New trend in high-beam etiquette: don't turn them off, ever.

[-Virgil-]

there are too many variables in external light to trust a photocell to dim at a certain level of "oncoming" light.

You're right. Photocells are a primitive, crude, not very effective way to do the job. You need a scanner or a camera to do it right.

 

[idleprocess]

I don't know if I am just being sensitive but here in PA seems like no body cares if they blind you or not, but when I go down south they are much more polite overall in driving, is this just me?

Based on my experience living here for many years, I'd say "it's just you," but I've yet to drive the roads and highways of PA for basis of comparison.

 

[fonaryk]

I don't drive at night.

 

[alpg88]

lol you guys think PA is bad, come to NYC, you'll love PA after day of driving here. especially in Manhattan.

 

[2000mc]

i dont know about the rest of PA first hand, but pittsburgh should have a warning.

from wiki "pittsburgh left"
The Pittsburgh left is a colloquial term for the driving practice of the first left-turning vehicle taking precedence over vehicles going straight through an intersection....

....The Pittsburgh Left has no basis in law. Failing to yield to oncoming traffic while navigating a turn is a traffic violation, and is prohibited in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.[2]

​
there is no noticeable traffic enforcement in or around pittsburgh. bigelow blvd, posted 35mph, traffic typically runs 55-70mph.
consider yourself warned.

 

[JakeGMCHD]

The Grand does use a CCD to activate the High Beams.

 

[alpg88]

my old 1987 t bird had auto highbeams, it had a box attached to rearview mirror, my guess it had photoresistor, doubt they were usig ccd in 87.

 

[-Virgil-]

The Grand Cherokee uses the GenTex SmartBeam system, the sensor of which is a great deal more advanced than a "photocell".

 

[Hamilton Felix]

Sounds impressive. Probably a Good Thing for distracted drivers or those who don't have an highly developed "dimming reflex." I still put the human brain ahead of the sensor. When I'm approaching the long climbing right hand curve to the Bennettville Bridge on a dark morning and I can look over the river and see headlight coming onto the bridge from the right, I know I'll be dimming just before meeting a vehicle in the curve. A sensor wouldn't spot that; the other guy's headlights will be pointed at the outside of the curve, not at me. But I know mine will hit his windshield and driver's side window from close range. I think the sensor helps, but doesn't do it all.

And I have had auto-dimming rear view mirrors. But I guess I'm still a "manual control" guy at heart.

 

[TheExpert]

Sounds impressive. Probably a Good Thing for distracted drivers or those who don't have an highly developed "dimming reflex." I still put the human brain ahead of the sensor. When I'm approaching the long climbing right hand curve to the Bennettville Bridge on a dark morning and I can look over the river and see headlight coming onto the bridge from the right, I know I'll be dimming just before meeting a vehicle in the curve. A sensor wouldn't spot that; the other guy's headlights will be pointed at the outside of the curve, not at me. But I know mine will hit his windshield and driver's side window from close range. I think the sensor helps, but doesn't do it all.

And I have had auto-dimming rear view mirrors. But I guess I'm still a "manual control" guy at heart.

Well it would be great if more people thought like you do..........but most people are too busy messing with the radio, eating, talking to people in the car, texting, and whatever else can be done while driving (although not safe). I think what it comes down to is people just dont care about others.

 

[kaichu dento]

My new low beam policy is "you first". As soon as the oncoming vehicle dims his lights I do as well. If they want to play high beam headlight chicken I'm game.

You are the problem people we've been complaining about.

That is a very immature attitude and practice. It's also illegal, and Rule 11 of this board prohibits advocating illegal activity, so you'll need to please stop it now. Somebody else's unlawful use of lights does not justify your own.

Thanks for posting this reply.

What many tend to lose sight of is the fact that it's mostly rude people who stand out and the polite ones aren't noticed, due to their considerate behavior. The last thing anyone who dislikes rude behavior should find themselves doing is that which they themselves despise.

The only place I've ever been where there seemed to be a culture of blinding others on a regular basis was Colorado where very often I found myself passing someone with both of our lights on low, only to get a blast just as they were still ahead of me when they shifted to high beams.

How about a new trend in etiquette: Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.

Copying the worst in human behavior is little more than an endorsement, as copying the best in human behavior is truly putting your actions before your words and sets a much better example than punishing others before they can punish you.

Besides, as my ex used to point out when I was aggravated at another driver, assuming negative intentions, it could have been someone just like her who was simply guilty of oversight while driving, and realized just a little later than she should have that she'd not been the most perfect of drivers on the road that night.

 

[iroc409]

Anyway, it's worth getting used to vehicle- rather than driver-centric control of the light beam distribution; they are doing some really cool stuff in Europe with camera-driven dynamic always-on high beams that shadow other road users' eyes out of the beam pattern while leaving everything else fully lit up: high beam seeing with low beam glare. US regs don't permit this kind of system (yet?).

You know, I haven't looked into how they work or anything so it's pure fantasy and speculation, BUT... I could see a really cool system using and invisible ranging laser and a camera system to get a very accurate picture of the road ahead. With some sophisticated software (some of which exists elsewhere), you could use the image data to determine light and vehicles, and with the ranging laser produce essentially a 3D map of the road ahead.

Combine that with the new laser headlights you've mentioned (and, my speculation and fantasy about how they might work without research), and you could make a pretty accurate and completely dynamic lighting system that would automagically adjust the lighting beam to be the least offensive yet highly effective to the terrain and traffic.

It could pretty much track a vehicle moving toward you, and keep the light beam out of that driver's eyes precisely yet still deliver impressive light.

It's probably a little beyond the horsepower built into most automotive electronics, but I bet the concept at least is completely doable with today's tech.

Using that image and mapping data, you could even build a pretty good collision avoidance system say for debris in a highway well beyond a driver's vision (even with good headlights). I think they were touting the new HUD's at a recent auto show (which I don't agree with because they want to fill it with Facebook and advertisements), but that could be built into the system like Cadillac's old night vision setup. They already have some of that with Mercedes' emergency-stop function and adaptive cruise control.


ETA: My biggest fear is the day China starts building PNP laser headlight kits... you'll have to wear a welding helmet just to drive through a city!

 

[-Virgil-]

It could pretty much track a vehicle moving toward you, and keep the light beam out of that driver's eyes precisely yet still deliver impressive light.

That is exactly what the glare-free/matrix high beam systems do. They just don't do it by the methods you have in mind.

 

[iroc409]

Well, there's more than one way to skin a cat. I'm just pulling things out of my posterior though, there's lots of things I don't know about lots of stuff, but it's fun to dream things up.

 

[Dr Evil]

I notice people going in the other direction rarely dim their lights on a 4 lane divided road near where I live. There is the occasional driver that does. Some will after I flash my high beams real quick. Then there are those that drive behind me with their high beams on. Those don't bother me much since I have tinted windows. I have a 4wd F150 and a Mazda 6. Oncoming high beams even bother me in the truck. In fact, just about any outside light source bother me. My dash lights are dimmed as much as they can go. I rarely turn high beams on unless I'm unfamiliar with the road or I know there can be wildlife.


Some of the crap they install on newer vehicles drives me nuts. My car has rain sensing wipers. I can't just turn them on slow intermittent and expect them to stay there. They usually end up going full speed which is when I turn them off. I apply Rain-x which works great at speed above 25 to 30 and the drops are big enough. The only time I need wipers is at slower speeds, when it is a real light rain or the vehicle in front is spraying water all over. That's just enough to cause the wipes to speed up to the point I turn them off and manually turn them on for one quick wipe.

As for fog light indicator lights, my truck doesn't have such a thing and it is a 97 with OEM fog lights. I think the car does though. I know it has an indicator letting you know the lights are on though. That is one of the stupidest things I've ever seen.

I noticed somebody mention Elantra owners driving with the fogs on during the day. I work with someone that owns one and does that. All you have to say is "Hyundai" and he get a hard on...

One last thing. I hate it when people put HIDs in housing that aren't meant for them. It looks stupid and it blinds people. Especially the ones with a pinkish-purple tint. Even if they do install a properly designed or OEM system, they don't seem to get them aligned.

 

[blasterman]

The first time I was ever pulled over by a cop (a year after I graduated HS) was for not dimming my head lights, and the annoying thing was the cop never approached me from the front. Basically he was looking for a drunk driver, and although I just got a warning the incident peeved me for decades. Now I wish it was heavily enforced.

Now I've noticed just like the OP that driving habits, expecially for younger drivers, are to ignore the courtesy of dimming your head lights for oncoming traffic. Trend seems to have started about the time HID retrofits started really getting popular, and I've heard the same complaints from many, many adults in their 30's and older. If you flash your lights at them they often flash their lights back.

20 years ago failing to dim your head lights here in the midwest was a quick way to get a citation, especially city or county cops given those roads typically lack a median. The result is the same as speeding; points on your license and raised insurance rates. I was lucky, but I knew many friends and relatives who got caught with what they thought was a petty offense. Failing to dim your head lights is a moving violation - if the cops want to enforce it.

My theory is that with all the high tech legal (and illegal retrofit) HID and LED head lights out there is that it's an increasing annoyance for law enforcement to pull somebody over because the driver can fight/argue/bicker the ticket based on whatever quasi regulation or excuse they can dig up based on the increasing variety of vehicle lights. I have a lot of cops for friends, and one thing they hate with a passion is arguing with some smart aleck kid over vehicle specifications, or worse yet somebody accusing them of being "AAA with a badge". So, I blame the problem mostly on lack of enforcement.

Some years ago I recall taking a family road trip in my Uncle's Lincoln Town car with the auto dimming headlamp feature that consequently was malfunctioning in a way he couldn't disable with the high beams on. So, every time we drove by a brightly lit house or oncoming the car the high beams would flip mechanically off and on half a dozen times. One time we drove past another car that was flashing their lights back which leads me to wonder if the driver was annoyed and mocking us, or it was another Lincoln Land Yacht with the same problem.