Date: Mon, 13 Dec 1999 17:47:37 -0500 From: Rob Levandowski <roblnopsamhiz.com> Subject: Re: DRLs <was Re: Why no fogs with high beams?>
In article <121219991549165842%gilplant_slack_nopsamhlink.net>, "J. Gilbert Plantinga" <gilplant_slack_nopsamhlink.net> wrote: >I've pulled the fuse on the daytime running lights on my 9-3. They are >not DRLs at all on the US version. I don't know about other countries, >but in Canada where DRLs are required by federal law, the DRL circuit >runs the headlamps (and only the headlamps) at reduced intensity. The >circuit in my car runs the headlamps at full intensity and the >tailights too, just as if the headlights were turned on in the daytime. That's arguably safer than "true DRLs." Many people with DRL-equipped cars forget that their rear lamps are not lit if the headlamp switch is in the DRL-only position. When the weather changes and visibility drops, they see the light from the DRL and presume that this lets them be seen... but they often forget that they may be all but invisible to traffic overtaking them from behind. I wholeheartedly support the idea that the rear marker lights should be on if the DRLs are on. Running lights should not be a front-only proposition. After all, the last statistics I heard put rear-end collisions at far greater numbers than head-on collisions in the U.S. In my 9-5, I pulled the "DRL" fuse, but I leave the headlamp switch on. That has the same net effect, since the headlamps switch off when you turn the ignition off anyway. However, it does mean that I have the option to turn the lights off if I so desire. I mostly do that if I'm waiting in a parking lot with the engine running -- otherwise, people think I'm about to leave and wait impatiently for me to back out. It seems more courteous to leave the lights off... -- Rob Levandowski roblnopsamhiz.com