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Old 25th January 2011, 12:37   #166
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Re: Say NO to HIGH-BEAM

In a city like Bangalore where the street lights dont work most of the time and where there are evil potholes, construction debris, broken dividers, scattered iron rods, broken concrete slabs and other rubble and other dangers strewn on the streets it is very difficult to drive at night. Even on the ring roads we come across issues like the above.

Hence many people tend to use high beam. This is not the best solution but what does one do when one cannot see properly ahead?

I have fitted a pair of smaller driving lamps on my front bumper in the space which is ostensibly provided for fog lamps. Switching these on at night helps me to see whats immediately in front of me since these lights shed a decent pool of light to highligh t the road immediately in front of the vehicle.
Using these in combination with my headlamps (dipped), allows for easier visibility while driving at night.
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Old 25th January 2011, 13:00   #167
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Re: Say NO to HIGH-BEAM

@shajufx
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We can tolerate all that, but how about the cabbies who drive with full time high beam and the horn button pressed 90% of the time ? (they take the hand off 10% to scratch themselves). We should amend the constitution to hang them without legal proceedings !
That was hilarious. They must have caused quite an issue for you to say this.
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Old 25th January 2011, 13:09   #168
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Re: Say NO to HIGH-BEAM

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Originally Posted by shankar.balan View Post
...but what does one do when one cannot see properly ahead?
Only one solution buddy: SIT AT HOME

Bangalore city will be a pain to drive atleast until the end of 2012, its not a joke but a serious word from my friends who are connected to the metro/BBMP works. We have 6 flyover works happening in north outer ring road alone. Metro digging has gone half way in many places, just started in other areas. Not forgetting the uncountable private constructions that are all around the place.

A canal bridge construction at the start of New BEL road is going over an year, it still looks like another year to complete. That place is a mess. BEL circle is a mess now. Sky is the only option that is not choked. Would we see Honda/Ford/Suzuki wings that can be tied around our body for movement ? To make sure I have not gone OT, wings may not require high beams
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Old 2nd February 2011, 23:37   #169
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Re: Say NO to HIGH-BEAM

This is not simply blinding but life threatening.
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Old 3rd February 2011, 00:17   #170
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Re: Say NO to HIGH-BEAM

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Originally Posted by rajeev k View Post
This is not simply blinding but life threatening.
I faced a hair raising situation on Nasik-Pune Highway ghat section. I along with two of my friends were returning from Nasik in an Indicab. The time was around 9PM, and driver was driving pretty safely (I was at the co-driver seat, pointing to him whenever speed exceeded). A truck came in opposite lane with high beam, by the time our eyes returned to normal vision, the road in front of us had almost ended. There was a sharp U-turn . I would commend the Indicab driver for his agility and our controlled speed that I am here to post in this thread.

I would say, to discipline others is bit difficult, so we must restrain ourselves. Since that day whenever I am driving in ghat sections at night or similar odd situations, I reduce my speed a bit and remain a bit more alert to brake.
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Old 2nd March 2011, 20:30   #171
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Re: Say NO to HIGH-BEAM

I have a dream. A dream that one day, i will hire a Jeep (any kind). Put on fog lamps, no make them flood lamps (the kinds we see in stadiums) on the bar above.
Carry a generator tucked behind, and flash these lights to anyone in the opposite direction, driving on a high beam.

I dont care if i go behind bars for that. I would love to blind some. (Call me sadistic, but that high beam menace gets my goat every single time).
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Old 3rd March 2011, 10:47   #172
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Re: Say NO to HIGH-BEAM

^^^ I'd gone a tad further. I even have the wiring diagram ready Complete with a solar panel for charging the separate batteries, in addition to a generator setup.

EDIT: My dream vehicle for this is an open-top Thar with a roll-cage and Hella 370Hz horns - to make the moron face the "music"

EDIT (2):

PS: I don't use my highbeams unless there's a need for it. City driving strictly with low beams. What i said above is just a fantasy

@rajeevk, I really hope it was not you who clicked that pic. Otherwise your act itself is as life threatening (or even worse) as the glare from the high-beams

Last edited by silversteed : 3rd March 2011 at 11:16.
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Old 3rd March 2011, 11:09   #173
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Re: Say NO to HIGH-BEAM

I used to always dislike people driving with the high beam in cities but something happened on my way back from Jaipur which surely takes the cake.

Road near Udaipur towards Ahmedabad has long winding turns and I was on a long right turn around 930 at night in my Tucson@100-110 in the right lane as there were slower trucks on the left. Now just as I am approaching the turn I see a local carrier Jeep driving with high beams in the right lane in the OPPOSITE direction. Had to shift to the left and slow down sharply as this Jeep continued to drive without slowing down. Respecting the forum's rules for language but you know how I feel

This apparently happens all the time on those roads!
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Old 5th March 2011, 22:28   #174
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Re: Say NO to HIGH-BEAM

In January I was driving home at Calcutta from Digha, a sea side town in West Bengal. Started at around 6 O'clock in the evening, hopeful to reach home by ten. The roads were dark, as darkness sets in by five O'clock here, during the month of January. Just after driving around thirty KM a bus with multiple headlights in high beam, coming from the opposite direction momentarily blinded me. I was also using high beam through the dark and deserted village roads but switched to low as soon as the bus appeared. As a consequence I could not see a movable metal fencing (barrier) blocking a portion of the road. I had also seen many of these barriers earlier on this road, pulled from both sides, effectively narrowing the road for no apparent reason. They usually did neither have reflectors on them nor were brightly painted and in low beam, being momentarily blinded by the lights of the approaching bus, I could not detect this one well in advance. Although I braked hard, (the screeching of may brakes made one policeman from a nearby police check-post show his head out for a moment before vanishing calmly) there was an ugly scratch in the front bonnet with a small dent in the front. Fortunately the headlamps were saved (left one very narrowly), although it went slightly out of focus with no other harm caused. I continued with my journey and reached home safely but subsequently had to pay over two thousand rupees for the body and paintwork.
Regards,
Rahul Biswas
Calcutta
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Old 5th March 2011, 23:35   #175
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Re: Say NO to HIGH-BEAM

I have a theory about buses, trucks, etc; vehicles with high headlamps.

I think that the engineers that work on them have no idea about a headlamp except that it should point straight ahead. Therefore, there is no such thing as a dipped headlight for those vehicles: the headlamps will always hit at eye level.
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Old 6th March 2011, 12:04   #176
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Re: Say NO to HIGH-BEAM

Quote:
Originally Posted by Thad E Ginathom View Post
I have a theory about buses, trucks, etc; vehicles with high headlamps.

I think that the engineers that work on them have no idea about a headlamp except that it should point straight ahead. Therefore, there is no such thing as a dipped headlight for those vehicles: the headlamps will always hit at eye level.
But you have the Volvo buses; which have their headlights pretty low and have headlight levelling. Yet, the beam hits you bad in the eye.

The stupidity of BMTC Volvo drivers : Despite travelling only in the city, they have both their headlights (i.e. 2 on both sides) AND the fog lamps on. They just don't get it that they are inadvertently blinding the oncoming vehicles.
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Old 6th March 2011, 20:18   #177
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Re: Say NO to HIGH-BEAM

I normally switch between low and high beams depending on the traffic and lighting conditions. There are places within the city, for e.g. the road at Powai lake, where I compulsorily switch to high beams because there are several morons crossing the roads in front of the heavy vehicular traffic. The road lights barely illuminate the divider and the inside road, but on the lakeside, the road is half dark. It's difficult to see if anyone is crossing the road (there are no pedestrian crossings marked, no FOBs, no breaks in the divider), so either you switch on the highbeams and hope to spot an errant pedestrian in time, or risk an accident.
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Old 9th March 2011, 12:32   #178
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Re: Say NO to HIGH-BEAM

High beam not only blinds the oncoming vehicle it causes unnecessary glare in your rear view mirror. Once a friend of mine was following me on the highway and he was on high beam i stopped my vehicle and told him that his lights are glaring use the low beam.
if you are behind another vehicle do switch to low beams so that he can view the rear view mirrors properly.
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Old 9th March 2011, 15:44   #179
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Re: Say NO to HIGH-BEAM

Nowadays, i drive at what the speed limit says (got a speeding ticket twice ) and hence i dont require high-beam for atleast 90% of the times. The lower beam as well is all the way adjusted to the lowest level.
A it helps others get a good view of the road
B i am actually getting a good mileage
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Old 9th March 2011, 23:34   #180
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Re: Say NO to HIGH-BEAM

Quote:
Originally Posted by Thad E Ginathom View Post
I have a theory about buses, trucks, etc; vehicles with high headlamps.

I think that the engineers that work on them have no idea about a headlamp except that it should point straight ahead. Therefore, there is no such thing as a dipped headlight for those vehicles: the headlamps will always hit at eye level.
I would contradict this. The engineers designing the headlamps very well know the importance of High Beam and Low Beam and their leveling. They understand the difference in the type of beam pattern required for the RHD driving and LHD driving. I can say this as I have worked closely with the team handling lamps (headlamps, indicators and brake lights and warning lamps). Also, there are significant number of regulations governing the positioning and leveling of the respective lamps.

The problem is with the users (drivers) who simply ignore to care for the other road users. In the vehicles equipped with headlamp leveling switch, these idiots put that at the highest setting.
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