[Car Tips] How to Reduce Glare While Driving at Night

As a Hong Kong driver , I'll provide a detailed breakdown of "How to Reduce Nighttime Glare"—including its sources, why it's particularly severe in Hong Kong, methods for mitigating its effects, adjustments to vehicle settings and driving habits, and eye protection advice. After reading this, you'll feel more comfortable and secure driving at night.

1️⃣ What is glare and why is it dangerous?

Glare refers to strong light that enters the eyes directly or is reflected into the field of vision, causing the pupils to constrict and temporarily reducing visual sensitivity, resulting in blurred vision of road details and even "temporary blindness".

Hazardous impacts :

  • Sudden vision loss → It is easy to miss road signs, pedestrians, and bicycles
  • Misjudging the distance between vehicles
  • Eye fatigue accelerates, and long-term driving can easily lead to loss of focus

2️⃣ Why is glare so severe in Hong Kong at night?

2.1 Dense traffic + close-up lights

  • Hong Kong's roads are narrow and the distance between them is short, so oncoming headlights can easily glare directly into your eyes.
  • Some taxis and trucks have lights that are too bright or high

2.2 LED/HID White Light Popularization

  • Older halogen lamps have a color temperature of 3200K–3500K, which is yellowish.
  • 5000K-6000K LED/HID is popular now, the light is harsh and glare is strong
  • Some modified lights even exceed 6500K, which can cause great stimulation to the pupils.

2.3 Reflections on wet roads

  • Hong Kong is rainy in the summer, and the water on the ground reflects the light of car lights and street lights
  • The road near the sea is very humid, so the reflective area is larger.

2.4 Urban environment light sources are cluttered

  • Neon lights and LED billboards shine directly onto the road, and the light sources at night are multi-directional and chaotic.
  • Drivers' eyestrain accumulates quickly

3️⃣ Adjust driving habits to reduce glare

3.1 Keep the Eyes Flowing

  • Don't stare at strong light sources
  • When there are headlights coming from the opposite direction, you can briefly look towards the right shoulder or the edge of the dividing line for reference.

3.2 Maintain a safe following distance

  • The taillights of the car in front of you will become your bright spot reference. If you follow too close, the intensity of the light will be glaring.
  • Keep more distance to reduce brightness stimulation

3.3 Slow down to deal with strong light sections

  • In bright and reflective environments, reduce your speed to gain reaction time.

3.4 Use high and low beams appropriately

  • There are many street lights in Hong Kong's urban area, so there is no need to use high beams for a long time
  • If you encounter a car coming towards you or in front of you, you should turn to low beam immediately.

4️⃣ Improve glare in car settings (applicable in Hong Kong)

4.1 Adjusting the interior rearview mirror anti-glare mode

  • Traditional rearview mirrors have day/night settings (flip design to reduce direct light from rear lights)
  • Electrochromic rearview mirror (Auto-dimming mirror): Common in high-end private cars, it automatically dims when it senses strong light

4.2 Adjusting the angle of the exterior rearview mirror

  • Slightly tilt the mirror outward to reduce direct reflections to the eye while still maintaining field of view
  • Applying anti-glare blue mirror film can also help (pay attention to the quality to avoid distortion)

4.3 Cleaning the windshield

  • Dust/oil film on the inside of the glass will scatter when it encounters light at night → increasing glare
  • Hong Kong has high humidity and air conditioning is often on, so water and dust easily accumulate on the inside of the glass.
  • Use a glass cleaner to clean the inside and outside regularly (at least once every two weeks)

4.4 Cleaning and adjusting headlights

  • The yellowing of the headlight housing will scatter light, which can easily affect oncoming vehicles and reflect back into your own eyes.
  • Check the lighting angle regularly to ensure it is not too high (there are angle detection tools at Hong Kong inspection stations)

4.5 Windshield insulation paper selection

  • Low-reflective, low-haze thermal insulation film reduces scattering
  • Choose a front windshield film with a visible light transmittance of ≥ 70% (to comply with regulations and provide good night vision)

5️⃣ Equipment and accessories help (tested on Hong Kong streets)

5.1 Polarized Night Lenses (Yellow/Amber)

  • Helps reduce scattered light and reflections
  • Subjective comfort improved under Hong Kong's nighttime LED/HID white light environment
  • Note: Polarized glasses may affect the instrument backlight, so please try it out.

5.2 High-quality wiper and glass water repellent

  • Reduce windshield water marks and light refraction when it rains
  • Wiper blades are recommended to be replaced every 6–12 months in Hong Kong

5.3 Adjust the instrument lighting to a moderate level

  • Don't make it too bright to prevent pupil constriction and affect vision adaptation to dim environments.

6️⃣ Ways to protect your eyesight

  • Regular eye exams : Myopia and uncorrected astigmatism can exacerbate glare
  • Night driving glasses : choose anti-reflective coating lenses
  • Avoid long night driving : Hong Kong's cross-district traffic jams cause visual fatigue to accumulate quickly at night
  • Blinking breaks during driving : Alleviate dry eye symptoms (due to long-term air conditioning and high humidity fluctuations)

7️⃣ Three steps to practice night driving in Hong Kong

  1. Preparation before departure

    • Clean the windshield inside and out
    • Adjust the rearview mirror to the correct angle and enable the anti-glare mode
    • Adjust the instrument brightness to moderate

  2. Driving

    • When facing the light, look slightly toward the roadside guide line
    • Switch high and low beams at the right time to reduce glare to yourself and others
    • Keep following distance

  3. In strong light environment

    • Slow down to avoid responding to emergencies before your pupils have recovered
    • If necessary, block the bright light with your hands (do not completely block your view)

8️⃣ Editor’s Summary

The biggest challenge of night driving in Hong Kong is not the darkness, but the glare and reflections from the wet weather .
To reduce the impact of glare, you need to address four aspects : eyes → rearview camera → vehicle lights → driving habits .
Remember to clean the glass, adjust the rearview mirror properly, make good use of the anti-glare mode and keep your sight flowing. These are the secrets to long-term combating nighttime glare.

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