Rear foglights driving thread

Is it acceptable to use the rear fog-light in heavy/dense, poor visibility rain?

The kind of scenario where you can easily get rear-ended because everyone is crawling..
 
Claymore said:
Many (most?) cars can activate the foglights if their park lights are on, not headlights. So they can be doubly illegal!
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My car has this capability, so - as it is an older model which predates the compulsory fitment regulations for the fitment of DRL's - in clear weather, I turn on the park lights (I upgraded the front park light bulbs to Philips W5W LED units, which are considerably brighter then the OEM W5W filament ones) and I use the lower front valance mounted front fog-lights as substitutes for DRL's.

Added bonus, unlike only having the DRL's activated in most modern cars, my car's REAR tail-lights are ALSO illuminated as well (I only use the REAR fog-lights when driving in foggy or misty conditions - NOT when there's normal visibility, to avoid being inconsiderate & blinding any drivers following behind me... ;)

If the weather turns really gloomy or inclement during daytime driving, then I just turn on the dipped beam headlights as well for extra front illumination.

Front fog-lights - by their design & placement (usually lower to the road surface then the main headlights, keep their output beam focused much nearer the road, illuminating the painted road markings & 'cat's eyes' more effectively, whilst reducing the reflective glare from the fog or mist in front of you when using the dipped beam headlights - NEVER use MAIN beam in mist or fog - you get blinded by the reflected glare from the water droplets, and oncoming motorists on the other side of the road will suffer the same issue as well from your main beam headlights.

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In REALLY bad fog or mist, it is recommended that you switch your lights back over from the AUTO or ON position to the PARK setting, which turns off the front dipped beam headlights (whilst still leaving the front & rear park lights on) and then ALSO turn on your both you front & rear fog-lights (if fitted) - to allow you to see the road surface that's in front of you more clearly, and also allow motorists following behind you to also still see you as well.

Obviously, if your povvo spec Datsun Go, Renault Kwid, Kia Picanto, Hyundai i10 or VW Polo Vivo does NOT have OEM front OR rear fog-lights fitted as standard, then just keep your dipped beam headlights turned ON... ;)

Do NOT use your 'hazard lights' when driving in rainy weather conditions (which seems to be a worrisome habit in Gauteng nowadays), as they should ONLY be used if you have actually broken down and become a HAZARD to other traffic - also try & to move the car over to the side of the road (if possible) to keep the road clear - or they can be used if you unexpectedly come across much slower moving vehicles (a traffic bottleneck) and you need to warn the other motorists behind you that there is a imminent problem coming up, so they can then slow down & NOT rear-end you.

Also, as an additional aside - the number of motorists I have observed that are driving in daytime rainy weather conditions with only their FRONT DRL's illuminated & ZERO rear tail-light illumination - or even worse - NO lights turned on at ALL - is very concerning & scary.

FFS - if the visibility is reduced in daytime, make yourself MORE visible - it's NOT so YOU can see better, but that the OTHER motorists driving in front & behind you still CAN SEE YOU!

/ rant over - Drive Safe Folks, Take Care on the highway & byways - even if that overloaded minibus veers into your lane, directly in front of you, and removes your 2-second following distance gap... ;)

Enjoy this video... Happy Motoring!

 
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The_MAC said:
Is it acceptable to use the rear fog-light in heavy/dense, poor visibility rain?

The kind of scenario where you can easily get rear-ended because everyone is crawling..
Click to expand...

So in that situation you will need to exit your vehicle, then approach the vehicle behind and ask:
"Good morning dear MyBB member, may I kindly switch on my rear fog lights in order to prevent accidental collision caused by poor visibility?"
He will then throw a tantrum and all that you achieved was getting yourself soaked.
 
Streetlight in the rain said:
So in that situation you will need to exit your vehicle, then approach the vehicle behind and ask:
"Good morning dear MyBB member, may I kindly switch on my rear fog lights in order to prevent accidental collision caused by poor visibility?"
He will then throw a tantrum and all that you achieved was getting yourself soaked.
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Would it be advisable to start a poll first before exiting my vehicle, or would that endanger me any my family?
 
The_MAC said:
Is it acceptable to use the rear fog-light in heavy/dense, poor visibility rain?

The kind of scenario where you can easily get rear-ended because everyone is crawling..
Click to expand...

Due to to fog created by cars (and especially trucks) spray? Sure is.

Just a reminder that this tread is about those who use their rear fog lights in clear weather.
 
supersunbird said:
I said fog...
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Yes you did - there's no denying that - or your mention of smoke for that matter either - but you neglected to add in ANY exclusions - as I mentioned above - for ALL other weather, environmentally-related (or even Biblical) conditions - like a chlorine gas explosion, nuclear bomb detonation, plague of locusts, rivers turning red (although that could just be the reflection of the rear fog-lights being on during clear weather), tornadoes, hurricanes, floods, or even a tsunami or earthquake - are we allowed to turn our FOG lights on in these instances - or just for for FOG?... ;)

1736759436567.png
 
Ivan Leon said:
Yes you did - there's no denying that - or your mention of smoke for that matter either - but you neglected to add in ANY exclusions - as I mentioned above - for ALL other weather, environmentally-related (or even Biblical) conditions - like a chlorine gas explosion, nuclear bomb detonation, plague of locusts, rivers turning red (although that could just be the reflection of the rear fog-lights being on during clear weather), tornadoes, hurricanes, floods, or even a tsunami or earthquake - are we allowed to turn our FOG lights on in these instances - or just for for FOG?... ;)

View attachment 1787557
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Snow, fog, mist, dust, or smoke only.
 
RedViking said:
It's easy to forget your fog lights on when you have gone through a long stretch of fog. My fog light button is also out of sight from the angle where I sit. I use it often though when travelling to Hilton as that road gets quite hectic and thick fog at times. But I don't forget my fog lights on. I know @supersunbird is watching.
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How do you ignore the massive icon that lights up on your dashboard when they are on?

Usually also in an entirely different colour.
 
The_MAC said:
Is it acceptable to use the rear fog-light in heavy/dense, poor visibility rain?

The kind of scenario where you can easily get rear-ended because everyone is crawling..
Click to expand...

No, because that is particularly when it’s worse for absolutely everyone behind you.
 
SauRoNZA said:
How do you ignore the massive icon that lights up on your dashboard when they are on?

Usually also in an entirely different colour.
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On an Hyundai Accent 2006 model? Haha! It has a little dim orange light on the button under/next to the steering weel which is only visible if you are a midget.
 
My car has the two warning lights for the front & rear fog-lights on the top corners of the instrument panel - front fogs on the right & rear fogs on the left - pretty hard to NOT notice that they're ON - also, there's a rotary switch for the fog-lights on the right column combi-stalk (the one for the lights, dipped/main beam & turn signals).

The front fog-lights can be turned ON or OFF independently when the light switch is set to either the Park or Main headlights setting, but the rear fog-lights can ONLY be turned ON if either the headlights OR front fog-lights are also ON. Both fog-lights will also turn OFF automatically if you turn the light switch to OFF as well.

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Also, when you turn off the ignition, it resets both fog-lights back to their default OFF position - so you ALWAYS have to turn them ON & OFF manually when driving - there's NO way you can permanently leave them ON unintentionally.
 
supersunbird said:
Due to to fog created by cars (and especially trucks) spray? Sure is.

Just a reminder that this tread is about those who use their rear fog lights in clear weather.
Click to expand...

I got blinded good and solid last night in the rain (clear visiblity) by some douchebag in a new Haval death-trap rolling Chinese box. That cnut had his brights and fogs and everything else incl hazards on...
 
The_MAC said:
What is the fundamental difference between heavy rain and fog/mist?
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Apparently it's the size of the droplets - the rear fog-lights are reflected back by the larger water droplets in rain (which act as a lens) making the fog-lights appear more dazzling and overpowering, whilst the miniscule water vapour droplets in fog/mist (and also the fine ash particles in smoke as well) tend to diffuse the intensity of the fog-lights, reducing the overall glare effect, whilst they still remain visible. (it's like holding a white or grey handkerchief in front of a bright light - it softens the glare considerably).
 
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