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Cars with front lights on but no back lights....eh?

S

steveinspain

pfm Member
I cannot work out why so many cars have the front lights on but the rear ones off.
Can anyone please explain the logic in this? I assume the dash is illuminated so the driver may think they have the rears on too but given how many people drive in idiot mode it's just scary. Driving back from London to Cornwall yesterday in torrential rain it was hard enough to see other cars with lights on let alone those without, even at slow and safe speeds..
 
DRLs (daytime running lights) only work on fronts, not rears. When you see what you describe, the muppet behind the wheel has forgotten to put their lights on and is just running on DRLs alone. Most probably because they set off in daylight, and the dash is illuminated at all times anyway.
 
Sue Pertwee-Tyr said:
DRLs (daytime running lights) only work on fronts, not rears. When you see what you describe, the muppet behind the wheel has forgotten to put their lights on and is just running on DRLs alone. Most probably because they set off in daylight, and the dash is illuminated at all times anyway.
Click to expand...
This… my Volvo, and all the other Volvos I’ve owned have had their headlights and tail lights on by default when the engine is running… all cars should be like this in my opinion.
 
It's one of those many 'bad driving' faults that is illegal and dangerous, but unlikely to be penalised, because speed cameras won't pick it up.
 
If my front DRL's are on - rears will be to.
I made sure I programmed it to be so.
Bit daft having that as an option.
I think it was 2010/2011 when all new cars were required to have them - not sure if they all actually do.
They sure get your attention though, especially the amount of cars I see without any lights at all when they should have sidelights as a minimum due to light levels.
 
There are endlesss models with thin/narrow strip tail and/or indicators and/or brake lights, which makes working out what is actually on, virtually impossible.

The same problem exists where front indicators are so small, low power and close to head-lights that they can't be seen either when the lights are on.

The whole fiasco needs legislation - lights are safety features first and second and third priority, not design features.
 
no lights, just employ a person to walk in front with a flag, and someone following up the rear with a flag. Don't forget the bloke with a bucket and spade for yhe donkey sh!t....
 
I assume all cars are not the same but I would not be driving around in the dark without the correct lights.

The reason being that:

1) The dash lighting is too bright for night driving on daylights which prompts the driver to switch to night driving lights.

Or be dazzled.

2) The lighting lever is usually set to auto* to prevent the wrong lights being on or off.

*At least one advantage of tech in modern cars.
 
Some are lazy and rely too much on automation, or just don't know how the lights work. I am amazed how many use only the DRLs in low light and even fog.
 
Unlike my two earlier Japanese cars, the dashboard on my BMW does not light up automatically when it is dim. That prompts me, and most other people I suppose, to turn on the headlights. My DRLs are on the front end only.

The opposite problem of the OP is cars running with their rear fog lamps on, especially at night and in clear conditions.
 
DRLs save lives. They don’t blind you in the daytime. All recent cars have them in the US. I’d be surprised if that isn’t true elsewhere. Nothing to do with muppets.

What’s with pfm lately? Enough of the crusty old “when I were a lad we drove by candles and had proper switches and braked by sticking our feet through holes in the floor” threads.
 
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