Night Vision

[Bper]

have just driven 24 miles in the dark through country roads with the worst heavy rain and mist I have ever experienced. I could not clearly see the road ahead and the blinding glare from the oncoming cars headlights was very worrying. Pulling over was not possible.

I am concerned because I had my eyes tested last year and my eyesight is normal. I was told glasses would not improve my sight enough to make any difference.

Now I have to admit I don't normally drive at night but we had an appointment that meant we had to take the car.

So I would like to know anyone else's experiences of driving at night in heavy rain and mist and if they suffer from similar problems with 

[Big_D]

I hate driving at night. I find the glare of oncoming traffic annoying. I have a set of amber night driving glasses, which I find great. They took a bit of getting used to, but I find they really do help.

 

[FROSTYBALLS]

Personally I don't tend to have problems with glare, etc.

For those members who do wear prescription spectacles and do have an issue with driving at night or bad weather, there are options which can help reduce glare at night, etc.

One such option is Zeiss Drive Safe lenses - https://www.zeiss.co.uk/vision-care/spectacle-lenses-from-zeiss/drivesafe-lenses.html 

[Roy124]

Night driving is a different technique from day driving.  I too just did 75 miles with the first half in thick fog. 

The most annoying feature was a van following a farm pickup towing a sheep transporter.  It was doing about 42 mph and I sat well back with ACC keeping station on the car following the van.  The van was top close and was continually hitting the breaks. 

Well, by holding back I gained plenty of visibility and where the road was bending. 

When cars approached do not look at them.  Narrow your eyes and reduce the amount of glare. You need to reduce the incidence of light on your cones and let the rods let you see the edges. 

My wife said she was not happy but I was quite happy with what I could see.

[Bper]

46 minutes ago, Big_D said:

I hate driving at night. I find the glare of oncoming traffic annoying. I have a set of amber night driving glasses, which I find great. They took a bit of getting used to, but I find they really do help.

 

 

46 minutes ago, Big_D said:

I hate driving at night. I find the glare of oncoming traffic annoying. I have a set of amber night driving glasses, which I find great. They took a bit of getting used to, but I find they really do help.

 

Thanks I will check these out, How to you find your general vision when driving at night especially if it is raining.

[Bper]

19 minutes ago, Roy124 said:

Night driving is a different technique from day driving.  I too just did 75 miles with the first half in thick fog. 

The most annoying feature was a van following a farm pickup towing a sheep transporter.  It was doing about 42 mph and I sat well back with ACC keeping station on the car following the van.  The van was top close and was continually hitting the breaks. 

Well, by holding back I gained plenty of visibility and where the road was bending. 

When cars approached do not look at them.  Narrow your eyes and reduce the amount of glare. You need to reduce the incidence of light on your cones and let the rods let you see the edges. 

My wife said she was not happy but I was quite happy with what I could see.

Hi Roy, my wife has about the same vision quality as I do and she could not see anything either. I must admit i was relieved to get back home. Stress levels for both of us went through the roof. I am going to get my eyes checked again to make sure there has been no change.😡

[Cyker]

I definitely find it a lot less fun now that more and more cars have extremely high-powered lights and often don't have them set correctly.

I flashed a guy on the weekend because his lights were so bright but he flashed me back so it wasn't that he had his high-beams on, but his dipped were set incorrectly so they looked like they were high-beams!

I tend to look at the near-side verge a lot when excessively bright cars are coming to try and save my night vision.

It's also come to that time of year where I have my eyes shut a lot when waiting in traffic on the way home, because the brake lights of the car in front feel like they are burning through my eyes, and I can still see them through my eyelids, so just shut my eyes and wait for them to go out, so I know we're moving again!

Part of the problem is I have really good night vision - If the moon is in the sky I can drive with all my lights off and still see well enough to not crash into anything, and can actually see more to the sides - but all these high-powered lights wash out my night-vision and mean I can only see what they illuminate as everything outside of the cones of light is made invisible by the contrast. I think they are damaging my eyes slightly too as my night vision has declined noticeably since high powered lights and LEDs have displaced halogens, but that also might just be old age  

I think I will have to try those yellow-tinted lenses one day to see if they help, as just filtering out the blue component of the light could help a lot with LEDs.

 

[Bper]

20 minutes ago, Cyker said:

I definitely find it a lot less fun now that more and more cars have extremely high-powered lights and often don't have them set correctly.

I flashed a guy on the weekend because his lights were so bright but he flashed me back so it wasn't that he had his high-beams on, but his dipped were set incorrectly so they looked like they were high-beams!

I tend to look at the near-side verge a lot when excessively bright cars are coming to try and save my night vision.

It's also come to that time of year where I have my eyes shut a lot when waiting in traffic on the way home, because the brake lights of the car in front feel like they are burning through my eyes, and I can still see them through my eyelids, so just shut my eyes and wait for them to go out, so I know we're moving again!

Part of the problem is I have really good night vision - If the moon is in the sky I can drive with all my lights off and still see well enough to not crash into anything, and can actually see more to the sides - but all these high-powered lights wash out my night-vision and mean I can only see what they illuminate as everything outside of the cones of light is made invisible by the contrast. I think they are damaging my eyes slightly too as my night vision has declined noticeably since high powered lights and LEDs have displaced halogens, but that also might just be old age  

I think I will have to try those yellow-tinted lenses one day to see if they help, as just filtering out the blue component of the light could help a lot with LEDs.

 

Cyker, that's good to know from my prospective but very worrying for what damage these lights are doing to our eyes. It cannot be right that you should have to shut your eyes due to the intensity of the break lights in front of you.

I used to enjoy many years ago night driving on roads with no street lights etc, but today was the limit. The trouble is when it is absolutely teaming down with rain and you are almost  aquaplaning with the water on the roads and oncoming traffic is either full beaming you and absolutely nowhere to pull over with mist coming down, it was like driving a car on one of the amusement arcade driving games.

Wife could not even see the curb on her passenger side. I was driving with the cats eyes and trying to follow the car in front. 

If nothing else i am going to get my eyes checked out again. If that's not a problem then i will mount a dozen metal halide floods on the top of the car and let the other drivers have a taste of what they put us through. 😡

I don't know how other drivers where going at 50-60mph.

 

[Cyker]

I must admit I do get slightly sadistic pleasure knowing that, after dealing with blindingly bright LEDs for years of driving, *I* now have a car with the same....   That plus the fact that I'm using the brake hold extensively has put me firmly in the darkside camp of all the stuff I used to complain about...   

I know what you mean about heavy rain tho' - The reflections of the surface water and scintillation from the droplets, esp. on the windscreen, make it extra obnoxious because even if the other drivers have their lights set correctly they can't help the reflections.

 

[Bper]

20 hours ago, Cyker said:

I must admit I do get slightly sadistic pleasure knowing that, after dealing with blindingly bright LEDs for years of driving, *I* now have a car with the same....   That plus the fact that I'm using the brake hold extensively has put me firmly in the darkside camp of all the stuff I used to complain about...   

I know what you mean about heavy rain tho' - The reflections of the surface water and scintillation from the droplets, esp. on the windscreen, make it extra obnoxious because even if the other drivers have their lights set correctly they can't help the reflections.

 

Spoke to neighbours today regarding night driving and all said they do not drive at night unless they have to. Problems with narrow unlit roads or distance seem to be the main reasons. When asked if any suffer from issues with there vision all said they did. Glare from headlights along with bad road conditions are two main factors. Two of the people I asked also wear glasses for daily use.

It seems that this is a common problem that a lot more drivers suffer from then we may imagine.

[Bernard Foy]

On 11/28/2022 at 8:05 PM, Bper said:

have just driven 24 miles in the dark through country roads with the worst heavy rain and mist I have ever experienced. I could not clearly see the road ahead and the blinding glare from the oncoming cars headlights was very worrying. Pulling over was not possible.

I am concerned because I had my eyes tested last year and my eyesight is normal. I was told glasses would not improve my sight enough to make any difference.

Now I have to admit I don't normally drive at night but we had an appointment that meant we had to take the car.

So I would like to know anyone else's experiences of driving at night in heavy rain and mist and if they suffer from similar problems with 

Hi Bob, I’ve spent the last sixty years driving the highways and byways of Ireland  90% of it on narrow country roads in bad dark wet and windy conditions. Another poster (maybe Cyker) mentions focusing on the left hand grass verge or kerb. This advice was also given to me all those years ago by my mechanic friend when I started driving and it helps. I now wear glasses with a slight tint recommended by my optometrist as he wears them himself to cut down the glare of modern car lights. So both tips may be useful to you for night driving in bad weather conditions. And the best tip of all is lift the right foot a little off the pedal.

[Big_D]

23 hours ago, Bper said:

Thanks I will check these out, How to you find your general vision when driving at night especially if it is raining.

Generally my vision is good, even in the rain. It seems we all seem to agree that it;s the intensity of the bright modern headlights. 

 

23 hours ago, Roy124 said:

When cars approached do not look at them.  Narrow your eyes and reduce the amount of glare. You need to reduce the incidence of light on your cones and let the rods let you see the edges. 

I tried Roy124's suggestion today and found it didn't help me. So, back to my night driving glasses 😀

[Rhymes with Paris]

Aye, driving in the dark, necessarily so now the nights are drawing in, is not quite so easy as it is for young eyes maybe.

I have had the cataracts done in both eyes, and it's a lot better now, not so much glare.

But I still prefer daylight driving , even though my evening activities are somewhat curtailed by garlic and wooden stakes, aswell as the glare from DRLs.

[Bper]

27 minutes ago, Bernard Foy said:

Hi Bob, I’ve spent the last sixty years driving the highways and byways of Ireland  90% of it on narrow country roads in bad dark wet and windy conditions. Another poster (maybe Cyker) mentions focusing on the left hand grass verge or kerb. This advice was also given to me all those years ago by my mechanic friend when I started driving and it helps. I now wear glasses with a slight tint recommended by my optometrist as he wears them himself to cut down the glare of modern car lights. So both tips may be useful to you for night driving in bad weather conditions. And the best tip of all is lift the right foot a little off the pedal.

I haven't tried this yet but will give it a go. Arranged an eye test tomorrow so should be interesting. Your right about taking the foot off the pedal but to be honest the rain was that bad I was trying to keep the car in front at a safe distance but keep it in site. The glare from oncoming traffic was blinding.

 

 

 

[Bper]

7 minutes ago, Rhymes with Paris said:

Aye, driving in the dark, necessarily so now the nights are drawing in, is not quite so easy as it is for young eyes maybe.

I have had the cataracts done in both eyes, and it's a lot better now, not so much glare.

But I still prefer daylight driving , even though my evening activities are somewhat curtailed by garlic and wooden stakes, aswell as the glare from DRLs.

Never tried wooden stakes Paul are they like rump,sirloin or fillet.😅

[Big_D]

2 minutes ago, Bper said:

Never tried wooden stakes Paul are they like rump,sirloin or fillet

They're similar to Wookie steaks; A little Chewie

[Rhymes with Paris]

7 minutes ago, Bper said:

Never tried wooden stakes Paul are they like rump,sirloin or fillet.😅

 

7 minutes ago, Bper said:

 they like rump,sirloin or fillet.😅

Sorry, messed up the quote, I can see why I mislead you with the reference to garlic.

It may help to understand that there is no reflection when I look in a mirror, and things get very dusty if I don't get home before sunrise. 🌚

[Cyker]

You guys are amazing  

@Bernard Foy - Lots of sage advice there! Slowing down a bit to give yourself more reaction time is always good, day or night, rain or shine!

@Big_D - I know it is other cars, as if I'm on my own, even on a pitch black country road, I can see so much better and feel confident in my driving, but when there are more cars I have to back off, slow down, leave bigger gaps as my vision is compromised so much by the glare!

[Bper]

21 minutes ago, Rhymes with Paris said:

 

Sorry, messed up the quote, I can see why I mislead you with the reference to garlic.

It may help to understand that there is no reflection when I look in a mirror, and things get very dusty if I don't get home before sunrise. 🌚

Fanks for the advice but when I get dust down my throat I can't seem to stop coffin.😅

[Bper]

30 minutes ago, Big_D said:

They're similar to Wookie steaks; A little Chewie

Clever are say you.😀

[Cyker]

Good grief StarWars meets Vampires! That is a film I'd watch!  

Fangs to you all for these Forced puns, you've really made my Night Vision (See Frosty I'm still on topic!!  )

[Bper]

6 minutes ago, Cyker said:

Good grief StarWars meets Vampires! That is a film I'd watch!  

Fangs to you all for these Forced puns, you've really made my Night Vision (See Frosty I'm still on topic!!  )

Getting back to subject, just wondering are there any problems with looking at HUD on the screen when it's raining. What about glare at night.

[Cyker]

I find the HUD is actually easier to see when it's raining, esp. fine rain, because it shows up on the raindrops, esp. with the way the rain beads up on my windscreen because of the PIAA wipers.

If you've ever watched that old series SeaQuest DSV, the way they project a display onto a sheet spray of water, it's a bit like that.

Glare still blanks it out as the car tends to keep it dim and isn't smart enough to make it brighter in the face of oncoming headlamps.

Generally the car is pretty good at keeping the HUD brightness in a usable level and maintains a good level of contrast, dimming when it's dark and brightening when you enter a lit up area, but I think it uses the same upward-facing light sensor as the auto-lights and dashboard, so it can't compensate so well with forward light sources.

 

[Markyswan]

I've noticed my vision isn't as good as it was and have recently started to wear glasses for driving. I first noticed road sign's wasn't as clear as they used to be. Starting to noticed some problems with small print .

[FROSTYBALLS]

11 minutes ago, Markyswan said:

Starting to noticed some problems with small print .

Don't have any problems with small print - just never read it ......