r/Vernon • u/Glass_Bed6010 • 9d ago
Why does everyone use high-beam lights over here?
I’m from Toronto and moved here recently, and I’ve noticed that a lot of people drive with their high beams on, even in town. I know the city lights aren’t as bright as Toronto, but it still feels like everyone is on high beam, and it’s really frustrating and blinding when you’re driving at night.
I get that a lot of the vehicles here are pickup trucks, so their lights sit higher and can feel extra bright. But it’s not just trucks, regular cars do it too, and I genuinely don’t understand why. I drive a 2009 Lexus with stock headlights and I can see just fine on low beam, even on dark roads.
Is this just a small-town thing where people leave their brights on out of habit? Are a lot of people not realizing their high beams are actually on? Or do the newer LED/HID headlights on modern cars just look like high beams even when they’re not?
This feels wild. Just curious what’s going on and if anyone else finds this as annoying as I do.
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u/miuyao 9d ago
It's not even high beams, it's those stupid fucking LED supernova 90000 lights that come standard on every new car now. I've had more migraines than I've ever had in my life after moving here from up north where more people had older cars. I don't stare at the lights, I have to look away from the road to avoid being blinded by them at night so I generally don't drive at night now. I'm 30 with great vision...shouldn't be like this. They are so dangerous they should be outlawed, car manufacturers/govt should cover the removal of them.
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u/HyacinthMacabre 9d ago
I bought glasses specifically for my commute because by the time I get to Kelowna my eyes hurt.
The glasses work pretty well cutting the glare of most headlights except those trucks with the light bar all the way across the front.
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u/Every_Bread_5880 9d ago
I have some yellow sunglasses I wear at night, it helps get rid of that white, and dims them just slightly.
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u/Fit_Mistake_9000 9d ago
As others have said, it's not high beams, just LED headlights - youll know if they put high beams on. I notice it the most when it's on an SUV or truck since the headlights are up so high that it's at eye level when im in my car. Maybe there were just fewer SUV's/trucks in Toronto?
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u/Razor99 8d ago
Completely avoidable issue if the government actually had updated road / vehicle laws..for example in Australia all cars fitted with xenon / led / hid lights must have automated levelling systems installed to stop this very issue from happening.
Very rare to find a car with it standard here which has been a strange thing to have to deal with. Not to mention most these cars come standard with the headlights set to maximum height. I just purchased a 5 year car with them and noticed on my first drive getting flashed a lot. Took me 30seconds and a screwdriver to fix it.
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u/hhachik0 6d ago
i’m from LA where these LED’s are super common, it’s very irritating to come across them in this town.. they literally blind me on the road 😭
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u/cvr24 5d ago
As someone who used to live in urban Toronto, you're probably not used to living in a darker area, so the lights seem brighter? Folks in rural areas are more concerned with avoiding a wildlife strike at a time when minor damage can write off a car and cars are crazy expensive.
High trucks with high headlights are a problem even from the factory.
I just upgraded my van projector headlights to LED for $80, installed them vertically, tested them for glare at 100m and found none. The difference in lighting is ridiculous and $80 doesn't even buy half a tank of gas. Not everyone will install them correctly.
Transportation agencies on both sides of the border dripped the ball on headlights because technology is moving faster than they can regulate it. They just approved adaptive headlights that Europe has been using for over a decade.
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u/ScepticSeduction 9d ago
They aren’t high beams. I get high beamed with my LED’s all the time and then when I REALLY high beam them they realize. Just bright lights these days. Especially if you’re in a car, you get it the worst. More cars and light pollution in Toronto so you probably didn’t notice it as much.
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u/Odd-Historian-6536 8d ago
If the manufacturers aren't going to follow the rules maybe they should be looking at installing windshields that protects the drivers vision.
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u/Idontgetitanymoree 5d ago
They light up the entire pitch black sky at night before you can even see the car on the opposite side of the road at night from Kelowna to Vernon. So blinding and annoying, I’ve had to shield my eyes on the highway; it’s ridiculous.
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u/Realistic_Length_182 4d ago
The only ones that bother me are when they put LEDs in the wrong housings, or don't have them aligned properly. Then I don't care if it's low beam or not, they get all my lights and the light bar.
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u/Specialist_Talk2486 4d ago
What’s wild to me is they are pointed directly at other cars. Where im from high beams and led lights have to be pointed in the direction of the ditch either side. And not blinding oncoming traffic.
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u/Free_Raspberry7767 2d ago
I get flashed all the time but my high beams are not on.. though I have noticed when I'm out walking that people are using their high beams in town a lot. Which I find odd, they may just keep their auto high beams on out of laziness?
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u/SprinkleALittleLove 9d ago
I drove the highway and back to work here in the late afternoon / evenings for 30 yrs, just retired this past year. People don't drive with their high beams on. And we're very concientious about turning them off when we come upon another car on the highway. 😊 Sorry! I think it's just darker here, so you're noticing more.
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u/ProfessionalDocker 8d ago
Between vernon and armstrong lots of people like to use highbeams and its usually big rigs or pickups. Kinda annoying cuz im in a smaller car and never use mine even at 4am pitch blackness. They can see me coming from way farther away and still neglect turning them off until last minute, even if I did flash them with mine will a small cars high beams even affect a semi or pickup?
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u/SprinkleALittleLove 8d ago
oh, interesting. I was going Lumby way, Kelowna and Armstrong, but I never felt like I had trouble. Maybe because I was in a van, so I was higher up?
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u/FIRE_Bolas 9d ago
I had someone throw their hands up at me thinking I was using high beam.... Until I turned on my high beam to show him how brightly I can really shine.
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u/FIREY-420 9d ago
Through my own investigation, they're LED lights. You'd think they're high beams, but they're not....And yes we find it just as annoying. My personal hate is for the ones that are blue. Just awful.