Do you take steps to boost visibility during winter months?
Posted by Richard Sinclair
With winter well and truly on its way, the sun is dipping lower in the sky, and no doubt you have noticed that visibility is restricted by the dazzle of the sun.
The problem of a low sun can generally be dealt with by simply lowering the visor in the car, however sometimes other measures are necessary, and the Institute of Advanced Motorists Drive & Survive head of training Simon Elstow, has offered motorists some tips.
A simple way of reducing dazzle is to keep a pair of sunglasses in the car at all times, and while you may look silly wearing sunglasses as the temperatures drop, it will make seeing where you are much easier.
If you can't see due to the sun, there is no point in continuing as you would in perfect conditions, so slow down and keep an eye on the cars behind you, in case they can't see you against the sun.
Even if the sun isn't in your eyes while driving, it may be in the eyes of those coming towards you, so always stay alert and be aware that they may not be able to see you against the backdrop of the sun.
Low sun highlights scratches and grime, so it is crucial to keep your washer bottles topped up with a good quality screenwash and change your windscreen wipers every year.
Mr Elstow said: "Dirty windscreens make it even more difficult for drivers to see in the low sun we get every morning and late afternoon in the winter months. Your heater is often on demist, blowing traffic fumes, suspended oil and smoke onto the inside of the screen which quickly builds to a film of grime which is a major cause of glare. Clean your screen inside and out, with glass cleaner at least once a week."
This is a problem I constantly encounter. When the evening sun is so low that it arrives below the sun visor, and when the use of sun glasses creates its own dangers by restricting your vision by obscuring darker objects (cyslists and dashboard) there is another unfortunate hazard ignored by car manufacturers, that of reflection off the shiny car bonnet. It may not be very attractive to have a matt finish on a bonnet but it would help enormously under these conditions. Is there a temporary blanket to fit to fix this?
I’ve never seen such a product – only badly hand painted cars! I don’t get this on my car, but it’s going to depend on the bonnet design.
Worse still for spectacle wearers as glasses can add to the glare you get. In fact I sometimes take mine off in these conditions (my distance vision meets Highway Code requirements).
I have seen that yellow tinted sunglasses work best for driving.
Bonnet glare? It used to be fashionable for boy racers to fit a kind of black plastic apron over the front of the car but I haven’t seen one for many years.
If glare for you is a problem, have a look here: Vision Enhancers Tinted UV Filters They have glasses, overglasses and clip-ons designed to reduce glare.