From: disc5e6@rosie.uh.edu (92S00302)
Subject: Re: fog lamps
News-Software: VAX/VMS VNEWS 1.41    
Organization: University of Houston
Date: Wed, 15 Apr 1992 19:11:00 GMT

In article <sho6fINN409@sixgun.East.Sun.COM>, mike@gilligan.Sun.COM (Mike Roncadori - Information Resources) writes...
>In article <1992Apr14.174713.11725@Celestial.COM> bill@Celestial.COM (Bill Campbell) writes:
>>The ought to be a law requiring all driving lights to be
>>connected to the high-beam relay so that they are turned off when
>>on low beams.  No on-coming traffic should ever even know you
>>have them suckers!
>>
> 
>Actually, the way manufacturers equip the cars is that when the
>high beams are on, the driving lights go off. At least that's
>the way my wife's Maxima is. I asked the service guy about this,
>and he said that the law says no auxiliary lights when your high
>beams are in use. I don't know whether this is true or not, just
>that's what the guy said.
>    (stuff deleted) 
> 
>-- Mike

    The Maxima comes with FOG lights NOT DRIVING LIGHTS

   Ok I guess its time for a little correction.  FOG lights and driving 
lights are NOT the same thing.  Fog lights are directed downward and out
to the sides of the car.  If you look at any fog light there will be some
 sort of plate which reflects the light down and does not allow the
 beam to strike any higher than normal lights.  It is possible to misaim
them on installation or for the mounting to come lose.  These badly aimed
ones are the only cars that blind oncoming motorists.  A properly aimed set 
puts light directly in front of the car and more importantly along the edges 
of the road.  This side light helps a drive stay in his lane on foggy or
dark roads.  In addition they should cause no blinding to oncoming drivers.
You can argue that badly aimed ones should be outlawed, but around here
the bigger porblem is badly aimed low beams.(I've been blinded by them far more
than fog lights).  In additon fog lights are to be used ONLY with lowbeams 
or parking lights.  After all why would you want to see directly in front
 of the car and blocks ahead at the same time.  The human eye is not capable
 of this kind of depth perception at night.

   Now on to DRIVING lights.  Almost every area has a law which requires 
driving lights to be connected in such a way as they can only be turned on
while using high beams.  There aiming and reflector design are such that
light is projected even further ahead than the high beams.  They allow 
greater visibility for interstate driving at night and off roading.
In addition they are restricted to 55W bulbs on road (it is common to
find 150W bulbs for off road use but they are not street legal).
Also many states have regulation on the number of projectors a car can have.
6 is normal(2low 2high 2fog  or 2L 2H 2driving)  This keeps cars from throwing
on the huge amount oflighting often found on offroad trucks.  Although 
combination fog / driving lights exist they are fairly expensive and
the only car I've ever seen  them on was a Porsche 911 Turbo.  

I hope that clears up any misunderstanding as to the difference between these
types of lights.  Next time you get blinded remeber it is a bad installation job
that you should be complaing about not the existance of lights.  I bitch that 
a driver should be ticketed for misinstalled fog, driving lights and low beams, 
but to say that drivers that use these lights properly should not use them at
 all since some other driver can't figure them out is unfair.  

Ken F.
disc5e6@jetson.uh.edu
Newsgroups: rec.autos.driving