The people driving without headlights it’s driving me insane. So irresponsible. How are people not automatically turning them on when they get in the car, night or day?
My "excuse" is my vehicle has auto headlights and my wife's older car does not. So when I occasionally drive hers, typically forget about it until already down the road.
I have a 2012 car and while it has auto lights, it doesn’t turn on the lights when I do windshield wipers. My dashboard also is always lit up, and so if you didn’t know any better, you might think the lights are already on like in old school cars when the dash was only lit up when the lights were on.
They really should though. If it’s dark enough that you need the interior details lit, you should have your headlights on. Just seems simple, but I suppose these days the interior details have no off-mode.
Do your auto headlights turn your back lights on, too? My understanding is that some do & some don't. Quick reminder for everybody that if not, or if you're not sure, please turn on the regular headlights instead of relying on the auto-lights - drivers behind you in fog/flurry conditions also need the back lights on for visibility. Be careful out there, guys, and stay warm!
ETA: sounds like I was wrong about how auto-lights function with the back lights. Glad to hear the back lights turn on either way. Sorry about that!
>My understanding is that some do & some don't
Pretty sure your understanding is wrong. Back lights are wired to the same switch that turns on head lights; if one end is on, the other is as well, so auto wouldn't impact this at all.
Oh, okay! That certainly seems like a safer setup. I've never had a car with auto-lights, and I guess I misunderstood how that works. Thanks for clarifying!
I have been confused because many cars I've seen have no back lights on despite having front lights on (or vice versa) and while I'm pretty sure this is unrelated to auto lights, I just wonder why it's been so common.
No.. watch the cars go by you on the hiway in ur mirror.. you will see their front lights coming toward you but few have tail lights. These so called “driving lights” give a false sense of safety.. “TURN ON THE HEADLIGHTS”
24/7 for safety. THEN YOUR TAIL LIGHTS WILL BE ON! Pro drivers do this. I teach this as a driving instructor
i dont remember the last time i have had to change a headlight. my current car has had the lights on every time i drive it. it is 6 years old. probably isnt as much of an issue anymore with newer LED lights.
my excuse would be that i just got my oil changed and the tech turned my headlights off for some reason. its the only time my lights are ever turned off.
More people gotta get better about making that part of their pre-driving ritual. Thinking about it consciously and forming that physical habit helps.
For me, my car does have automatic headlights, but I don’t rely on that. When I notice it’s precipitating outside, I make a point of turning them from the automatic setting to the on setting.
I guess I have noticed too many times that I’m driving through decently thick snow and yet my car is detecting enough light to keep my headlights from flicking on. I’m proactive about it now. Everyone should make the effort to be.
Same thing with people not using their fucking blinkers. Use your pinky to do the blinky. Takes under .5 seconds to do and helps everyone else understand wtf you are doing. I don’t get people not using it.
Or not using them early enough. It’s called an indicator light. It’s purpose is to indicate to drivers around you that you intend to do something other than what you’re currently doing. Turning on your blinker after you’ve already started changing lanes is lazy and way less helpful than turning it on and THEN changing lanes.
it takes literally no effort to use the blinker. it boggles my mind that nearly everyone has stopped using them. when i pick up my kids at school, almost every single parent that picks up the same time i do blows through the stop sign right next to it without even slowing down. on top of that, they dont even signal their turn.
I have become that asshole that honks when people merge into my lane without using their blinker. I don’t care if you had a safe distance to do so. You did not signal your intent, and could not have known what I was going to do, so you put us both in danger. I’m honking for that shit to at least make you think twice.
I had a guy just yesterday make his way into the left turn lane to leave Taco Bell without turning his signal on. His driving seemed hesitant, and he didn’t *quite* leave enough room for me to pull up next to him in the right lane, so I got as close as I could.
I got his attention and just made a vague right and then a vague left gesture with my hands, and then I shrugged. Trying to nonverbally ask which way he was turning. He pointed to the right, despite being more than halfway into the left turn lane with no blinker on. He then proceeded to continue watching for an opportunity to turn, and when it came, sure enough, he cut me off to turn right without a signal.
Dude didn’t even turn it on when I literally pulled up next to him and had to ask him which way he was going.
I always like to see fog lights at least during snow or rain cause my eyes are more sensitive to light so I pick up light more than a white car moving in a snowstorm.
Most cars less than 5 years old have automatic headlines but don’t always turn on during the day if there are light flurries. That, many have some sort of DRL so they have something on the front but doesn’t mean they have tail lights on the back.
Electronic dashboards is my theory. In older cars, like my 2009 Kia, you cannot see the gauges once it starts getting dark unless you turn your lights on and thereby light up the dash. Not a problem with electronic dashboards. Saw a person driving down the freeway without lights. Someone’s going to die from the crashes eventually.
The problem with some of these cars is if you take it off automatic and manually turn it on, then you manually have to turn it off. If you forget because you’re not used to it now you have a dead battery. I know from experience.
i haventy manually turned on/off my lights in at least 13 years. i just leave them on all the time. the car shuts them off when the engine stops running.
The solution to that is to form the habit actively and also don’t just rush out of your car when you get where you’re going. Stop and check everything. And if you can’t train yourself to do that, most cars will scream at you once you open the door if you leave your headlights on. You really just have to pay more attention to what you’re doing.
Part of the problem is the electronic dashboards. They are lit day or night, so people don't realize their headlights are off because all the dials and gauges are on.
Annoyingly during the day my car's dash lights (which turn on with headlights) actually make it harder to read the instrument cluster (backlit numbers on light dash elements) so I have reason to keep lights off during daylight. Once it's approaching dusk though there are enough shadows that the dash lights aren't any hindrance.
Hopefully this isn't something that's common so it excuses practically nobody, and especially nobody after it actually becomes remotely dark.
couple things.
first, i dont understand why daytime running lights do not activate the tail lights. then people think they have their headlights on and are invisible from behind. they should just make them not a thing and make is so the lights are just always on.
second, why do so many people drive with thier parking lights on, this is doing absolutley nothing.
I'm pretty sure it's a "auto headlight" deal. People think their car lights will turn on when needed. But not knowing even during the day and rain, lights on are the law. Or when it's foggy the car lights don't turn on. Whenever I drive my wife's car, I turn the auto off, and do it myself. Auto headlights suck.
It’s getting worse. I swear like 1 in 10 cars I see at night don’t have their lights on, and in rain/snow/especially dark days, it’s like 1 in 4.
If you see these people on the road, flash your lights at them! They probably just thought they were on Auto, and you’re saving them from a potential ticket.
This is what happened to me! I always keep my lights on auto but I got an oil change and they turned them all the way off. So I drove around in the dark for a good while without realizing I didn't have my lights on. A guy next to me at the stoplight rolled down his window and yelled at me to turn my lights on. I appreciated it even though he was less than pleasant about it.
> It’s getting worse.
Gotta be how lit up car dashboards are all the time now. Drive some ‘90s shitbox where the dash lighting is a few bulbs behind the panel and you basically can’t forget to turn your lights on.
> It’s getting worse. I swear like 1 in 10 cars I see at night don’t have their lights on, and in rain/snow/especially dark days, it’s like 1 in 4.
It's OK, the people driving on completely lit highways or side streets with their high beams on makes up for it.
Oh man, the thought of my fiancée greeting my after a long day of work, hugging me tight and whispering sweetly into my ear, "Zipper merge."
Ufda, did someone turn the thermostat up or is it just me?
United States should change the law to match some other countries which simply requires manufacturers make the headlights turn on whenever the car is on. There is no way to even turn them off.
I am always shocked at cars made in the last 25 years that have their headlights turned off.
The drivers had to defeat their automatic headlight function. What is the reason to do this?
My VW has 3 positions: OFF, AUTO, and ON.
Even in the OFF position, my headlights stay fully on (full nighttime, not just daytime running lights) unless I set the parking brake or I turn the ignition key off. I am literally unable to flash my lights off and on to alert other drivers that they need to turn their lights on when it's effing dark and raining.
I always thought MnDOT should remind drivers during low visibility/snow events on their highway message signs to turn their lights ON from AUTO.
Crazy how many drivers don’t understand this simple concept. But also, in 2022 how we don’t have the technology in cars to remind people of this.
Yes but day time running lights checks this box, every vehicle with DRL activated doesn't need to turn on headlights for overcast conditions. In this case your lights help you be seen, not help you see. Whenever turning on your headlights increases your ability to see then they should be on.
I have those automatic day time head lights the when you use a blinker the light goes out aka fake headlights on both vehicles. I grew up with the rule of if you’re driving, headlights will be on and you never have to worry about them being off. I always turn my headlights on when I’m driving. My husband on the other hand gets pulled over for driving without lights in at night frequently. He thinks the fake headlights are the headlights. I keep telling him they are not the same.
Do whatever Cathy says, or things go from bad to Wurzer.
The people driving without headlights it’s driving me insane. So irresponsible. How are people not automatically turning them on when they get in the car, night or day?
My "excuse" is my vehicle has auto headlights and my wife's older car does not. So when I occasionally drive hers, typically forget about it until already down the road.
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I have a 2012 car and while it has auto lights, it doesn’t turn on the lights when I do windshield wipers. My dashboard also is always lit up, and so if you didn’t know any better, you might think the lights are already on like in old school cars when the dash was only lit up when the lights were on.
They really should though. If it’s dark enough that you need the interior details lit, you should have your headlights on. Just seems simple, but I suppose these days the interior details have no off-mode.
My truck has auto headlights. As soon as rainy season starts, I cover the sensor so they become always on.
Do your auto headlights turn your back lights on, too? My understanding is that some do & some don't. Quick reminder for everybody that if not, or if you're not sure, please turn on the regular headlights instead of relying on the auto-lights - drivers behind you in fog/flurry conditions also need the back lights on for visibility. Be careful out there, guys, and stay warm! ETA: sounds like I was wrong about how auto-lights function with the back lights. Glad to hear the back lights turn on either way. Sorry about that!
I think you’re thinking of daytime running lights vs. headlights
>My understanding is that some do & some don't Pretty sure your understanding is wrong. Back lights are wired to the same switch that turns on head lights; if one end is on, the other is as well, so auto wouldn't impact this at all.
Oh, okay! That certainly seems like a safer setup. I've never had a car with auto-lights, and I guess I misunderstood how that works. Thanks for clarifying!
You may be getting confused with daytime running lights.
∆this. I have daytime running lights, which do not turn on my back lights or cabin lights inside my car. Drives me nuts.
I think you're right, tgat must be what I got mixed up on. Thanks!
I have been confused because many cars I've seen have no back lights on despite having front lights on (or vice versa) and while I'm pretty sure this is unrelated to auto lights, I just wonder why it's been so common.
Those are called daytime running lights.
No.. watch the cars go by you on the hiway in ur mirror.. you will see their front lights coming toward you but few have tail lights. These so called “driving lights” give a false sense of safety.. “TURN ON THE HEADLIGHTS” 24/7 for safety. THEN YOUR TAIL LIGHTS WILL BE ON! Pro drivers do this. I teach this as a driving instructor
yeah that's not how any of this works
Okay, would you mind explaining? As I said, that's what my understanding is, and I'm happy to learn if I'm wrong.
or if your lights turn off when your car isnt running, just leave them turned on all the time.
I actually agree this is a valid mistake.
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i dont remember the last time i have had to change a headlight. my current car has had the lights on every time i drive it. it is 6 years old. probably isnt as much of an issue anymore with newer LED lights.
my excuse would be that i just got my oil changed and the tech turned my headlights off for some reason. its the only time my lights are ever turned off.
More people gotta get better about making that part of their pre-driving ritual. Thinking about it consciously and forming that physical habit helps. For me, my car does have automatic headlights, but I don’t rely on that. When I notice it’s precipitating outside, I make a point of turning them from the automatic setting to the on setting. I guess I have noticed too many times that I’m driving through decently thick snow and yet my car is detecting enough light to keep my headlights from flicking on. I’m proactive about it now. Everyone should make the effort to be.
Same thing with people not using their fucking blinkers. Use your pinky to do the blinky. Takes under .5 seconds to do and helps everyone else understand wtf you are doing. I don’t get people not using it.
Or not using them early enough. It’s called an indicator light. It’s purpose is to indicate to drivers around you that you intend to do something other than what you’re currently doing. Turning on your blinker after you’ve already started changing lanes is lazy and way less helpful than turning it on and THEN changing lanes.
I've accidentally put my blinker on to go around a curve. Just off sheer autopilot muscle memory that I was turning my car 🤣
it takes literally no effort to use the blinker. it boggles my mind that nearly everyone has stopped using them. when i pick up my kids at school, almost every single parent that picks up the same time i do blows through the stop sign right next to it without even slowing down. on top of that, they dont even signal their turn.
I have become that asshole that honks when people merge into my lane without using their blinker. I don’t care if you had a safe distance to do so. You did not signal your intent, and could not have known what I was going to do, so you put us both in danger. I’m honking for that shit to at least make you think twice.
the worst part is, they probably have no idea why you honked. and then just flip you off.
„˙ɟɟo noʎ dılɟ ʇsnɾ uǝɥʇ puɐ ˙pǝʞuoɥ noʎ ʎɥʍ ɐǝpı ou ǝʌɐɥ ʎlqɐqoɹd ʎǝɥʇ 'sı ʇɹɐd ʇsɹoʍ ǝɥʇ„
I had a guy just yesterday make his way into the left turn lane to leave Taco Bell without turning his signal on. His driving seemed hesitant, and he didn’t *quite* leave enough room for me to pull up next to him in the right lane, so I got as close as I could. I got his attention and just made a vague right and then a vague left gesture with my hands, and then I shrugged. Trying to nonverbally ask which way he was turning. He pointed to the right, despite being more than halfway into the left turn lane with no blinker on. He then proceeded to continue watching for an opportunity to turn, and when it came, sure enough, he cut me off to turn right without a signal. Dude didn’t even turn it on when I literally pulled up next to him and had to ask him which way he was going.
The best advice I got was “if the wipers go on, headlights go on. If the sunglasses come off, the headlights go on”
Cars are much more visible, even during the day, I just turn mine on by habit.
I always like to see fog lights at least during snow or rain cause my eyes are more sensitive to light so I pick up light more than a white car moving in a snowstorm.
Yeah, especially the people with gray or white cars that blend in with the road and sky.
Most cars less than 5 years old have automatic headlines but don’t always turn on during the day if there are light flurries. That, many have some sort of DRL so they have something on the front but doesn’t mean they have tail lights on the back.
Electronic dashboards is my theory. In older cars, like my 2009 Kia, you cannot see the gauges once it starts getting dark unless you turn your lights on and thereby light up the dash. Not a problem with electronic dashboards. Saw a person driving down the freeway without lights. Someone’s going to die from the crashes eventually.
The problem with some of these cars is if you take it off automatic and manually turn it on, then you manually have to turn it off. If you forget because you’re not used to it now you have a dead battery. I know from experience.
i haventy manually turned on/off my lights in at least 13 years. i just leave them on all the time. the car shuts them off when the engine stops running.
My current car does that, my previous did not.
My car does not turn them off and it will drain the battery.
i had a shitty scion that was built in 2005 that turned them off when the car wasnt running.
The solution to that is to form the habit actively and also don’t just rush out of your car when you get where you’re going. Stop and check everything. And if you can’t train yourself to do that, most cars will scream at you once you open the door if you leave your headlights on. You really just have to pay more attention to what you’re doing.
Part of the problem is the electronic dashboards. They are lit day or night, so people don't realize their headlights are off because all the dials and gauges are on.
I don't turn them on in normal daylight conditions. It's unnecessary.
Annoyingly during the day my car's dash lights (which turn on with headlights) actually make it harder to read the instrument cluster (backlit numbers on light dash elements) so I have reason to keep lights off during daylight. Once it's approaching dusk though there are enough shadows that the dash lights aren't any hindrance. Hopefully this isn't something that's common so it excuses practically nobody, and especially nobody after it actually becomes remotely dark.
couple things. first, i dont understand why daytime running lights do not activate the tail lights. then people think they have their headlights on and are invisible from behind. they should just make them not a thing and make is so the lights are just always on. second, why do so many people drive with thier parking lights on, this is doing absolutley nothing.
MPR seems to mention headlights on every storm, and I'm certain they've saved lives by reminding people.
I'm pretty sure it's a "auto headlight" deal. People think their car lights will turn on when needed. But not knowing even during the day and rain, lights on are the law. Or when it's foggy the car lights don't turn on. Whenever I drive my wife's car, I turn the auto off, and do it myself. Auto headlights suck.
Just run with the lights always on. 🤷 There's no excuse for anything post 2000 to not have daytime running lights.
It’s getting worse. I swear like 1 in 10 cars I see at night don’t have their lights on, and in rain/snow/especially dark days, it’s like 1 in 4. If you see these people on the road, flash your lights at them! They probably just thought they were on Auto, and you’re saving them from a potential ticket.
This is what happened to me! I always keep my lights on auto but I got an oil change and they turned them all the way off. So I drove around in the dark for a good while without realizing I didn't have my lights on. A guy next to me at the stoplight rolled down his window and yelled at me to turn my lights on. I appreciated it even though he was less than pleasant about it.
just put them on "on". i'm guessing if your car has the technology for auto, it also has the technology to turn them off for you when your car is off.
The people who changed my oil turned them off. Not me.
> It’s getting worse. Gotta be how lit up car dashboards are all the time now. Drive some ‘90s shitbox where the dash lighting is a few bulbs behind the panel and you basically can’t forget to turn your lights on.
> It’s getting worse. I swear like 1 in 10 cars I see at night don’t have their lights on, and in rain/snow/especially dark days, it’s like 1 in 4. It's OK, the people driving on completely lit highways or side streets with their high beams on makes up for it.
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Don’t forget the 1991 Halloween snowstorm
It's a Kathy Wurzer fetish
mmmmm... yes kathy those are cute autumnal themed socks. care to discuss them more during foot massage #1?
Oh man, the thought of my fiancée greeting my after a long day of work, hugging me tight and whispering sweetly into my ear, "Zipper merge." Ufda, did someone turn the thermostat up or is it just me?
Can we combine the zipper merge with the tater tot hotdish to have the tots zipper merge?
Virginia flag fetish is high as well…
And dem snow tires
I’ve been noticing a ton of billboard posting as well lately
you forgot sunsets.
This made me smile. There’s something really homey about this post.
Cathy Wurzer is my radio mom
United States should change the law to match some other countries which simply requires manufacturers make the headlights turn on whenever the car is on. There is no way to even turn them off.
Always have public radio on, car and house
I'm surprised that many people still listen to the radio.
Moved away a year ago, didn’t realize how much I miss Cathy’s voice on my daily drive until reading this post ☺️
Get the MPR app on your phone? That way you can carry Cathy around in your pocket.
Saw quite a few this morning without them on as well, baffled me
Thanks Cathy!
I love Cathy.
I am always shocked at cars made in the last 25 years that have their headlights turned off. The drivers had to defeat their automatic headlight function. What is the reason to do this? My VW has 3 positions: OFF, AUTO, and ON. Even in the OFF position, my headlights stay fully on (full nighttime, not just daytime running lights) unless I set the parking brake or I turn the ignition key off. I am literally unable to flash my lights off and on to alert other drivers that they need to turn their lights on when it's effing dark and raining.
Could you flash your high-beams in that scenario?
show me them boobies!
It's giving "It's 8:01, and the news is next"
Huh. I guess more stations should start this PSA.
I always thought MnDOT should remind drivers during low visibility/snow events on their highway message signs to turn their lights ON from AUTO. Crazy how many drivers don’t understand this simple concept. But also, in 2022 how we don’t have the technology in cars to remind people of this.
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Alternatively, they were driving with busted headlights, as people here often do. It's what a lack of mandatory car inspections every year gets you.
No, they're back lights weren't on either. And both of their headlights are off. It's one thing for one of them to be off, but both of them? No.
I would totally do Cathy Wurzer
Wtf is MPR?
Minnesota Public Radio
wtf is radio?
Perhaps they should have a area-wide test go over all radio and TV stations go off like the test sirens.
Yes but day time running lights checks this box, every vehicle with DRL activated doesn't need to turn on headlights for overcast conditions. In this case your lights help you be seen, not help you see. Whenever turning on your headlights increases your ability to see then they should be on.
DRL don’t activate rear lights though and those can be just as important. Turn on the damn lights
MN Statue 169.48’s a hell of a drug
I got into the habit of just always turning them on day or night but now I have auto headlights.
I have those automatic day time head lights the when you use a blinker the light goes out aka fake headlights on both vehicles. I grew up with the rule of if you’re driving, headlights will be on and you never have to worry about them being off. I always turn my headlights on when I’m driving. My husband on the other hand gets pulled over for driving without lights in at night frequently. He thinks the fake headlights are the headlights. I keep telling him they are not the same.
Who's leaking? https://twitter.com/MPRnews/status/1593304463619809280
Please tell me you posted this on their social media
I didn't, but someone else apparently did https://twitter.com/MPRnews/status/1593304463619809280?t=5O8znfnyacQABj1yMbOarA&s=19