Hello folks. I just joined, led here by a search on this subject of the DSL staying on. I get the safety issue - so many people would not use them at all if they could. Actually, I had no idea that the rear lights are NOT on when the DSL are in use. The logic there must be that if the visibility is THAT bad, you should be on full headlights anyway.
I tend to leave my full headlight setting on so much anyway, because I like that as my wife approaches the car and hits the unlock button on the remote, either in a lot or our driveway in the evenings, the headlights will come on. We've also used it to signal a visitor with an imperfect GPS trying to find which house on the block is ours ( like the pizza guy). The flashing parking lights are cool, but the headlights coming on full only do so when the car is last left with them on when turned off. Of course, you all know they turn off automatically after 20 seconds or so.
But for those that ask why anyone would want DSLs off on purpose, there is a couple special uses, none of them while in the act of driving. It's cooler now, and we were going to go to the last weekend at a drive in theater. Those plans changed, but if we had gone, I would want to run the engine at least a few times during the flick for the heat, and the DSL might be just enough of a light distraction to the row ahead of us.
A small issue, sure. Just like at any given time that I might be in a parking space at the mall, day or evening, deciding not to go into the madness, just cool out and read the paper and scarf junk food while the wife shops. Again, because its cooler, I might want to run the engine a few minutes at a time for some heat build up, and then every passing car sees the lights and thinks I'm leaving. Especially annoying is when parallel parked, and they hang back and turn their turn signal on. About the 5th time I have to wave someone off, I decide to cut the engine and freeze.
As I've said, these are little things, but creature comfort seems to be the big selling point. There's lots of vanity in our driving habits, and I just like having a choice. But of course in the grand scheme of things, there is so much right about the Odyssey that I can't complain. My previous vehicle was a '06 GMC Envoy, which did give the option of switching off DSLs, because it is not, or was not a new car mandate then. I wish more drivers without DSLs recognized the need to be seen in heavily shaded roads. It can be broad daylight and a long path of trees hovering over a road from both sides can make it seem like twilight in some segments of road. It takes an exceptionally attentive driver that does not have DSLs to recognize and switch on their headlights quickly. Too many are determined to leave all lights off until every speck of light has left the sky, but that's another story.
By the way, I tend to type long posts...
05-26-2010, 08:41 PM
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