Well, it may sound weird, or maybe not, but you most likely have been using high beam lights incorrectly all this while. This is a pressing issue that deserves more discussion. Everyone is aware that there are two modes for your headlights in your car: Low beam and High beam. The difference between them is quite evident. While the intensity of light in low beam mode is low and focused on the immediate road ahead of you, a high beam has a much higher light intensity and throws the light for almost twice the distance as a low beam. But there are downsides to it as well. That is the reason why we can’t drive on a high beam all the time. Let us discuss this topic in detail.
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Have You Been Using High Beam Incorrectly?
The high beam is dangerous for the oncoming traffic. The driver of the car coming in the opposite direction is not able to see anything if you have High beam on. That is the reason why it is illegal in many cities in India. Yes, you could actually get challenged for driving on High beam. But unfortunately, most drivers in India don’t take care of this and continue to drive on High beam all the time. This creates a threat of the driver in the opposite car losing a sense of where the obstacle on the road is and could prove to be fatal. In fact, that is the reason for most head-on collisions during the nighttime. Now, let us discuss where should you use low and high beams.
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Where to use High beam?
If you are driving on a lonely road where you see that no car is coming in your direction at least within 500 feet, you can keep your lights on the High beam mode. In that way, you are not irritating the other driver and are able to see the road farther yourself. However, if you are driving in city traffic or behind a car, you must turn your headlights in the Low beam mode. The reason is simple. At low speeds, you don’t need to see what lies 600 feet ahead. Also, if you are driving behind another car on high beam, he/she will get a lot of reflection in his/her IRVM. This could be distracting for that driver and cause frustration. Another scenario where you might have using the high beam incorrectly is in rain, fog, snow conditions. The high beam is less effective in such conditions because it gets reflected back at you. Low beam enables better visibility in such conditions.
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