I like to know when I have headlights on and when I have DRLs. Actually, I never use the DRLs. If I am going to have light in the front, why wouldn’t I want it all around.
I never understood why it sometimes required 3 different switches to turn on the headlights, marker and tail lights on our school buses.
I told my boss that they should be wired to come on with the ignition because it is never legal to drive without them.
That is also how they work on my Outback.
I don’t know what kind of vehicle @davepsinbox_157004 has, but there is a spring in the headlight switch of my 07 Silverado that pushes the switch into auto if off is selected. You can temporarily turn off the headlights if turn them to off, but as soon as you let go, it goes back to auto. You can go to parking lights and on if you want to.
The only reason to go to off is to override the timer that keeps your headlights on after you turn off the ignition at night.
I didn’t say there was a problem. Folks keep telling me I can override the automatic headlights and AFAIK it’s not possible. If anything I’d like to adjust the sensitivity so my headlights come on when it’s less dark but that doesn’t appear to be an option either.
As I’ve mentioned previously, I drive a 2009 Corolla LE. There is no “auto” setting and no spring. You can turn the headlights on manually (and off when it’s not dark enough to trigger the auto feature) but that’s all.
I have a Chevy that works the same way. I turn mine off when I don’t want the lights shining into someone’s home but am not ready to turn off the truck. Situations like launching a boat, backing in a trailer, sitting and waiting for someone to come out of the store, etc. It’s nice to be able to turn them off manually. You can turn them back on manually or the next time you start it, the lights automatically come back on…
Mine aren’t quite like that. You can turn them off if the transmission is in park and they will stay off, but as soon as you put it back in gear, they come on.
Edit: I got it wrong. I swore they came back on on their own when I put it back in gear, but I tested it again today and once turned off, they stayed off until the switch was turned to on. They would stay on when going back to auto. My bad. I still don’t like them.
That’s sort of how mine work except they come on when you release the parking brake and once they’re on they stay on until you shut off the ignition.
I understand well functioning auto on/off headlights could improve things in the long run. But I think that right now they are actually part of the problem:
Somebody mentioned that everybody having all their lights on reduces safety. Several years ago, the Netherlands actually mandated all cars to drive with their lights on all the time, assuming it would improve safety. Turns out, it did for cars, but it reduced safety for cyclists and pedestrians as they stood out less, so they changed the law again
That stinks IMO. Mine’s an '08 Trailblazer. Maybe they decided to change it next year after yours or the TB just works differently. Mine will stay off no matter what you do. A little orange LED illuminates next to the OFF position as a reminder they have been manually disabled. You have to either turn them back on or when power is cycled, they go back to automatic. Works great for situations like I described.
I think this is one of those evolving technologies. How automatic headlights work vary from manufacturer to manufacturer and year to year. I have a Subaru and a Silverado and they work differently, and I don’t like either. I just don’t like stuff being automated. If you don’t know how and when to operate your headlights, why are you being allow to operate a vehicle?
Well, I was against them at first but it is convenient. Just like automatic HVAC and some other conveniences, I have grown to appreciate not having to mess around with it. I get in and drive. Now if they completely removed my ability to turn it off, I wouldn’t be a fan of that
Sometimes that automatic stuff can be dangerous. We had a company car where I worked before retiring that had automatic windshield wipers. A previous driver left them in auto. So I’m going down the highway when I came up to a truck passing another trucks and I found myself in a pocket, As the highway curved, the truck in front of me hit some muddy water from a previous rain in the area and splashed that muddy water up on the windshield.
I could see through the muddy water drops until the windshield wiper started sweeping and totally blinded me. Now I’m in a curve surrounded by 18 wheelers and totally blind at 70 mph. It took a few VERY long seconds for me to find the windshield washers and for them to start clearing the windshield. It was scarry.
I think the high beam problem is not necessarily high but the use of LED or HID bulbs which even on low are absolutely blinding to oncoming drivers and I think the NHTSA needs to put some regulations around these new lighting types . They are very dangerous to oncoming drivers . As far as drivers without lights on , yeah you see a few here and there but I would not say it’s a chronic problem .
There are regulations. The aftermarket HID/LED kits are “for offroad use only,” but of course no one pays attention to that, and the cops are too busy writing speeding tickets to worry about actual safety issues.
Not where I live (SF Bay Area). Every night I see multiple, and I think it’s getting worse