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LED DRL to improve visibility to other drivers

J

jackalope

Ready to race!
Location
Austin
I've noticed after owning 9 cars that the darker your vehicle the less other drivers notice you. About a week ago a teen driver failed to see my black Alltrack at a 4 way stop and drove through instead of stopping, nailing my passenger door!

I was thinking about just adding some amber marker lights to the front end and powering them off the under hood fuse box but I don't think they would be bright enough to make a difference in the daytime. Are there any good LED modules I can put into my DRL reflectors? I have the plain old halogen headlights and it's a 2017 Alltrack from before the refresh
 
dietcokefiend

dietcokefiend

Master of Disaster
Location
Ohio
Honestly this falls into the same category as you can't fix stupid. Dollars to donuts that same driver would probably nail a light post in an empty parking lot. Some people just don't care what is going on around them, no matter how bright, or noisy that object is. Just see how many motorcycle riders with loud pipes are sideswiped and run off the road by poor drivers unaware of their surroundings.
 
imthanick_a

imthanick_a

Autocross Champion
Location
Ohio
If someone didn't see your car with their headlights pointing right at you, then adding a dim light to your car probably won't do anything. And if it was during the day, it definitely won't do anything. Kid was probably texting and not paying attention to the road. Not seeing a car is inexcusable.
 
JC_451

JC_451

Autocross Champion
Location
NJ, one of the nice parts.
Car(s)
2017 GTI Sport
How fast was he going when he ran the stop sign?

Gotta agree that this guy would've hit anything in that intersection.
 
J

jackalope

Ready to race!
Location
Austin
JC_451 said:
How fast was he going when he ran the stop sign?

Gotta agree that this guy would've hit anything in that intersection.
Click to expand...

She wasn't going that fast, she was behind another vehicle and after I pulled into the intersection she didn't stop when she was supposed to, just kept going. I was pulling out of my apartments and she said she wasn't expecting a vehicle to be coming out from that side. In that particular case I think having a more visible vehicle would have forced her to notice. Think of how you notice bright yellow and orange vehicles even in your peripheral vision.

Maybe lights really would be useless. How about a bright orange hood graphic??

Or a brightly colored roof cargo box?
 
anotero

anotero

Autocross Champion
Location
Hither and thither
Car(s)
Mk7 GTI
jackalope said:
She wasn't going that fast, she was behind another vehicle and after I pulled into the intersection she didn't stop when she was supposed to, just kept going. I was pulling out of my apartments and she said she wasn't expecting a vehicle to be coming out from that side. In that particular case I think having a more visible vehicle would have forced her to notice. Think of how you notice bright yellow and orange vehicles even in your peripheral vision.

Maybe lights really would be useless. How about a bright orange hood graphic??

Or a brightly colored roof cargo box?
Click to expand...
1. It's a she.
2. She didn't stop when she was supposed to.

Nothing you can do about either one. Be extra cautious, all I can say.
 
cb1111

cb1111

Newbie
Location
Virginia, USA
jackalope said:
She wasn't going that fast, she was behind another vehicle and after I pulled into the intersection she didn't stop when she was supposed to, just kept going. I was pulling out of my apartments and she said she wasn't expecting a vehicle to be coming out from that side. In that particular case I think having a more visible vehicle would have forced her to notice. Think of how you notice bright yellow and orange vehicles even in your peripheral vision.

Maybe lights really would be useless. How about a bright orange hood graphic??

Or a brightly colored roof cargo box?
Click to expand...
And this, boys and girls, is how we end up with regulations like sidemarkers - because we must regulate to the stupidest amongst us.
 
D

Dan00Hawk

Go Kart Newbie
Location
Plainfield, IL
I have the regular halogens on my GTI. I went with some yellow bulbs for the DRL/high beam, as I feel it helps it stand out among all the LED and regular halogen bulbs out there. Been using for about 2 months now daily driving with no issues. Being yellow, they don't throw out nearly as much on the high beam, but they do add more usable light. Cheap enough that I figured I'd give them a shot.



https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00AY22ELW/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o02_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
 
seanmcd1

seanmcd1

Autocross Newbie
Location
SC
Do you not have standard DRL's enabled? Don't do anything, other than running your headlights 24/7 if you don't have DRL's. I guess you can hire a flagman to follow you around.
 
J

jbm119

Ready to race!
Location
Newark, DE
Little more dramatic lightings.
But I do agree with OP that people notice less because of color of vehicle.
 

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Faceman

Faceman

Autocross Newbie
Location
Long Island
Car(s)
'17 GSW 4Mo
It sounds like the only thing she would have noticed was a large phallic item attached to your hood with a suction cup.
 
D

Dan00Hawk

Go Kart Newbie
Location
Plainfield, IL
KevinC said:
Being yellow, they don't throw out nearly as much on the high beam, but they do add more usable light.
Click to expand...

Less than OEM highbeams, but still noticeable, and more than nothing. Smartass... ;) I could have worded it better, though. :D

Pic showing the color of the bulb when illuminated on my car.

 
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