I sent in the following last year ..........
Wed 17 Oct 01 17:39
I wrote to the transport minister about this last year - I nearly went into the back of someone on a wet dark M1 'cos I didn't notice brake lights - a car should NOT have TWO rear foglights close to brake lights - I think it should be illegal. Sensible manufacturers only fit one, presumably for this reason.
........have we made any progress? I saw a newish car - I think a Rover [why do they scowl at the front and have chrome-edged yellow Chinese woks on the back?] with two very bright fog lights next to the brake lights, inappropriately on in light drizzle, just asking for a rear end shunt.
Is it worth a reminder in HJ's newspaper column on proper use of these? In Germany it seems all the best cars sensibly have just one.
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Hi John
Most, if not all, new cars now have high level brake lights so even if, as on my Vectra Estate, there are two rear fogs in fairly close proximity to the brake lights, the fact that the brakes have been applied should be obvious.
Cars which have been fitted with a fog lamp on one side, with its opposite number on the other side being the reversing light look unbalanced from the rear, which is why I suppose some manufacturers still fit twin fogs and twin reversing lights. Peugeot have solved the aesthetic problem by fitting a single rear fog in the centre of the bumper which looks OK and maybe that's where they should all be fitted as standard.
Clearly safety comes before aesthetics but as one who is bugged by anything asymetrically, like steering wheel bosses after tracking has been carried out by only loosening the track rod on one side - standard procedure in fast fit outlets - I can see why the old ways prevail.
Regards
Ken A
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I agree with John, it is a major hazard. The problem is that drivers persist in using the damn things when it's not required. Recently we have had rain and visibility down to perhaps 500yds. What do these muppets do. Turn on the fog lamps which dazzle and confuse. I seem to remeber the highway code has a visibility distance before rear fogs should be used. Something like 50 yards although that does seem quite small. If anyone is driving too fast when visibility is down to a distance where rear fogs are required they deserve to rear end someone.
It's the same as these idiots who hog the middle lane. They need educating.
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I find the single lights confusing.Doesnt illustrate whether its a car,lorry or motorcycle(or what lane its in on multi carriageways) before normal rear lights are visible.This especially at night on unlit roads.
Simon T.
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Simon
In the sort of driving conditions in which rear high density fog lights are being used legally, ie visibility 100 metres or less, why is it necessary to identify the type of vehicle bearing them? Surely you wouldn't be thinking of overtaking it?
Regards
KenA
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The rules for front and rear fog lights are the same: not to be used unless visibility is less than 100 metres.
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The actual distance is 100metres.
Regards
KenA
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Sorry. Had missed Brian's post on this.
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Sensible manufacturers only fit one, presumably for this reason.
No, manufacturers only fit one to cut down on overhead costs, but those cost cutting measures don't make their way down to the selling price of the car.
Personally I prefer to see a pair of rear foglights, BUT only when it is FOGGY!!
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I remember an old TV advert, when I was a kid, that illustrated the problem when using fog lights in the rain.
I can't remember who was in it, but it was a bloke sat in a car behind another one with their fogs on. It was simple and to the point, showing how glaring the lights became when raining.
They should repeat it. I havent seen anything like it for years. A similar general explanation is needed to explain the problem with holding your foot on the break when stationary waiting to make a turn, when its raining, the break lights are glaring too.
I can't understand why drivers don't realise fog lights should only ever be used sparingly and temporarily. When you're driving on a m'way in a little cluster of traffic, I would suggest only the drivers at the rear of the cluster should use their light, which should be turned off once another car catches up, who in turn should turn on theirs. It would be a lot easier and stop the glaring that always happens in damp fog when driving in close proximity to another car.
Its like parking with your lights on. They're just too bright when the car is still. I wish peole would only turn their headlights on at the very last minute when you start your car up. So many times, Ive been half blinded because someone on my street is setting off at the same time as me in a morning and the first thing they do is switch them on, before they put their seatbelt or wait for the windscreen to clear, or some little darling has pulled up outside a shop and is fiddling about with their wallet/purse without turning off their lights. A policeman once told me that it is illegal to be parked when your lights are still on, but I don't know if this is real.
Why can't everyone be a perfect driver like me and you? ;-)
Patricia
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.....A policeman once told me that it is illegal to be parked when your lights are still on, but I don't know if this is real.....
Correct - Regulation 27 Road Vehicles Lighting Regs 1989
Headlamp:
Manner of use prohibited -
(a) used so as to cause undue dazzle or discomfort to other persons using the road.
(b) Used so as to be lit when a vehicle is parked.
DVD
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Headlamp: Manner of use prohibited - (b) Used so as to be lit when a vehicle is parked.
So does that mean all those cars with "see you to your front door"[1] lights are illegal then?
[1] They stay on for 30 or so seconds after you've left the car.
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I have also observed that rear foglights used in non foggy conditions can sometimes obscure, or at best reduce the visibility of the flashing indicator. Highly dangerous.
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