gbr@mb2c.UUCP (Jerry Ruhno) (10/04/84)
I have three questions that I hope some of you out there can answer
for me. They are:
1. I have been thinking about putting fog lights on my car. Do they
really help? Also, does it make a difference if they are clear
or amber and do they help in snow storms? Are there any good
brands I should consider or bad ones I should stay away from?
2. I also have been thinking about installing cruise control
on my 5 speed Toyota Corolla ( the same car I want to put fog
lights on ). Does anybody have a suggestion on what brand to
buyand what to look for in aftermarket cruise control?
3. I have a 79 Firebird that I am going to store for the winter.
What should be done to the car if it is going to sit around
for about 6 months? Should the oil and gas be drained or filled
up and does anything need to done to the tires? Any helpful
suggestions would be appreciated.
THANKS
Jerry Ruhno
epsilon!mb2c!gbrburden@cheers.DEC (Dave Burden --- 381-2559) (10/10/84)
<......> 1) Fog Lights. They do work and are very helpful in the snow since everything is usually white and reflects the light better. As for the color of the lense, I would suggest clear for two reasons. First, any color other than clear will theoretically absorb some of the light as it passes through the lense, or at least more than the clear lense will. The second and more logical reason for clear lenses is that your headlights are clear, so why mix different color lights? It will look a lot better from the driver's seat to have the road lit up in one color instead of two. Also, fog lights only work properly when aimed correctly. Mount them as low as possible (and practical) and you might even want to aim them off to the sides a bit to light up the edges of the road better. 2) Cruise Control. Sorry, no help. 3) Storing a '79 Firebird. Ditto. Dave Burden decvax!decwrl!rhea!cheers!burden 603-881-2559 DEC Nashua, NH "That's right, there's a whole dead cat in every bar of Dead Cat Soap."
seifert@ihuxl.UUCP (D.A. Seifert) (10/12/84)
> The second and more logical reason for clear lenses is that your > headlights are clear, so why mix different color lights? It will look > a lot better from the driver's seat to have the road lit up in one > color instead of two. If you're using the fogs in fog/snow, you want the regular headlights OFF. Fogs are specially designed to keep the light very low, so that it doesn't reflect off of the fog back into your eyes as glare. Having the regular headlights on will create glare. (although good ones are MUCH better in fog/snow than the cheapies) If it's not foggy, and you're just using them for extra light (especially for light to the sides), then yeah, have the regular lights on too. (check local laws, somes places have limits on how many lights you can have on at once) -- _____ "Money. It's a gas. Just keep your hands /_____\ off of *my* stack!" - Pink Floyd /_______\ |___| Snoopy ____|___|_____ ihnp4!ihuxl!seifert
bmt@we53.UUCP ( B. M. Thomas ) (10/13/84)
Another factor in the foglight question is that bright white of your regular lights are reflected by the fog. Yellow lights are standard for fog lights and as far as I know, if they're not yellow, they're not properly called fog lights. Their ability to illuminate the road without reflecting blindingly from the fog is their chief advantage.
burden@cheers.DEC (Dave Burden --- 381-2559) (10/16/84)
The color of the lense does not make it a fog light, the design of the lense does. Fog lights spread the light out instead of concentrating it in a single beam as driving lights do. Just point your car at your garage door and turn on your lights. You'll see that the fog lights throw a very wide and low beam on the wall, regardless of their color. Dave Burden decvax!decwrl!rhea!cheers!burden 603-881-2559 DEC Nashua, NH
mikey@trsvax.UUCP (10/16/84)
Check the law. I read that most state's fog/driving lights laws restrict the use of lights by themselves, but do not explicitly require the headlights on. This would mean that they would be legal with the parking lights. For example in PA, they won't inspect your car if the lights can be operated independently of the lighting circuits. The state requires that they are powered off of the lighting switch. A little side note is that PA requires an amber or blue indicator in the passenger compartment for any accessory lights. Red indicators are illegal and could cause your car to fail inspection if the mechanic catches it. In fact, the only thing that I usually got caught on in a total of 12 years was independent lights so I just added a relay on the parking lights. (So what if I had override switches for EVERYTHING) mikey at trsvax
bmt@we53.UUCP ( B. M. Thomas ) (10/18/84)
wrt color of foglights again: I have been in some rather dense fogs where I have been able to see BETTER by turning OFF my headlights and running only the parking lamps. No joke, no illusion, better vision. Yes, they are mounted lower, but the main difference was that the reflected glare from the headlights was not there to blind me.
19701993@sdcc3.UUCP (B.W. Donnelly) (10/19/84)
For the record, it is illegal in California to drive with just your foglights; you can only use them if you have your headlights on also. Happy Motoring! Brian W. Donnelly
2141smh@aluxe.UUCP (henning) (10/21/84)
**** **** From the keys of Steve Henning, AT&T Bell Labs, Reading, PA aluxe!2141smh > The color of the lens does not make it a fog light, the design of the lens > does. Fog lights spread the light instead of concentrating it in a single > beam as driving lights do. Just point your car at your garage door and turn > on your lights. You'll see that the fog lights throw a very wide and low > beam on the wall, regardless of their color. It is a fact that monochromatic light gives you better resolution. That's why that is what is used to make the chips in your computers. Second, the wide angle is because in fog you can't see very far, so you have to see more of what is close to you. Third, the lower the lights are placed on your car the better they work since the problem is not illumination but reflection of light by the fog between your eyes and where you are looking. That is why truckers have fog lights under their bumpers. Also if you have yellow fog lights, the white glare from you regular headlights hitting the fog won't interfere too much with the yellow image.
dswankii@uok.UUCP (10/22/84)
The only way to be legal EVERYWHERE is to have the lights wired so that they can not be used independently of the headlights with a switch to turn off the fog lights. This may be more than you need but beats having to deal with a hipo in a bad mood. It is also a good idea to add a relay and some fuses to the system. What makes a fog light is the fluting on the lens not the color. A fog lens throws a wide low beam almost 180 degrees wide. A driving light will put out a beam with sharp cutoff to the left. A pencil beam, illegal to use on the highway, is produced by a lens with no fluting. Help prevent blindness, aim your lights. For driving and high beams, with a wall twenty feet from the lights the hot spot should be one inch down and two to the right from the straight ahead point. For fogs I don't know. David Swank II University of Oklahoma ctvax!uokvax!uok!dswankii p.s. Dana used to make a good cruise control.
prg@mgweed.UUCP (Phil Gunsul) (10/24/84)
[munch] Well, Dave, my old Bentley must be illegal by your definition. The light switch does NOT allow headlights to be on at the same time as the fog lights... Oh well, I don't drive it much in the fog anyway... Phil Gunsul
berry@zinfandel.UUCP (Berry Kercheval) (10/25/84)
Gee, MY old Bentley ('51 Mark VI) allows the fog lamp and headlamps to be on
simultaneously -- the fog lamp is on a separate and independent circuit.
I used to surprise people by driving along at night pretending to be
a motorcycle....
What kind of Bentley do you have?
--
Berry Kercheval Zehntel Inc. (ihnp4!zehntel!zinfandel!berry)
(415)932-6900hrs@houxb.UUCP (H.SILBIGER) (10/25/84)
In pre WWII Great Britain and for some years after motorcars ( GB for automobiles) dipped their lights, not dimmed them. This was done mechanically! One light extinguished, and the internal reflector of the other was lowered and turned slightly to the side. To this day, dimming is called dipping in the UK. Herman Silbiger
dswankii@uok.UUCP (10/31/84)
I guess I should explain, if you put fog lights on now, then you have to meet the current laws. If the lights have been in the car, especially factory lights, then they have to meet the laws in force when they were put on the car. By the way Phil, I only tried to give what would be legal in all states, not give an ultimatum (I'm happy if you're happy). David Swank II University of Oklahoma ctvax!uokvax!uok!dswankii