Some of us have been discussing vehicle lights including LED lights and dazzle.
If I can vent off here, read or ignore as you like, but you have been warned.
Sequential Indicators. Why?
It is possible to make the small individual “bulbs” in a rear light illuminate in sequence.
Very clever and some think very pretty.
But does it improve or denigrate the function of the indicator. And that is the point: indicators are there for a purpose, not as decoration.
I contend that having a bright light flashing on - off is more visible than a gradually increasing or stepped increase of light. Simpler is better.
The pretty ones are for effect, some cost of efficacy.
Form over function. Wrong.
Headlights.
LEDs are much more efficient at illumination. They convert electricity into light much better.
Good. No argument.
Are they too bright? If so for who? The driver behind them or many others in front of them?
I would say for both.
It is easy to see why those in front find them too bright. Why too bright for the driver?
Too bright a light directly in front of the driver will mean the iris will contract. Peripheral vision will be lost.
It is like a photo with too much contrast, the centre is clear but the sides are lost in deep shadow.
Have a strong light to the front, but allow more light to “escape” to the surrounds.
We are talking about real roads, maybe with pedestrians on the side who might step out, or animals on the verge, not a rally car going at speed on closed roads. We do not need just a narrow beam a mile down the road, we need a more balanced approach to lighting.
I agree about those pulsating line indicators - very annoying, though maybe that’s the point - maybe someone somewhere did a trial and found they attract attention more than old-style blinkers.
As for LED headlights, I haven’t had a car with them yet so can’t comment.
When I first got the Audi the turn indicators did annoy me a little (on other cars, I can’t generally see my own) but if the “movement” is towards the direction of turn I think they are helpful.
In terms of indicators the ones that I find really annoying are the very tiny but bright ones fitted to some cars (eg Teslas) which are all but impossible to see in daylight.
As for LED headlights - I think auto dipping schemes should be mandatory.
What I find annoying are people who turn on their four-way flashers during heavy rain or fog, thinking that will improve visiblity for those behind them. For me anyway, I confuse the cycling flash with a legitimate brake signal, so it make me more stressed.
Sequential lights might provoke the same reaction. Any departure from the norm may not be good.
I assume that “being a distraction “ is the whole point.
If they get people’s attention better than a standard flasher then they have worked. But I have no idea if there is hard evidence for that or if they are just a design choice.
The biggest issue is the lumen output which should be capped at a certain level. The colour temperature which likewise should not exceed 5000k. I have fitted LED lamps to my fog lamps as they give greater spread and penetration. Low down they shouldn’t annoy anyone.
4 way flashers when moving? On a m-way or similar, if there is standing traffic or a genuine hazard ahead, I will turn them on for a few flashes, and then off again. Wake up anyone on autopilot behind me that my brake lights are on for a reason!
Without good reason…not fashion, not because we can…agreed.
Well, I would say that once the signal has been seen, (a simple bright flash , repeated regularly) it should no longer been thought about. To notice a clever sequence of flashes is the distraction.
The object is to attract attention to the driver’s intentions, not to the cleverness of the method of communication.
The downside is that it relies on the cars computer and cameras to work, just like lane departure warning. If the system is not reliable - like in our BMW - then one can be left needing to manually switch the headlight. A couple of months ago there was a software update that made the systems work much better, then 2 weeks ago another which has made it worse.
And yes, Tesla and other similar micro indicators are useless in bright light.
I see that would not be necessary in some states but surely would be a good idea to have them for when needed.
The idea of having the same light fitting for rear side/brake/indicator seems a bit silly from here too.
