4 ms·
I remember, when shopping for a car, the salesman told me about an Alpina model he had with laser headlights so intense they weren't even legal for new builds a
by kulahan 11mo ago
I remember, when shopping for a car, the salesman told me about an Alpina model he had with laser headlights so intense they weren't even legal for new builds anymore. It's a selling point in some vehicles.
Still, the idea that you should give headlight illumination control to the idiot behind the wheel is insane to me. Is it not a regulated height? Maybe that explains why it's a nightmare to drive at night anymore.
- sokoloff 11mo agoBack when sensors, electronics, and servos were unaffordable or unavailable, it made sense to have a low beam height control as the resting pitch of your car could vary by several degrees based on passenger/cargo load, trailer tongue weight, etc. It seems vastly less necessary now to have that control in the hands of the driver.
- mulmen 11mo agoMy dad’s 1966 Oldsmobile has auto-dimming headlights. There are manual overrides of course.
- sokoloff 11mo agoDoes that relate to driver-controlled height adjustment of the headlights?
- mulmen 11mo agoNo, the level is fixed for the high and low beams. I guess the driver can adjust them with a screwdriver but not while driving. I’m just mentioning that headlight automation was being done back in the 1960s with simple electronics. Just a photo cell and a lens. The driver can adjust sensitivity.
- trinix912 11mo agoOlder cars have the height adjustment control too. Either as a physical dial or a menu entry. It's useful when transporting something heavy or when you're driving on totally wrecked roads so you can spot potholes faster etc. But most people don't know that, dial it all the way up and just leave it there.
- stefan_ 11mo agoHeadlight regulation obviously stopped making any sense at all when they allowed bigger cars to put them up higher. Like you are gonna regulate all kind of beam parameters and then miss the most important thing.
- tmnvix 11mo agoGood point. Look at a large vehicle like a bus. The lights are mounted low. This should be how it is for all vehicles.