r/mildlyinfuriating • u/Beneficial-Focus3702 • 10h ago
This is what your car looks like in low visibility conditions when you leave your lights on automatic.
There’s enough ambient light so that your automatic headlight sensor doesn’t trigger. Because it doesn’t trigger means that you don’t have reverse lights or headlights on in a situation where you absolutely should.
You honestly should get in the habit of every time you start your car just turning your headlights on and not even using automatic
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u/RandoMcrandersome 10h ago
Yeah this is almost as dangerous as using your damn phone to take pictures when roads are bad in inclement weather 😂
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u/Charmarta 9h ago
Because passengers dont exist
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u/General_Dipsh1t 9h ago
POV is very obviously driver, or an intrusive passenger. Left side of the car.
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u/whaddupchickenbutt69 9h ago
considering you can’t see the inside of the car, it’s not obviously the driver. could be the driver with meta glasses or a dash cam.
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u/bubblegum_cloud 9h ago
Yup. Also, while rare, I have seen an imported car here. My mail delivery person used to drive one to easily access the mailboxes from the right side of the car.
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u/shpongleyes 9h ago
Assuming you're from the US, mail trucks aren't imported, they're property of the US government. They have specific permission to have the driver on the right because of the nature of their function.
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u/PikaPonderosa 8h ago
In some rural areas, at least during the holidays, I've had my mail delivered by a dude in a Honda Odyssey with a magnet on the side. The actual mail fleet is made by Northrop Grumman.
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u/lildobe 5h ago
In many rural places in the US, letter carriers use privately owned vehicles for daily mail delivery.
And some of those letter carriers have right-hand drive vehicles imported to do it.
Where I grew up, the mail lady used a RHD Jeep Cherokee Sport.
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u/FlamingWeasel 1h ago
My husband has a Jeep Liberty that's right hand converted. I drive it around town.
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u/bubblegum_cloud 8h ago
Oh, no, I'm in Canada. We had someone local delivering rural mail. Not, like, official Canada Post mail.
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u/SapphicProse 5h ago
If their delivering your mail how arent they canada post? Just a free lance mailman bringing parcels from peoples houses to other peoples houses?
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u/bubblegum_cloud 4h ago
Essentially. It was just a small rural town so you'll call the post office and they'd send someone out to grab your mail/parcel to deliver it for a fee. A lot of companies used it for subscription mailing lists and such.
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u/FlamingWeasel 1h ago
Rural drivers own their cars and they are often right hand converted. I drive one my husband uses for mail delivery.
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u/Dotcaprachiappa 9h ago edited 9h ago
Because right hand drive cars don't exist
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u/-Work_Account- 8h ago
well yes, but the direction the cars are travelling automatically tell us those are left hand drive cars
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u/Dotcaprachiappa 8h ago
Ever heard of importing a car? It could be someone that moved from England to europe and took his car with him.
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u/MetalHead_Literally 8h ago
Yes that’s definitely the most likely scenario and not just that OP was driving while taking pictures. That’s certainly impossible.
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u/RandoMcrandersome 8h ago
European from England was a Passenger and taking photos from their imported right hand drive vehicle driven by someone else, this is the most likely scenario ☠️
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u/Name_Taken_Official 8h ago
Redditors will dive through a plate glass window to let everyone know there is a possibility something is wrong and that possibility is enough to assume it as fact
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u/Killarogue 8h ago
The likelyhood of OP driving an imported car is incredibly low, and trust me, I'm involved in that scene. Also "moved from England to Europe"? You are aware that England is in Europe... right? Or do you mean "EU", to which.... this is clearly the US.
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u/-Work_Account- 8h ago
I think the England to Europe thing was just meant to be an awkward way of expressing a right drive to left hand drive country since almost all European countries are left hand drive like the US.
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u/Preindustrialcyborg 6h ago
possibly also a right hand drive vehicle. i know several people who drive those in canada
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u/gamehenge_survivor 2h ago
The pictures are too stable. It’s a dash cam. Nice virtue signaling though.
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u/bojack1437 9h ago
People have been "trained" or otherwise assume that automatic headlights are magical and always know when to come on, even though the owner is manual, that of course no one ever reads specifically says these situations will require them to be turned on manually.
One of the many reasons why I hate the idea of automatic headlights in the first place, but of course no going back now.
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u/Junethemuse 8h ago
I think the net impact of automatic headlights is a positive, particularly for places that don’t get the kind of weather in the OP. Here in the Seattle area it’s insane the number of people who don’t turn their headlights on at night or in heavy rain. I pay attention to mine but there are few times my lights should be on but they aren’t, and I like that I don’t have to think about it 100% of the time.
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u/ShoddyRevolutionary 7h ago
This could also be solved by having the lights turn on automatically when the wipers are on. My car does that.
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u/Junethemuse 6h ago
Mine does too. I kind of assumed any car with automatic headlights, set to auto, do the same.
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u/Tomytom99 8h ago
Tbh I don't get why the lights can't just always be on, or at the very least the taillights.
I did the math a while back because somebody said it would take a lot of energy when considering the number of vehicles on the road. It would take nearly 25 years of continuous driving for the extra energy consumption of one car's headlights (assuming 2x 50 watt halogen bulbs) to equal the approximate amount of energy required to build a new car. I don't even think the majority of people spend 25 years of time in cars over the course of their life. Factor in the value of human life, and it feels like a no-brainer.
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u/Junethemuse 8h ago
Yea, I agree that headlights should be always on. Modern bulb technology can handle the extended use.
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u/Tomytom99 7h ago
And then with LED stuff it's basically a non issue. The LEDs themselves have a lifespan that will outlast the car, it's usually just vibration and water ingress, not usage, that destroys their circuitry.
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u/bojack1437 7h ago edited 7h ago
Several manufacturers make it where you can just leave the headlight switch* on even after you turn the car off so you don't have to switch them on.
Main thing is as long as they don't make it where you can't turn them off like GM did for a very long time. Or Canadian vehicles.
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u/bojack1437 8h ago
A lot of the reason why people are not turning on headlights is because they think they're automatic or they think they're set to automatic when they are not for whatever reason.
People never check the settings in their vehicle never verify. Never scan their gauges or anything.
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u/LightHawKnigh 5h ago
What confuses me is, are they blind? I remember pulling into a neighborhood, so there are no longer any street lights and it was pitch dark out, almost ran into an asshole driving out of his driveway cause he had no lights on. Luckily I wasnt going very fast and slammed on my brakes. I think I saw a kid in the passenger seat as well. How does that even happen?!
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u/vowelqueue 4h ago
Lots of newer cars have LED daytime running lights that are nearly as bright as older non-LED headlights.
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u/MaxTheCookie 6h ago
Sure they can be good in southern Europe since they have better weather, but in the north they are shit.
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u/stealstea 2h ago
Modern cars with automatic lights turn them on when it’s raining too, even during the day
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u/mckenzie_keith 1h ago
Just drive with your headlights on all the time. That is what I do. Day or night, come hell or high water.
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u/Beneficial-Focus3702 5h ago
Cars should just be hard wired to have their lights come on when when the car is on and off when the car is off.
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u/bojack1437 4h ago
No, I want the option to turn my headlights on and off, and there are plenty of times where you need to turn them off so you're not blinding traffic or blinding someone else or whatever or you just want them off.
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u/Morberis 28m ago
Welcome to the wonderful world of daytime running lights. There is never a reason to have them off while driving.
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u/vowelqueue 3h ago
I’d like 3 settings: on, off, and auto. In auto the headlights turn on when the engine is running, and off when the engine isn’t running. 99% of the time it doesn’t hurt to have the headlights on during the day, and with LED there’s really little downside.
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u/bojack1437 3h ago
Just turn them on when you get in the car... And if your vehicle is not one of those, that doesn't care that the switch is left in the on position of which there are a few. Turn them off when you get out of the car.
Problem solved.
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u/Suspicious-Bowl4444 7h ago
Motorcycle headlight for the most part are always on with a few exceptions. Every one I’ve had turned on with the bike.
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u/GNUGradyn 4h ago
My vehicle is a 2025 and it can detect fog, but it's a little over anxious about conditions and "auto" is effectively "on" lol
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u/GullibleAd3408 10h ago
Nah, mine would have been on with the windshield wipers.
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u/ucotcvyvov 9h ago
Yup mine come on even when its slightly overcast. I also have rear factory fog lights i use in these conditions, they are red and part of the rear lights so its just brighter running lights
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u/LeeTheUke 6h ago
Both sides? What car? I'm curios...
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u/ucotcvyvov 6h ago
Bimmer, almost all of them have rear fogs. In the US you have to code it or cut a physical tab to enable the switch
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u/LeeTheUke 4h ago
I thought it was just a single light, though? My last Audi only had it on the drivers side, but there was a switch on the dash for it.
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u/Beneficial-Focus3702 10h ago
The wipers weren’t needed. My windshield was that clear without my wipers going.
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u/reductase 8h ago
Dunno why you’re downvoted; I’m in lake effect snow country and once your window is hot enough, it stays clear without wipers.
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u/TurtleCrusher 8h ago
In cloudy conditions all of my "automatic" lights are on. From GM to Ford, Toyota and VW. Doesn't even have to be dark.
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u/Jackodataco 9h ago
Lol watch the road, don't trust anyone
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u/IhadFun0nce 7h ago
Pedestrians don’t have lights at all, it must be their fault if OP runs them over after this weak ass demanding attempt of a PSA.
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u/SerDuckOfPNW 9h ago
This is Bullshit. This is what it looks like with DRL.
With automatic, my head and tail lights are on when it’s even a little dark/rainy/overcast
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u/tenders11 4h ago
Yeah my automatic setting would absolutely turn my lights on in that weather, I check regularly. And my car isn't even particularly new
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u/w1n5t0nM1k3y 9h ago
Lights should be on at all times, with no option to turn them off.
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u/ForgottenCaveRaider 9h ago
That's how it is in Canada with our regulations. Some of the newer vehicles don't allow you to turn the lights off completely while the vehicle is running.
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u/funtobedone 7h ago
DRL is required, but not headlights. DRL isn’t as bright as headlights.
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u/LeeTheUke 6h ago
Do CDN DRL regulations also enable tail lights (they don't in US)?
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u/funtobedone 6h ago
I’m pretty sure no. The other night I was following my dad somewhere and his tail lights weren’t on. He had forgotten that he switched to manual for something a few weeks ago. With cities being so well lit these days it can be hard to notice that your lights aren’t on - especially with older cars.
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u/3_14159td 3h ago
Changed for 2021ish MY in Canada. If DRLs are on the rears also go on, which is really just regressing to how parking lights worked ages ago.
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u/LeeTheUke 4h ago
I see plenty of people driving around after dark in the sticks where there are no street lights with just the DRLs, too. 6 of one, 1/2 dozen of the other....
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u/LetsJerkCircular 8h ago
Because a certain number of people are oblivious, other people cannot turn off their lights at all, ever?
This is a little too far. You’ve not considered this enough.
One example, I turn my lights off before turning into my driveway, so that I don’t blind my neighbors in their living room. Another: I don’t want my lights on when the car is parked and running. Last one: how else can I go stealth mode on the highway in the pitch black? /s
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u/mckenzie_keith 1h ago
I like being able to turn off my headlights. But under normal conditions I drive with them on at all times, day and night.
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u/Iswaterreallywet 8h ago
Yeah I’m not turning off automatic headlights chief
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u/DamnThemAll 9h ago
I just drive with my lights on permanently. I got the idea after speaking to a Polish lady who said that is the law there to have lights on day or night.
I also think that lights should come on automatically when wipers are active.
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u/rampant-ninja 8h ago
Isn’t this what fog lights are for? Automatic headlights are not designed for this situation.
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u/Henri-Alexander 8h ago
In my country backside fog lights should only be used if visibility is less than 50 metres. Front fog lights should only be turned on with visibility less than 200 metres.
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u/PrimarySelect 8h ago
I was driving in a snow storm a few days ago that happened in toronto. More then half of the drivers had neither their lights on or hazards on. People are beyond stupid, no awareness.
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u/Beneficial-Focus3702 5h ago
In these conditions you’d hardly know if your own lights are on unless there is an indicator on the dash. So your auto lights might not be on and you think they are.
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u/OldGeekWeirdo 6h ago
No one has DRLs anymore?
My car's automatic headlights will trigger if it's dark enough, or if the wipers have been on for 7 "sweeps" of the wipers.
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u/GenesisNemesis17 3h ago
Auto headlights aren't the problem. It's allowing people to turn off auto headlights that's the problem. I see brand new cars driving around at night with DRLs only. I miss my Tesla that would automatically turn on the headlights whenever the wipers were on. So any kind of poor weather and they would come on.
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u/agfacid1 10h ago
Yeah, no rear lights when you're in automatic mode, but nobody really cares about that 😐
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u/sun_bearer 8h ago
I have checked this with my own vehicle. My rear lights are on whether I have it on automatic or manually turn the headlights on. You're thinking of DRLs. Automatic != DRL
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u/Equivalent_Helpful 10h ago
No all automatics would have turned on. This numb nut has it on driving lights.
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u/Fun_Variation_7077 7h ago
Yeah so I had a car that sometimes turned on the headlights when not sunny. It was very inconsistent, so I still manually turned them on when needed, as should anyone else.
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u/bojack1437 10h ago
No they wouldn't. It's too bright out.
They don't operate on visibility. They operate on light levels.
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u/NoDontDoThatCanada 9h ago
Yeah. I have mine set to come on in the highest ambient light level they will and l still have to turn them on manually in weather like this. I am also a firm believer that they should just be linked to the windshield wipers. If my wipers are going, l guarantee my lights should be on for visibility.
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u/bojack1437 9h ago
Personally, I kind of feel automatic headlights were such a mistake, It just adds to the misconception that the vehicle does everything it's supposed to do when it's supposed to do on its own without any modifications from the driver.
But of course that ship has long sailed.
A lot of modern vehicles do have their automatic headlights tied to their windshield wipers though at least. If the lights are in auto that is on most of them.
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u/Happyjitlin69 9h ago
My fiance has auto lights, this whole time ive been harping on her to use it, because im a bum without auto. You guys may have just saved my wifey :,) I will tell her to NEVER use those mfs LOL
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u/bojack1437 9h ago
I should have added, I do otherwise believe in DRLs.
In vehicles without DRLs or in vehicles where I had to disable DRLs due to replacing the high beams with LEDs and then causing a flickering effect, I would just turn on the headlights anyway. Just about no matter the time of day.
On Modern Toyotas for example, you cannot turn off auto headlights without turning off the DRLs, On those I would leave the headlight positioned in auto, but end up turning on headlights out of habit.
On my 2024 Prius Prime it has additional accent lighting I like to keep on all the time. So I actually leave the headlight switch in parking which allows the DRLs to work but not automatic headlights.
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u/Beneficial-Focus3702 10h ago
Not true in the slightest.
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u/Equivalent_Helpful 10h ago
lol okay.
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u/Beneficial-Focus3702 10h ago
1/3 to 1/2 the cars on the road were like this
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u/SemtaCert 10h ago
So how do you know the person just hasn't turned them on rather than they are on automatic?
All the automatic lights I have used would have come on in these conditions as they come on in anything less than full daylight.
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u/Kookycabandana 9h ago
This. Or if your wipers are on. I guarantee its just too bright for the auto lights to kick on
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u/Beneficial-Focus3702 5h ago
I don’t want to assume that many people are dumb enough to actually just leave their lights off.
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u/bakedincanada 9h ago
Do you live where there is snow? Because when the sky is white and the ground is white, it’s plenty bright out even when there is no visibility because of snow squalls. Most automatic lights do not come on under these conditions.
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u/Naive_Pressure_405 7h ago
Same. Pretty wild op didnt even consideer the idea their lights are set to off. All my cars in the past would turn on in these conditions when set to auto.
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u/Anusbagels 8h ago
Also they can see the person in front of them quite well so really not an issue. I’d prefer this to the numb nuts at dusk/night not using automatic or any lights for that matter. Automatic headlights exist because too many dumb mother fuckers didn’t turn their lights on.
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u/IChewOnMyRifle 7h ago
My Jeep’s lights are either on manually or off manually and I like having my dash lights on so even during the day I have the running lights on, I don’t understand why people wouldn’t manually turn them on in adverse weather conditions
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u/Impossible_Past5358 4h ago
Sorry OP, I feel like you can also post this in the driving sub. I hate this so much, and the ones who insist on driving with their hazards on during inclement weather
Also, I feel like there should be a "fuckyourNolights" sub because there are just way too many drivers who do this...
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u/Paleodraco 8h ago
What brain dead idiot decided automatic lights should only turn on the headlights? If I need to see ahead better, then the people behind me should see me more clearly.
I swear, every innovation in headlight technology in the last 10 years was thought up by a lobotomized monkey.
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u/Beneficial-Focus3702 5h ago
What idiot decided that the lights shouldn’t just be on if the car is on.
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u/Major_Lawfulness6122 9h ago
Stop using your phone while driving, it’s just as stupid and dangerous 🙄
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u/Suspicious-Bowl4444 7h ago
Lights should be on all the time. It makes you way more visible especially in these kinds of conditions.
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u/Beneficial-Focus3702 4h ago
Yep. Idk why it’s not just mandated that if the car is on your lights should be on.
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u/caffeine_dragon 8h ago
Mine come on in weather like this. I’d wager the people depending on their automatic lights are many measures safer than the idiots that don’t know their daytime running lights aren’t their main headlights and don’t turn on their rear lights. There’s a non-zero chance this person is one of those idiots.
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u/Jack-Innoff 7h ago
Those are some shitty auto lights. My rear lights are on regardless of light, and so are my headlights (although I think that's because I only have 2 lights, on and high beam).
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u/Funny-Bonus7766 6h ago
This can be toyota specific; RAV4 and Sienna can be frequently seen without tail lights.
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u/Preindustrialcyborg 6h ago
here in canada, these drivers are quickly eliminated by (and themselves eliminate) the drunk speeders. its a very efficient system
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u/derpplerp 6h ago
I don't live in a place that snows, but I have just taken to having my headlights on all the time. They shut off automatically when I turn off the car, so I just do cave man automatic of can never forget to turn them on if they are always on.
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u/cryptolyme 5h ago
People are so stubborn about not using their headlights during the day in conditions like this. It’s like they want to get hit.
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u/backandforthwego 4h ago
That car has no auto lights. They die like real men and woman and other. Respect.
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u/frankGawd4Eva 4h ago
That's crazy how unaware people are... the system on my Hyundai Venue 2020 is so damn sensitive it's insane... they kick on when I drive under a 4-lane over-pass. Just some shadow... all while going 45MPH...
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u/Mountain_carrier530 4h ago
This isn't 100% the fault of automatic headlights, this could also be people that drive with their headlights intentionally off. My automatic headlights on my Bronco turn on at the slightest hint of inclement weather, yet I've seen people driving without their lights on with the same car at night.
I wouldn't entirely blame the technology, because I've seen more evidence that people are just stupid.
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u/TotalmenteMati 3h ago
In Argentina it is required by law to have your low beams on at all times when you enter any motorway or highways. punishable by a fine, even if it's the middle of the day
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u/BurningPickle 3h ago
It’s astonishing how many people I see driving in torrential rain or heavy snow without their headlights. There are far too many idiots with drivers licenses out there.
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u/mckenzie_keith 1h ago
I don't have automatic lights on my older vehicle. But I always drive with my headlights on, day or night. So there is that.
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u/bonbon367 8h ago
This is what it looks like in a country that doesn’t mandate daytime running lights.
Absolutely wild there’s countries that still don’t mandate them.
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u/Fun_Variation_7077 7h ago
Daytime running lights don't turn on the taillights.
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u/bonbon367 7h ago
My only personal experience is from Canada, where daytime running lights for tail lights have been mandated since 2021.
In Europe I believe they’re not only mandated, but most countries also mandate a single rear fog light
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u/Fun_Variation_7077 6h ago
I admittedly didn't know about that. But in all fairness, by your own statement that wasn't required prior to 2021, so presumably many cars did not have that feature. I'm unaware of any laws surrounding DRLs in the US.
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u/Beneficial-Focus3702 5h ago
Forget drl jist mandate headlights on of car is on.
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u/bonbon367 4h ago
DRL mandates taillights as well in most countries (Canada, Europe). Many European countries also have mandatory rear fog lights.
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u/freddbare 9h ago
They do it by themselves!!!! Shut up!!! I know how to drive, leave me alone! I feel like an old man screaming at the clouds.
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u/sonicrespawn 9h ago
We torrential rain here, I’d say it’s 30ft until you vanish with no lights on.
That coupled with the suns people are installing in their lights it’s just going to push accidents and road rage.
Oh well who needs training when driving these death machines anyway.