Am I alone in noticing more people driving with their highbeams on on the interstate? That drives me nuts... almost as much as folks with mis-adjusted driving/fog lights driving around town with those on, but maybe not quite as much as left lane bandits.

/rant over/

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1992 300D 2.5T
1980 Euro 300D (sadly, sold)
1998 Jetta TDI, 132K "Rudy"
1974 Triumph TR6
1999 Saab 9-5 wagon (wife's)

Not just you. I've noticed it as well and it's a pain in the ass.

- Peter.

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2021 Chevrolet Spark
Formerly...
2000 GMC Sonoma
1981 240D 4spd stick. 347000 miles. Deceased Feb 14 2021
2002 Kia Rio. Worst crap on four wheels
1981 240D 4spd stick. 389000 miles.
1984 123 200
1979 116 280S
1972 Cadillac Sedan DeVille
1971 108 280S

When I become King, a Driver's Education overhaul will be my first priority!

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1992 300D 2.5T
1980 Euro 300D (sadly, sold)
1998 Jetta TDI, 132K "Rudy"
1974 Triumph TR6
1999 Saab 9-5 wagon (wife's)

When I first started really enjoying cars I always put on fog and driving lights but I also learned that they were not to be used in any kind of traffic. If you were where other cars could be affected by your lights you turned all extra lights off. Now every idiot that has a car that came with "fog/driving" lights seems to think they have to be on all the time. I asked my son inlaw why he drove with his fogs on in town and he said it looked cool. I didn't make points when I said only people who didn't have a clue did that.

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1983 300SD
200000miles

Saabs, among other makes, have a rear fog light setting even in US-market cars. I was behind a kid a few weeks ago who had them lit (along with his front fogs) on major metropolitan streets, and it drove me nuts. The manual specifically states that they are to be used only in SEVERE fog conditions when to alert cars approaching from the rear. As it was, it just made it look like he was riding the brake pedal as he drove. Some folks...

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1992 300D 2.5T
1980 Euro 300D (sadly, sold)
1998 Jetta TDI, 132K "Rudy"
1974 Triumph TR6
1999 Saab 9-5 wagon (wife's)

I hate the rear fog lights too. Saw a newer MB with one, I passed him as soon as I could (no, there was no fog at all). Clueless...

They need to disable those for the US market since our drivers are too stupid to figure out what they do or what they're for.

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1985 CA 300D Turbo , 213K mi

Well, in their partial defense, some of those poor fools have no choice - many models in the past few years have that blasted daytime running light feature - the headlights are on whenever the engine is running and/or the tranny is in gear. The safety nazis have decided that having your headlights on all the time decreases accidents - makes people notice your vehicle out of the sheer annoyance factor.

Thankfully, none of my vehicles have this feature - and I'd yank the blasted relay out if they did.

Also, many states now require you to turn on your headlights if it's raining hard enough to require use of the wipers to clear off the windshield. In that situation, especially on the Jeep, I'll just turn on the parking and low-mounted fog lights - enough to meet the requirements and get other's attention, without blinding other drivers with those huge searchlights that Jeep calls "headlights".

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Just say "NO" to Ethanol - Drive Diesel

Mitchell Oates
Mooresville, NC
'87 300D 212K miles
'87 300D 151K miles - R.I.P. 12/08
'05 Jeep Liberty CRD 67K miles
Grumpy Old Diesel Owners Club

I have no problem with DRL's (aside from the fact that we go through bulbs a lot more frequently!); it's the dummies with high beams on that drive me batty!

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1992 300D 2.5T
1980 Euro 300D (sadly, sold)
1998 Jetta TDI, 132K "Rudy"
1974 Triumph TR6
1999 Saab 9-5 wagon (wife's)

There aren't auto-high beams now, are there??

I've been seeing more of this, too...

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1982 240D, sold 9/17/2008
1987 300D TurboW124.133 - 603.960, 722.317 - Smoke Silver Metallic / Medium Red (702/177), acquired 8/15/2009
262,715 and counting

When I learned to drive I never used the high beams on the highway... or pretty much any flat land road. In the mountians when I have to to watch for animals is a diffrent story... But lately I've been running my high beams when ever I can, because turning from high to low is a signal to other drivers to do the same. If you can't beat them join them.

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Oh I hate that as well. LEARN TO USE THE CAR


The best one I ever saw was an SL65 AMG . Some kid, with his hat on backwards and everything that just screamed that it wasn't his car..... was driving it with an attractive girl in the passenger seat with the roof down on a PERFECTLY clear summers night and that damn rear fog light was shining in front of me.

I wanted so badly to shout "A real owner would know how to work all the controls on a car like that" but alas, I restrained myself.....

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1982 300GD Carmine Red (DB3535) Cabriolet Parting Out
1990 300SEL Smoke Silver (Parting out)
1991 350SDL Blackberry Metallic (481)

"The thing is Bob, its not that I'm lazy...its that I just don't care."

The ONLY reason I could excuse someone using high beams on the interstate would be if they were driving thru an area that has a high incidence of large four-legged wildlife wandering across the road - a deer thru the windshield at 70 mph would not be a good thing. But then again, ONLY as conditions would allow/warrant, and not to handicap/annoy other traffic on the road - ie, that tractor trailer 500 feet in front of you doesn't need your high beams in his side mirrors, and he'll make venison burgers out of any deer on the highway ahead of you.

__________________
Just say "NO" to Ethanol - Drive Diesel

Mitchell Oates
Mooresville, NC
'87 300D 212K miles
'87 300D 151K miles - R.I.P. 12/08
'05 Jeep Liberty CRD 67K miles
Grumpy Old Diesel Owners Club

Ah, but then in the right conditions they're limiting oncoming traffic's ability to see said critters, too. It's hard to see much of anything with a set of high beams aimed right at you. It's those folks who don't dim for oncoming traffic that I'm whining about.

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1992 300D 2.5T
1980 Euro 300D (sadly, sold)
1998 Jetta TDI, 132K "Rudy"
1974 Triumph TR6
1999 Saab 9-5 wagon (wife's)

I have had "Deer Alerts" on all my cars for years now, I can't say for sure that they work but the Highway Patrol uses them also. I have not hit anything since I started useing them.

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1983 300SD
200000miles

Our CDI has the fully automatic lights. they come on when it gets too dark and they automatically dim when the light sensor detects oncoming traffic. i have decided that i will never allow any of my cars do any the the thing for me short of running its own engine. i will be the God of my cars and they will do what i tell them to do when i tell them to do it.

what really scares me on the newer cars is that Everything, and i mean everything is automatic, from the transmission down to windshield wipers, and self parking. the scary thing about this is now will we not only have bad drivers, but bad drivers who don't know how to operate anything about their, it makes them lazy behind the wheel when the think that the car will do everything for them.

there was news story awhile ago where a women rear ended a police cruiser in broad daylight on an open multi-lane road. when asked why she lost control of her car she replied, "the car lost control of it self, i set the cruise control and it has automatic braking so i don't even have to touch the pedals. but i guess it didn't work like it was supposed to."

that is why i stay as far away from new cars on the road as possible.

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Current
2006 E320 CDI, 57K bought at 67K "Liesl"
1986 190E 2.3-16, 198K bought at 56K "Brigitta"
1987 300TD (Chuggin Along), 292K "Friedrich"
1995 E320 Wagon, 200K "Louisa"

Past
1987 300SDL, (sold) 125K, bought for 1$ "Kurt"