Maintain your headlights to get the most out of your visibility
By Courtney Caldwell, American Woman Road & Travel Magazine
11/7/2003
Statistics shine a light on an important safety concern — visibility. More traffic accidents occur at night than during the day.
The University of Michigan Transportation Research Institute recently released a study showing that about 2,300 pedestrians are killed in the United States annually because of drivers’ inability to see at night. Maintaining your car’s headlights can be an important step in safer nighttime driving.
To maintain your headlights, be sure they are:
•Clean. Give them a quick scrub when you wash your windows at the gas station. Clean headlights can help you see better and can help prevent glare, which can be intensified by dust and dirt particles on the glass.
•Aimed properly. Headlight aim can often be knocked out of position by driving off-road or over potholes, which may contribute to unsafe nighttime driving conditions. Next time you get your oil changed or are at the repair shop, ask the service person to check, and if necessary, adjust your headlights.
•Free of road chips, condensation and surface scratches. These things decrease visibility and contribute to glare while driving.
"Proper headlight maintenance is critical to safer driving, especially during nighttime hours," said Dennis Holt, reliability and regulations manager of Sylvania Automotive Lighting. "Most people change their car’s oil and rotate tires on a regular basis. We also encourage everyone to get in the habit of routinely maintaining their headlights."
Replacing headlights before they burn out can be a good idea. When a headlight burns out, visibility is diminished.
Proactively changing bulbs and carrying a spare in your glove compartment are two simple ways to reduce accident risk.
Another way to enhance visibility is to install high-performance replacement headlight bulbs.
Most dealerships or auto-parts stores carry them.
Courtney Caldwell is the editor-in-chief of American Woman Road & Travel. www.roadandtravel.com.
