What Does It Mean to Overdrive Your Headlights?

Driving in some areas can be difficult at any time of day, but can be especially tricky at night. Between reduced visibility and bright lights, it’s no wonder many drivers avoid driving at night whenever possible. If you’re unfamiliar with what overdriving headlights means, you need to keep reading. It might change how you drive at night or even save your life. Let’s get started!

What Does It Mean to Overdrive Your Headlights?

The term overdriving headlights means you’re traveling fast enough that your headlights aren’t covering the distance it would take to stop. The faster you travel and heavier your vehicle, the more stopping distance you’ll require.

This is a common mistake for drivers when driving in reduced visibility situations. Driving at night or in thick fog are the most common instances of drivers overdriving their vehicle’s headlights. Neither of the occurrences is safe, and both can be very dangerous.

What Can Happen if You Overdrive Your Headlights?

When you overdrive your headlights, you risk not seeing a bend or other obstacle in the road. You may not be able to stop in time or overreact when adjusting your driving. It might be too late when you see the bend or other obstacles. No matter how hard you apply the brakes, you’ll still hit whatever obstacle is in front of you.

Hitting an object at high speed can be very dangerous for you, your vehicle, and others on the road. You could cause an accident or exit the road and be severely hurt. Many of these accidents are avoidable simply by reducing their speed.

At What Speed Do You Overdrive Your Headlights?

The speed at which you’re overdriving your headlights largely depends on the driver’s reaction time and the quality of the brakes and headlights. The weather conditions and whether you’re using low-beam or high-beam lights can play a tremendous factor.

An average driver typically begins to overdrive their headlights once they top 50 mph to 55 mph. If they can use their high beams under the same conditions, they can safely travel from 60 mph to 65 mph. However, it’s important to remember that these are under ideal driving conditions and with average reaction times.

Weather conditions and reaction times are going to vary. Younger drivers typically react faster than older drivers. However, younger drivers are also more likely to get distracted while driving. No matter the age or weather conditions, it’s safe to say that slowing down is by far the safest option for drivers.

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Tips for Driving at Night

Driving at night can be a challenging adjustment for drivers. The reduced visibility and bright lights can make it difficult to see the road. Here are a few tips you should follow to not overdriving your headlights.

Make Sure Your Headlights Are Positioned Properly

When you replace or upgrade headlights, you must make sure they are positioned properly. If they point too low, you will overdrive them much sooner than normal.

If your headlights point too high, you will blind oncoming traffic. Should you experience other drivers flashing you when you don’t have your high beams on, you may have headlights that need adjusting.

Headlights usually have easy adjustments and can be adjusted at home using tape and a wall. If you make any suspension modifications to your vehicle or even hook up a trailer you will change the pointing of your headlights and may need to modify their aim.

Slow Down

As we repeatedly said above, slowing down will drastically increase your safety. It doesn’t matter what time it is. Slowing down reduces the likelihood of you experiencing an accident. Driving faster than the posted speed limit can be dangerous and get you an expensive ticket.

When the weather conditions change, you need to adjust your speeds accordingly. Just because the signs state that the speed limit is 60 or 65 doesn’t mean it’s safe to drive at those speeds during blizzard or monsoon conditions. Letting off the pedal will only add a few minutes to your trip, but at least you’ll arrive!

Use High Beams When Possible

Using your high beams greatly increases your visibility when driving at night and you don’t have to be overdriving your headlights. However, these lights can be blinding to other drivers on the road. You should only drive with your high beams on when there are no vehicles directly in front of you in either direction.

Many modern vehicles use technologies that automatically switch between low-beam and high-beam lights based on traffic. You want to give yourself the most visibility possible while ensuring the safety of other drivers on the road.

Reduce Interior Lighting

When you’re driving at night, it can be helpful to reduce the interior lighting on your dashboard and entertainment display. These screens can be very harsh lighting that can be distracting and hard on your eyes. Most vehicles have some sort of scroll wheel near the light switch that controls the brightness for all dashboard lighting. 

Never Drive Tired

There are nearly 100,000 accidents each year as a result of drivers driving when they’re tired. Avoid driving for prolonged stretches through the night whenever possible. Taking turns driving with a partner or making frequent stops can be helpful. Get out and stretch your legs, get your blood flowing, and eat healthy snacks.

Avoid consuming large amounts of sugar in an attempt to stay awake. The sugar crash you’ll experience after the sugar wears off will be much worse. Instead, find a safe place to park and get some rest if necessary. The more tired you become, the slower your reaction time. This will only increase the amount of distance required for you to stop your vehicle.

Minimize Clutter on Dash

Papers and other objects on your dash can be very distracting. They can block your vision and create reflections on the windshield. We strongly recommend keeping your entire dash free of clutter to minimize driving risks.

Take down any items hanging from your rear-view mirror, too. You want to have as much visibility as possible, and these items severely reduce it.

Be Alert for Critters

Cars aren’t the only things on the road at night – animals can be too. You never know when they could dart out in the road in front of you. Just because you don’t see a “deer crossing” sign doesn’t mean that a deer might not choose to cross the road.

Without overdriving your headlights, you should be scanning the road with your eyes. Look for any eyes reflecting in your lights. That could help you to know animals are active in the area. You can also look for signs of roadkill from other drivers. If dead animals are on the side of the road, there’s a chance they have friends still in the area.

Keep Your Distance

You should always maintain a safe distance between you and any vehicles in front of you. Because you won’t be able to see in front of the vehicle, you never know when they’ll need to brake or slow down. Following too closely reduces the time you have to stop without rear-ending the vehicle in front of you.

If you’re a larger vehicle, you will likely require more stopping distance. If you’re following too closely, you might not have enough room to stop, no matter how quickly you’re able to react. So keep your distance if you want to stay safe!

Avoid Looking at Oncoming Lights

If you’ve ever stared into bright lights at night, you know how blinding they can be. When driving on a two-lane road, the lights from an oncoming vehicle can make it hard to see. However, taking your eyes off the road when a car is speeding at you can be very dangerous. Instead of looking away, look towards the white line on the right side of the road until the vehicle passes.

By doing so, you can keep your vehicle in your lane and reduce any effects the bright lights may have on your eyes. Once the car passes, you can look back at the center of the road and not worry about experiencing what Manfred Mann sang about in his 1976 song.

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Stay Safe and Don’t Overdrive Your Headlights

Safety should be at the top of any driver’s priority list when driving at any time of day. However, driving at night requires making a few important adjustments for optimal safety. You can stay safe and avoid overdriving your headlights by reducing your speed for the road and weather conditions. It’s better to err on the side of safety than to drive recklessly.

Have you ever made the mistake of overdriving your headlights? Tell us about your experience in the comments!

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