I hate that my car has daytime running lights.

[Zenmervolt]

Originally posted by: GalvanizedYankee
I did post in this thread early and stand by what I offered.

The only reason to dislike having DRL, is to be able to hide from or not wishing to be spotted by the police.
Example: When I used to canyon race on motorcycles, a switch was inplace to kill the headlight. Simple.

I drive a bright red sportscar. Even with the lights off it cannot hide from the police. Nor do I drive in such a way that I would want or need to hide from the police. Excellent straw man argument though.

As far as lights helping to judge closing speed, I find that dubious considering that at night when presented with a point of light it's virtually impossible to accurately gauge the speed at which that light is traveling relative to you.

What DRL's will do, however, is give one extra bit of warning to the morons who have no business being behind the wheel of a car. If we took the stupid people off the roads we wouldn't need DRL's. If they were really that helpful to skilled drivers, F1 cars would have headlights.

ZV

 

[Zenmervolt]

Originally posted by: Gillbot
Most laws are out there to protect the stupid.

And I disagree with most laws. I abide by them, but I disagree with them.

ZV

 

[GalvanizedYankee]

Originally posted by: Zenmervolt
The solution is NOT automated devices. The solution is to remove the incompetent people from the driving population.

ZV

The economy of SoCal would collapse if that were done.


Stop drivers from using cell phones and laptops while driving and things would get better out there.

Ppl can judge closing distance better during the day with DRLs. I think this is truer when the closing vehicle is a small car or motorcycle. I did a Google earlyer today and several studies indicated this was true. Meh! Last post here.

 

[Eli]

Let me put it this way. I hate DRLs for the same reason I hate automatic transmissions.

You all should be able to understand that. lol

 

[Scouzer]

DRL is law in Canada.

 

[AMCRambler]

1. Get baseball bat
2. Swing bat at lights
3. ...
4. Profit

 

[TheSlamma]

Originally posted by: Zenmervolt

Originally posted by: Capt Caveman
DRL is not for you but for others to see.

The solution is to remove the incompetent people from the driving population.

Zen you are a very bright individual, but this is so far from reality I would count on "winning the lottery" as my "retirement" before I would even think of this ever happening.

While in a perfect or near perfect world I would love to see this happen also, in reality we also have people who are not only too stupid to drive they are not physically fit to drive. We have people with poor depth perception, we have women who can't see over the dash, we have people who don't have 20/20 who refuse to get their eyes checked and they all feel it's their right to be on the road no matter what.

Daytime running lights are an attempt to combat some of these handicaps. Again in that imaginary perfect world you take them off the road, but in the real world they have 12 regenerating points on their license. Do you know how hard it is to wipe out 12 points in today?s all forgiving traffic court?? It?s not gonna happen.

 

[alphatarget1]

bulbs burn out faster if you have DRL

 

[alphatarget1]

Originally posted by: TheSlamma

While in a perfect or near perfect world I would love to see this happen also, in reality we also have people who are not only too stupid to drive they are not physically fit to drive. We have people with poor depth perception, we have women who can't see over the dash, we have people who don't have 20/20 who refuse to get their eyes checked and they all feel it's their right to be on the road no matter what.

Driving is a privilege (sp?), not a right. That's the first thing they teach you in driving school right?

 

[woodie1]

A little help please. If you don't like DRL then why buy a car with them?

 

[Canai]

Is it really that hard to turn your lights on during the day? It makes you so much more visible to everyone else on the road.

 

[nakedfrog]

Originally posted by: Zenmervolt

Originally posted by: Capt Caveman
DRL is not for you but for others to see.

If you cannot see a car in broad daylight, you shouldn't be driving. Period. And if the driver of the other car doesn't know enough to turn his lights on when they need to be on, he shouldn't be driving. Period.

The solution is NOT automated devices. The solution is to remove the incompetent people from the driving population.

ZV

When we were out on a road trip, I noticed a Walmart or similar semi that had a sticker on it that said "We drive with our headlights on to increase visibility"
Now, it seems to me that if you don't notice an 18 wheeler during the day with it's lights off, I can't imagine the headlights would make any difference.

 

[TheSlamma]

Originally posted by: alphatarget1

Originally posted by: TheSlamma

While in a perfect or near perfect world I would love to see this happen also, in reality we also have people who are not only too stupid to drive they are not physically fit to drive. We have people with poor depth perception, we have women who can't see over the dash, we have people who don't have 20/20 who refuse to get their eyes checked and they all feel it's their right to be on the road no matter what.

Driving is a privilege (sp?), not a right. That's the first thing they teach you in driving school right?

Notice the word feel.

Thanks for playin' kiddo.

 

[TheSlamma]

Originally posted by: alphatarget1
bulbs burn out faster if you have DRL

The DRL's on my second car are separate from my regular headlights and my brights. If a company is going to do them they should do it right like that.

Mine burnt out a few years ago and I just leave them burnt out

 

[jagec]

Originally posted by: nweaver

that's just bad engineering then. My 1988 VW cuts the headlights (when they are on) when you engage the starter. of course, the Germans have figured out cars a lot better then most countries, I think.

Wait...you say that, and you had a VW?:laugh:

 

[Eos]

It amazes me the energy people spend on being annoyed/upset/aggravated/pissed off at laws. Vote in your anti law candidate and wait for the magic (repeal of all annoying/upsetting/pissing you off laws) to happen.

Let us know when that happens so I can look up from enjoying my life and yawn.

 

[Eli]

Originally posted by: jagec

Originally posted by: nweaver

that's just bad engineering then. My 1988 VW cuts the headlights (when they are on) when you engage the starter. of course, the Germans have figured out cars a lot better then most countries, I think.

Wait...you say that, and you had a VW?:laugh:

I snickered at that too.. :laugh:

 

[Vic]

Originally posted by: woodie1
A little help please. If you don't like DRL then why buy a car with them?

Because there's a lot more to cars than just that particular issue?


Personally, my car sold with DRL's and I just unhooked them. No big deal. I don't like them. And when it rains or visibility is otherwise impaired then I *GASP* make the conscious decision and turn my lights on.

 

[Gillbot]

Originally posted by: Zenmervolt

Originally posted by: steppinthrax
You keep saying this but you don't seem to see we don't yet live in a socially responsible culture yet. It's easier to pass the buck then correct the problem from the source. As for DRL goes don't they operate at reduced voltage anyway. It's not the full light. Also if you fully intent of disabling the feature. I'm sure if you ask this online at a car form for your car they may have a tutorial on disabling this.

I bolded the area where you essentially explain why society is going down the sh*tter at an increasingly rapid pace.

I don't give a flying f*ck about a "socially responsible" society. I'm simply against anything that helps to protect stupid people while keeping them stupid. The solution is better drivers and vastly more restrictive licensing requirements. People who are too stupid to realise when they need their lights on should simply not be allowed to drive. Finding a "crutch" to compensate for their idiocy is counter-productive; it simply increases the number of drivers who have no business whatsoever behind the wheel of a car.

You may be prepared to compromise on an absolute principle and choose automated things like traction control or automatic headlights. I am not.

Summary: If you're too goddamn stupid to know when you should or shouldn't have your lights on, you need to get the f*ck off the road instead of relying on "safety" devices to do your thinking for you.

ZV

Preach it!

 

[foghorn67]

Originally posted by: Eli

Originally posted by: jtvang125
It puts a load on your alternator, not your engine. The alternator puts out a certain amount of amperes at idle and when the car is running. Even with the engine at idle it is supplying more than enough power to run a number of accessories (ac, radio, lights...ect). With that in mind the alternator isn't working any harder or putting a larger load on the engine with or without the day time lights on.

I was waiting for one of these posts :roll:

It's not putting a load on the engine, huh? What do you think is spinning the alternator, a hamster? The kinetic energy fairy?

Of course it is putting an additional load on the engine. Every milliamp being drawn puts an additional load on the engine.

In older non-computer controlled cars, you can hear the idle drop when you flick the headlights on. Modern cars compensate and keep the idle constant. Obviously to accomplish this, the engine is being fed more fuel.

I realize that the fuel savings are negligable and probably not even realistically measurable, but it still annoys me that I can't turn them off. I like to be in control of my machines.

No, it isn't.
You have a belt that goes around an alternator pulley. The alternator uses the rotation to transfer energy, yada yada. Depending on the power you need, it does not regulate it mechanically. It uses a voltage regulator.
Other devices are mechanically controlled, like your A/C. The A/C compressor has a clutch that engages and draws an increased load. Your alternator just spins happily whenever your motor is running, despite the power.

 

[jagec]

Originally posted by: foghorn67
No, it isn't.
You have a belt that goes around an alternator pulley. The alternator uses the rotation to transfer energy, yada yada. Depending on the power you need, it does not regulate it mechanically. It uses a voltage regulator.
Other devices are mechanically controlled, like your A/C. The A/C compressor has a clutch that engages and draws an increased load. Your alternator just spins happily whenever your motor is running, despite the power.

Thermodynamics 101...even though the pulley's spinning the whole time, it takes more horsepower to KEEP it spinning if you're drawing more power from the alternator. Since it always takes a bit of power to keep the engine running, this is more efficient than using the 100% on/100% off mechanical method of the AC compressor, but make no mistake, increased electrical demand WILL burn more fuel.

 

[thomsbrain]

Jeez people, DRL's are for OTHER drivers, not the driver of the car with DRL. they help make your car visible from much greater distances. the only downside are the idiots who drive around at night with only the DRL's (don't they ever look at their speedo and wonder why the instrument cluster is dark?). but overall, having less chance of an accident is worth the insignificant energy draw.

that said, there are times when you DON'T want to be seen (wink, wink, nudge, nudge). And in those cases, it would be nice to have an override.

 

[foghorn67]

Originally posted by: jagec

Originally posted by: foghorn67
No, it isn't.
You have a belt that goes around an alternator pulley. The alternator uses the rotation to transfer energy, yada yada. Depending on the power you need, it does not regulate it mechanically. It uses a voltage regulator.
Other devices are mechanically controlled, like your A/C. The A/C compressor has a clutch that engages and draws an increased load. Your alternator just spins happily whenever your motor is running, despite the power.

Thermodynamics 101...even though the pulley's spinning the whole time, it takes more horsepower to KEEP it spinning if you're drawing more power from the alternator. Since it always takes a bit of power to keep the engine running, this is more efficient than using the 100% on/100% off mechanical method of the AC compressor, but make no mistake, increased electrical demand WILL burn more fuel.

OP will never know the difference, in fact, there isn't even an environment controlled enough to see the difference in mpg.

 

[MrPickins]

Originally posted by: nakedfrog
I mostly like being able to decide whether my lights are on or off. That way if I'm pulling up to the house late, I can shut the lights off at the last minute and not bother anyone.

Exactly why I dislike my wife's car with DRL's

I'd rather not flash the neighbors house at 2 am.

 

[Fenixgoon]

Originally posted by: MrPickins

Originally posted by: nakedfrog
I mostly like being able to decide whether my lights are on or off. That way if I'm pulling up to the house late, I can shut the lights off at the last minute and not bother anyone.

Exactly why I dislike my wife's car with DRL's

I'd rather not flash the neighbors house at 2 am.

how close are your houses to your neighbors'? and why dont they close their shades?