I think they're on the car so that other people can see you in foul weather. Some people think they help you see better in fog or bad weather (in which I've never experienced that to be the case).

 

I think it's for you seeing the road better, because of the beam pattern (spread out and near the car) of the fog lights.

 

yea i notice the road right in front of the car is lit a little better, stock fogs =

 

I use the fogs because it lights up the road immediately in front of me better. I use them on poorly lit roads (backroads) when they are narrow and I need to see the edge of the road better, or if I know there are a lot of potholes on that road.

I have never found them useful in foul weather. Never used them in fog as we never get real fog in Boston.

 

It is really both.

In fog and rain, it gets more light down low near the road. Seeing the road is good. Too bad the max doesn't come wired so that you can turn on the fogs independent of the high beams.

More light coming from your car means other drivers can tell you're there, sooner. Probably not as much a factor, but it could make a difference.

(believe it or not, there is actually a condition where having your lights on can make it HARDER for you to be seen. torpedo planes used this phenomenon in World War II)

 

It was snowing here last night first time ive had my 4th gen when its been snowing out and the visiblity sucked with the stock headlights, i currently dont have fogs. does anyone have any suggestions to help out my visibility in snow and all other times.

 

From the looks of that pic, I'd say you need HID's.

 

The reason I bring this up is because it looks like the fogs with stock bulbs on Maximas and TL's/CL's don't do squat for extra visibility. Do you guys notice how dim the Acura's fogs are?

If the Maximas are good with stock bulbs please correct me. It makes me thing that they aren't on the car for extra visibility for the driver.

 

Well like you I have a HID kit. Stock fogs with stock bulbs won't do jack for us HIDed up! Thats why I plan on getting HID for the fogs. I saw a 2003 Denali yesterday w/ HID in the headlights and fogs....freakin sick

 

I have to say that they are there for extra visibility. I dont doubt the stock ones on many cars do little to nothing for visibility but they are supposed to shine under fog and foul weather in a spread out beam pattern, short and extended far out on the sides. They are not for high speed driving(unlike driving lamps or spotlights)but more for slow cautious driving. Alot of foglights will have a yellow or amber color which seems to have been proven to improve foul weather visibility.

 

yeah ive been thinking about going that route but i dont know if i want go give up my headlights and ive heard lots of stuff on here about the fact that our headlights arent made to focus a hid pattern and without a vertical cutoff you do nothing but blind whoever is coming at you.

say i was going to look into a hid kit which would be best without killing the checkbook of a already broke college student?

 

come on......they're there for looks

 

That's because you souldnt use your high-beams in heavy fog.

 

Well i've been through pretty thick fogs (5-10 feet field of visibility) and must say that even the stock foglights on the Max does work - it could be better but at least it works.

I played around by turning it on/off and noticed i do see the road clearer. Having HID's in thick fog is pretty much useless since white light disperses more than yellow, which means with the HID's on you're just going to see the fog ahead of you light up. In fact, if i turn on my high beams i can see ahead of me even a bit better though hardly useful when it comes to thick fog.

 

The so-called "fog lights" that come stock on my Max are very white in the colour spectrum. I don't consider them to be true fog lights.

Real fog lights need emit more light in the yellow range of the light spectrum. The corresponding wavelength allows the light to travel past through typical sized fog particles (which is a combination of dust & moisture) & not be reflected back/scattered/absorbed (I'm guessing a bit on that). Regular "white" bulbs contain a small amount of light from a wide range of the light spectrum but little of the yellow range that can penetrate through fog effectively. Okay, enough tencho babble.

Bottom line is that both answers are true. (Remember, the human eye is more sensitive to light in the red end of the spectrum than the purple end.)

 

I think it's a little of both....

 

I've done this too and I was able to see the road better (of course on a road with street lights).


StygianMax: Good reply!

 

In addition to what StygianMax stated, foglamps have a pattern designed (or least were designed with the intention) to aid the driver in foul weather. The beam pattern is shorter and wider then the typical low beam, casting more usable light close to the front of the car and more to the sides, increasing the driver's depth perception and reducing "tunnel vision". Also, by being mounted low enough and casting this light closer to the car, oncoming drivers have more light by which to "acquire" the location, speed and direction of your car.