Daytime running lights on or off

[TR7Driver]

A little advice from Yeti owners please, my Yeti came with the daytime running lights set to on, whilst I can see the benefit of them being on in the winter or perhaps for motorway driving, as the sales blurb states "The Yeti's daytime running lights are an important safety feature as they serve to increase other road users' visibility of the vehicle in all conditions whilst using less energy as main headlights and therefore reducing fuel consumption." but do i really want or need to drive around town with them on all day, so was wondering what the etiquette is amongst Yeti drivers when it comes to the Daytime running lights.

[@Lee]

Ours are set to on. Nowt wrong with being a bit more visible IMO.

[Llanigraham]

ON!!

They are there for a reason, to increase your chance of being seen.

 

And with the newer cars I understand it is actually impossible to turn them off, as they are now a legal requirement.

[@Lee]

Oh no! I've agreed with Graham. And so it begins,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,knew she shouldn't have got a Yeti

[looby]

It's an ON from me.....

[skodanorman]

Slippery slope.

Often more about looking better than visibility though. To throw a spanner in the works... they are the modern day equivalent of front fogs back in the mid 00s

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[RickT]

They must be on!

Its a legal thing, all vehicles registered after Feb 2011 must have DRL's fitted and working. As Graham says the newer cars may not be possible to turn them off. 

[pinkpanther]

Mine are switched off.  I personally found the rationale / research behind DRL's less than convincing and perhaps more applicable to countries with less daylight than us.

 

I also found myself being flashed by other road users on a daily basis, presumably as they thought the Yeti's DRL's were fog lights.I realise this is more than likely as a direct result of the front end design of the Yeti, compared to other, more conventional designs.

 

The godawful / blinding LED's, now seemingly fitted as standard to most Audi's and Citroen's strike me as more of a fashion statement than an aid to visibility. I recalled being followed by a Citroen DS3 recently and I swear the pattern of the front DRLS's was permanently burned into my retina's

[Agerbundsen]

There seems to be a misconception that DRL's are for nighttime use?

 

They are for daytime visibility, and should be on. Light coloured cars and a slight mist are good camouflage. Driving safety depends in part of seeing and BEEING SEEN!

 

Noticing a vehicle a little sooner because of the DRL's makes safe driving easier.

 

Keep them on.

[domhnall]

Mine are switched off. I personally found the rationale / research behind DRL's less than convincing and perhaps more applicable to countries with less daylight than us.

I also found myself being flashed by other road users on a daily basis, presumably as they thought the Yeti's DRL's were fog lights.I realise this is more than likely as a direct result of the front end design of the Yeti, compared to other, more conventional designs.

The godawful / blinding LED's, now seemingly fitted as standard to most Audi's and Citroen's strike me as more of a fashion statement than an aid to visibility. I recalled being followed by a Citroen DS3 recently and I swear the pattern of the front DRLS's was permanently burned into my retina's

Less day light than us? In winter time it gets light around 9 and dark by 3.30 or so, can't really get much less than that.

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[TR7Driver]

Thanks for advice, will leave them on, but agree on some cars they can look to be a fashion statement, in kent we get plenty of sun light.

[freedie]

It's an ON from me.....

 

and it's an ON from him.

Edited 4 August, 2013 by freedie

[rockhopper]

In over 40,000 miles I have never been flashed because my DRL's are on, or because my fog lights come on when turning and hardly ever because I use Xenon lights......(only when in a position when any head lights would dazzle oncoming traffic)

[175GDY]

For me, the Yeti's DRL-mode is useless.

a) Too weak

No taillight

c) No instrument cluster light

I use either the Foglight mode or dipped beam mode for daytime driving.

Don't like the Auto-mode due to system switching on/off constantly when driving in Norway (yes, the tunnels).

Minimum two forwardpointing lights has been mandatory for daytime driving in Norway for many, many years.

In the 80's the DRL-function should switch on automatically when starting the engine. Later this had to be changed, due to EU-regulations.

[gadgetman]

In bright sunlight you'll be noticed.

When driving around do you not find yourself noticing others with DRL's or dipped lights over other cars?

It's like noticing the sun reflection catching something shiney on a car. Your eyes will be instinctively drawn to it.

It's one reason if you have auto lights you find they turn on in very bright sunshine. It's a safety feature

[mannyo]

They must be on!

Its a legal thing, all vehicles registered after Feb 2011 must have DRL's fitted and working. As Graham says the newer cars may not be possible to turn them off. 

 

Sorry, but this is not correct. Cars that were type approved from Feb 2011 onwards must have DRL's fitted (IE Brand new models), the Yeti pre-dates this requirement and does not even legally need to have them at all. Even cars past this date which must have them fitted can have them switchable, there is no legal requirement which states they must be used, just they must be fitted.

 

There are plenty of post 2011 registered cars driving around that do not even have DRL's fitted at all.

[KBPhoto]

Some interesting reading here and not the first time I've read reports that suggest fatal accident rates are dropping faster in countries without DRL's.

Also some interesting figures on the brightness and beam pattern issues of DRL's.

http://vastmeridian.blogspot.co.uk/2011/08/do-we-really-need-daylight-running.html?m=1

[NGee]

My car is grey.  In winter, against a grey road, under a grey sky, I can imagine that I'm less visible than ideal.  The "auto light" sensor doesn't think it's quite dark enough to put the main lights on.

 

Under these circumstances I feel that DRL are very useful to have as a permanent thing.

 

I'm not so sure they add much under our current conditions (bright bright sunshine and long days) but even now if you enter a tunnel of trees the brightness levels drop sharply, and a couple of points of light must assist others.

 

I must confess that I'm not a fan of the overly elaborate LED versions, but I think the Yeti DRL's do exactly what's required without any drama.

[gadgetman]

Some interesting reading here and not the first time I've read reports that suggest fatal accident rates are dropping faster in countries without DRL's.

Also some interesting figures on the brightness and beam pattern issues of DRL's.

http://vastmeridian.blogspot.co.uk/2011/08/do-we-really-need-daylight-running.html?m=1

How did I just know lightmare would be mentioned once I started reading.

The folk who want xenons and anything more powerful than a birthday cake candle banned

[KBPhoto]

I'm in favour of DRL's that cannot be switched off as I frequently see too many vehicles without illumination when it would clearly make the more visible (fog, bright sunlight, etc.) and the roads a little safer.

However the point about DRL's that are much brighter than dipped beams and are not directed away from oncoming drivers is a significant and valid one. As is drivers using fog lights as DRL's (although many vehicles have separate DRL bulbs next to the actual fog bulb!)

How many of us lambasted Volvo drivers in the UK for 'having their lights on' during the 1990's way ahead of DRL legislation?

Are Lightmare really campaigning for all DRL's and Xenons to be banned?

I don't think so, so perhaps you over exaggerate or misrepresent their case!

I know there are "Lies, damn lies and statistics" but if the evidence is showing that DRL's that are poorly focused/directed and too bright, then perhaps it is time to modify the legislation accordingly.

[gadgetman]

Are Lightmare really campaigning for all DRL's and Xenons to be banned?

I don't think so, so perhaps you over exaggerate or misrepresent their case!

Read for yourself

http://www.lightmare.org

[Yearofthegoat]

Mine are on, it's what they're for isn't it?

[KBPhoto]

I already have. And have done so again.

I don't see anything saying 'ban' them, only control them to safe limits:

Our aim is to persuade the UK Government to limit the eye damaging intensity of light that a driver encounters

Lets not drag this down into a continuing argument over Lightmare's campaign as it is obvious you disagree with it.

The OP specifically asked about the Yeti DRL's and I can't say I can recall ever being offended or blinded by them (and we have quite a few in rural Herefordshire).

So I'd agree with the above posts: leave them on - they are not too bright to cause issues (IMO).

[Anzio]

If any DRL blinds you then either there is something wrong with your eyes, or the lights are not proper DRL's.

KEEP THEM ON !! if someone can see you a fraction of a second earlier, great, as with motorbikes.

[thedinger]

OFF

 

As per pinkpanther.

If it's dark enough to be seen by other road users, then it's dark enough for the driver to see other road users, so switch on your main lights.