I'm going to go for a bit of a rant.....so apologies.

I don't understand peoples fascination with fog lights and their usage. Yes it was foggy this morning, but visibility wasn't that bad. Especially through built up areas. There is no need to have your fog lights on. Yes put them on if you can't see less than 100 meters, but other than that it is a danger to other road users.

I bet most won't turn them off later on today/tonight once the fog has cleared. What also annoys me is drivers who use their front ones 'to look cool'.

And breathe....

Yep, the fog light warriors were all out in force this morning. It's daylight, reasonably sunny (well on my journey it was), with fog patches - front fog lights will not work and do what they are supposed to do in the daytime! You will still be seen, from the front, with headlights on. Rear fogs, yes, to increase the chances of you being seen.

Manufacturers do seem intent on having them switched so that the fronts come on before the rears - hence people using them to show that they don't drive a poverty spec car! Can't say, in all my years of driving, that I've actually encountered fog that bad which required me to switch off my headlights and merely drive on fogs?

it came into the driving test a couple of years ago (identifying the warning light for fog lights and how to operate them) , so hopefully the new generation of drivers will be more aware

This is one my my pet hates too. I've also never encountered visibility so bad that having front fogs on would have been beneficial.

I think it can be narrowed down to a few groups of drivers:

Audi/BMW/Merc - think it looks 'cool' and are too far up their own behind to realise darkness, rain or light mist does not count as seriously reduced visibility (as the Highway Code says).

French car drivers - sometimes put fogs on when an electrical fault has blown one of their headlamp bulbs. Also most likely cars to have one fog light out.

Japanese car drivers of the older generation - accidently switched them on when trying to do something else and don't know how to turn them back off.

This is one my my pet hates too. I've also never encountered visibility so bad that having front fogs on would have been beneficial.

I think it can be narrowed down to a few groups of drivers:

Audi/BMW/Merc - think it looks 'cool' and are too far up their own behind to realise darkness, rain or light mist does not count as seriously reduced visibility (as the Highway Code says).

French car drivers - sometimes put fogs on when an electrical fault has blown one of their headlamp bulbs. Also most likely cars to have one fog light out.

Japanese car drivers of the older generation - accidently switched them on when trying to do something else and don't know how to turn them back off.

lol... I know you are grouping people up, but I smiled at this as its SO true...

the french thing, renault megans, remove a wheel to replace the helight bulb, I see many french cars with 1 headlight and compensating fogs!

In contrast in a very thick, night time pea souper on a county road, that went on for miles I got flashed for using them correctly.

Couldn't see a thing with dipped beam due to the total white out, so was driving slowly on fog and sidelights.

I was keeping below the speed where I could stop in the distance I could see, which was further than on dipped beam.

Got some warrior decide full beam flashing like a nutter was the right thing to do coming the other way.

Neither of us could see anything then, me for being blinded and also the total white out.

Just because people are using them how you might think is incorrect (which is isn't in the case above) then it doesn't mean you should blind them.

I do however agree the fair weather foglight brigade are very annoying, especially at night in the winter when all the windows are salty after a long journey.

Mk1 Octavia's and Mk4 Golfs had them in the headlight. Mate of mine had a golf and both head lights blew within a week. He run with fogs for a day or two while he got bulbs

I'm getting sick of being flashed by cars for having fogs when it's my DRL's It's blinding especially on a dark road at NSL when they give you a long blast of full beam. The irony is I've had new Audi's do it to me who have DRL's!

Got some warrior decide full beam flashing like a nutter was the right thing to do coming the other way.

Neither of us could see anything then, me for being blinded and also the total white out.

Do you think he was flashing to complain about your foglights being on or to let you know you didn't have any headlights on?

Chris

I'm getting sick of being flashed by cars for having fogs when it's my DRL's It's blinding especially on a dark road at NSL when they give you a long blast of full beam. The irony is I've had new Audi's do it to me who have DRL's!

Are you sure that's the reason they're flashing you? It might be that your headlights are out of alignment, for example?

Chris

Front ones I can just about bear, but rear ones at night are blinding. More dangerous than anything when not used correctly. It just shows they are not paying attention as it should light up on their dashboard...

It was down to easily less than 50 meter here this morning, and people were running around with no lights on at all!

I had mine on when it was really bad, but turned them off if it lifted, and rears only if I was the last in the train of cars.

Are you sure that's the reason they're flashing you? It might be that your headlights are out of alignment, for example?

Chris

They aren't but if they are it's that they are too low and need to come up a bit. It only tends to happen the other side of the bridge. I'm in Swansea so that's people from mainly Llanelli and other parts of Carmarthenshire

Since the drls are now appearing on all new cars, the fogs worse

Front ones I can just about bear, but rear ones at night are blinding. More dangerous than anything when not used correctly. It just shows they are not paying attention as it should light up on their dashboard...

If the rear ones are blinding maybe your too close , you can always drop back

This last year eveyone seem to have them on as soon as the light starts to go, never mind the rain.

BUT as soon as it actually gets foggy they all seem to get switched off.

I think plod is missing out on a nice little earner if they can issue fines for misuse of lights. I'm surprised they've not cottoned on.

Patchy mist in Sunny Surrey this morning, but not enough to warrant putting on fog lights on. I agree that some drivers like to put them on to look cool "look how many lights I have" It's about time the police stopped these drivers mis-using them, it's illegal! It also amazes me how many are driving without their lights on whatsoever, Ok, they might be able to see, but you also need to be seen by other drivers. That is the beauty of automatic lights, it does it for you.

Patchy mist in Sunny Surrey this morning, but not enough to warrant putting on fog lights on. I agree that some drivers like to put them on to look cool "look how many lights I have" It's about time the police stopped these drivers mis-using them, it's illegal! It also amazes me how many are driving without their lights on whatsoever, Ok, they might be able to see, but you also need to be seen by other drivers. That is the beauty of automatic lights, it does it for you.

Aye I miss the auto lights I've the elegance spec and that's not got em, as for the fogs ? Why have em on even during the day crazy just crazy, problem is though the police have got so many cars now with drls hard to see the difference, even the drls on stuff like the mondeo are far to bright IMO

It was down to easily less than 50 meter here this morning, and people were running around with no lights on at all!

I had mine on when it was really bad, but turned them off if it lifted, and rears only if I was the last in the train of cars.

At last.. someone who knows how to use a rear foglight!! 10 / 10

PS I'm not saying that all others of you don't but TF gets the marks for being 1st to post it

That is the beauty of automatic lights, it does it for you.

They can't detect fog, they only come on when the light level drops. Although visibility is reduced in fog light levels usually remain quite high.

It's the same with rain/spray.

People who rely on auto lights are as bad as those incorrectly using their foglights.

I had my fogs on for about 10 minutes of my commute this morning - visibility went down to about 40 metres as I went through a dip at the top of a hill, so fogs went on and I slowed to a bit under 30 mph to give me reaction room if something suddenly loomed out of the white. Rears had to go off when someone caught up with me, but that's par for the course when you're not driving fast.

The number of people who had their rear fogs on for the remaining 15 miles of the drive was a bit weird, though - I kept my normal headlights on, but it's disconcerting when the car in front slows, and you don't immediately spot the side brake lights going on (takes a moment or two to realise the fogs have become larger), and inevitably, many of the cars using rear fogs in the clear stretch had their centre brake light out.

I can't recall ever using front fogs on any car I've had, tried them years ago and they never helped forward vision at all, in fact seemed to make it worse. So anyone know why almost all cars are fitted with them?

Rear fogs , yes they are useful to the car following you, I use them when appropriate.

If the rear ones are blinding maybe your too close , you can always drop back

I'm talking about places like through town...

I'm getting sick of being flashed by cars for having fogs when it's my DRL's It's blinding especially on a dark road at NSL when they give you a long blast of full beam. The irony is I've had new Audi's do it to me who have DRL's!

I had my first experience of protest against my DRL's the other day in my Octavia, I was driving around mid day, sun shine, no other lights on, but the guy I was following kept flashing his fog lights at me (he had an S Type Jaguar), so I turned on all my lights (not main beam) and fog lights for a second to prove to him that they were not my fog lights, he continued to do this for about 5 miles, in some cases clipping the verge as he was clearly looking in his rear view mirror at me, gesticulating and not looking where he was going. So when I eventually got the chance to overtake him safely he put his main beam on for the rest of the time he was behind me!

Very strange behaviour indeed.

I'd have had to pull over and invite the fool to do the same just so I could explain what the lights were and that his improper use of his rear fogs and main beam was bordering on reckless.

Usage by me is mainly taxi drivers and yoofs. I can only assume Bradford has a terrible problem with cataracts. I hate it but the Police don't do anything, so what can I do. :(