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"One Eyed" Vehicles

Tue, 2012-02-21 23:10 — DriveSmartBC

One Headlight Burned OutIf you have normal vision, would you consider driving with one eye closed at night? To most people that would seem to be a very foolish question. Why would anyone want to diminish their capability to see while driving! Take a look at other vehicles on the highway right now. How many of them have only one headlight working? Isn't that the same as driving with one eye closed?

True, headlights are on a lot more at this time of year and are more apt to burn out. There is also gravel on the road from winter maintenance that contributes to broken headlights. On the other hand, it is a simple matter to purchase and replace these yourself at minimum expense.

Consider what good headlighting can mean to you. Night driving is essentially moving down a tunnel of light created by your headlights. That tunnel has to be wide enough and long enough to allow you to detect and react to any driving situation. Your lights also give other drivers information about where you are on the highway. The loss of one headlight is the loss of at least half that information and could be the major contribution in an accident.

If one headlight is out and you lose the other, what then? Do you drive with no headlights? Oh, you say, the police will only give me a warning. You may be ticketed for driving with only one headlight and you can expect to be ticketed and parked on the spot for driving with none!

Reference Links:

General Lighting Requirements - Division 4.04 Motor Vehicle Act Regulations

Headlamps - Division 4.05 Motor Vehicle Act

Comments

Wed, 2012-02-22 08:00 — Check Ride

One Eyed Vehicles

I have on many occasions let people know they were driving with high beams on.  After I let them know and they dimmed their lights it was obvious that they only had one low beam.  Apparently this is the lazy man's problem solver for this issue.  They don't seem to care that they are blinding everyone else on the road just as long as no one notices the burnt out light.

Wed, 2012-02-22 14:17 — DoubleClutch

Don't Forget Brake Lights!!!

I see far more vehicles with one or both of their brakes lights burnt out.  In fact, last week I saw a truck going down the freeway with both brake lights out.  The only reason I knew the driver was braking is because his truck's centre brake light was still working -- barely working, I should say, as more than half of its LEDs were out.

Drivers should take a minute every few months to check all their lights.

Thu, 2012-02-23 12:24 — Check Ride

Brake Lights

I agree.  Several times a day I find myself behind a car that has only one functioning brake light out of three.  And it's always the center one.  Since center brake lights were introduced it seems the circuit that handles the original two brake lights isn't as strong as it should be and fails quite frequently, in the daylight the center brake light alone is not an adequate warning by itself.

Thu, 2012-03-08 11:46 — Ashton

Voltage v. Light Output: Down but not quite out?

Here is a good post about voltage drop v. light output (and how to fix it):
http://www.danielsternlighting.com/tech/relays/relays.html

While not as obvious as a burnt out headlight, dim bulbs can also be a problem. Conventional automobile wiring leaves much to be desired. Over time the total amount of light output decreases, even with brand new bulbs, because the wiring has high resistance and can become corroded. I have upgraded my wiring to include relays and heavy gauge wiring right from the alternator and the different is dramatic!

cheers,

Ashton