One of the most common complaints drivers have these days is that car headlights are too bright. According to a study conducted by the U.S. Department of Transportation, a whopping 88% of drivers have noticed headlight glare, and about 31% of them described it as “disturbing.”
The study also revealed that one out of every 100 drivers claimed that glare actually caused them to have a crash or a near miss.
How did the headlights get so bright? Back in the ‘80s and ‘90s, headlights were made with halogen bulbs with a softer, warm yellow light. These days they’re made with LEDs that last longer but are much whiter and brighter.
Did you know that a button on your rearview mirror can tone down the headlight glare? Many people were blown away when TikTokker EverythingBrooklyn shared the simple tip on TikTok. Since being posted in March, it has received over 2 million views.
@everythingbrooklyn my boyfriend is a genius. who knew! #fyp #todayyearsold #foryou #rearviewmirror
“I didn’t know about this either until a few weeks ago, and my life has been changed ever since,” Nat wrote. “I LOVE YOU AND SO DOES MY ASTIGMATISM,” Kaitlin Carroll added.
The text of the video read: “Me flipping the rearview mirror tab so the headlights don’t blind me.”
A Mazda dealership explained the button’s function: “When auto-dimming is turned on, your rearview mirror will automatically darken to reduce headlight glare,” Capistrano Mazda confirmed.
Good news for all of you who can’t stand being dazzled by blinding headlines, the federal government has recently approved Adaptive Driving Beam headlights which shine more light onto the road instead of into your rearview window. But until they’re widely adopted, you can use this hack to keep yourself from being blinded by fellow drivers.