might know their battery is nearly dead and only has enough surface charge to make it home without anything else turned on. They could have some other kind of electrical fault. They might have driven only a few hundred meters and be about to turn into a property so it was pointless turning their lights on for such a short distance especially when it's still light (because again, they can obvious see to drive or their lights would be on). You don't know. All you know is they're not doing what you prefer they do. So until you're crowned king of nitpick land, why not consider not demanding everyone comply to your particular set of rules and mind your own business LOL?

    If only they knew it was for safety!!!

    Nosense. It's got nothing to do with safety. First, if they can drive along a road without lights on, they can obviously both still see and be seen. Otherwise you wouldn't be flashing them, and they'd either stop driving and pull over all confused, would turn their lights on, or be off the the road into a ditch/tree. You have your lights on, so they can see you just fine. You saw them just fine too or you wouldn't be nagging them by flashing. So just stay in your own lane and you'll be fine.

    Since we've now established they really can see just fine (their lights not being on yet is the BIG hint here LOL), then it can only be unsafe if something is wrong with the FLASHER'S eyesight, or, the flasher just needs to control others, or has the bad habit of using both sides of the road. In all cases the flasher should go for an eyesight test and/or a mental health professional for an attitude adjustment, rather than expecting other people comply to their attempts to manipulate them to suit his/her preferences/shortcomings.

    The real reason people flash lights at others is either because: a) Someone genuinely but mistakenly (as my other points demonstrate) thinks they're 'helping', or, b) They're just not behaving the way that suits the nag, and because the nag believes they're perfect and always right, anyone not doing it their way must be reminded they're idiots unless they obey the nag's rules.

    edit and country driving I always put my headlights on but that seems to hardly happen now too.

    This is illogical. The air is worse/smog in the cities, and better/clearer in the country. If headlights were needed more in one of those places, it would be the city.

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  DJR9000 on 26/03/2021 - 08:16

  +1

  the dash is always lit up in new cars… stupid drivers think dash lit up = lights on.

  in an urban area with street lights they probably don't even realise. If they were out in the country or on unlit roads I'm sure they'd notice (mostly) but there's no fixing stupid.

  the thing is it would be easy for the manufacturers to wire up something so that the headlight indicator flashes if the light sensor detects darkness but the lights aren't on. But iI guess they assume most people actually know how to drive a car, which obviously some people struggle with. Hey at least modern cars are safer so all these numpties can survive when they crash.

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  DiscoJango on 26/03/2021 - 08:49

  Ive actually noticed the sensitivity on some auto headlights arent that great, eg: its getting late in the day, getting darker, still enough to "see", but it would be good if the park and/or headlights came on, but they dont.

  I noticed my car, and several other brands of vehicles, do the same. Ive now resorted to manually switching the headlights on as i dont feel comfortable driving in 'darker' conditions without my lights on. Going into obviously dark situations (underground carpark etc) there are no problems.

  I'll have to double check, but i dont think there is a auto headlight sensitivity setting, similar to auto wipers.

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    Brianqpr on 26/03/2021 - 10:19

    True. I find my come on sometimes when the light is still pretty good and then don't always come on when its not quite so good.

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  Heracles on 26/03/2021 - 10:17

  +1

  You can't fix stupid.

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    [Deactivated] on 26/03/2021 - 21:03

    I think it's more stupid to think people won't turn their lights on as the light level falls without being reminded.

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  Brianqpr on 26/03/2021 - 10:18

  I leave mine on auto so I don't have to think about it. But then I occasionally find myself driving in the dark with no lights because my wife has driven the car and turned them off.

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  OzzyOzbourne on 26/03/2021 - 10:24

  How do you know what cars clearly have automatic headlights?

  Anyhow, yes, there are a lot of cars without headlights on at night, it seems to be increasingly common.

  I think the issue is bright white street lighting and instrument clusters that are always lit.

  In the old days, sodium street lights were amber and pretty bad at lighting the street, you really couldn't see without your headlights on. Also, instrument clusters only lit up with the headlights on, so it was very obvious if they weren't on.

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    [Deactivated] on 26/03/2021 - 21:02

    How do you know what cars clearly have automatic headlights?

    If someone is anal enough they need to control the driving habits of others, they probably also have a list stuck to the dashboard.

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  spaceflight on 26/03/2021 - 10:55

  My lights are always on 'auto' mode and the only time I have to change it is back to auto because car services always set it to off.

  Do you turn them manually on when you are driving on a freeway or highway?

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  Bid Sniper on 26/03/2021 - 10:58

  I have two cars with auto lights, they dont always turn on during the rain. I have to manually set them on in rainy conditions during daytime sometimes. Have DRLs so guessing manufactures think thats enough.

  My rant- Camry Drivers. Last month, driving on highway with both mirrors folded back. Suppose helps fuel economy…..

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  Scrooge McGoose on 26/03/2021 - 16:04

  Auto head lights often don't come on in the rain as it isn't always that dark.

  Or they come on when you start the car, but you don't notice that they have turned off when it brightened up a little.

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  [Deactivated] on 26/03/2021 - 20:58

  Secondary rant: you flash people to get them to turn their lights on, but it's like yelling at a deaf person because they just aren't aware they're doing anything wrong.

  Otoh it's anal and arrogant to assume it's your responsibility to monitor and control the driving habits of others, and one day just might earn you a punch in the mouth (or worse if you happen to do it to someone with an even more inflated level of self-importance, like some crim with a short fuse).

  There's a section of road here with thick bush along both sides. As you enter that section the light level drops. And if it's getting something like 3pm, the Sun is getting low and in the eyes of people driving toward it. Which also makes it appear darker for cars driving away from it. Everyone drives into and exits both ends of this section in broad daylight. But self-righteous nitwits have so firmly programmed themselves ala Pavlov's salivating dog, with the anal need to flash their lights, that they're flashing people with HOURS of daylight left. Anyone on the receiving end who submits to these control freaks, is soon scratching their head and turning their lights off again as they exit the 'grove' or look at the car clock and realise the Sun will be in the sky for hours.

  Same thing with fools who flash because some clouds form and a little water falls from the sky, making a section of streetlights turn on because the light level in only that section temporarily falls.

  Do these flashers really think others will still be driving around confused squinting in the dark at 10pm, with no lights on, unless they satisfy their superhero complex to remind everyone!? If it's really dark enough that lights are needed, the other driver will soon realize and turn them on. It's not like you can't see them because you saw their car to notice their lights aren't on, which activated your learned Pavlov light-flashing reflex… so obviously they can see YOU quite well too… which means what? That's it's still daylight.

  If your eyesight really is so bad that you need everyone else to turn their lights on so you can see them, go get a prescription and some glasses rather than being an anal control freak. Then take a breath, relax, stop monitoring and attempting to control others.

  If you still need to satisfy your learned light-flashing habit, use your stupidpower for good, and do it when cops are creating unsafe road conditions for everyone by setting up speed cameras, thus causing even people who never speed to panic and slam their brakes on fearing a fine.

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    ozbargainsam on 26/03/2021 - 21:51

    +2

    Yikes, mate. Lots to dig into there.

    I don't think anyone's reading it as anything other than signalling to people when it's either legally required to have lights on, or if the conditions definitely call for it such as when it's pissing down raining.

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      [Deactivated] on 26/03/2021 - 23:50

      Well I'm reading both versions posted here (just as I see on the road). The problem is, it's subjective. And where it's subjective people should do what they like but where others are concerned, mind their own business. i.e. What is a drizzle to me with good eyesight may be 'pissing down' and too dark for someone else (who would probably flash me because of their shortcoming).

      I've seen a line of ~30 cars, with one at the front flashing everyone coming the other way. None of the cars behind or beside him felt it necessary to have theirs on, but he was nagging everyone coming the other way because he 'knows better'.

      People claiming they only flash others 'for safety' should really pause and think. Because while I never did it, when I was younger I considered following some of these more arrogant flashers (and other abusers/controllers) home and keying their car or bricking their windscreen. I eventually grew up in the head. But with bikie shootings, African gangs, etc we hear about, plenty of these never grow up. So there's no way I'd be arrogant enough to flash anyone today. Literally everyone will turn their lights on when they need them. And if they're deliberately not on there's a reason. Their reason may just be they're a goose. But people should still mind their own business, stop demanding others fall in line with their subjective 'light threshold'.

      As for rain, again people say they flash for safety reason, but that too is subjective. e.g. I'm sensitive to light. It means I have to concentrate harder, which causes stress headaches. So everyone turning on their headlights for light rain is really annoying. They reflect off wet black roads almost like a mirror, increasing the number of unnecessary distractions, when I wish the only lights we see then are traffic lights, signs, and emergency vehicles. Leaving my lights off reduces irritation to both me, or someone like me. That's my subjective view. But while I don't go around demanding other people turn their lights off, others keep nagging me to turn on mine to please them, even though they'll only pass me for a whole 1.5 seconds.

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        quog on 27/03/2021 - 11:43

        You sure they weren't flashing because of a speed camera up ahead?

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          [Deactivated] on 29/03/2021 - 11:49

          @quog: LOL, no… because most people don't do that anymore (around here they don't anyway) and that road has no side roads.

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  Morphio25 on 27/03/2021 - 09:41

  Last time I got my car serviced not only did they turn my lights off they also disconnected my dash cam. Didn't realise til I was halfway home. Had I needed the footage for any reason I wouldn't have had it and you could bet your bottom dollar they wouldn't have accepted any liability.

  Bottom line - put things back the way you found them.

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    [Deactivated] on 27/03/2021 - 16:55

    Why are you telling u? Tell them.

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  [Deactivated] on 27/03/2021 - 16:54

  -1

  Every time I get in my 70yo mothers car, the auto headlights are off, the auto wipers are off, she doesn't use the kick to open on the boot, her radio is set to AM instead of DAB, and she doesn't use carplay or the built in Nav (which is very good, and only requires a voice input to work). She recently took my girlfriend to an appointment, and when she picked my GF up she had the directions written down on a piece of paper. She refused to follow the sat nav, even after my GF set it, and insisted that the map on her display was set at a Melbourne level of zoom, so there was no way you could see the streets. She got lost, so there is no way she was paying attention to the HUD either. I've tried going over these things with her, but she just yells at you. She also refuses to use the 360 cameras because she finds them confusing, and instead looks over her shoulder when reversing. She insists she wants a smaller car, and that her old car was much smaller (she came from a much larger W212 E250 cdi and now drives an X3 3.0i). She's been complaining about the car every time I see her for the year she's had it, but anything smaller and she'd complain it doesn't have enough room for her bottomless appetite for shopping and buying and transporting furniture and artwork from expensive auction houses.

  At some point I guess you just become stuck in your ways.

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  Orico on 27/03/2021 - 21:47

  Cars that clearly have automatic headlight systems without their lights on in the rain/night etc.

  Rich people problems…

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    pegaxs on 28/03/2021 - 08:36

    Woooo! I’ll let the wife know she is rich, all because her Corolla has auto headlights.

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      Orico on 28/03/2021 - 11:43

      Sounds like it's a new corolla.

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