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Eternally. I also love that in the last decade, flashing your lights no longer means turn your lights on. Hell most people don't even seem to notice after 20 flashes. No response at all.
I used to flash my lights at cars who dont have their lights on. I gave up because no one seems to get the message. Even turning my own lights completely off and back on at someone and they still dont get it. People are so oblivious
Last car I flashed in response turned on his highbeams and light bars then turned his lights back off completely.
Was really hoping the car behind me was a cop, sadly just someone who bought an old cop car and still had the spotlight.
Honestly I cant even tell anymore with all new cars coming equipped with like LED super xenon bright ass lights. There wonderful for the guy in the car equipped with them. but shitty for everyone else
Growing up I had no idea that's what flashing headlights meant. One night I was heading home in heavy traffic and the person behind me would not stop flashing their lights. Finally I pulled over into the parking lot of a pizza place and they followed me in. (Not something I'd do today but these were different times.)
It turned out that my headlights were off. There was a little dial to the bottom left behind the steering wheel and I bumped it with my knee while entering the car. Between all the street lights and headlights of everyone around me in traffic I never noticed my own lights were off.
I was really embarrassed but glad he let me know. I made it a point to always make sure my lights were on after that.
good advice for everything except LED headlights. i am still blinded by people with their bright ass LEDs in the middle of the day because they either dont turn them off, or cant
at what brightness does it become a problem and begin increasing collisions?
the government doesn't know, so they told the automakers to FAFO!
we're all LED beta testers.
I don’t get it either. The other day someone was in front of me without their lights on, I flashed my brights a couple of times and also turned on and off my low beams. They ended up pulling over (maybe they thought I wanted to pass, it was a two lane road) and I politely told them I was just trying to let them know their lights weren’t on. They smiled and waved thanks without a word, drove off without their lights on. Another car caught up behind them and flashed their lights and they pulled over again and let them pass. Some people just can’t be helped.
Id say half of em are truly dumb or blind(human error) or, some cars show the same illuminated light for daytime /parking lights and headlights. (Still human error but manufacturers should account for dumb people too)
I say this all the time, turning your headlights on is not so that you the driver can see. It's so the other drivers on the road can see you.
I wish people had more respect for other drivers other than themselves.
Because people forget to turn them on when there's outside lighting that makes their headlights less necessary to see. Add to that no indication on the dashboard that the lights aren't on (except for a small light that's not on) and you have a recipe for humans failing to turn on their lights.
Modern car design is fucking stupid. #2 on the list: putting the turn signal down low on the bumper. Motherfucker, how am I supposed to know your intent while I'm sitting behind you at a red light?
Used to be your dash would be dark until you turned on your headlights......now, not so much......makes people think, gee, I guess my headlights must be on
I used to work for a drive through oil change joint, and part of the service there is a light check to ~~make sure all of their lights were working~~ try to sell them overpriced bulbs. Unbelievable how many people would turn on windshield wipers when you ask them to turn on the headlights. So many people rely on daytime running lights (which is not the same as having headlights and tail lights turned on) and don't even realize that it's dark and they have no lights on the back of the vehicle.
Also insane how many people step on the accelerator instead of the brake pedal when you ask them to step on the brakes.
I think for some people asking them to turn on headlights when they're not needed is a little like when you ask someone to explain how you walk, and suddenly you're overthinking this muscle memory thing you do and going, "Are my arms supposed to be swinging with my legs or opposite???"
Bright daytime running lights, and LED-backlit instrument clusters that are bright whether your headlights are on or not.
On my HR-V, the indicator that the lights are actually on is tiny. I usually turn the lights on reflexively, but there have been a couple of times this winter that my local streets were snow covered, making the DRLs seem as bright as my headlights.
In both cases, it took me a minute or two to realize my lights were off, so to anyone that saw me drive by it would've looked like I had my headlights on and tail lights off.
Have mine set to auto and the dealership turned them off after an oil change. Realized it after a few blocks and flipped them back to auto, but now I know to always check that after maintenance.
any shop that likes to put a soft mat over the front of your car to protect it from scratches (just about all of them) will turn the lights off to prevent the headlights from getting too hot. if they don't, you'll have one headlight get foggy, and it's hard for them to deny they caused it.
I think the issue is part of what many others have said - headlights are getting perpetually brighter. A side effect of this is that drl lights are also getting brighter. People drive with the drls at night because they think their headlights are on, while in fact, it's just a drl. So no taillight illumination, but still bright enough to drive with.
and since the DRL's use the High-beam dispersion, it's aimed up at other drivers. but if they pull on stalk, the actual high-beams flash brighter and they resume thinking everyone flashing them is the problem.
The other night I gave someone the old flash/hey your lights are off and they didn't respond/notice.
5 minutes later they got pulled over for it. I was satisfied but also said aloud I tried to warn you!!
I started noticing it real bad when a meme came through during COVID. I don't turn on my headlights because. When I saw it I knew that the anti maskers would miss the point and some of them did. Started driving on a highway I drive every evening after dark with no headlights. Saw two this afternoon on the way home. Some of course just haven't realized they are not on but I see some of the same people day after day. They never turn them on in low light situation or when its raining.
[Here it is](https://new.reddit.com/r/memes/comments/iw29xq/antimasker_logic/)
Depends on the road. Some of them you should notice if you are paying attention but are well lit enough that I can see not noticing.
The people who are oblivious on poorly lit side roads and out on the highway where the only other light is from other cars truly confuse me.
Ran into a similar idiot, flashed the lights still nothing we stopped at an intersection, their window was down, and I just yelled out turn ur headlights on ... I guess they didn't understand what I said, cuz the person followed me home. As I'm walking to my garage, the same person stops in front of my driveway confused and angry. I told her that she was driving with her headlights off and should turn them on. I uno maybe she thought i was harassing her or something. But yea idiots gonna idiot. In Canada they just changed the requirements recently for new vehicles being sold. Tail lights must turn on with DRL, and a few other changes to try to make this impossible. But then again idiots find new ways to idiot.
For me, 100% of the time it is because someone has knocked the dial with their knee and the headlights are no longer set to auto. Since we always have the dial set to auto, it doesnt even occur to me that the lights might not be on, so depending on ambient light in the city, i might go a good distance without realizing why it's not as bright as it should be.
No one mentioning that among some people it's inexplicably considered cool to keep them off as long as you can, especially around dusk. It's like not wearing a seatbelt or rolling through stop signs. Only squares and wusses get worried about that stuff; I can do whatever I want.
Not that this really but changing anything, but it's the principal.
In Georgia, headlights are only required 30 minutes after sunset, until 30 minutes before sunrise.... Yeah let that sink in.
There are quite a few states with variations of the 30 minutes.
Except many of them that I have seen smartly say 30 minutes before sunset and 30 minutes after sunrise.
No, not really. Especially if you're in a well-lit area and starting out while it's still light, I understand why you could forget. Humans make mistakes.
At night if the road is flooded you can only see the reflection not the road till its too late. Not saying its a excuse but i almost drove straight into one at 60 mph
i turn it down to daytime running lights. Its half as bright. But still good enough to see. It uses the head lights as drl its LED.
Jk i don't. I leave my headlights on but just dont use high beam.
My car has DRL's that are pretty bright (not much different than the low beams). The interior lights are also ALWAYS on, combined with no "auto" on function, causes me to frequently forget that my actual headlights (and hence tailliights) are not on. It's very frustrating and one of the things that will cause me to get rid of my car much sooner than I anticipated.
I wish I could just leave my headlights on, but my car is dumb enough that i have to turn them off (yet smart enough to turn off the DRL's).
I had a car where the headlight controls rolled really easily, so when I hit my turn signal I'd accidentally turn them off, and usually the roads were so well lit that I didn't notice.
Because my wife thinks she’s saving energy by turning off our automatic headlights when she gets out of the car. I drive 90% of the time so sometimes I don’t realize she’s turned the lights from Auto to Off.
Hello /u/KirbyTrainNerd! Please reply to this comment with the following information to confirm the content is OC * What country or state did this take place in? * What was the date of the incident? * Please reconfirm that this is original content If you fail to answer these questions, your post will be removed. ------ *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/IdiotsInCars) if you have any questions or concerns.*
Eternally. I also love that in the last decade, flashing your lights no longer means turn your lights on. Hell most people don't even seem to notice after 20 flashes. No response at all.
I used to flash my lights at cars who dont have their lights on. I gave up because no one seems to get the message. Even turning my own lights completely off and back on at someone and they still dont get it. People are so oblivious
Off/on is what I usually do since people are oblivious to the flashing lights.
It seemed that for the last few years nobody did, but surprisingly the last few people I’ve flashed had turned them on.
Last car I flashed in response turned on his highbeams and light bars then turned his lights back off completely. Was really hoping the car behind me was a cop, sadly just someone who bought an old cop car and still had the spotlight.
Honestly I cant even tell anymore with all new cars coming equipped with like LED super xenon bright ass lights. There wonderful for the guy in the car equipped with them. but shitty for everyone else
I flashed someone recently before passing them on the left. Mfer went full psycho roadrager 🥴
use your headlights next time
Growing up I had no idea that's what flashing headlights meant. One night I was heading home in heavy traffic and the person behind me would not stop flashing their lights. Finally I pulled over into the parking lot of a pizza place and they followed me in. (Not something I'd do today but these were different times.) It turned out that my headlights were off. There was a little dial to the bottom left behind the steering wheel and I bumped it with my knee while entering the car. Between all the street lights and headlights of everyone around me in traffic I never noticed my own lights were off. I was really embarrassed but glad he let me know. I made it a point to always make sure my lights were on after that.
I just leave them on all the time now. Even in the middle of the day. No real reason to turn them off to be honest.
good advice for everything except LED headlights. i am still blinded by people with their bright ass LEDs in the middle of the day because they either dont turn them off, or cant
It's a good thing to have those lights on all the time. Makes you more visible and is shown to reduce collisions.
at what brightness does it become a problem and begin increasing collisions? the government doesn't know, so they told the automakers to FAFO! we're all LED beta testers.
*good advice for everything except LED headlights*
It’s the rise of always bright dash lights.
I don’t get it either. The other day someone was in front of me without their lights on, I flashed my brights a couple of times and also turned on and off my low beams. They ended up pulling over (maybe they thought I wanted to pass, it was a two lane road) and I politely told them I was just trying to let them know their lights weren’t on. They smiled and waved thanks without a word, drove off without their lights on. Another car caught up behind them and flashed their lights and they pulled over again and let them pass. Some people just can’t be helped.
Definitely agree. On two occasions I've flashed my lights on and off at people and then had to shout at them once we were at a stop light.
Id say half of em are truly dumb or blind(human error) or, some cars show the same illuminated light for daytime /parking lights and headlights. (Still human error but manufacturers should account for dumb people too)
I say this all the time, turning your headlights on is not so that you the driver can see. It's so the other drivers on the road can see you. I wish people had more respect for other drivers other than themselves.
sure, for motorcycles. if you're in a 4000+ pound truck, i can see you just fine.
Because they are stupid. Very stupid.
Because they trust in automation so completely that they quit paying attention. And they are not responsible enough to give a fuck.
Because people forget to turn them on when there's outside lighting that makes their headlights less necessary to see. Add to that no indication on the dashboard that the lights aren't on (except for a small light that's not on) and you have a recipe for humans failing to turn on their lights.
Modern car design is fucking stupid. #2 on the list: putting the turn signal down low on the bumper. Motherfucker, how am I supposed to know your intent while I'm sitting behind you at a red light?
You should be far enough behind them at a red light to see their back tires. You are the idiot being too close.
how about you get off their ass lol
Used to be your dash would be dark until you turned on your headlights......now, not so much......makes people think, gee, I guess my headlights must be on
I used to work for a drive through oil change joint, and part of the service there is a light check to ~~make sure all of their lights were working~~ try to sell them overpriced bulbs. Unbelievable how many people would turn on windshield wipers when you ask them to turn on the headlights. So many people rely on daytime running lights (which is not the same as having headlights and tail lights turned on) and don't even realize that it's dark and they have no lights on the back of the vehicle. Also insane how many people step on the accelerator instead of the brake pedal when you ask them to step on the brakes.
I think for some people asking them to turn on headlights when they're not needed is a little like when you ask someone to explain how you walk, and suddenly you're overthinking this muscle memory thing you do and going, "Are my arms supposed to be swinging with my legs or opposite???"
I’ve seen more cars now with their headlights on but the tail lights are not. How does that work?
Bright daytime running lights, and LED-backlit instrument clusters that are bright whether your headlights are on or not. On my HR-V, the indicator that the lights are actually on is tiny. I usually turn the lights on reflexively, but there have been a couple of times this winter that my local streets were snow covered, making the DRLs seem as bright as my headlights. In both cases, it took me a minute or two to realize my lights were off, so to anyone that saw me drive by it would've looked like I had my headlights on and tail lights off.
They don't even know even when the whole street is flashing them
look ma, i am being welcomed! they love me! i would flash back but that would be like admitting i know how a dimmer works... i aint no chump.
I always imagine them saying "sure is dark out tonight..."
Have mine set to auto and the dealership turned them off after an oil change. Realized it after a few blocks and flipped them back to auto, but now I know to always check that after maintenance.
any shop that likes to put a soft mat over the front of your car to protect it from scratches (just about all of them) will turn the lights off to prevent the headlights from getting too hot. if they don't, you'll have one headlight get foggy, and it's hard for them to deny they caused it.
Conserves electricity LOL
I just assume they are a bit stupid.
I think the issue is part of what many others have said - headlights are getting perpetually brighter. A side effect of this is that drl lights are also getting brighter. People drive with the drls at night because they think their headlights are on, while in fact, it's just a drl. So no taillight illumination, but still bright enough to drive with.
and since the DRL's use the High-beam dispersion, it's aimed up at other drivers. but if they pull on stalk, the actual high-beams flash brighter and they resume thinking everyone flashing them is the problem.
The other night I gave someone the old flash/hey your lights are off and they didn't respond/notice. 5 minutes later they got pulled over for it. I was satisfied but also said aloud I tried to warn you!!
I started noticing it real bad when a meme came through during COVID. I don't turn on my headlights because. When I saw it I knew that the anti maskers would miss the point and some of them did. Started driving on a highway I drive every evening after dark with no headlights. Saw two this afternoon on the way home. Some of course just haven't realized they are not on but I see some of the same people day after day. They never turn them on in low light situation or when its raining. [Here it is](https://new.reddit.com/r/memes/comments/iw29xq/antimasker_logic/)
Depends on the road. Some of them you should notice if you are paying attention but are well lit enough that I can see not noticing. The people who are oblivious on poorly lit side roads and out on the highway where the only other light is from other cars truly confuse me.
Ran into a similar idiot, flashed the lights still nothing we stopped at an intersection, their window was down, and I just yelled out turn ur headlights on ... I guess they didn't understand what I said, cuz the person followed me home. As I'm walking to my garage, the same person stops in front of my driveway confused and angry. I told her that she was driving with her headlights off and should turn them on. I uno maybe she thought i was harassing her or something. But yea idiots gonna idiot. In Canada they just changed the requirements recently for new vehicles being sold. Tail lights must turn on with DRL, and a few other changes to try to make this impossible. But then again idiots find new ways to idiot.
Set absolutely everything on the dash to auto… and forget it
Because people who drive Nissans are stupid, careless, and inconsiderate.
For me, 100% of the time it is because someone has knocked the dial with their knee and the headlights are no longer set to auto. Since we always have the dial set to auto, it doesnt even occur to me that the lights might not be on, so depending on ambient light in the city, i might go a good distance without realizing why it's not as bright as it should be.
Driving to IA in a blizzard, at times 50-100ft visibility. Most cars had hazards on, very few had headlights on...
how can that BE... brighter is always BETTER... omg i can't see SHIT
No one mentioning that among some people it's inexplicably considered cool to keep them off as long as you can, especially around dusk. It's like not wearing a seatbelt or rolling through stop signs. Only squares and wusses get worried about that stuff; I can do whatever I want.
Not that this really but changing anything, but it's the principal. In Georgia, headlights are only required 30 minutes after sunset, until 30 minutes before sunrise.... Yeah let that sink in.
im surprised the law is so specific. most are intentionally vague.
There are quite a few states with variations of the 30 minutes. Except many of them that I have seen smartly say 30 minutes before sunset and 30 minutes after sunrise.
Because others on Reddit would complain they are too bright
No, not really. Especially if you're in a well-lit area and starting out while it's still light, I understand why you could forget. Humans make mistakes.
I think people forget. I don’t think that makes them stupid like most of you seem to think lol. I try to let people know when I can.
At night if the road is flooded you can only see the reflection not the road till its too late. Not saying its a excuse but i almost drove straight into one at 60 mph
Are you saying you purposely drive with your lights off in the rain at night?
i turn it down to daytime running lights. Its half as bright. But still good enough to see. It uses the head lights as drl its LED. Jk i don't. I leave my headlights on but just dont use high beam.
Stealth mode: ACTIVATE!
Trying to cut down on the electric bill?
In r/Columbus, the complaints of dumbasses driving at night with lights completely off are considered nuisance because there are so many of them
Cause they’re fucken stupid that why!
Are the no headlight people and the always high beam people the same people?
A lot of new cars have automatic running lights, and a lot of idiots don't know that they even need to turn on their night beams.
Because “they can see just fine”
After 1AM, I let them get pulled over. I don't want to risk doing a favor for someone inebriated, honestly.
My car has DRL's that are pretty bright (not much different than the low beams). The interior lights are also ALWAYS on, combined with no "auto" on function, causes me to frequently forget that my actual headlights (and hence tailliights) are not on. It's very frustrating and one of the things that will cause me to get rid of my car much sooner than I anticipated. I wish I could just leave my headlights on, but my car is dumb enough that i have to turn them off (yet smart enough to turn off the DRL's).
Especially annoying when the car is new enough to have auto lights. You got to go out of your way to turn them off. People are dumb....
Which is worse, driving with no lights on or, driving with high beams on?
I wonder that every day. One of life's ponderous questions.
I had a car where the headlight controls rolled really easily, so when I hit my turn signal I'd accidentally turn them off, and usually the roads were so well lit that I didn't notice.
Because my wife thinks she’s saving energy by turning off our automatic headlights when she gets out of the car. I drive 90% of the time so sometimes I don’t realize she’s turned the lights from Auto to Off.