Bright truck headlights in my eyeballs

[DblOSmith]

This is really getting ridiculous. The Rams, Silverados, and Ford full size trucks have headlights that are so damn bright, I can't drive when them behind me. I was blinded in a parking lot when a Ram truck started up and his regular headlights burned my retinas. It's only these new truck. Older trucks are not blinding. I'm definitely tinting my windows, but I'm thinking of getting 5% tint int he window just to stop this. My state only allows 35% on the sides and front, so... maybe I'll need to do some kind of tint on my side-view mirrors.

Has anyone else noticed this about the new trucks? Any advice on tinting? Is 5% too dark? Thoughts? Thanks.

 

[talkingevs]

Doesn't the dimming in your mirrors work? We have 5% on our 2018 and 15% on our 2021. Can't see at night with the 5%....15% is perfect

 

[Candleflame]

This is really getting ridiculous. The Rams, Silverados, and Ford full size trucks have headlights that are so damn bright, I can't drive when them behind me. I was blinded in a parking lot when a Ram truck started up and his regular headlights burned my retinas. It's only these new truck. Older trucks are not blinding. I'm definitely tinting my windows, but I'm thinking of getting 5% tint int he window just to stop this. My state only allows 35% on the sides and front, so... maybe I'll need to do some kind of tint on my side-view mirrors.

Has anyone else noticed this about the new trucks? Any advice on tinting? Is 5% too dark? Thoughts? Thanks.

yes 5% is way to dark. you wont be able to see outside at night, and more importantly pedestrians, cyclists etc wont be able to see your face so wont know your intentions. Realistically anything less than 40-50% on the windshield is just too dark.

From the front theres nothing you can do. people cant be bothered to adjust their headlights as the governments are more busy to go after lucrative speeding fines rather than making sure cars are maintained properly. it is annoying on sedans but due to the angle even more annoying on trucks.
If its from the rear I'd apply maybe 30% film to the rear view mirror - combined with the auto dimming this should help.
You can also tint the rearview mirrors but thats usually not too much of an issue imho.

 

[Shelburne]

This is really getting ridiculous. The Rams, Silverados, and Ford full size trucks have headlights that are so damn bright, I can't drive when them behind me. I was blinded in a parking lot when a Ram truck started up and his regular headlights burned my retinas. It's only these new truck. Older trucks are not blinding. I'm definitely tinting my windows, but I'm thinking of getting 5% tint int he window just to stop this. My state only allows 35% on the sides and front, so... maybe I'll need to do some kind of tint on my side-view mirrors.

Has anyone else noticed this about the new trucks? Any advice on tinting? Is 5% too dark? Thoughts? Thanks.

This has been a problem for several years now. I live in MA where it's not legal to tint your rear windows (or front windshield). The auto dimming features of the side & rear view mirror help a bit, but not enough. But what pisses me off even more is the number of people (including a neighbor) who insist on driving these big gas guzzlers but never, ever put anything - anything! - in the truck's bed. Last winter I watched as the F-150 in front of me slipped off a snow covered road and into a deep ditch. WHY? The driver had nothing in the back of his truck.

 

[DblOSmith]

Doesn't the dimming in your mirrors work? We have 5% on our 2018 and 15% on our 2021. Can't see at night with the 5%....15% is perfect

They work, just not enough for those awful lights! It seems like the consensus is not to use 5%.

yes 5% is way to dark. you wont be able to see outside at night, and more importantly pedestrians, cyclists etc wont be able to see your face so wont know your intentions. Realistically anything less than 40-50% on the windshield is just too dark.

I wouldn't get 5% all over, just on the back windshield for those trucks at stop lights and on the highway. CycPeds would still be able to see me through the sides and front.

 

[DblOSmith]

All I know is that this is ridiculous.

 

[TexasTezla]

I've never had this problem. If a guys lights bother me I just slow down and he soon overtakes me.

 

[roblab]

Letting them pass is one way, but there are so many of them there will soon be another blinding you. I've heard a story where some guy in a car was being blinded by a pickup behind him until he stopped in the road, left his door open to discourage the truck from passing, pulled his pistol out and went back and shot the guy's headlights out. I hear that the pickup drivers say their trucks are just high, and the lights are adjusted correctly, but there is a major problem here. Some have gotten creative enough to put a neon "Dimmit Dammit" light in their back window that they can turn on when some guy with bright lights is following, which is probably more legal than shooting lights out, but it's not near as satisfying.

 

[medphys3]

Adjust your side mirrors so they're tilted down slightly and save this as a new driver profile. Switch profiles as necessary. Also, manually tilt your rear view mirror up slightly. Not ideal, but it works for me.

 

[KenC]

I'm bothered when you're at a stoplight, and the new pickup gets right up close to your rear bumper. The headlights are literally in your face. Nuts. Are they just unaware? It used to be that if you saw 4 lights on a pickup, and if they were in a cluster, they were high-beaming you. Fog lights were mounted lower, so you could tell. Now, you can't tell, since they put the fogs up so high. It's obnoxious.

 

[DblOSmith]

Letting them pass is one way, but there are so many of them there will soon be another blinding you. I've heard a story where some guy in a car was being blinded by a pickup behind him until he stopped in the road, left his door open to discourage the truck from passing, pulled his pistol out and went back and shot the guy's headlights out. I hear that the pickup drivers say their trucks are just high, and the lights are adjusted correctly, but there is a major problem here. Some have gotten creative enough to put a neon "Dimmit Dammit" light in their back window that they can turn on when some guy with bright lights is following, which is probably more legal than shooting lights out, but it's not near as satisfying.

I really really hate to be petty, but I think that's the only way for people to learn. Put similarly bright headlights on facing backward on the roof of my car. If anyone complains, then "Hey, it's just headlights." Yeah-yeah, I know it wouldn't fly because if they're on top of my car and the same brightness, It's an illegal light bar. If it's in a Silverado, it's just normal. I checked some truck forums and the consensus was "If they complain, just shine your brights and show them how bright your lights can really get! *smashes Coors light can on head, rolls coal*" No empathy.

 

[GenralSpecific]

Have you considered wearing sunglasses?

 

[ThomasD]

You can get behind them and put your high beams on. Or shoot their lights out until you find yourself facing an un marked police vehicle with a trigger happy cop

 

[TW14 9LF]

This isn't a Tesla problem, it is a problem with any lower profile vehicle. And, I find it hard to "blame" the owners of the big truck, unless they've made modifications to their vehicle to make the lights brighter, higher, or out of aim. The "blame" belongs to our regulatory system that doesn't allow manufacturers to use "smart" headlights. If you aren't familiar with these, take a look at what the manufacturers are doing in Europe, with adaptive headlights to reduce glare for oncoming / adjacent traffic, while maximizing vision for the driver. Our regulations are from the 80's and 90's, when regulations stopped mandating common sealed beam headlights.

My beef is with people that modify their vehicles to try to increase light output by replacing a halogen bulb with a cheap, aftermarket HID or LED bulb. Those things scatter light everywhere, and are a real hazard. Add to that the people that drive around with their high beams on. Is it ignorance? (What's that blue light on my dashboard mean???) Or, laziness? (One of my headlights burned out....so I'll just drive on high beams rather than replace the bulb). Both of these behaviors are caused by the driver, not inherent to the vehicle.

Finally, the argument that people shouldn't buy these vehicles if they aren't actively hauling stuff in the bed is a bit specious. My car has four seats, but when was the last time I actually had anybody in the back seat? Using this logic, should I be chastised for buying a sedan? How about our 0-60 times? Do we NEED to go that fast? Yep, sure is fun to do it once in a while.

And don't even get me started on people driving without their headlights on.............

Keith

 

[DblOSmith]

This isn't a Tesla problem, it is a problem with any lower profile vehicle. And, I find it hard to "blame" the owners of the big truck, unless they've made modifications to their vehicle to make the lights brighter, higher, or out of aim. The "blame" belongs to our regulatory system that doesn't allow manufacturers to use "smart" headlights. If you aren't familiar with these, take a look at what the manufacturers are doing in Europe, with adaptive headlights to reduce glare for oncoming / adjacent traffic, while maximizing vision for the driver. Our regulations are from the 80's and 90's, when regulations stopped mandating common sealed beam headlights.

Fair point on the smart headlight issue. I agree 100%. I don't blame the owners as much as I blame the manufacturers. Headlights have constantly been been getting brighter and brighter over the years, and there's no reason why LOW BEAMS need to be so bright like in the picture I posted above that it blinds everyone in its path. That's just obnoxious and selfish that you put your ability to see 5 meters farther (so you can drive a bit less defensively) above the sight of every other car, cyclist, biker, and pedestrian on the road.

 

[TexasTezla]

Letting them pass is one way, but there are so many of them there will soon be another blinding you. I've heard a story where some guy in a car was being blinded by a pickup behind him until he stopped in the road, left his door open to discourage the truck from passing, pulled his pistol out and went back and shot the guy's headlights out. I hear that the pickup drivers say their trucks are just high, and the lights are adjusted correctly, but there is a major problem here. Some have gotten creative enough to put a neon "Dimmit Dammit" light in their back window that they can turn on when some guy with bright lights is following, which is probably more legal than shooting lights out, but it's not near as satisfying.

I live in Texas where the truck is King. I just don't suffer this problem. Thankfully roads are so wide here I can just change lanes or let them pass.

 

[DblOSmith]

So, for you all that got rear tint, do you see the line where new tint and factory tint meet? Does it bother you? What VLT % did you use?

 

[TW14 9LF]

I have rear tint on my car. Some tinters can do a single piece that covers the rear window and the roof as one piece. My installer couldn't do that, so I ended up with a line. The line is visible from the inside, when sitting in the back seat. It is far enough forward that it doesn't show in the rear view mirror.

From the outside, it is not visible.

Keith

 

[DblOSmith]

Anyone ever tint their side mirrors? There was one of those idiot trucks with bright headlights, and the headlights were in BOTH on my side mirrors blinding me from behind. There's already some dimming action ont he side view mirrors, right? Are there any considerations of adding tint to the side mirrors?

 

[TexasTezla]

Anyone ever tint their side mirrors? There was one of those idiot trucks with bright headlights, and the headlights were in BOTH on my side mirrors blinding me from behind. There's already some dimming action ont he side view mirrors, right? Are there any considerations of adding tint to the side mirrors?

I just slow down to a crawl when asshats like that are behind me. They usually pass and are on their way. Thankfully in Texas the roads are so darn wide I can just change lanes!