Do you run your passing lights all the time

[Condor]

Nope. Only when I feel they are needed, or in low light situations....

[Dave77459]

Absolutely NOT.

 

While I like to be visible, I don't want to blind the oncoming drivers... That just seems like a suicide wish.

 

 

If they are aimed correctly, why would they blind on-coming traffic? Their pattern is akin to low beams...?

[LilBeaver]

If they are aimed correctly, why would they blind on-coming traffic? Their pattern is akin to low beams...?

 

Well for one, I have mine wired up with my High-beam.

Secondly, and even if they weren't wired up to the high-beams I don't care how the lights are aimed if the person in the on-coming vehicle doesn't have a clean windshield, any light will cause distortion through the bugs, grime, scratches, etc so I sort of figure that keeping that to a minimum is a good way to go.

 

I guess maybe my eyes might be a little more sensitive to light than others, but I know there are times when I drive, at night, with a dirty windshield (in my truck) this happens to me, regardless of what type of lights the oncoming vehicle has. Some lights are much MUCH worse than others but all have some of an effect. This does encourage me to keep the windshield clean (or just ride the bike instead).

[darthandy]

...but...when I bought my '94 Triumph Sprint a couple of years ago, it was the first multiple headlight bike I had ever owned (Two standard sized round headlights). Soon after getting it, I noted a number of times where cagers started to pull out of side streets in front of me or started to turn left in front of me and suddenly did a quick double take and stopped. Talking to friends in my riding club revealed that they too, noted more drivers suddenly stopping a cut-off error at the last minute after the bike owners had installed "passing lights" or "light bars" on their bikes. Going back to some old studies (1980's, IIRC), it was noted that the larger a bike was and the more lights it had at the front, the more likely a car driver was to notice it. Most car drivers are geared towards seeing a car or truck when looking for traffic...bikes tend to "disappear". Multiple lights give a bike a different and, more importantly, a "wider" appearance. It may not look like a car but it doesn't look like a bike and that tends to get a driver's attention...which is what you want. This may not be the world's most scientific analysis but my experience and that of the other riders I know would seem to indicate that multiple light sources do tend to get cagers' attention. Just watch the next time a sport bike comes towards you. Today's new lights can illuminate quite nicely with a relatively small light source, but coming head on in the daylight, they can be surprisingly difficult to see...especially if a driver hasn't educated and trained him / herself to watch for smaller vehicles. So... since my VR came with passing lights with a separate switch, I use them whenever I'm on it. I've just made sure that they are properly adjusted so as not to blind oncoming vehicles since that would be counter-productive.

[mrc]

Yes, all the time...

[VentureT]

Always - the extra visibility and decreasing the perception that it may just be a car with a burnt out headlight is worth having to change bulbs sooner (which I have not done yet) or whatever draw it puts on the bike.

[TDunc]

Yes, except sometimes in a group.

[Drkngas]

Always on. Being seen outweighs bulb cost.