Advanced Driving Hub

So… I was out and about mostly on the M6 yesterday mid-afternoon through to early evening with a fair amount of mist and fog about. At no time was visibility below 100m but well over half the drivers had their rear fog lights on even though side lights were fine. Especially when it’s dark, when cars move about relative to each other, you get glimpses/flashes of rear fog lights up ahead which look like brake lights.

Generally on motorways and always on A/B roads, I have adopted a rule that if I can see a set of headlights behind me, I don’t need my rear fog lights on – I turn them off. It saves dazzling the driver behind.

Anyone else adopt a similar approach? …or have a different viewpoint?

I'd like to see a bit of technology in cars which switches the ****ing things off when the car goes over about 30mph. If you can go faster than that in reasonable safety, it can't particularly soupy.

They were brought in when car rear lights were like undernourished glowworms - is there really a need for them now?

I bloody hate the things. I can't remember the last time I was in a fog thick enough to warrant their use. Instead we have brain dead half wits flicking the damn things on with almost no provocation whatsoever. Somebody is going to get rammed up the rear one day as a result - and it'll be the poor sod behind who cops for the blame. They are unneccesary.

BobG

TR4ffic wrote:if I can see a set of headlights behind me, I don’t need my rear fog lights on

You can see their headlights better than they can see your rear side-lights, possibly better than they could see your rear fog-lights.

When foggy, if I can't see the rear side-lights of the vehicle ahead then my rear fog-lights should be on.

If I can see the lights of the vehicle ahead but can't tell if they are fog-lights, mine should be on.

If a vehicle behind catches up and follows closer than my following distance, then I'll consider turning them off.

Gareth wrote:When foggy, if I can't see the rear side-lights of the vehicle ahead then my rear fog-lights should be on.

Good luck with anything in the road ahead that doesn't have sufficient lighting


H War Story warning, look away now if you don't want to read it

Years ago, a colleague used to always have his front fogs on at night (shift work, so we often saw it). We commented that they're only supposed to be used in 'poor visibility'. He replied "Its dark, that's poor visibility", so I said, "Look up at the sky, you can see stars that are billions of light years away - that's good visibility."

Etiquette is secondary to legal requirements. It is an offence to use fog lamps unless visibility is "seriously reduced" i.e. less than 100m.
Law RVLR regs 25 & 27
https://www.highwaycodeuk.co.uk/fog.html

Improper use of fog lamps is one of those things that really irks me. The upside is that it points out all of the drivers who are not thinking so making them easier to avoid.

ETA: Oh, and don't get me started on those stupid cars that put one fog light on whenever you turn the steering wheel. How can that even be legal?

UN ECE Agreement Addendum 118: Regulation No. 119 [pdf]

Legal or not, when driving I find it really helpful.

On the Altea we used to have, I would sometimes put the front fogs on when looking for side turning in dark lanes. The reversing lamp was cr@p, too, so I would sometimes put the rear fog on.

Dear Points of View, why oh why oh why does any car manufacturer think that you only need to see one side when reversing?

Cornering lights are a pain in the **** and should never have been allowed!

As someone who is profoundly colour blind spotting indicators (don't get me started on clear lenses!) are hard enough to spot at times already. It's like a disco now at RABs with these stupid cornering lights going on and off. You detect a change if light out of the corner of your eye. Very distracting.

Single reversing lights are another modern trend. Awful idea. Also in both our cars the one that is there has the output of a glow worm in a jam jar. Progress, grrrrrr.

It's just part of the wider question - why is society so tolerant of shit drivers?