Sunny day, yet some motorists have there headlights on, glaring, why?

Question

is it to annoy?

Answer 1

Some people have cars with automatic headlights that are on every time you drive

Answer 2

SAFETY

Answer 3

Daytime running lights.  Many misguided, ignorant lawmakers think that having lights on during the day increases visibility.  Thus in many areas there are signs posted requiring headlights to be on during the day.  And many new cars come with daytime running lights (usually slightly less bright than headlights), which are on all the time when the car is running.

In some circumstances and lighting conditions it can increase visibility (for example, twilight, when many drivers haven't turned their headlights on yet...or better yet actively REFUSE to), but in some others it can DECREASE visibility.  (Against bright backgrounds, for instance.  Kind of like how lights on aircraft can be used to camouflage them during the day.)

http://www.lightsout.org/studies.html

Note that even the pro-DRL studies seem to highlight some flaws with the DRL concept.  Also, they either acknowledge that they can't exclude other factors, or they simply don't address it.

http://www.swov.nl/rapport/R-97-36.PDF

This one even gets something bass-ackwards, claiming that twilight accidents diminish the difference between DRL and non-DRL vehicles, when it should increase it.  (Seeing as that is where the most unambiguous benefit of DRLs lies.)

Daytime Running Lights are safety theater.

Answer 4

Most new cars today run the headlights= we don't turn them on, they come on when the car is on. It's not to annoy anyone, they can't help it.

Answer 5

Many newer cars have daytime driving lights, which automatically come on. Others do it for increased visibility, it seemed to get your attention, didn't it?

Answer 6

It's the rule of the road...

Answer 7

see my answer to your other extremely similar question

Answer 8

Many cars today have headlights which switch on automatically when the light level drops below a certain level, the sensor which controls this can sometimes be slow to react when the light level rises above the required threshold so the head lights stay on even though not required, I have experienced this when coming out of a tunnel or shaded area where they

have come on correctly but fail to want to switch off when not required so I have to manually switch them off.

In some country's it is mandatory to drive on dipped beam during daylight hours.

Answer 9

Some of the newer models are just made that way.

Answer 10

A lot of people think that having headlights on increases the visibility of their car.  It does, but so would a strobe light and flashing neon lights.  

A decade or so back some of the automakers started building Daytime Running Lights (DRLs) into their US cars.  General Motors was a major proponent of this design.  Many cars have Daytime Running Lights where the "brights" are turned on but at a less intense wattage. The late 90s Saturns have a particularly obnoxious implementation of this feature.  They also made it impossible to turn this feature off in many cars.  It became so popular with the "Safety" crowd that many people whose cars don't include this feature began to drive around with their headlights or even their brights on during the day.  

I personally find it distracting and annoying, even on the brightest days.  I turn my lights on when the weather or the ambient light dictates it, and I like being able to make that decision myself.

Answer 11

Some cars can't turn their headlights off - Volvo et al as a safety requirement.

Most new motorcycles are similar - ther is no longer a switch fitted to turn them off.

Answer 12

if its glaring in your eyes then it cant be sunny....surely?

Answer 13

Same as before, Daytime Running Lights = Safety.

Answer 14

studies show that having your lights on reduces accidents and some cars ie volvos lights come on when you start the engine

Answer 15

Another theory is that it's FOG LIGHTS that some motorists, not just boy racers, have on at all times, which is actually illegal.

Fog Lights should only be put on when visibility is down to 100 Mtrs (about 30 car lengths). Highway code rule 201.

Fog Lights, due to the low wide beam, can be a hazzard to oncoming motorists especially when the road is wet, as the beam reflects into drivers eyes.

So beware and drive safely.

Answer 16

On my fiesta  the speedometer is recessed into the binnacle and when the sun is very bright the only way to see the speedo is to have the sidelights on it's niggling fault with an otherwise good car.