Do the police not bother...

[Le Mans Visitor]

.... pulling cars over with faulty lights anymore?

Not sure if it's just me but I have noticed a massive increase in the number of one eyed monsters on the road in the last 6 months.

I used to give a quick flash to them but it now seems to be every 5th car I see has a bulb out.

Opinions?

[Durzel]

Le Mans Visitor said:

I used to give a quick flash to them but it now seems to be every 5th car I see has a bulb out.

Maybe that's why..

Of course, if they did pull people over for this - at the cost of dealing with something else more pressing - that would be wrong too.

If they genuinely did pull over everyone with a light out they'd never do anything else. As you say it's commonplace.

[Jasandjules]

It doesn't seem like it. Nor MLMs despite the promises, judging by how many of the f**its are on the roads. Nor driving like tw*ts for that matter. But then do you ever see the police on the roads at all?

[Turn7]

Trouble is a bulb change has become a massive PITA due to ever decreasing accessability to the lamp holder. Even the pro Techs can take 10/15 inutes to change a bulb -and on some cars that means headlight out FFS.

[grimmac]

Must say seeing a police car on the road is a pretty rare event for me these days... Seeing one that's actually pulled someone over (for whatever reason) rarer still.

The fact that you're unlikely to get pulled for it, and that so many vehicles are being driven with defective lights seems to legitimise it.

I was told by my manager (of popular supermarket home delivery department) that it was OK to take a van out (at night) with lights out as "if you do get stopped... you get 24 hours to fix it anyway".

Wrong in so many ways...

[anonymous-user]

grimmac said:

I was told by my manager (of popular supermarket home delivery department) that it was OK to take a van out (at night) with lights out as "if you do get stopped... you get 24 hours to fix it anyway".

Wrong in so many ways...

So you refused to take it out ?,

[Mk3Spitfire]

Damned if they do....

[grimmac]

speedyguy said:

So you refused to take it out ?,

Correct.

Made them reload it all onto one that was only missing a brake light. Which I changed while they were doing the heavy stuff.

[Bigends]

Used to be bread and butter work years back - if nothing else was going on pull a few over for dud lights. Every Autumn when the clocks changed we'd have a publicised force wide lighting campaign stopping and processing everything with lights out.
That was then though!

[daytona365]

It would help if the bulbs you're forced to buy now lasted for more than a couple of days, it would also help if you didn't have to be a F1 technician to change them on many modern junk, sorry cars.

[Le Mans Visitor]

Do they have this issue on the continent? I ask because it is mandatory to carry a spare bulb kit.

[ging84]

not this again, a few dozen more or less out of the many many thosands of cars most most of us will pass on a monthly basis, doesn't make for a patern

want to know why you've seen more over the last 6 months
more people have had their lights on because it's winter / autumn

[Le Mans Visitor]

ging84 said:

not this again, a few dozen more or less out of the many many thosands of cars most most of us will pass on a monthly basis, doesn't make for a patern

want to know why you've seen more over the last 6 months
more people have had their lights on because it's winter / autumn

Just for the record I work various shifts and as an electrical security engineer. I travel all over the south of England And have done in excess of 50k in 18 months. This thread isn't a scathe on the police just a fact I have noticed an increase in one eyed cars on the road.

I guess in the long term the LED light technology sort this out as they are longer lasting.

[Mk3Spitfire]

Le Mans Visitor said:

I guess in the long term the LED light technology sort this out as they are longer lasting.

And substantially more expensive to fix, as I found out a week after buying my car. No more £2.50 Halfrauds fix...full light cluster....epic.

[btcc123]

There are less police about on the roads these days especially when its dark.

I agree that on the older cars you can change a bulb in a few minutes but the newer ones can be a nightmare and need the dealers to do them but thats not a good excuse for not having them all working as they should.

I am surprised the speed cameras are not adapted or have the technology to spot a vehicle that should have two lights showing but only one working as we all know the councils or whoever get the money like to take our money.

[rambo19]

People parked on zigzags as well.
I see the police drive past these people all the time.

[Baryonyx]

You'd be lucky to see an officer doing anything other than driving from an urgent job to urgent job the days. And that's just the ones that leave the station.

[Nickyboy]

Turn7 said:

Trouble is a bulb change has become a massive PITA due to ever decreasing accessability to the lamp holder. Even the pro Techs can take 10/15 inutes to change a bulb -and on some cars that means headlight out FFS.

This

Bumper drop and headlight out for a sidelight on my Vectra, headlight just as bad

[Greendubber]

Its because of the cuts, don't listen to Dave and Theresa there have been huge cuts to front line policing and simply there are less officers out and about.

Our traffic debt is a shadow of its former self and the shift don't get time for a piss between jobs let alone the chance to pull a few ropey motors due to it being half as big as it used to be.

[Mr E]

Nickyboy said:

This

Bumper drop and headlight out for a sidelight on my Vectra, headlight just as bad

Which makes me wonder about the point of being required to carry spares on the continent. I can't change any of the bulbs at the roadside....