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As a semi truck driver I see these things all the time. Even on clear night you have idiots that drive with no taillights of any kind. I've driven in many foggy situations and I see those who use their brights in fog, which is the WRONG thing to do since that strong light reflects right back at them. Same thing happens in heavy snowfall, especially with the big flakes has that same effect.
Kind of like the bozos who drive with just their parking/running lights on until it's almost dark. Never understood that one. I guess they think they look cool
Just turn on your headlights and get it over with.
Quote:
Originally Posted by vmaxnc
DRLs (daytime running lights) are automatic, and don't require driver input, so I doubt it's people thinking they are cool.
Thanks for the lesson Scooter, but note I said parking/running lights. You do know not all vehicles are equipped with DRLs, right?
Quote:
Originally Posted by North Beach Person
The point of having your lights on in fog, or in low light dusk/dawn conditions for that matter, isn't so much to help you see but to help you be seen.
As a note, people who drive with their parking lights on drive me crazy.
Quote:
Originally Posted by chiroptera
This, and this.
People who drive only with their fog or running lights on (when there's no reason to use either) seem to me the mopst pathetic of poseurs: Oh wow,look, I have the ability to turn on my parking lights and nothing
else. Oh teh techmology. Wow!
Witnessed this again this morning on my way to work. I'm sad to say that the majority were of my own gender, although there were guys too. My state could put a dent in its revenue problem if tickets were handed out consistently for this!
The reason fog lights are mounded as close as possible to the ground is because fog is least-dense (and often absent) at ground level, and the light from lower sources can penetrate further before being reflected back to your eye.
The reason fog lights are mounded as close as possible to the ground is because reflection from water droplets tends to be specular, i.e., the major portion of backscattered light is scattered back in the direction from which it came. If the fog lights are mounted low, the backscattered light will be low and not up into the drivers eyes. For this reason fog lights are most effective if both low and high beams can can be switched off. This cannot be done in the U.S.
A striking example of this effect can be seen in flying an aircraft on a sunny day over cloud-covered terrain. The area surrounding the plane's shadow on the clouds below will be brighter than areas farther distant, showing that backscatter from water droplets in the clouds that is directed directly backward to the source (in this case the sun) is greater than backscatter at an angle.
I've worked on radar development and know that backscatter from rain can be a problem. Radars designed to see through rain transmit circularly polarized radiation. Backscatter from rain droplets reverses the sign of polarization (from clockwise to counter-clockwise or vice versa), and radar antennas cannot pick-up signals that are reverse-polarized from what was transmitted.
Fog-lights on most U.S. cars are mostly cosmetic, something the manufacturers add to make an extra buck. They would be more effective if the low beams could be turned off.
Most German cars (a more technical nation than the U.S.) don't have fog-lights on the front but have a fog-light on the rear. And it was illegal to use front fog-lights in Germany unless visibility was less than 100m.
Just I thought I'd clear up why fog lights are placed low to the ground.
Fog-lights on most U.S. cars are mostly cosmetic, something the manufacturers add to make an extra buck. They would be more effective if the low beams could be turned off.
On many US cars you can run the fogs with the regular headlights turned off, however it's not legal in many states to do so after dark.
On many US cars you can run the fogs with the regular headlights turned off, however it's not legal in many states to do so after dark.
Interestingly enough I've owned at least 8 cars with factory fog lights including the 3 cars I currently own, and not one of these cars would let you operate the fog lights independently of the headlights. And for those cars where the fog lights actually serve(d) a useful function and not just as "look at me I'm cool" lights, that irritated/irritates the hell out of me.
Interestingly enough I've owned at least 8 cars with factory fog lights including the 3 cars I currently own, and not one of these cars would let you operate the fog lights independently of the headlights. And for those cars where the fog lights actually serve(d) a useful function and not just as "look at me I'm cool" lights, that irritated/irritates the hell out of me.
My last three Chrysler products (2001 Dakota, 2006 Wrangler, 2007 Charger) all allowed the fogs without the headlights, you did need the parking lights on though.
My land-cruiser has DRLs, low-beams, and fog lights, but the fog lights only work when the low-beams are on.
What really irritates me is people with their fog lights and low-beams on in the daytime, when it's not foggy or rainy. So pointless.
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