Recent Media/petition Against Ultra-bright Led Lights

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Whizzbiz

New Member
What do you all think of the recent media against “ultra-bright” led lights on vehicles? There is even a petition to debate it in parliament Petition: Ban or reduce the excessive brightness of LED or HID high intensity car lights
Personally, I haven’t really noticed a problem, even when driving on country roads at night, but then I am seated high up in my T5.
I’ve just ordered a T6 Kombi Edition with factory leds, and the increased ability to light the road whilst driving round those country roads was a major feature.
Will the future be so bright we have to wear shades?
 
Jeez this is almost as bad as the cretins who complain every year cos they've heard Cadbury's are taking the word Easter off their eggs :rolleyes:

Anyway I'm doing my bit to help the cause by driving around with my H4s dazzling precisely nobody :D
 
I probably go against the grain a bit with this but I happen to like the warm glowing hue of an incandescent bulb. Find many modern brilliant white LED DRLS a bit clinical and sterile looking.

From a safety point of view though, they certainly tend to improve the visibility of oncoming traffic. Not sure I can say the same for these new progressively extending length indicators. It's like watching an episode of Knight Rider back in the days when I was a bairn. Not quite convinced about the ones I've seen so far on VAG motors.
 
I’ll be honest here, I think those that are easily dazzled should get an eye test and specifically mention that they struggle with bright headlights at night. It’s common knowledge that as you get older your eyes are slower to recover from bright flashes, but why should those of us with led/hid that are factory fitted have to modify our vehicles to fit in with the minority who are easily dazzled?

I’m in no way condoning people that retrofit cheap Chinese hid kits to their Corsa etc. These are the people that the authorities do need to crack down on.
 
Insert Coin said:
I’ll be honest here, I think those that are easily dazzled should get an eye test and specifically mention that they struggle with bright headlights at night. .
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Please please don't do this, I'm an optician and there is nothing we can do for people I'm afraid, whatever the urban myths about different coloured tints. The only exception easily explainable would be in the case of cataracts which can tend to scatter light, but it tends to be younger people who complain of this at eye tests and seriously ask if they can have dark tinted lenses to combat bright headlight glare :eek: Honestly, if it bugs anyone that much, tthe only answer (providing your windscreen/glasses are clean) is not to drive at night!
 
andys said:
Please please don't do this, I'm an optician and there is nothing we can do for people I'm afraid, whatever the urban myths about different coloured tints. The only exception easily explainable would be in the case of cataracts which can tend to scatter light, but it tends to be younger people who complain of this at eye tests and seriously ask if they can have dark tinted lenses to combat bright headlight glare :eek: Honestly, if it bugs anyone that much, tthe only answer (providing your windscreen/glasses are clean) is not to drive at night!
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That’s contrary to what Specsavers say on their website, not that I disbelieve you. I do think that those people that are badly affected by factory headlights should strongly consider not driving in the dark, it’s safer for all involved, especially now you say there’s no easy cure.

Most of the Daily Mail readers who are so incensed by modern headlights should probably give up driving full stop.
 
If you read the Specsavers site it is geared to encourage people to have an eyetest, it doesn't say opticians can do anything about it. But we probably get asked this question 10 times a day and it tends to be almost always the 20-30 age group.
 
What they say on the website, which with hindsight is misleading-

Dr Best comments: ‘Driving at night is one of the most visually demanding tasks we will encounter. If you experience any problems with driving after dusk you should book an eye examination and discuss this with your optometrist, as they may be able to help.’
 
Insert Coin said:
That’s contrary to what Specsavers say on their website, not that I disbelieve you. I do think that those people that are badly affected by factory headlights should strongly consider not driving in the dark, it’s safer for all involved, especially now you say there’s no easy cure.

Most of the Daily Mail readers who are so incensed by modern headlights should probably give up driving full stop.
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And reading the daily mail!
 
Insert Coin said:
What they say on the website, which with hindsight is misleading-

Dr Best comments: ‘Driving at night is one of the most visually demanding tasks we will encounter. If you experience any problems with driving after dusk you should book an eye examination and discuss this with your optometrist, as they may be able to help.’
Click to expand...
What he's talking about is making sure you are corrected properly as myopia (shortsightedness) is exacerbated in the dark, tipping some people who can just manage during the day to where things are a bit blurred. Being able to see clearly when driving at night is even more important as your viewing distance will be shorter. This doesn't relate to being dazzled by bright headlights though.

Edit: I would also say that I know Nigel and he wouldn't deliberately mislead anyone, it's just the way the PR people have joined his comments together
 
Fortunately I have very very good eyesight for a 47 year old, so my optician told me when I got a new pair of sunnies and had them tested out of interest at the same time.
 
Insert Coin said:
Fortunately I have very very good eyesight for a 47 year old, so my optician told me when I got a new pair of sunnies and had them tested out of interest at the same time.
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You would be horrified by some of the people we see who are way below the driving standard but refuse to wear glasses for driving. One of our clients killed an old man when she mounted the kerb! The police asked for our records and commented that she wasn't wearing her specs at the time - she would have been able to see less than a metre in front of her clearly...
 
Speaking as some one that suffers with photo sensitivity I can tell you that this a big problem, and just for a minority. If you can't see where you are going with normal head lights then slow down or get glasses! We don't need head lights so powerful that they melt your eye balls! They make my life positively painful at times, not just at night either. Get rid I say.
 
I agree that some after market bulbs or lights that have been fitted incorrectly may cause a nuisance, however the factory fit ones have come a long way, and direct the beam out of line of sight, well my BMW did and my Tiguan does on high beam assist.
 
By and large yes, they do. But unfortunately the levelling systems take no account of cresting the brow of a hill.
 
i just close my eyes in that situation and count to 10;)
Joking apart what ever light hits you then you will always be dazzled.
 
travelvolts said:
I don't mind being "dazzled". I object to having a migraine forced on me!
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Genuinely not trying to cause offence, but if you suffer from being severely dazzled at night by modern headlamps then surely you need to try and minimise driving in dark conditions rather than forcing the majority to fit in with your condition?
 
I don't actually drive much at night these days but the problem is not confined to hours of darkness. This isn't just something that affects a minority either. You could flip the argument on its head and say why don't the minority of people who struggle to see in the dark without ultra bright headlights refrain from driving at night? I think that we (the motoring community) are at more risk of accidents caused by blinding than what some people perceive to be poor quality of lighting.
 
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