Does anyone know why people are driving around with their fog lights on when visibility is perfect?

I always thought fog lights were used when visibility is poor ie "Fog"
Have these people got eye sight problems?

I would have thought it was more a case of "looking good".

A few months back I was drivng at 4am and got pulled over by the Police, the first thing they asked is why you driving with your fog lights on? It was an honest mistake as I didn't even know they were on. I suspect I got pulled more because of the time than because of my fog lights. It made me wonder if Police are as keen at more sociable hours on these matters.

Couldn't you see the bloody yellow light lit on your dashboard?

Originally posted by alchresearch
Couldn't you see the bloody yellow light lit on your dashboard?

Totally agree! But she did say it was a "Honest Mistake"

Are we talking about front or rear fog lights?

its those driving around with their front lights on thinking its great to blind people they are all muppets if you ask me

Originally posted by ROBERT
Are we talking about front or rear fog lights?

Well it depends if the person behind you has the front fogs on or the person in front of you has the rear on.

The amount of times i've been on the M1 and a little rain appears and due to the spray. .. the muppets put their rear fogs on .. why???? R U blind!

Fronts fogs should be renamed to cruise lights, or you need to do is walk round the city centre at night and you will see what i mean! (Oh mind you don't get mugged, if your on your own)

Yeah, and those who put those high powered headlight bulbs in.

Coming back from Sheffield on Saturday night over the Woodhead and I was blinded by loads of the morons.

Originally posted by jjrobbins
Well it depends if the person behind you has the front fogs on or the person in front of you has the rear on.

The amount of times i've been on the M1 and a little rain appears and due to the spray. .. the muppets put their rear fogs on .. why???? R U blind!

Fronts fogs should be renamed to cruise lights, or you need to do is walk round the city centre at night and you will see what i mean! (Oh mind you don't get mugged, if your on your own)

totally agree with you jjrobbins, having to sit at traffic lights on the parkway whilst waiting to join the m1 when visibiliy is okay not brilliant and being blinded in the process by some muppet who can't see the bloody light on the dashboard. If you ever overtake these people and indicate the lights on then you get flashed for doing it to them wheres the logic?!

[Mod Edit - Fixed Tags]

...and these are usually the same people who never indicate!

Lets see some £60 fixed penalty notices being dished out, perhaps people will check their cars more regularly then!

How many of us on here have done a lights check, especially as the dark nights are drawing in? I bet none of us do (including me, I should add!)

The only time we know we have a bulb out is when we take it for the MOT.

these people who think that they dont have to check their mirrors they just mooch into the next lane and then poodle there forever even though they aren't overtaking anything and then decide it would be better if they stuck to under the speed limit!! The worse place for this is in the outside lane of the supposed dual carriage way on the parkway (its not called that for no reason) or when you join the m1 from the m18

Originally posted by alchresearch
...and these are usually the same people who never indicate!

Lets see some £60 fixed penalty notices being dished out, perhaps people will check their cars more regularly then!

How many of us on here have done a lights check, especially as the dark nights are drawing in? I bet none of us do (including me, I should add!)

The only time we know we have a bulb out is when we take it for the MOT.


Totally agree with the fine! Maybe the people who have their fog lights on have a bulb gone on their headlamps? or they think it's a sunny day with sunglasses on .. who knows!

I agree that the car looks sporty with fog lights switched on, but hey not seen any car which has featured in 2 fast 2 furious round Sheffield roads!

They are called 'driving lights' nowadays, obviously to make the bloody morons think they look good using them. But why are they so bright, or is that a result of bigger globes? Get back to calling them Fog Lights, and slap a fine on them whenever they are on when it is not foggy!:evil: :evil:

Originally posted by alchresearch
How many of us on here have done a lights check, especially as the dark nights are drawing in? I bet none of us do (including me, I should add!)

The only time we know we have a bulb out is when we take it for the MOT.

Some advice from the lofty position of having been driving for, ooh lots, of years.

When reversing into a parking space use the car behind's headlights to check your reversing and brake lights. Similarly when leaving use the car in front's shiny bits to check your indicators and headlights, when appropriate. Also useful is when in a shopping area look in shop windows when using any indicators. (Not for too long, that would be silly). Get into these habits and you'll be the first to know when a light bulb's blown.

On the subject of fog-lights there was a driver complaining in The Star recently that the police had pulled her up because she had her fog lights on. My first reaction was if she couldn't see a bright light on the dash what chance did she have of spotting a small child crossing the road.

Here endeth the lesson.

Originally posted by BigD
They are called 'driving lights' nowadays, obviously to make the bloody morons think they look good using them. But why are they so bright, or is that a result of bigger globes? Get back to calling them Fog Lights, and slap a fine on them whenever they are on when it is not foggy!:evil: :evil:

They're bright because they are to pierce the fog and light up the road, but there is nothing to stop the owner from sticking in some high powered bulbs. Halfords and Greens at Swallownest sell them but for 'off road use'. Yeah, like you are going to take a Nova or Escort or BMW off-road.

Front fog lights will normally have 55w bulbs in and headlights 55/60w bulbs
But you can get 100w fog light and 130/150w headlight bulbs if not higher

Worse than bright bulbs is someone with their headlight aim set to high

Originally posted by BigD
They are called 'driving lights' nowadays, obviously to make the bloody morons think they look good using them. But why are they so bright, or is that a result of bigger globes? Get back to calling them Fog Lights, and slap a fine on them whenever they are on when it is not foggy!:evil: :evil:

Fog lights and driving lights are actually completely different things, though I can appreciate the confusion.

As 'driving' lights serve no purpose other than to dazzle the driver approaching from the opposite direction - i propose that each person with a grievance against these 'soon-to-be-illegal' lights, should visit B&Q or other such stockists of said duck tape.
Then in the middle of the night, scout for cars with these lights and neatly fix the tape across the lights.

Although this may seem to be a rather radical approach while the government decides on the issue - the drivers will learn to appreciate your concerns - as the day will come when they kill an oncoming motorist who had been blinded by these lights.

Safety first people. After all, you'd laugh at the idea of driving without your seatbelt on, so why allow for this???

I remember when the law forcing us to wear seatbelts cams in so, no, I wouldn't laugh at that, still regarding it as an infringement of civil liberties.

Driving lights are designed with one purpose in mind. Fog lights are designed with another.

Why is there no edit facility??!!! :)

Chalice, which law are you talking about? Incorrect use of whicle lighting is already against the law. Any law banning fog lights, front or rear, would be foolish in the extreme. Front fogs, used in the correct conditions improve visibility a great deal enabling you to see and be seen much easier.

I assume your objection is to the 'modded-Saxo' brigade who feel the need to have all lights on full at all times of the day. If so, the please focus on them, there is no need to tar the rest of us with the same brush. And frankly, if I found you messing around with my car in the middle of the night, whether with a screwdriver or a roll of duck tape, you'd wish you'd never been born.. ;)

removed by spook.

Originally posted by alchresearch
Couldn't you see the bloody yellow light lit on your dashboard?

It's very ignorant of you to think that all cars have a yellow light lit up on the dashboard. On my car for example the fog lights and lights are on the same knob, when switching the lights on it's easy to accidently pull out the knob and automatically switch the fog lights on. You stand corrected.

Originally posted by jjrobbins
Totally agree! But she did say it was a "Honest Mistake"


A welcome return of civility, sanity and logical discussion to the thread. Taking out the reference to me, I can identify with this post.

Someone knocked my fog light off in a car park. It was one of those ones that hang from your bumper and not integrated. I turned it on with a tiny switch that had a pin prick light on it. No big lights on the dashboard for me.

Now I cannot turn it on at all. Need one for the MOT in May.

Originally posted by Lickszz
It's very ignorant of you to think that all cars have a yellow light lit up on the dashboard. On my car for example the fog lights and lights are on the same knob, when switching the lights on it's easy to accidently pull out the knob and automatically switch the fog lights on. You stand corrected.

It doesn't matter where the knob or switch to turn them on is, there will be a light indicating you have them on, wither on your dash with the rest of the dials, or on the switch itself.

Originally posted by alchresearch
It doesn't matter where the knob or switch to turn them on is, there will be a light indicating you have them on, wither on your dash with the rest of the dials, or on the switch itself.

I double checked before I wrote my reply. The only indication is on the knob itself where it lights up which is below the steering wheel to the right...not on the actual dash!

JEC1 - there was no need to be facecious with your seatbelt point. Unless i read it incorrectly, it comes across that you believe the government's attempts to help save lives in road vehicle accidents, in your opinion, is nothing more than its enforcement of the law and its chance to flex its muscle in your face. If so - i have never heard such SHI*T come out of someone's mouth.

However - relating to your driving lights issue, thats fair enough as i dont wish to actually condone the action of defacing property belonging to someone else. I would add though that the next person who blinds me with those lights, be it you or anyone else, i will fire up my full beams in their direction and see how they like it. I cant help but disapprove of, IMO, dangerous lighting.

Originally posted by chalicefc3
JEC1 - there was no need to be facecious with your seatbelt point. Unless i read it incorrectly, it comes across that you believe the government's attempts to help save lives in road vehicle accidents, in your opinion, is nothing more than its enforcement of the law and its chance to flex its muscle in your face. If so - i have never heard such SHI*T come out of someone's mouth.

However - relating to your driving lights issue, thats fair enough as i dont wish to actually condone the action of defacing property belonging to someone else. I would add though that the next person who blinds me with those lights, be it you or anyone else, i will fire up my full beams in their direction and see how they like it. I cant help but disapprove of, IMO, dangerous lighting.

In my opinion, chalice, it is an infringement of my liberty to be ordered by law to wear a seatbelt. If you believe such a thing isn't worth disputing, then, sir/madam, it is you who, as you put it talks ****.

Now, perhaps you would care to withdraw any inference that I use *fog* lights incorrectly, as although fitted to my car, they are only ever used in times of extremely poor visibility as per the law. Not all drivers with fog lights have a need to announce it to the world.

Also, I refer you to my earlier post... fog lights are not driving lights. The two are quite different and designed with different purposes in mind.

Furthermore, where exactly, am I being facetious? I see no attempt to mock your views regarding seat belts, merely disagreement. Explain.

I'm intrigued by the mention of duck tape on this thread. Would that be Donald Duck singing The Fog on the Tyne, by any chance?

Originally posted by JEC1
In my opinion, chalice, it is an infringement of my liberty to be ordered by law to wear a seatbelt. If you believe such a thing isn't worth disputing, then, sir/madam, it is you who, as you put it talks ****.
It sounds analagous to a skydiver citing 'an infringement of liberties' when told he *has* to take a spare chute with him.

It is an infringement, but one that most people are happy to give up because the privations suffered when wearing a seat belt are not especially significant, and the benefits possibly life saving.

In a car with more than one occupant, a the wearing of a seatbelt is not a matter of personal liberty, so much as a responibility to the person in front.

On your own, I guess it's just a matter whether you think it important to improve your (diminishing) chances of survival on the roads.

Of course a seatbelt isn't going to save you if you hit an oncoming car at a combined speed of over 100mph, like I almost did on Friday when some reckless idiot decided he had room to overtake as he came towards me. Had I not stamped on the brakes and come to a complete standstill on the A57 I might well be dead. That sort of thing almost scares me enough to renounce the car entirely - the fact that a complete stranger can end your life through simple inattention or machismo.

I think it should be made illegal to drive with too much testosterone in the blood along with everything else.

In fact the sooner we get driverless cars the better, and all the petrolhedz can race their fancy status symbols on designated tracks, whilst everyone else gets quietly chaffeured to their destination by computer autopilots.

Originally posted by BigD
They are called 'driving lights' nowadays, obviously to make the bloody morons think they look good using them. But why are they so bright, or is that a result of bigger globes? Get back to calling them Fog Lights, and slap a fine on them whenever they are on when it is not foggy!:evil: :evil:

I'm looking at MPV brochures at the moments for the vast majority of cars available and they are called front fogs in all of them!!!

As fog lights, front or rear, are only to be used in conditions of very poor vicibility, why not have them fixed so that when driving with them on, the car will be limited to 20mph - ie. a speed suitable for such conditions. That should stop the stupid morons from using them indescrimantly!

Drivers who use fog lights in the rain...:evil: Drivers who use fog lights in slightly foggy conditions (Highway code says sub 100m visability only)...:mad: Drivers who are still using their fogs three or four days after it's all over!!! :loopy:

To be fair, with regards to the last point, in my 15+ yrs motoring I,ve found that many vehicles have the fog light switch placed in an obscured position so as making the warning light hard to see.
Still, it dosn't give someone the excuse to be a goldfish brained moron does it?:nono:

Apologies to any goldfish out there:thumbsup: