[MatteBlack]

I prefer Night time driving purely because of the vibes, the night-only eateries(I love food as much as I love cars). The city I live in becomes lazy by 9:30 - 10PM and most of traffic has cleared except for a few coppers at discrete locations to capture drunk-drivers.

[ObsessedByFIAT]

Night drive works the best for me. Almost next to nil traffic, cold weather and no irritation from animals, slow moving three wheelers, miscellaneous traffic etc.

I have done multiple solo night long drives as well. True that sometimes sleep over powers. At such times, I just pull over, have a tea or some refreshments or have a quick power nap. The amount of distance that can be covered in the night just cannot compare it with the day time drive.

[snr]

I am an early riser, and I always prefer starting my day fresh! Helps me plan my day and I enjoy early morning drives better than late night drives. This is mostly for long trips. But I do enjoy the occasional late night spins with my husband or some friends!

[m8002?]

I prefer early morning drives because it really keeps you fresh for longer times. I prefer leaving before 4 am for longer drives.
It also helps cover distances non stop because the kids are also sleeping. Earlier they used to wake up at the toll booths every 30mins. Thankfully that's a thing of the past with Fastag.

[speedmiester]

I love night driving. I can cover larger distances at lesser speeds and the lack of traffic is a boon. It also means no two wheelers and three wheelers who are bane on any roads.
This works very well if I have to travel long distance. My son sleeps well in the night in his car seat and can travel without interruptions.
I am also sensitive to caffeine and one cup of coffee will keep me up all night, this also helps in my night drives.

If it is my usual Bangalore Mysore travel, then I prefer an early 3:30AM start, I reach my place at 6AM and get a hour of sleep before my day starts.

[sunilch]

Hehe, looking at the question - I just realized how life (or rather myself) has changed over time.

I loved night riding (not driving as I was not in a position to afford a car back then) and night travel (with my friends driving) and enjoy the cool weather at night as opposed to the scorching sun during the day.

For over 20 years I traveled with my friends at night. We have covered large distances through out night on motorcycles and cars at sane speeds with only trucks around at times but otherwise empty roads. We would leave the city after dinner and finally take a halt at any place where we could reach at around 10:00 am next morning to relax and do the same later again. This was a story until 5 years back.

Since getting married and having children my preferences have changed totally. Now I prefer early morning start and early evening stop. We try to leave between 4-5 am and stop our journey around 6 pm same day. This is to ensure safety and access to services of any kind, when needed.

The first few hours are again blissful with seldom any traffic until, say 10-11 am, depending upon the day and the route.

Nonetheless, I enjoy both - night as well as early morning drive/ride now. The key is to pick a route and time that avoids traffic and our abundantly available Sun in India.

So there should be an option called "Both"

[luvDriving]

Early morning no doubt. The mind is fresher and driving into the cool morning air is refreshing itself. Also if you have passengers then in all probability they soon doze off having woken up earlier than usual so you have all the peace and quiet in the world to focus on driving pleasure.

Personally I am finding it more difficult day by day to drive at night. Bright lights of oncoming vehicles and people treating open roads as racetracks make me very afraid to venture out at night unless its unavoidable.

[sreenivass]

For long drives starting early is a good idea, helps time and freshness in the environment. I am not one of those that would like to drive at 3:00 A.M or so. Generally after 5:00 P.M is a good time IMHO. The advantage of mornings is least pollution, not many early birds on the streets.

If it has to be evening for a fun drive, I typically chose after 9:00 P.M to let the rush and environment clear a little bit. Also interior roads are better than main roads at that time. It is going to be slow fun drive anyways.

[Emvi]

I generally prefer early morning starts and avoid long drives at night unless it is absolutely necessary/important. However, I love driving at night if it is on familiar, good stretch of roads. It is relatively easier to judge/notice the incoming traffic at night. Driving aggressive on winding sections of the familiar roads is an experience that is unparalleled.

[V.Narayan]

I did not vote as my answer would be neither.

When I have a long drive ahead of me, any thing north of 200 kms, my preference is to first get a full good night's sleep and leave at a reasonable hour like 8:30AM. Then clock no more than 400 to 450 kms in one day and reach my halfway stop or destination by mid-afternoon and enjoy the evening there. Then do the next leg of the journey on Day 2. As my long distance car journeys are only for a break these can be planned to be leisurely. Night driving is a complete no no given Indian roads and indiscipline.

[Archisman]

I was posted in Silchar mid last decade and there are simply no roads (atleast not where you can properly drive). I used to get pretty frustrated. So sometimes used to wake up very early morning (and I am not a morning person) and get in the car and drive 30km to Badarpur because the highway was in a slightly good shape. Come back before the missus and the kid woke up.

Pretty cathartic experience those drives were.

[adisan]

I prefer early morning because:

• The number of vehicles will be lesser.
• The number of possible drunk drivers will be lesser.
• Passing through the usually congested areas of a city or town will be faster.
• Somewhat fresh after a night's sleep
• The prospect of driving in daylight after a bit of time is encouraging.

[darkfantasy]

From my limited experience, I prefer the early morning driving because,
1. I feel much fresher, eager to drive, and happy during those early hours. There is just something about the early morning for me that makes me much more relaxed, confidant, cheerful, and full of energy to face the world. As the day drags on I feel my energy levels dwindle and my mind crowded with the cares of our routine life. Maybe this is a personal reason and may not be applicable to others.
2. To watch the faint lightening of the sky and the landscapes slowly coming alive while the cool of the night still lingers is pure bliss.
3. My highway drive involves about 600Km and starting early morning means I have enough buffer to reach my hometown before sundown.
4. That being said, I could not so far muster the courage to drive during the midnight hours, but I intend to try once I finalize a safer car. Who knows what sorts of pleasures await the mid-night traveler as he cruises on the lonely highways?