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Related: Culture Forums, Support ForumsIs it just me that thinks car headlights are now insanely bright?
Driving home from dinner tonight damn near fried my retinas!
Ocelot II
(116,219 posts)that will definitely scorch your retinas. It's not your imagination. I hate them.
SheltieLover
(57,073 posts)I hate them! Instantly feel like I'm being jabbes in eyes with hot pokers.
Ocelot II
(116,219 posts)Lots of people hate them, apparently.
SheltieLover
(57,073 posts)Ty!
applegrove
(119,196 posts)usaf-vet
(6,292 posts)....particular, will pull you over if you refuse to dim your lights.
They suspect the driver might be intoxicated and use that as probable cause to pull you over.
It happened to me about two years ago.
And my wife and I spent 30+ minutes sitting on the side of the road while he ran our plates and both licenses.
Finding nothing, he let us go.
We are now very reluctant to drive after dark, precisely because of these new 'blue' high-intensity lights.
applegrove
(119,196 posts)Last edited Sun Nov 27, 2022, 03:39 AM - Edit history (1)
tell who had high beams on and I looked and sure enough there were LED lights on cars at the intersection and I could not tell either.
a kennedy
(29,894 posts)Ocelot II
(116,219 posts)texasfiddler
(1,996 posts)Or maybe i'm getting old.
Diamond_Dog
(32,324 posts)Oncoming vehicles headlights at night are literally blinding these days. Hubby and I were just saying that the other day as we drove to pick up a pizza. And when those large pickup trucks are behind you on the road .
Biophilic
(3,790 posts)I dont quite get why car makers think the super bright lights are a good idea. They blind other drivers. I havent ever heard an explanation regarding the need for such extreme brightness.
GreenWave
(6,934 posts)Lots of Trumper trucks follow too close with the beamers
Do it whenever someone gets too close or won't dim their brights. They either back off or pass.
SheltieLover
(57,073 posts)I hate them! Goves me instant migraine!
PlutosHeart
(1,321 posts)My eyes are light sensitive anyways and these new ones hurt my eyes.
NBachers
(17,233 posts)Rhiannon12866
(207,980 posts)But if I'm followed home at night by a pickup, at lot of them around here, they usually blind me.
Haggard Celine
(16,880 posts)I almost ran off the road the other night. Something should be done about it, but I guess we'll just have to add this to the pile of shit that we need to do.
werdna
(537 posts)They to come with dual high beams hard wired on.And most other vehicles have bright fog lights below. I am constantly flashing my high beams.
rubbersole
(6,817 posts)Not only does a penguin die every time they start the engine, a lot of truck owners drive very aggressively. tfg flags not withstanding.
usaf-vet
(6,292 posts)Pobeka
(4,999 posts)Might be time to research that and see if auto manufacturers are in violation of regulations? ...
Jacoby365
(452 posts)Some of the new brake lights are unbearably bright, in my opinion, nearly blinding me at stoplights.
elleng
(131,756 posts)Lunabell
(6,157 posts)From behind, it makes me think a cop is flashing their lights and I'm going to get a ticket.
Haggard Celine
(16,880 posts)I almost ran off the road the other night. Something should be done about it, but I guess we'll just have to add this to the pile of shit that we need to do.
elleng
(131,756 posts)to about 20,000 to 75,000 candela, according to Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard No. 108. Candela is a modern unit of light measurement, and one candlepower equates to about one candela.Dec 20, 2018
Brighter headlights cause problems: here's how it got that way
https://www.poughkeepsiejournal.com/story/news/2018/12/20/brighter-headlights-cause-problems-heres-how-got-way/2356307002/#:~:text=Depending%20on%20the%20lighting%20system,equates%20to%20about%20one%20candela.
teach1st
(5,940 posts)FloridaBlues
(4,031 posts)They help keep down the glare.
patphil
(6,293 posts)They work pretty well.
badhair77
(4,245 posts)At times I can barely see. Im experimenting with some green glasses and mirrored lenses to deal with it. Ive really decreased my nighttime driving.
happybird
(4,718 posts)Ive seen a few very recently that are a single, extra light, positioned in the center but lower than the regular headlights. They are super crazy bright. And awful.
The biggest trouble I have (besides being annoyed by big trucks behind me) is when the road is wet. Gawd help me if there are no lines on the road, its wet, and someone with bright lights is coming towards me.
liberalmuse
(18,672 posts)And was thinking the exact same thing while driving home from dinner tonight. The headlights are blinding. Also when I walk the dogs at night sometimes someone will park on the street and keep their headlights on and I can't see where we're walking. To avoid falling in a ditch with my dogs I have to cross the street.
bamagal62
(3,292 posts)Mine as well. I guess its just these new awful
Headlights!
bucolic_frolic
(43,719 posts)moniss
(4,274 posts)a little more info about this is that any laws, such as they are, are basically ignored by the cops when it comes to enforcement. One of the problems is headlight aim as others have mentioned with the higher vehicles. But a little talked about problem is people installing aftermarket headlights that are intended only for off-roading. Some of those manufacturers have lights that will basically blind oncoming traffic. Some carry a warning on the package that they are only legal for off-road use only. But they ignore that just like the guy who decides his truck he drives to work has to have big tall tires and a big raised suspension despite it being illegal. We've all seen these folks that almost have to drop a ladder to get in and out of their truck.
Headlight aim used to be specified in many areas as to how far ahead of the vehicle the main area of light should be. Also side to side. But they all ignore that now as though they are the only ones on the road and the oncoming traffic be damned. Just imagine if these clowns did hit you with their brights. I've had people come up behind me with those super lights and the whole inside of my vehicle is lit up like it's daytime. Tremendous glare from the inside of the glass and rear view mirror.
Kashkakat v.2.0
(1,752 posts)white or warmer (yellower) light. Regulations about lighting - not only headlights, but street lighting, home and business lighting etc. - need to be updated to reflect the new technology and the ones that emit too much blue light . They can manufacture LEDs which are on the warmer end of the spectrum, dont have all the blue.... but for whtever reason they are continuing to make these horrible ones that blind people.
global1
(25,330 posts)I'm a senior citizen and I didn't want to complain and have people tell me - "oh you're just getting old".
I believe these newer headlights are DANGEROUS. People are going to get maimed and killed because these lights are blinding. One has to look away from on- coming traffic because of these lights. Then you have to deal with them in your rearview mirror. Equally blinding from behind - especially from the higher raised SUV's and pick-up trucks.
They need to either be toned down somehow through government regulations or outlawed.
I wonder if there have been any studies done on these headlights? How many accidents have already been caused by these lights. How many people have been hurt or killed already.
Does anyone know if there are any studies being conducted currently?
hlthe2b
(102,702 posts)rambler_american
(794 posts)a flea on a raccoon's butt at a quarter mile in the dark?
onecaliberal
(33,107 posts)calimary
(81,746 posts)Judging from this thread, there are plenty of us experiencing something similar.
unc70
(6,143 posts)Yes, the new headlights can be way too bright. But your perception could also be changing. Poor night vision, particularly when dealing with headlights, is the most common indicator that one is dealing with cataracts and might be needing surgery.
ShazzieB
(16,785 posts)I know for a fact that cataracts are part of my problem, but I'm not sure how much. I'm scheduled to have have cataract surgery or January, so I'll find out after I have it done.
Stuart G
(38,480 posts)............ Thanks for putting this thread up. .............................................................
............I THOUGHT I WAS THE ONLY ONE WHO THOUGHT ABOUT THOSE DAMN LIGHTS THAT APPEAR
.............TO BE BRIGHTER THAN THEY USED TO BE. .............
.............THANK YOU, THANK YOU, AND THANK YOU AGAIN... i THOUGHT I WAS THE ONLY ONE WHO THOUGHT THIS!!
.THIS IS AWFUL. i HAVE ALWAYS THOUGHT EVERYONE HAD THEIR BRIGHT LIGHTS ON ALL THE TIME..
...AND I ALSO THOUGHT THAT......... I WAS THE ONLY ONE THAT THOUGHT SO...
.........................................THANKS AGAIN............I AIN'T THE ONLY ONE!!!!.........
Rebl2
(13,698 posts)said brighter head lights cause fewer wrecks, but these new ones are so bright you look away because it hurts your eyes and then you might cause a wreck. Crazy.
NowsTheTime
(736 posts)...or about when there were military concerns about letting the cat out of the bag on geo-location technology
.....companies will do what they want to in this day and age.......
hope I'm wrong...
localroger
(3,636 posts)LED's are preferred because they are brighter and more efficient than incandescents as well as theoretically not having the limited life expectancy, but the emitting element of a halogen incandescent is very small which allows the lensing system to precisely control the resulting beam. LED elements are more spread out, and thus spread their light over a broader area of the road (and above the road) because a lens can't control them as tightly. LED's also look brighter to human eyes for the same candela output because of their spectral characteristics. So basically oncoming LED low beams look like high beams, and oncoming LED high beams look like a supernova in progress.
Pluvious
(4,388 posts)nuxvomica
(12,512 posts)I had cataract surgery two years ago and went with the fancy multi-focus lens implants. They have concentric rings of different powers so that you can see clearly up-close and at a distance. The way it works is each ring sends a different image to the retina and the visual cortex picks the one that's sharpest as the one you "see". But when driving, bright headlights illuminate the different rings and it looks like the lights are bullseye targets.
I learned that LEDs don't just black out like regular incandescent bulbs but instead get dimmer over time. Having recently had a retina tear, I've been told to look for any loss in vision. Well, I noticed my bedroom, lit by a 75-watt-level LED, was getting darker and darker and worried I might be slowly losing my vision. So I replaced the bulb even though it was still "working" and suddenly everything is brighter. The dimming was worrisome to me (I call it "LED-lighting", like "gaslighting" ) and probably to a lot of people who aren't yet wise to the LED dimming and I wonder whether the LED headlights have the same problem and over time you won't be able to see clearly while driving at night.
yellowdogintexas
(22,308 posts)type which sits higher than the car you are driving.
I shudder to think what it must be like when the high beams are on