Daytime Running Lights

[whitevette]

Originally Posted by saunders1313

I had somewhat of an electrical question. If I just remove the bulbs from the DRLs is it the same as removing the fuse? I want to get rid of the DRLs and reduce the load on the alternator, would removing the bulbs work?

Be prepared for a lot of flak on this question.

My 2 cents : Stick with the pure theory!

If the bulb is removed, the circuit is opened. No current will flow, no work is done, no alternator effort (watts output) is involved. A fuse removed is the same thing ( no current flow) and is a lot easier!

There are those who will argue differently ; ask them what is the difference between bare terminals on the alternator and fuses removed / circuits deactivated? Nothing. Nada. The alternator spins, voltage is created across the terminals, but no current flows. No current (I), no watts consumed (W), no W= volts X amps ( volts times zero = zero ). No additional drag on the engine's torque curve.

Then, there is the old emergency brake trick...one click up / on and the DRLs go out. But, the dash warning light ( a small wattage lamp) goes on. Will this bother you? ...the alternator? Hmmm....

[whitevette]

Originally Posted by ATaylorRacing

The cop that was in front of me thought I wanted him to pull over, I told him a lie about my lights having an electrical problem that was getting fixed in a shop in a hour since in our state (IN) EOC is illegal. I was following my wife the other day and she thought the same thing. Now I simply drive with my lights on so that when I kill the motor for EOC no one notices because the lights stay on.

Our so called by-pass has red lights every 1/2 to one mile and is near perfect for EOC since as soon as you speed up you need to slow down for the next light and/or traffic.

Ah! The perils of EOC ! Everything has a price ; be different...and you stand out like a sore thumb!

[Will]

I do not know how other cars work, but I use the "One Click E Brake" method. This way it is totally up to me if they are on or not. I can change my mind every day, and every minute. I think that is important as we are pulling into the winter time. Remember, we do not drive the largest cars in the world, and the darker gray colored days are coming.

[orange4boy]

You can get led drl's now..

LED Headlight bulbs - CleanMPG Forums

[RH77]

Originally Posted by orange4boy

You can get led drl's now..

LED Headlight bulbs - CleanMPG Forums

Perfect! Wait...

Judging by the poor quality of the beam at night, I would hate to sacrifice a lens or 2.

For a while there, GM used to use their amber turn signals for DRLs -- they would be on "high" during the day, and turn off and on to signal, then back on as a DRL.

I'm wondering if I would get the same notice-ability with lower, amber turns (pic for reference).

RH77

[Unforgiven]

Hmm. DRL's love them hate them... tried shutting mine down but failed so far. Fuse removal resulted in unbalanced main lights. Since my vehicle actually has full DRL's instead of just headlight DRL's like some, I have finally gotten to where I just deal with it. Getting the DRL schematic from GM was a waste of my time as they could not provide me with the full circuitry schematic.

The one click method rarely can work without involving some drag due to how the cable tension is normally set to begin with. Add in the often annoying light that comes on, and I dont find much value in trying that way. With an old Ford Windstar that I used to own, I was able to track down and unhook a wire harness which controlled the DRL factor and walla, lights when I want them. Seems that some of the new vehicles lately that I have seen, (Dodge Caliber, Chevy Cobalt, Ford Focus) have finally stopped the DRL's or perhaps just made the light sensitivity greater as I am not seeing lights on them during the day.

[saunders1313]

Well I'll try removing the fuse and see if they go out. There really is no safety reason to have DRLs. I actually hate the fact that there are DRLs on cars. I ride a bike quite often and since there are DRLs on a lot of newer cars it makes bikes less visible because people are more used to seeing DRLs that they don't bother to notice as much. How can DRLs make you safer? Most of the time that I see people driving around at night without headlights on they have those stupid DRLs, and most people are too dumb to realize that DRLs do not turn on your rear lights and they usually are not that bright.

[Unforgiven]

Yes, the folks driving are pretty dumb in not realizing the lights are not on, but perhaps the blame really needs to be laid on the engineering staff and car manufacturer that allowed the idea of headlights only to go thru. Several years ago I was in a rear end collision with a car like that, driver claimed lights were on, when they were not. Turned out to be a new vehicle for them, and they had thought the lights were nice to come on by themselves (cough cough) Add in a lawsuit and a few years later and I won my case, but still have a twinge of pain from that accident.

[Ford Man]

Originally Posted by orange4boy

If you have an ammeter in your car you can estimate your battery life by the capacity rating. Example is a Trojan 12v 27tmx with a 175 minute capacity. This battery can provide 25 amps of power for 175 minutes in ideal conditions and down to 100% discharge. You should really only discharge to 50% (12.06V) max for deep cycle batteries. So half that figure is about an hour and a half.

Watts / volts = amps. Amps x volts = watts.

Low beams are typically 55 W each X2 = 105 / 12 = 8.75 amps. The heater fan depends on the setting and the vehicle. Many lights can be replaced with
LEDs which only use a fraction of the power.

From another forum...Don't know the car model but would be good enough to estimate.



The more current you draw the less capacity your battery can provide.

Your homework
Welcome to Battery University

Thanks for the info! I'm probably going to need a new battery this winter, so I may look into using a deep cell.

[RH77]

But what about the ignition system and/or starter?

Driving along requires a spark for non-Diesel engines, which is my biggest concern for such a system. I had an alternator fail on an E-350 Diesel in rainy weater -- the drawback was no headlights and wipers, but the engine kept going. Gassers die completely in this scenario.

RH77

[Sean T.]

GM still uses amber DRLs... I see them all the time here in Michigan. Especially on Cadillacs and Chevys.

Amber DRLs are actually much much safer and easier to see than headlight DRLs.

daytime-running-lights.com has kits to add, remove, and even swap your DRLs from headlight to amber.

Thats where I got mine and they work great

[Unforgiven]

Nice info Sean T. Not sure that my vehicle's full DRL setup would benefit from that website you showed. Ah well, I can sort of defeat the headlight part, that will do for me.

[RH77]

Originally Posted by Sean T.

GM still uses amber DRLs... I see them all the time here in Michigan. Especially on Cadillacs and Chevys.

I started seeing them more after I posted (New Chevy/GMC Express, Caddy CTS) My guess is since DRLs are required in Canada, there's one design for North American production of many GM models.

I'm not sure if the "switch" is different there. Most GMs have the "Off (momentary spring), Auto (default), parking, headlight" positions, with a warning chime and panel message "Automatic Headlight Control Off" when out of auto-mode.

The DRL site offers some good solutions. I'm wondering if it would be cheaper to wire something up, DIY-style, with a relay and maybe some LEDs in the turns (with ignition-on power) and a switch for nighttime use. I recall a "ground-out" schematic that might work with the existing blinker relay (can't find it at the moment).

The electrical gurus out there may know...

RH77

[Sean T.]

See if DRLs were an option on the 98 Integra... With Oval_Overload and myself, we found out that all Taurii have the DRL wiring (whether they were equipped with it or not), you just need to get a DRL unit and plug it in.

Ideas For Dlrs - Taurus Car Club of America

[RH77]

Originally Posted by Sean T.

See if DRLs were an option on the 98 Integra... With Oval_Overload and myself, we found out that all Taurii have the DRL wiring (whether they were equipped with it or not), you just need to get a DRL unit and plug it in.

Ideas For Dlrs - Taurus Car Club of America

I checked the shop manual, and Canadian models have the DRL unit for '98-'01 models. I'll have to see if that means that all North American-bound models had it and it isn't hooked up (it's up under the driver's side dash). It may be an easy solution.

Great idea!

RH77

[saunders1313]

Well I pulled the lights out of DRLs, we'll see if there's any difference. If nothing else I'll at least feel safer because I have to turn on my headlights at night. I recently got this Monte with DRLs and I have found that I have driven a couple of times at night with the DRLs only.