A driver’s visibility is crucial, especially when driving on a rainy or cold foggy day. A good vision improves the possibility of getting to your destination safely. It also ensures the safety of other road users.
Interestingly, fog lights have been prepared for this purpose. They help to improve driver’s visibility, while driving under poor climatic conditions.
Primarily, fog lights illuminate the road’s surface. They show you lane markings, road edges, and the foreground as you drive. Thus, they help drivers to navigate roads safely in heavy rains, snowy, or foggy periods.
Alright, here’s one quick question.
So, why are fog lights yellow?
The yellow fog light helps to ensure the driver’s visibility when driving under unfavorable weather conditions. It helps to cut through the fog and reduce glare. With the lights on, the driver can drive safely and confidently in a foggy state.
However, fog lights can come in blue, white, or yellow colors. But most drivers prefer the yellow-colored one, as it’s easy on the eyes. The yellow fog light is easier for the human eyes to process than the white or blue ones.
Finally, yellow fog lights boast a longer wavelength. Thus, they can penetrate much deeper into a wall of fog.
If you care to know more about fog lights, keep reading!
Is It Illegal To Drive With Fog Lights On?
Using fog lights can be legal and considered illegal under certain conditions. It all depends on how and when you use them.
Always use your fog lights within the proper height. Additionally, it should be within the legal range. That way, you won’t get into trouble with the police.
However, do not drive using only your fog lights, as it’s illegal and unsafe. Also, turn off your fog lights when visibility is standard. Preferably, use your rear fog lights when visibility is less than 300 feet.
Again, your fog lights have to be on a low visibility setting. Making it too bright could be dangerous to other drivers.
Lastly, maintain a slow driving pace when using fog lights. If all these are in place, you’re not breaking the law.
Are Fog Lights Headlights?
Fog lights are different from headlights. However, they are both found at the front of the vehicle and are essential for safe driving.
Headlights are your main driving lights. You’ll find them in the center of your car and are crucial when driving in the dark or adverse weather conditions.
On the other hand, fog lights are smaller than headlights. They’re found beneath the bumper and help to light up the ground in front of the vehicle.
In the United States of America, fog lights are considered auxiliary lights. Thus, their use is subjective.
Fog lights are like additional lights for a vehicle, though you won’t find them in all car models. They’re a plus to high spec model cars. Carmakers use them to attract buyers. However, you can add them to your vehicle whenever you want.
Unlike fog lights, headlights are standard in all vehicles. Headlights allow you to see what’s in front of you clearly while driving. It could be people, animals, or things. You can drive a vehicle without fog lights, but you can’t without headlights, especially at night.
Tip On How To Use Fog Lights
Driving under adverse weather conditions can be frustrating. But here’s a quick guide on how to use your fog lights.
The first thing to do is maintain a slow pace and ensure a great distance between you and the vehicle in front of you.
Use your car wipers to keep your windscreen clean and clear, as this aids visibility. Furthermore, know where your fog-light switch is, even before you set off. You should be able to turn it on at once when the need arises.
When you turn on the fog light, ensure you’re not using a full beam, as doing so can reduce your visibility even further.
Also, don’t navigate while using your fog lights, as this can give a false sense of security. If your visibility is still limited, try winding down your windows.
However, consider pulling over if you still have blur visibility even after turning on the fog light. Wait till when it is safe to continue.
Additionally, try to use your headlights alongside your fog lights.
How To Turn On Fog Lights
Fog lights are quite different in terms of operation. Each car model has its method of operation. So it’s best to check out your car manual for guidance.
However, you can turn a fog light on in three ways. The first one is via a light switch. Some cars come with such control used to turn on fog lights.
Usually, vehicles with fog lights have the symbol placed on the switch. The same goes for headlights. It has its mark on the button for easy identification.
So, if the light has a switch, you have to press the button, and the light will come on.
The second is the use of a rotator light switch. In this case, you’ll have to pull the switch towards you to turn the light on.
Lastly, some cars use a collar on the light stalk, which you have to turn back and forth to switch it on the fog light.
However, the headlight and fog light need to be on together. By the way, most fog lights won’t come on until you activate the headlight.
What Are Rear Fog Lights For?
Rear fog lights help to reveal the car’s position when driving under thick fogs, heavy rain, or snow. Using these lights can also help to prevent possible car accidents during poor visibility or weather. So, they perform the same function as your fog lights.
But then the rear fog lights are different from fog lights. First, they’re behind the vehicle and help keep an eye on things behind the vehicle.
Also, unlike fog lights at the front of the vehicle, rear fog lights are bright red. Thus, people can easily confuse them with brake lights. This is because both have the same brightness level, and their colors are red.
Furthermore, rear fog lights are standard on the left side of the vehicle in US cars. Rear fog lights in UK vehicles are on the right side.
However, some new car models have rear fog lights on both sides. It helps to improve your visibility more. But then, it is advisable to have only one rear fog light on.
Since rear fog lights are similar to your brake lights, having both on could pose a problem. It could indicate that your car wants to step, sending the wrong signal to other drivers. It could cause them to use their brakes as well.
Do Fog Lights Get Bad?
Yes, fog lights can become faulty. But then, it’s easy to know when your fog lights are about to develop a fault.
Here are signs that your fog lights are faulty
Firstly, the fog light won’t come on, a development that might indicate that the fog light is malfunctioning. Several things could lead to this. It could be an internal fault. A broken switch can also be a factor.
Secondly, the fog light may become dim, causing it to fluctuate. In this case, it might be that the fog light doesn’t receive a proper power supply. It could also be a result of an internal issue.
Another sign could be a blown fog light fuse, usually caused by an excessive amount of power. It can disable the fog lights. However, you can fix this by replacing the fuse.
Conclusion
Why are fog lights yellow? The simple reason is that the yellow light tends to have a longer wavelength that cuts deeply through foggy weather, improve the driver’s visibility.
For the record, fog lights aren’t headlights. They’re both different. Fog lights are also not compulsory but crucial when driving in foggy or snowy conditions.
It’s also important to note that fog lights can be white, blue, and yellow. But the thing is most people prefer the yellow ones because it improves the driver’s visibility more.
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