I used them whenever I feel like I can't see the road very well right in front of me. Sometimes that's in fog, but a lot of the time I used them if it's been raining at it's dark and it's hard to see markings on roads; they really help with that. I also like to use them on certain roads around here that are crumbling, because they help me spot potholes. Also, in light snow they are good for seeing the condition of the road, i.e. how much snow/ice/slush/clear pavement there is.

So basically I use them any time they feel useful.

 

I disagree somewhat with these posts. More light is better when correctly aimed. More light can be a detriment if it is improperly placed.

In suburb driving, where there are streetlights and other ambient light sources that illuminate things in the distance, fogs on/off don't really matter. In dark driving conditions where there is nothing other than your headlights to illuminate things in the distance, your fogs shorten the depth of visibility. When you turn your fogs on, the foreground is illuminated causing more light to be reflected. The more light that is reflected closely, the less your pupils dilate causing distance vision to be lessened. By turning off your fogs (in good weather conditions), you primarily illuminate objects that are in the distance which, in turn, allows your pupils to dilate more. This means you see more. This is why projectors are more beneficial than reflector housings. Projectors put the light exactly where you need it and don't just "flood" the area with light.

agreed... the look is much more sporty in my opinion with them turned on but, when driving I've moved to turning them off in most cases.

I discovered how big of a difference [not having the foreground lit was] when I had my Integra. My Wife and I live in VT and previously were in north central PA. (both rural areas). both my wife's Civic and My integra had PIAA Platinum 1400 fog lights. Here Civic used the same bulbs as our fit and my Integra had separate low/high bulbs(All were Sylvania silverstars). With the high beams on, the integra would not turn off the lows. At first I thought this great, especially with the PIAAs on as I had either 4 or 6 bulbs on. Then I began driving my wife's civic more (better economy) and found that I could see further with her high beams alone (no fogs) than with the integra (either 4 or 6 bulbs lit). Low beams alone (no fogs), the integra was better. After that, I did a little research to find that it was the placement of light and how your eye adjusts to the light reflected which makes the most difference.

~SB

 

Whenever I have the headlights on. At 63, my night vision isn't what it was at 23, and I need all the help I can get. My wife was following me on a trip recently, and had the headlights on during the day. Low + Fog, no problem, but high beams in my rear view mirror were extremely annoying. Fortunately, she figured this out before I called her to switch to low beams. Low beams + fog lights made it easy to spot the Fit in my rear view mirror.

 

Do you mind telling me why it's bad to drive with fog lights on? I'm really curious.

I said yes for two reasons:

99% - I live in Seattle, so even when it isn't raining, the conditions aren't always ideal, especially at night.

1% - I think it looks nice...

 

to reiterate:

they impair your night vision beyond the field illuminated by the fogs making it more difficult to see things in the distance.

If it's foggy you're not going to see that far anyway (Seattle has wonderful fog at times); definitely use the fog lights if you feel it helps. If the street is lit it's not going to make any difference, you may as well look good.

 

wow...there is actually more people voting yes than no.
I never use the fog light until there is ..well...fog.
I mean for Fit is ok, the light is low enough that it's not blinding the driver in front of you and in the opposite direction.
What I hate is some a**hole driving monstrous SUV and their highly intensified fog light is aiming right in your rear view mirror.
My suggestion is that do not use fog lights unless the situation calls for it,
your comfort maybe a threat to someone else's safety.
Don't be a selfish bastard.

 

LIke I care what some Prius driver thinks is "cool".

 

Kinda funny I just commented on this earlier today. About an hour ago my wife and I take our TSX out for a Target run for some Christmas shopping. As I stated earlier I always have my fogs on (of course when my headlights are on). Anyways we take a back road and its a 35mph road. We are driving all of a sudden a rabbit runs out about 10 feet in front of the car. I hit the brakes hard (luckily only going 35 mph) and was able to stop before we hit him. I was only able to see him because of the fog lights. My head lights (HID's) are higher and only the fogs are able to light up the front/side of the car that close. Like I just said if I didn't have my fogs on I know I would have hit him. Prime example why I always have fogs on. Just thought I would share since I just talked about this earlier.

 

This is the summary of prius douche's lecture:

When fog lights are on in clear conditions, it reflects more light which blinds other people.

They consume more energy (I tried not to laugh when he said that).

They don't make your eyes see as far.

lol maybe he was be Daniel Stern. I just thought the whole thing was bizzare (even though it happened at Whole Foods). The guy had good arguments and that's not my beef with him. If you could be there when it happened you could tell he was this uppity liberal elite (I'm pretty liberal myself).

The funny thing was I had burlap sacs going in and he was going barehanded. That's the typical Prius driver: all words and no action. I bet he had at cart load of groceries with PLASTIC BAGS.

 

I assumed these were driving lights and not fog light-most fog lights are usually a yellow tinted lense correct?I've owned an Acura tl with yellow "fog" lights and a Saab 9-3 with Yellow "fog" lights-and they worked much better then the clear type.

 

Sometimes I use the fog lights to easier spot and avoid the potholes.
I wish that when it's riaining the cars in ongoing traffic would have the fog lights on, because they reflect from the wet road.
And when there is fog I would reather see a car with a rear fog light infront of me.

 

This reminds me of that episode of South park where everyone in town got a hybrid and became so smug and uppity, it caused a huge "smUg" storm that nearly destroyed the town...it was hella funny.

http://www.southparkstudios.com/episodes/103216

 

I do love to keep my fogs on (I have 3000k fogs + yellow vinyl) and they are pretty much golden yellow, which contrasts with my 8000k headlights a lot...I would always keep them on, but I'm scared of cops cause it does attract a lot of attention (contrast and the fact that the entire floor in front of my car is glowing).

I usually leave them on, but i'll turn them off if I don't want to attract all the attention...

 

yes cause 4 lights are better than 2

 

That makes perfect sense. It's the first time I've ever heard that, or contemplated it. That said, it doesn't change my approach. I've never felt hindered by those standards with the fogs on. To each their own I guess. Either that or the Fit's lights are very well aimed, which I'm inclinded to believe.

Dan

 

I use mine only in fog, rain, or if I am on poorly lit or striped roads, just so I can see the edges of the road better. They don't help you to see farther ahead, just help to keep you from driving into a ditch (if you can see it, you won't drive into it...)
The Mazda P5 I had before the Fit, I had re-aimed the fogs to work more as cornering lights, so I had them on much more frequently.

 

A small point: Fit sports do not have fog lights. That is unless the owner has installed them. The Fit sport is equipped with driving lights. Fog lights are yellow in color and do an excellent job of penetration darkness when conditions are foggy. Driving lights don't come close to functioning as well as fog lights in those conditions. And yes, I keep my driving lights on all the time.

 

I thought fog lights were defined by their beam pattern and cutoff, which seems to be what is said on wikipedia (Automotive lighting - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia). This also agrees with what's noted by Daniel Stern, and the ECE R19 regulation (see http://www.unece.org/trans/doc/2007/...9-2007-62e.doc).

Note the following according to the article: "The respective purposes of front fog lamps and driving lamps are often confused, due in part to the misconception that fog lamps are necessarily selective yellow, while any auxiliary lamp that makes white light is a driving lamp." I don't have access to the SAE spec, but the ECE R19 spec used in Europe states: "The illumination shall be measured in either white or selective yellow light as prescribed by the manufacturer for use of the front fog lamp in normal service." So fog lights can be white or yellow...

 

I used to drive with them on all the time but then I realized they were sucking precious energy from the juice starved amplifiers. YOU REQUIRE MOAR BASS! When I'm not trolling the public at large with DB I guess im trolling the prius drivers at large with my fog lamps?


If someone could get this guy's address we could send him pizzas (caller id spoofing ftw) and USPS boxes by the truckload.

 

I think I've had my fog lights on for about ten minutes of my 5500 miles so far, so an obvious "no" in the poll. I haven't experienced much fog since owning the car so the one time they were useful was during a very dark night in moderate rain. Since I was doing mostly highway driving, they were only useful at lower speeds while exiting.

To each their own, I say, but the distribution is very shallow (but wide), as others have pointed out, so they aren't much help at high speeds and, as has also been pointed out, can be detrimental to your night vision (dilation). But I can also see their benefit on winding 35 mph roads where bunnies roam, heh [due to their wide beam].