[asingh1977]

The amount of light abuse happening in the NCR region is atrocious. When driving at night if you view the "snake" in your rear-view mirror - ~100% of the headlights are on HB. I rarely see people driving on LB now. God knows what is happening out there. Night drive has become so painful, and I try to avoid it much as possible. But the plight is there, since office timings do not permit early returns five days a week.

Stupidity which I see / observe / experience:

1. Driving low speed bumper-2-bumper (no space to overtake) and giving a flash by. How is the car in the front supposed to let by. Like levitate up and let the menace behind cross under? You notice such behavior like 4-5 cars behind. This flash popping on / off.

2. Driving high-beam with those mercury lights. (Do they even have a low beam?). Those are like precision scalpels directly the into the eye.

3. Driving like a decent citizen in low-beam behind a vehicle. Suddenly BOOM! switching to high beam. Why? Let me overtake. Those 410 trucks and buses/dumpers do this.

4. High seated vehicles in high beam. Those S/X-UV class vehicles should have their high beam lights permanently neutered off.

Just being selfish. That is all.

[masteryoda83]

In Bombay even the Uber and Ola drivers use high beam in the city. I always keep my high beam on them hoping they would get the idea and will switch to low beam, but it seems they just dont get it.

I was rather impressed on a recent trip to Kerala, on the highway the oncoming traffic automatically switches to low beam.

[ssambyal1980]

Apart from the usual driving at high beam, there is a new craze among motorists especially in the northern states of Punjab and Haryana, who go in for extra high intensity LED lights fitment on their vehicles. The glare of such LED lights is very high which totally blinds the on coming traffic. Such kind of extra market fitments should be banned forthwith by the transport authorities in the larger interest of public safety.

[IndieGooner]

I had an experience yesterday which showed me the true menace of high beams. I was driving on a two land highway at around 18:15. The sky was overcast and daylight was diminishing. There was this car on opposite lane with high beams on. From dimensions it looked like a hatchback but I couldn't make out any thing more because of the high beam. As it was not dark yet (most of the cars including mine are on parking lights), I was not purticularly troubled. As our cars approached near I noticed that something was off. A fraction of a second later I realised that there's an SUV tailgating the hatch and spilling into my lane. I hadn't seen this car until it was very close. As I was doing 40-50 km\hr and there was not much traffic, I could navigate away without much incident.

I have never had this experience of being completely oblivious about oncoming traffic. There were a number of factors that contributed into this - I was driving up a slope with oncoming traffic against a backdrop of grey horizon, diminishing sunlight, the SUV was light coloured and was sort of camouflaged by the backdrop. Despite all these factors, I am pretty certain that I would have caught the SUV much earlier if not for the hatch's high beams.

[TorqueyTechie]

Here is an open letter from a frustrated biker regarding the high beam menace on the cities.

[mayankk]

Originally Posted by TorqueyTechie

Here is an open letter from a frustrated biker regarding the high beam menace on the cities.

That's quite rich, especially when most bikers I encounter where I commute are either on high beams, or have that jiggly headlamp which is like a strobe at a discotheque. Even worse are the ones who install those blinky Led's in their reflectors.
Even the supposed "sophisticates" with their light cubes, designed for leh, used in defence colony.
Rich.

Ps:exercising the same disclaimer as Mr biker in the letter about "not all".

[knightrider_7]

Can someone list the cars/SUVs on sale as of now, in which the high beam effect from oncoming vehicles is negligible?

[luvDriving]

I have experienced this type of torture too. Its on both the sides - oncoming vehicles and vehicles following you. Both drivers on high beam means you are completely blind.

For oncoming drivers (on highways) I usually flick the high beam once. If the other driver is sensible enough then the high beam is downgraded immediately. 50% do this and the other 50% do not. In that case, focus on your side of the road is my mantra. In city roads, I do not bother to get hassled because 99% of the time the other driver has no intention of switching to a low beam.

For drivers following me, whenever possible I try and give way so as to bring back some vision. But sometimes even when the vehicle following you is not on high beam (ex. trucks or buses), due to the seating height it turns into one. So the only option is to fix your eyes away from the glare and focus in front.

[naturaldisaster]

Living in NCR, I can assure you that it is as much to do with lack of education as it is as about selfishness or bullheadedness. I once asked everyone in my office about High Beams and what the use for the same is. Shockingly, more than 90% of the 'corporate' folks (Sales Managers and Quality Heads) had no idea. The reply was "light zyada hai." Some of them have their stalks set to high beam and had forgotten about the existence of low beam . Insane!

You can then imagine the condition of non corporate public. It is a gargantuan task, educating the entire driving population. And one that will take decades to enforce in our great country. Hence i suggest a more proactive solution. Nothing much can be done for oncoming traffic other than you flashing to try to knock some sense into them. For RVM, get an auto-dimming RVM. Makes a 'day and night' difference to glare. Cheers.

[FarPatel]

Originally Posted by knightrider_7

Can someone list the cars/SUVs on sale as of now, in which the high beam effect from oncoming vehicles is negligible?

I don't think you'll find any car that can save you from the multiple headlights of some of our long distance private buses or even the double headlamps of our autorickshaws. My way of dealing with this menace is to use the prismatic IRVM for such vehicles behind me and polarising lenses for the oncoming morons. You'll find my solution somewhere earlier in this thread.
Cheers

[knightrider_7]

Originally Posted by FarPatel

I don't think you'll find any car that can save you from the multiple headlights of some of our long distance private buses or even the double headlamps of our autorickshaws.

Thanks. What I actually meant was the list of cars with high seating position so that the oncoming high beam from most of the other cars/two wheelers can be avoided.

[desiaztec]

Back in the day, around 1999, when I learnt driving, my father taught me not to drive with high beam and to use dipper when an oncoming vehicle is on high, and peopld used to be courteous and used to change over to low.

Post 2004, when people started minting money and everone started buying fancy cars, scooties and motorcycles, people also started becoming inconsiderate of others. LOUD horns, high beams, extra bright whiye lights, DRLs in scooties and what not. I now flick my dipper, even after doing it constantly, absolutely no one lowers their beam.

I feel they are uneducated when it comes to driving and do not realize why their own eyes pain. Being oblivious to the fact that high intensity light causes pain and temporary blindness. While some are the showy and rebellious kind. I now frequently see SUVs in Delhi NCR with a roof mounted LED bar with bright white lights enough to light up a runway.

Also, alot of bhpians i notice want that extra extra bright lights.

[Vysakh]

Hate this LED bar menace. Saw an oncoming two wheeler with an LED bar and it blinded me almost completely and had to come to a near halt. When it crossed me I realized it was a TVS super XL.

[nikhn]

Originally Posted by Vysakh

Hate this LED bar menace. Saw an oncoming two wheeler with an LED bar and it blinded me almost completely and had to come to a near halt. When it crossed me I realized it was a TVS super XL.

Unfortunately that's the OEM DRL present in the vehicle. I do not understand why such a bright light was provided in the first place. Especially interested he evenings, the rider feels that the DRL is bright enough and doesn't necessarily switch on the headlights which dim the DRLs.

One solution is causing another problem. TVS seems to be doing the same to all their vehicles and now Bajaj is following them with the Platina.

[asingh1977]

What is with these flickering non-stop lights, and that too Mercury which people are installing these days. Seeing this mostly in Cretas. The light (bright) flicks on - off - on - off ; really fast. It cannot be done using the stalk. Seems like some automated button is pressed which initiates the on - off sequence rapidly. And drivers are using this when asking for an over-take -- being extremely close, literally tail-gating. It is so mean and dangerous.