Are dual headlights safer?

tcham

From South Carolina
Joined
Jul 1, 2024
Messages
11
Ride
2022 Triumph Rocket 3 GT
So after about 6 months owning a rocket 3gt I’ve noticed that not once has anyone pulled out, or started to pull out in front of me. Seems to happen regularly on other bikes I’ve had. Could it be that the dual headlights are more visible to other drivers? Anyone else notice this or have I just been lucky so far?
 
I think overall just lucky. Better to think that way. Keep yourself on guard.

A couple of months ago experienced a crazy driver crossing my path without looking. I had a sense somehow, that the driver wasn't going to see me, and so I reduced my speed and sure enough she drove out across my lane and she never looked my way the whole time. If I hadn't already killed my speed as I approached the junction where the car was initially stopped, I wouldn't have been able to avoid impacting the side of the vehicle easily. Could have been my biking season over in a second.

If they don't even look, they won't see three headlights, let alone two.

Ride safe all.
 
Driving in Miami in my truck, cars keep pulling out in front of me like they are driving in Monaco grand prix.... I don't think they count how many headlights i have before doing that...
 
I’ve had the same scenario several times. If they don’t look and SEE you you are the one who needs to avoid.
 
Just tonight had a car pull out in front of me, they entering roadway from a parking lot. As I approached, I noted them just rolling to entry point, I on their right, quickly off throttle, where they just rolled on through and began to accelerate entering road. I braked, honked, they slammed on their brakes just before coming into my path, though I had room to full stop if needed. Parked cars, and many street lights didn't help their visibility. So. my headlights didn't appear to help. Main factor is observing, predicting, preparing, and reacting. Stay safe folks!
 
As the movie said, "Stupid is as stupid does".
Tis dependant on the luminous flux (lux or candle power measurements) and beam shape. Headlight power is similar to engine power - how fast do you wanna spend?
With power being equal, a larger illuminated surface area will be detected sooner. For example: One 7" headlight surface is 22 sq inches. Two 5.25" surfaces is 33 sq inches, so two 5.25s provide better illuminated surface area.
Obviously proper aiming and cleanliness are also factors.
For daytime riding, I prefer hi-beam use for maximum conspicuity. When approaching any intersectiom with left turning vehicles facing me, I slow enough to avoid as if the cage will turn into my path at any moment!
This is A MAJOR CAUSE OF MOTOR IMPACTS! IMPO
 
Oh, they usually see you (lane changes, obstructed view, and sun-low-and-to-your-back situations exempted). Hell, cagers pull out in front of big rigs. They just don't care or overestimate their skills or take an unnecessary gamble. But they aren't typically going to tell the police "I saw him and purposely cut him off" or "I saw him and made it his problem" or "my view was blocked so I decided to just shoot out across the lane" or "I didn't look". That would be admitting culpability, so instead they usually say they looked but didn't see you. Statistics that say you weren't visible and seen when they looked at you are predicated for the most part on the idea that at-fault parties don't lie. From my experience with multiple crashes in a variety of vehicles, they always lie. You should still ride as if you're invisible, nonetheless. It's also why I run a cam on all vehicles.

I was left-turned on a Tiger 1200, which had four lights burning (including fogs). Visibility was 100% (clear day, zero obstructions, etc.) The guy made up all kinds of stories. In one story he said he saw that I was stopped at my (green) light when he turned. In another story a kid ran out in front of him, so he had to stop. In another I was speeding. And, yes, his original story was he didn't see me. My footage proved each claim was a lie.
 
I was told that it was more dangerous to have two headlights on at the same time. Car drivers take a quick glance down the road and see two headlights together and associate this as a car being far away and not a bike close, so they pull out thinking they have plenty of time.
 
Regarding a vehicle left turn across your path, I doubt this is often so, because the headlight(s) illumination intensity increases exponentially as distance reduces. Most intersections are less than 100 feet wide and well within a driver's vehicle identification threshold distance, both at night and at dark. Signal controlled intersections will also have area lighting to help mitigate darkness and further imptove driver visibility.
In an intersection, motors are small narrow objects compared to cages and trucks. During the day drivers are frequently not considering them. Even the mandatory headlights on even during daylight produced little improvement.