How fast and how long have you driven in the dark with no headlights?

Is this a good way of testing the limits of our cars without attracting cops?

Sounds like a Darwin Award Winner to me.

Originally posted by donlyon
Is this a good way of testing the limits of our cars without attracting cops?

:confused: No, that's a good way of testing the limits of your intelligence. If you actually do try driving in the dark with your lights off, then you've failed the basic intelligence test (ie, you have none).

This has to be one of the stupidest things I've ever heard suggested!!!

Regards,
Gordon

No way. I can only assume that the original post was a joke. Too funny.

Hope everyone enjoys the weekend...safely...with the lights on.

-Eric

Is this while on crack? What is the catch?

I have driven in the dark before for about 1 mile. By accident. But my eyes don't need much light to see. So, I was just wondering if anyone else has done this.

How did you drive in the dark by accident. Must have been in the city I hope.. not on the highway?

I've seen people do this before so It's common I guess. Atleast it wasnt on purpose.

For the record I've driven 109 down US19 with my headlights out, but I was running illegal shipments of ChiaPets in October of 2003.

Originally posted by donlyon
I have driven in the dark before for about 1 mile. By accident. But my eyes don't need much light to see. So, I was just wondering if anyone else has done this.

Chia pets.....LOL

I was just thinking again.

What if we modified the headlamps, taillights, stop lights with infrared bulbs. Then wear some night vision goggles while driving.

Sounds like a nice stealth mod to cruise undetected on the freeway at night, eh?

Yea, and no one else can see you, like cops,and on coming traffic........

Police statistics show that >85% of the cars you see after dark driving without headlights are DUIs. Just a little factoid...

mm

I think it would just be cheaper to close your eyes while driving. I think that is a lot more effective. Go try it out and let us know how fast you get up to!

While we are on the subject of head lights why didnt mazda put DRL on this car... Insurance companies are giving discounts for this and we dont have it!

this is probably a stupid thread to do my first post with this SN (i've been posting off and on with others) but I must confess, i am guilty of this crime of stupidity.
Before yall start in on me and rip my balls off, let me first state that it was on PRIVATE country roads with NO other traffic and no curves. The road leads into the farm my company owns. Its about 2miles into the woods and there is a stretch about 1/2mile long that is slightly downhill and absolutely straight (ppl who've farmed before know that maintenance roads must be straight for practicality reason while harvesting.) Its about two lanes wide and NO I will not be opening this for yall to run 1/4miles so dont ask.
Because there are no lights on for miles, when I drive back during the night I sometimes turn the headlights off and drive in the dark. The lack of other sources of light means everything glows with the moonlight and stars. City dwellers will never truely appreciate just how bright it is outside at night, you can see everything perfectly in just the moonlight alone, especially on a summer night with a full moon. Let me tell you, there is no other spectacular views outthere like this.
That being said, while I do this i cruise at around 40-50 and never push the car to any limit, just straight ahead. I do not recommend anyone else try this either. I know myself that I shouldn't be doing it, it just feels good to do something stupid every once in a while.
dont fret donylon, you're not alone.

Originally posted by jniamehr
While we are on the subject of head lights why didnt mazda put DRL on this car

They did. Mine's got 'em, reduced-voltage high beams version. Factory standard.

...

Oh, wait, you're in the US?! Sorry, only Canadian RX-8s have DRLs standard. ;)

RX8Bliss, I don't actually see a problem with driving on a private road, at reasonable speed, on a clear night with a full moon, as you were doing. Those are pretty controlled conditions. donlyon was suggesting testing the limits of the car with the lights off to avoid cops, implying the use of public roads. That is just plain stupid!

Regards,
Gordon

jniamehr,
in the event you are interested, you can modify your 8 so that the fog lights can be used as DRL's, as seen in this thread: http://www.rx8club.com/showthread.php?s=&threadid=11737&perpage=15&highlight=fog%20light%20rewire&pagenumber=3

Omicron did mine for me, and I have no complaints. I hadn't thought about the insurance break... I wonder... Hmmm:)
When I was a youngin', my friends and I would drive around in the dark w/o headlights, on moonlit nights... for no good reason... ah, the joys of being young and stupid.
Youth is wasted on the young.;)

I would have been ticked off if i had DRL's.

Turning off you lights doesn't make you invisible...

Covering your eyes does! :o

Actually I don't usually have problems driving at nights without lights on. Its not hard, I have a messed up problem with my eyes where they don't diolatte as fast as normal people actually they take about 5 to 10 minutes to light when i walk out of my house every day. When I walk out into the light or have too much light at once I get a major migraine until my eyes adjust. But because of this problem i can see better at night than most people at nights because my pupils are already large. The only bad part is I almost have to always wear sunglasses because of this. So it can be done. I think i have drivin at least a mile or two without my lights on to answer the question.

Originally posted by Maniac
Turning off you lights doesn't make you invisible...

Covering your eyes does! :o

yet you're only invisible when nobody is looking...




Originally posted by donlyon
I was just thinking again.

whoa dude, don't hurt yourself again like you did last time! ;)

Originally posted by Maniac
Turning off you lights doesn't make you invisible...

Covering your eyes does! :o

I figure if I can't see them, they can't see me, Doc sez, covering his eyes and trying really hard not to peek ;)

Originally posted by Black-dragon
Actually I don't usually have problems driving at nights without lights on. Its not hard, I have a messed up problem with my eyes where they don't diolatte as fast as normal people actually they take about 5 to 10 minutes to light when i walk out of my house every day. When I walk out into the light or have too much light at once I get a major migraine until my eyes adjust. But because of this problem i can see better at night than most people at nights because my pupils are already large. The only bad part is I almost have to always wear sunglasses because of this. So it can be done. I think i have drivin at least a mile or two without my lights on to answer the question.

Hey, me too! I mean the eye super sensitivity part.

When it snowed here last week I turned my lights off while driving at night.

I only did it on the residential streets near home, and it was 2am with no one around.

Being in TX, it was my first time driving in snow :p I had no idea it reflected so much of the light from the headlights.

Anyway, there were street lights, and i tested it, and sure enuf I could see a ton better with my headlights off.

Thanks donlyon i thought i was the only wierd one that could do that, theres not too many of us out there

I don't know about turning it off but when it is snowing heavily on the highway at night, I like to only use my daytime running lights because the snow don't reflect back at me as much and I can see better.

The last time I drove with my headlights off was when I was coming home after curfew... That was almost two decades ago. :D Thank goodness I haven't had to do that now that I 'm married, mature and have a brain to think with.

When I was a kid at summer camp -- we're talking over half a century ago -- I hitched into the next rural Conecticut town with a friend to see a movie. We were picked up by a guy in a Model A with some exciting features, like a view of the road below, courtesy of missing floorboards. The driver explained that he drove the curving two-lanes without lights because that allowed him to see the lights of oncoming cars sooner. Out of concern for our safety, he said not to take a ride with him on the way back, because he'd be drunk.

Goofing off on the freeway ages ago, I had a friend stealthily pull up behind me with lights off and then all of a sudden zap his hi-beams on me. Shocked my heart into skipping a beat or two.

Even in a pitch black no-moonlight night, driving at high speed with lights off can be done for miles on end once you're in position behind another vehicle.


As though our roads weren't dangerous enough, I'll share some other highway stunts I've seen...

- "Look Ma, No Hands":

Everyone knows about driving with your knees. But some drivers can make an entire trip without laying a hand on the wheel.

- "Look Ma, No Feet":

Cruise control on with both feet up on the dash (or out the window) for long stretches.

- Formation Driving:

The "leader" drives normally while the "wingman" looks sideways at the lead car. I've seen a "four-ship" barrelling down both sides of a two-lane road this way. Those who are skilled at it can get close enough to physically hand items across to the other car's passenger.

Actually, formation driving can be practiced while driving solo by looking out the side window and keeping spacing off of a paint stripe or a barrier.

- Other Behind the Wheel Trix:

...I'll stop the list here.

There's probably someone out there itching to try driving 100+ with lights off at night on cruise control while looking out their side window at the moonshadow of their ten toes cast upon the yellow sidestripe.

Yikes!

Just remember, the life you kill may not be your own.

OK, maybe one more trick. I'll call this...

- "The Toonces":

A tall person gets into the passenger seat, reaches one leg over to the gas pedal and drives the car with no one in the driver's seat. Or put a cat or dog over there and make it look like the pet is driving. Seeing an inflatable godzilla or a large stuffed animal "driving" is sure to turn heads (read: flash sirens). An MJ/CrocHunter-type might put a small child behind the wheel.

(There's one obscure reason why those with auto-8s might not want to rub their visor warning labels off!)

I've heard a stories before of a guy who was pulled over by a cop for driving around in the dark with nightvision goggles. I wonder what you get a ticket for...pure idiocy?

Acutally isn't it law that you're s'posed to have headlights on from 30 mins prior to sunsent to 30 mins after sunrise? I seem to recall getting that question wrong when I took the driving test and the corrected answer kinda stuck in my head. I expect that would be the ticket you might get (if nothing else) if you were silly enough to drive around with night-vision goggles on! Even if you could see where you were going, nobody else could see you and you'd be dodging people left and right (or not).

LOL! "Sounds like a Darwin Award Winner to me." and
"No, that's a good way of testing the limits of your intelligence."

I understand the original post was meant to be facetious, though you can't always be sure with the diversity of backgrounds and IQ's on this forum.

Some years ago, I was exploring the Los Angeles environs at night in my new Dodge Stealth and found a road off of Pacific Coast Highway (PCH) that led into a newly opened housing development. I forgot the name of the development but remember that Goldie Hawn and Kurt Russell had recently moved in there.

The development, situated in a valley, was connected to PCH by a mile or two of straight unlit road. I remember thinking how unusual to have an unlit road into an occupied housing development, how dark the night was, and how spooky and isolated I felt seeing just my headlights and a patch of road embedded in the darkness.

On a whim, and it seemed a logical thing to try in the unusual conditions, I shut off all my lights for a few seconds while slowing down. I had to slow down to a creep: I felt like I was driving over an abyss, unable to see anything below the horizon. The only thing I could see ahead was the dim sky glow outlining the invisible hills ahead. The unlit, invisible road created the sensation of flying low over the ground. The experience was a bit spooky and exhilerating at the same time.

Ah, driving without his headlights sure worked for T.S. Garp ;) (if anybody here can remember that I will be impressed). Anways I have the same pupil dialition problem mentioned earlier, I almost have to always wear sunglasses except at night. Occasionally I will not even realize my lights are off cause I can see pretty well. Soon as I see another car with their headlights on I remember though, when I realize other people can't see me. I even had to put on sunglasses at night once or twice to cover glare from other HID cars. I have really photosensitive eyes. Instant migrane if I drive during the day without sunglasses, even if it is cloudy or raining.

Originally posted by Rotarian_SC
Ah, driving without his headlights sure worked for T.S. Garp ;) (if anybody here can remember that I will be impressed).

Talk about a kick-start to gender change surgery...

That was a rather odd movie I seem to recall.

I've never driven without lights. One time I drove about 10 miles with only DRLs on my Subaru Outback. (No breaklights for folks coming up behind me) I felt stupid once I noticed. I usually have good natural nightvision, I don't think I would have too much trouble without lights, but I don't plan on trying it.

One of my friends *claimed* that he and his friends outran the cops in a jeep wrangler with no lights at night. Apparently they were skateboarding and they saw a cop car so they all hopped in and went down a twisty road without lights. Utter stupidity. They got lucky.

As for driving tricks... I haven't done any except I did do something similar to the 'wingman' thing. I was keeping my eyes half on their car, half on teh road. It was around 12 at night so there was no one on the road. I was driving my Outback next to my friend's Camry. My friend in his passenger seat was trying to spray me with water from his water bottle. He ended up throwing the bottle an it just barely hit the side of my car. None of the water made it. As it turned out, they wanted to race me but due to hearing problems/miscommunication it didn't work out. I was a bit surprised at the notion of starting a race while cruising at 65mph.