Auto headlights, yes or no?

[GMONSTAH]

I had mine set to auto since I bought it back in January. Then it occurred to me, why? It’s a “waste” running the headlights during the day WITH the daylight running triple slash lights. Plus, I think it looks far better with only the triple slash lights anyway. I get they are LED, however, I’m not sure how much replacement would be waaaay down the road. I know on some cars, HID and LED are crazy expensive to replace when they ultimately go out. My Mustang ramble for the day...

Sponsored

 

[gixxersixxerman]

Barring physical damage these should have a typical 70-75k hour life span. 4 hours a day every day would still last more then 50 years. I turn my DRL’s off just run with the tri-bars, but keep my headlights on auto. Sometimes it clicks on to soon or will turn on and off and on and off and I’ll shut it off but that’s not happened often.

 

[Vlad Soare]

I'm not sure I understand your worry. The automatic headlights will turn on at night, and off during the day. They will turn on when you enter a tunnel, and off when you come out of it. They do nothing more than relieve you of the task of turning them on or off yourself. Setting them to auto doesn't mean they will be always on.

 

[GMONSTAH]

I'm not sure I understand your worry. The automatic headlights will turn on at night, and off during the day. They will turn on when you enter a tunnel, and off when you come out of it. They do nothing more than relieve you of the task of turning them on or off yourself. Setting them to auto doesn't mean they will be always on.

I think mine go on a little earlier than I’d like. I’ve noticed them on when there’s still plenty light out; caught the reflection on store windows a few times. Not a big deal, just think it looks a lot nicer with headlights off...

 

[GMONSTAH]

Barring physical damage these should have a typical 70-75k hour life span. 4 hours a day every day would still last more then 50 years. I turn my DRL’s off just run with the tri-bars, but keep my headlights on auto. Sometimes it clicks on to soon or will turn on and off and on and off and I’ll shut it off but that’s not happened often.

True, guess I still have HID lifespan burned into on my mind...

 

[ice445]

On. If you disable the daytime lights then its just the tri bars that run all the time and they look cool, imo. Also under the lighting options there's a secret option called autolamp delay. If you think the car is turning them on and off too much, up the delay. I think the max is like 120 seconds. Also I'm fairly sure the screen and cluster dimming is separate from the autolamp timer so those will brighten and dim at a quicker pace.

 

[nrc]

One nice thing is that the headlamp sensor appears to face forward. So it does turn on the lights even when it's fairly light out if you're driving out of a low sun which would leave you silhouetted to oncoming traffic. That may be why you sometimes see the lights on earlier than you might expect.

 

[Bikeman315]

Had them on auto since day one. Never really gave it any thought.

 

[Bikeman315]

Back in the day you had to turn the headlights on manually. You could tell a bad driver at night because they would forget and drive around with them off. It's a shame that most kids these days are opting to use automatic headlights. It really kills the driver engagement with the lights. I for one won't have the computer deciding when the headlights turn on. I don't care if it does the job better, I don't want to lose the experience of flipping a switch. It'll be a sad day when the last manual headlight car rolls off the assembly line. At that point I'll be forced to make do with used cars that still do it the right way: with a 2-postion on/off switch.

You haven’t had your first cup on of coffee yet, have you?

 

[Michael_vroomvroom]

Back in the day you had to turn the headlights on manually. You could tell a bad driver at night because they would forget and drive around with them off. It's a shame that most kids these days are opting to use automatic headlights. It really kills the driver engagement with the lights. I for one won't have the computer deciding when the headlights turn on. I don't care if it does the job better, I don't want to lose the experience of flipping a switch. It'll be a sad day when the last manual headlight car rolls off the assembly line. At that point I'll be forced to make do with used cars that still do it the right way: with a 2-postion on/off switch.

Did you, like me, throw out that damn starter motor and replace it with the hand crank that should have been there when the car rolled of the assembly line, sticking out right above the front bumber? I felt no connection at all pushing that damn space age "start" button. Replaced it with a hand crank before I left the dealer parking lot.

 

[GMONSTAH]

Back in the day you had to turn the headlights on manually. You could tell a bad driver at night because they would forget and drive around with them off. It's a shame that most kids these days are opting to use automatic headlights. It really kills the driver engagement with the lights. I for one won't have the computer deciding when the headlights turn on. I don't care if it does the job better, I don't want to lose the experience of flipping a switch. It'll be a sad day when the last manual headlight car rolls off the assembly line. At that point I'll be forced to make do with used cars that still do it the right way: with a 2-postion on/off switch.

I agree wholeheartedly. The same goes for the backup cam. Now, no one instinctively turns their head around while putting their arm behind the passenger seat to look out the rear window; technological socialism...

 

[Norm Peterson]

Three of our last four cars have had an 'auto' setting for the headlights. We've never used them except for a very few times accidentally hitting the switch's 'auto' position when turning the headlights on manually, and then forgetting to manually turn them off. Oddly enough, it's the Mustang that doesn't have an auto headlights feature even though it's the 'Premium' trim for its year.

As long as I am capable of turning the headlights on and off all by myself, I will continue to do so. If I ever get to the point where I might really need help doing that, maybe that's when I should at least stop driving at night. Otherwise, it feels mildly insulting to have something step in and do this for you, like you're back in the lower grades and need to be reminded or actively helped with things.


Norm

 

[Norm Peterson]

I agree wholeheartedly. The same goes for the backup cam. Now, no one instinctively turns their head around while putting their arm behind the passenger seat to look out the rear window; technological socialism...

That's because so many vehicles today don't give you the necessary outward rear visibility to begin with . . . it's no longer instinctive for me to back up using the 'arm over the seatback' method either. But it's not hard at all to back up using the side mirrors once you've had a little practice. The backup camera is good for judging the last few inches, but that's about it.


Norm

 

[Bikeman315]

Well, while we are on it, for those owners bitching about auto up windows from their fob.

 

[shogun32]

it's all just pointless shit that is guarenteed to break and $$$$ to fix instead of something simple and cheap.

Sponsored