Speaking of lights, did you notice?

HyperM3 · 04-18-2007, 10:43 AM

Ok, so I was at a red light the other night and did the light flashy thing to make it change(here in NJ a lot of lights have the sensors).

So I noticed that when I was flashing, it seemed like it wasnt as bright as Id expected. Seemed more like only one light was working and I got nervous that a light was out already.

When I got home I tested my lights against my garage door.

You can clearly see the HID light of the regular lights. When you pull back on the turn stalk you use the "flash to pass" feature. Normally, this uses the brights. However, I noticed it wasnt an HID light(and I have bi-xenons). The "flash to pass" uses the DRL lights apparently. Then I pushed the stalk forward to turn the brights ON. Now you can clearly see two HID lamps on the garage.

Anyway, I thought this was interesting that they used DRL's to flash so you dont blind people with HID flashes.

KL2DC · 04-18-2007, 10:45 AM

Wait you have flash-to-activate traffic stop lights in NJ? I think I missed something here...that's new to me.

They use the halogens for the flash-to-pass as it takes less time to activate versus the xenons. It also limits wear on the xenons 'shutters' I suppose.

HyperM3 · 04-18-2007, 10:51 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by KL2DC

Wait you have flash-to-activate traffic stop lights in NJ? I think I missed something here...that's new to me.

They've been around for a while. Not all stoplights have them but a lot do. If you flash at a certain distance a few times, it will change the light to green.

E90Fleet · 04-18-2007, 11:31 AM

To "flash" the E90 uses the inner lights, which are halogens

If it used the Xenons to "flash" it would blind people

ctgazer · 04-18-2007, 11:32 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by HyperM3

They've been around for a while. Not all stoplights have them but a lot do. If you flash at a certain distance a few times, it will change the light to green.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Railgun

No...if you have an opticon they will. Specific frequency will do it. Sometimes you get lucky, nothing more.

Sometimes they'll have the ground sensor pretty far back, so as soon as you hit it if there's no traffic it'll switch immediately.

i always thought they had some of those flash to change the lights for emergency vehicles and stuff.....also they do have ground sensors too

HyperM3 · 04-18-2007, 01:49 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Railgun

What I meant by the gound sensors was not emergency vehicle specific. Just meant that if they're far back enough, you hit it as you flash your lights...

I know what youre talking about. You can see them buried in the pavement. Those are different though and you CAN make a difference if youre not over them but flash your lights.

KL2DC · 04-18-2007, 01:50 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Railgun

What I meant by the gound sensors was not emergency vehicle specific. Just meant that if they're far back enough, you hit it as you flash your lights...

Isn't the ground sensors feeding off weight and metallic content of vehicle?

HyperM3 · 04-18-2007, 01:50 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by KL2DC

Isn't the ground sensors feeding off weight and metallic content of vehicle?

Not weight but they are magnetic. When riding a motorcycle, somtimes you need to tip it a bit to trigger the sensors.

BoostedBMW · 04-18-2007, 02:11 PM

The E46 with Bi-Xenons was the same way. I always thought that it was done like that because when your headlights are off during the day, you need to be able to flash someone so it would use your halogens. If it were to use your xenons it would put a lot more wear on them from having them turn on and off every time you pulled the lever back a few times to flash someone. If you really want to blind someone, just push it forward.

brianlamar · 04-18-2007, 02:13 PM

I tested my e92 and flashed the lights in my garage and the xenons flash not the halogens. The halogens only work when i'm making a left or right turn, but they are never on at the same time unless i'm in reverse.

brianlamar · 04-18-2007, 02:14 PM

Maybe if my lights were off and I tried to flash then it would flash the halogens.

adc · 04-18-2007, 02:51 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by brianlamar

Maybe if my lights were off and I tried to flash then it would flash the halogens.

If by "flashing" you mean pulling the stalk towards you, then it will activate the halogens. If you push the stalk towards the dash, it will activate the Xenons. Same way on the E46 cars.

And the definitive reason for this has nothing to do with blinding incoming traffic, as you will do this with a high beam pattern regardless of the light emmitting technology. Nor does it have to do with abusing the Xenon lights, since Xenon bulbs tend to last far longer than Halogens, plus the fact that flashing is a rarely used feature.

It has everything to do with how quickly the Xenons can respond to being turned on/off - it can take a second or more, which is unacceptable for the flashing functionality. Even if the lights were on low beam, triggering the mechanical shutter for the high beam pattern still takes too long a time.

Because manufacturers want to keep this flashing functionality, they are currently unable to get rid of the halogens. IMO the only way to do that in the future is via LED lighting.

BK · 04-18-2007, 03:26 PM

I can't believe nobody has posted this link yet:
http://www.snopes.com/autos/law/strobe.asp

Claim: Flashing your car's high beams at a traffic signal will cause it to change from red to green more quickly.

Status: False.

brianlamar · 04-18-2007, 03:27 PM

If the headlights are already on and I push or pull the stalk the xenons flash regardless of which way the stalk is positioned.

adc · 04-18-2007, 03:32 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by brianlamar

If the headlights are already on and I push or pull the stalk the xenons flash regardless of which way the stalk is positioned.

Nope.

brianlamar · 04-18-2007, 03:34 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by adc

Nope.

Maybe I wasn't too clear in my post. I wasn't asking, I was stating that happens in my car.

kuthair · 04-18-2007, 03:37 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by adc

Nope.

This has been discussed ad nauseum

e90 != e92.

e90: pull stalk, halogen high beams come on.

e92: pull stalk, xenon high beams come on.

adc · 04-18-2007, 03:40 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by kuthair

This has been discussed ad nauseum

e90 != e92.

e90: pull stalk, halogen high beams come on.

e92: pull stalk, xenon high beams come on.

Well that would explain how come we can both be right.

I guess it's because I was only partially right.

I had just gone downstairs to the loaner E90 328xi I currently drive and it was working the way I'd described it. But never tried it on a Coupe...

SoYank · 04-18-2007, 03:43 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by KL2DC

Isn't the ground sensors feeding off weight and metallic content of vehicle?

It's a coil of wire embedded about four inches in the pavement. There is a small current passing through the coil that creates a magnetic field. As a vehicle passes over it, this magnetic field is disturbed by the metalic content of the vehicle. The electronics detects this disturbance and interprets it as a vehicle waiting. The coils are usually a car length away from the stop line because the vehicle has to be in motion for the magnetic field to be disturbed. If you don't cross it the light won't change as soon (it will eventually due to a timer). On one of my streets here if you flash your headlights when you're seven or eight car lengths away the signal will usually change before you even get to the sensor loop.

I had an alarm system on a previous car that had two glass vials with a pea-sized ball of mercury inside. Each vial was wrapped with a copper coil and they were oriented at 90° to each other. When the alarm was set, a small current was passed through the coil. If the car was jarred, the mercury would jiggle. Depending upon how much it jiggled the impedence of the coil changed. If the change was more than the sensitivity level of the alarm the alarm would activate. Works the same as the road sensors.

You might also have noticed that there are the cutouts in the middle of the lanes of some highways. These function the same way but are used for detecting traffic flow levels.

brianlamar · 04-18-2007, 03:47 PM

yeah so we were both right.... just about different cars

SoYank · 04-18-2007, 03:52 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BK

I can't believe nobody has posted this link yet:
http://www.snopes.com/autos/law/strobe.asp

Claim: Flashing your car's high beams at a traffic signal will cause it to change from red to green more quickly.

Status: False.

Then I must be one bloody lucky guy because whenever I go to work in the morning and come around the bend before the traffic light I sometimes see it changing red. If I flash my lights it will almost instantly cycle back for me. If I don't, I'll spend the next 45 seconds or so staring at a red light while not a single car will pass through my field of vision. If the light is green as I come around that corner and I flash the lights, the signal will stay green for me to go through the intersection. Having gone through that intersection almost daily for the past ten years, I'm pretty familiar with the timing at all hours of the day or night. Flashing the lights works too often for me to attribute it simply to timing.

HyperM3 · 04-18-2007, 03:52 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by kuthair

This has been discussed ad nauseum

e90 != e92.

e90: pull stalk, halogen high beams come on.

e92: pull stalk, xenon high beams come on.

Actually thats incorrect. Model level has a lot to do with it. My e90 is bi-xenon so halogens arent my high beams. You might want to rephrase it:

e90 335: pull stalk, halogen DRL's come on

04-18-2007, 10:43 AM	#1
HyperM3 Too many Alex's, from now on, call me Beaufort 342 Rep 6,188 Posts Drives: See Sig Join Date: Feb 2007 Location: Lawrenceville, NJ iTrader: (8)	Speaking of lights, did you notice? Ok, so I was at a red light the other night and did the light flashy thing to make it change(here in NJ a lot of lights have the sensors). So I noticed that when I was flashing, it seemed like it wasnt as bright as Id expected. Seemed more like only one light was working and I got nervous that a light was out already. When I got home I tested my lights against my garage door. You can clearly see the HID light of the regular lights. When you pull back on the turn stalk you use the "flash to pass" feature. Normally, this uses the brights. However, I noticed it wasnt an HID light(and I have bi-xenons). The "flash to pass" uses the DRL lights apparently. Then I pushed the stalk forward to turn the brights ON. Now you can clearly see two HID lamps on the garage. Anyway, I thought this was interesting that they used DRL's to flash so you dont blind people with HID flashes. __________________ 13 HD FatBob 17 A4 Glacier/Black 1st Edition/Pre+/Sport/EurocodeTMD/Racechip 16 S6 (gone),14 S6 (gone),14 S6 (gone),13 S6 (gone),10 S4 (gone) 07 335i(gone)
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04-18-2007, 10:45 AM	#2
KL2DC Moderator 318 Rep 17,767 Posts Drives: F36 428i,E90 328i, E85 Z4 3.0i Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: DC Metro iTrader: (23) Garage List 2015 F36 428i [0.00] 2011 E90 328i [0.00] 2006 E85 Z4 3.0i [0.00]	Wait you have flash-to-activate traffic stop lights in NJ? I think I missed something here...that's new to me. They use the halogens for the flash-to-pass as it takes less time to activate versus the xenons. It also limits wear on the xenons 'shutters' I suppose. __________________ Official DC Metro Registry - Current, New & Prospective Area Members Roll Call!
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04-18-2007, 11:31 AM	#4
E90Fleet Lieutenant General 1312 Rep 10,185 Posts Drives: BMW Join Date: Apr 2005 Location: South Africa iTrader: (0)	To "flash" the E90 uses the inner lights, which are halogens If it used the Xenons to "flash" it would blind people __________________ BMW if you are reading, I need a job, Please.
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04-18-2007, 02:11 PM	#9
BoostedBMW Moderator 132 Rep 6,775 Posts Drives: TiAg E92 335 Join Date: Oct 2006 Location: Raleigh, NC iTrader: (14) Garage List 2003 S2000 [0.00]	The E46 with Bi-Xenons was the same way. I always thought that it was done like that because when your headlights are off during the day, you need to be able to flash someone so it would use your halogens. If it were to use your xenons it would put a lot more wear on them from having them turn on and off every time you pulled the lever back a few times to flash someone. If you really want to blind someone, just push it forward. __________________ -Michael. Berlina Black S2000 CR is now in the garage l 19" Rial Daytona Race l KW V2 l Eisenhaus Race Exhaust l
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04-18-2007, 02:13 PM	#10
brianlamar Private First Class 8 Rep 196 Posts Drives: 2010 E92 335i Join Date: Feb 2007 Location: Los Angeles iTrader: (0)	I tested my e92 and flashed the lights in my garage and the xenons flash not the halogens. The halogens only work when i'm making a left or right turn, but they are never on at the same time unless i'm in reverse. __________________ Le Mans Blue 15% All-around Tint 335i Coupe - Fully Loaded with M-Sport package Light Grey Interior, Grey poplar, black headliner 194 19"Black powder coated polished.
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04-18-2007, 02:14 PM	#11
brianlamar Private First Class 8 Rep 196 Posts Drives: 2010 E92 335i Join Date: Feb 2007 Location: Los Angeles iTrader: (0)	Maybe if my lights were off and I tried to flash then it would flash the halogens. __________________ Le Mans Blue 15% All-around Tint 335i Coupe - Fully Loaded with M-Sport package Light Grey Interior, Grey poplar, black headliner 194 19"Black powder coated polished.
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04-18-2007, 03:26 PM	#13
BK Smiling politely 165 Rep 7,931 Posts Drives: 330i Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: Washington DC iTrader: (0) Garage List 2006 330i [9.00]	I can't believe nobody has posted this link yet: http://www.snopes.com/autos/law/strobe.asp Claim: Flashing your car's high beams at a traffic signal will cause it to change from red to green more quickly. Status: False. __________________ E90 330i Black Sapphire 6MT \| 991.1 C4 Platinum Silver 7MT
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04-18-2007, 03:27 PM	#14
brianlamar Private First Class 8 Rep 196 Posts Drives: 2010 E92 335i Join Date: Feb 2007 Location: Los Angeles iTrader: (0)	If the headlights are already on and I push or pull the stalk the xenons flash regardless of which way the stalk is positioned. __________________ Le Mans Blue 15% All-around Tint 335i Coupe - Fully Loaded with M-Sport package Light Grey Interior, Grey poplar, black headliner 194 19"Black powder coated polished.
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04-18-2007, 03:47 PM	#20
brianlamar Private First Class 8 Rep 196 Posts Drives: 2010 E92 335i Join Date: Feb 2007 Location: Los Angeles iTrader: (0)	yeah so we were both right.... just about different cars __________________ Le Mans Blue 15% All-around Tint 335i Coupe - Fully Loaded with M-Sport package Light Grey Interior, Grey poplar, black headliner 194 19"Black powder coated polished.
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