Brake light indication in the car

[jadnashuanh]

One of my long-term bugaboos is people that use two feet on the pedals and ride the brakes. It's not good for them, and it makes trying to figure out what they're intending to do really difficult. I know commercial vehicles (at least some of them) have a dash light indication when the brakes are applied...I think that this would be good for many people in many vehicles, but also useful on our EV to know when the computer is turning it on. It should also start to drive people that ride the brakes to purge that habit from their psyche. It doesn't need to be a huge, bright thing, but an indication that something is going on like the high beam indication. IMHO, it doesn't have to be distracting if implemented well, but would be informative.

 

[Seasidenj]

Totally agree with that idea!

 

[CharonPDX]

One problem with that in the i3 is that just letting up on the accelerator pedal causes the brake light to come on. That light would come on all the stinkin' time.

 

[jadnashuanh]

One problem with that in the i3 is that just letting up on the accelerator pedal causes the brake light to come on. That light would come on all the stinkin' time.

I don't see that as a problem. I think it would be useful to see when the car actually turns the brake lights on.

 

[CanisLupus]

With electric cars , can they be engineered such that : if the brake pedal is depressed then no propulsion can be applied from the motor . Are our i3 s already engineered that way ? The motor can't be a motor and a generator simultaneously but depressed far enough , the friction brakes would still function . We can test what our cars will do .

 

[rtanov]

The brake lights during regenerative braking come on when the charge indicator reaches around the letter "C" in "Charge" - you can use that as an indicator, and you can see it in this video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JXJPf7Lv8Sw&
This was an early 2014 model, not sure if much has changed since.

BTW, the Tesla Model 3 has a picture of the car on the dash - whenever the brake lights come on the picture also flashes its brake lights.

 

[jadnashuanh]

My desire for this 'feature' to become common is twofold:
- on something like the i3 with significant regen, it would be nice to know when the car turned the brake lights on
- for those that tend to drive 2-footed, they often end up activating the brake lights even when they aren't aware of it which causes excessive brake wear and really confounds anyone who is following about what they are trying to do.

So, some indication they are on, similar to the headlight and high beam indication, seems like a good idea to me.

 

[Anonymous]

I'm with Jim, some sort of indicator light that lets you know when the brake lights are being activated is needed. I like the Tesla idea of the visual car, which lets you know the status of any lights, or could be as simple as having the charge indicator light/square that slides back and forth on the charge/use gauge turn red when the brake lights are activated.

 

[TheMK]

There is a light in the KOMBI that says "BRAKE"- It's red however and supposed to be an error light. If it were multicolored like some of the other KOMBI lights, it could be green/yellow/orange for tapping on the brakes, and then red for the error condition it currently serves.

 

[i3Houston]

I would also suggest that Brake lights stay ON if the car has come to stop without using brake pedal.

This is a huge problem that i3 creates for other drivers at traffic lights, its a chore to press the brake pedal after coming to complete stop(regen) to ensure that others can see i3.

 

[jadnashuanh]

I would also suggest that Brake lights stay ON if the car has come to stop without using brake pedal.

This is a huge problem that i3 creates for other drivers at traffic lights, its a chore to press the brake pedal after coming to complete stop(regen) to ensure that others can see i3.

I've heard this argument before, but I've heard from people in England that it is considered really bad form to sit at a stop or light with your foot on the brakes...they're taught to use the parking brake. The high intensity glare from the parking brakes is distracting to people behind you. IMHO, people just need to actually take driving as their first task, not talking on the phone, sending text messages, or doing their makeup, for example.

Just a few minutes ago, almost got hit by a guy that just ran a stop sign at speed without slowing...luckily, I was able to slow to let him pass, but that could have been deadly. A second either way, and we both could have been toast where I hit him, or he hit me.

My goal with this is to alert the driver that the brakes are actually lit, but more specifically, to alert those people that drive with two feet and don't realize that they're not hovering over the brake, but resting on it preventing everyone behind from knowing what they're actually doing!

I don't know if the i3 does it, but my other BMW will pop up the car diagram to show you where a light is not working, but does nothing if they are all functioning as intended. I expect that the i3 can sense and display that, but haven't experienced it.

 

[i3Houston]

Glad you are safe!! I hate that people use phone while they are driving. I think using phone should be banned if the car is in motion.

Distracted driving the only reason for my ask to keep brake lights turned on; when i see car approaching too fast while waiting at traffic light, I pump the brake so that it makes i3 more visible.

 

[alohart]

Distracted driving the only reason for my ask to keep brake lights turned on; when i see car approaching too fast while waiting at traffic light, I pump the brake so that it makes i3 more visible.

That's what I do. This is preferable to keeping the bright brake lights on at night which could dazzle the vision of the driver behind.

 

[i3Houston]

I think the problem with i3 is that unlike GAS cars that have brake lights ON when stopped, i3s' stay off making i3 'relatively' less visible.

 

[alohart]

I think the problem with i3 is that unlike GAS cars that have brake lights ON when stopped, i3s' stay off making i3 'relatively' less visible.

I don't consider the i3's behavior to be problematic at all. The driver is in full control of the brake lights, so if a vehicle that is approaching from behind is a concern, an i3 driver could just press the brake pedal to flash the brake lights. This does require glancing at the rear view mirror while stopped, but that's just a good practice that every driver should adopt.

The brake lights remain on in ICE vehicles only if the driver continues pressing the brake pedal. I think it's rude to blind the driver behind at night, so when I drove our former manual transmission ICE vehicle, I would use the parking brake if necessary to prevent our car from rolling. If the driver behind has poor night vision, dazzling his vision with one's brake lights could cause dangerous temporary vision problems.

 

[jadnashuanh]

Manual transmission car drivers tend to probably use the parking brake more often than automatic transmissioned vehicles. Most auto transmissions are designed with some creep in them, so if you don't do one or the other, you'll just keep moving. Finding a manual transmission in a car is getting harder and harder...they won't be around all that many more years.

The i3 doesn't roll backwards, but can roll forwards if there's a downward slope. I tend to use the parking brake even on my i3. My GT has a mode called auto brake hold which, once you come to a full stop, puts the brakes on. Both of those vehicles will release the parking brake if you're wearing your seatbelt when you step on the gas. I wish they'd carried the auto brake hold over to the i3, but without the creep, it isn't as big a deal. If you live on the flatlands, you may never notice the omission.

Again, my wish for the idiot light is for those jerks that ride the brake unknowingly, frustrating all who are behind them. From a maintenance issue, it wears the brakes out much sooner if you do ride them, and, they may not be available when needed at full capacity because they could be overheated for an emergency stop if that time ever comes. If a bulb was out, it could also flash. The i3 probably has a display for that situation, but I've not experienced it or looked in the manual to see if it is there.

Unfortunately, too many drivers in the USA have no clue, so even an idiot light may not alert them, but it should be easy to implement without any incremental costs if it's designed in. Most would, after awhile, realize that the light comes on when they intentionally press the brake, and then realize their foot may be on it while driving.

The written test is a joke as is the skill test in the USA. Then, take into account the entitled attitude that discounts any courtesy (there are exceptions, but you tend to have to get away from the coasts to find them very often!), and I think it's that a lot of people just don't care about others.

 

[i3Houston]

So there are two separate points, first, Brake lights blind the person behind so they should not be used at complete stop. Second, every other car has brake light ON except i3(unless driver presses the brake) making i3 less visible to any cars behind.

I am concerned about the second point.

 

[alohart]

Brake lights blind the person behind so they should not be used at complete stop. Second, every other car has brake light ON except i3(unless driver presses the brake) making i3 less visible to any cars behind.

If no vehicle is stopped behind and a vehicle is approaching from behind, just tap the brake pedal a few times to flash the brake lights. Otherwise, there's no reason to press the brake pedal while stopped. If stopped on a decline, set the parking brake to prevent rolling forward. The parking brake will automatically release when the power pedal is pressed. Easy-peasy…

 

[i3Houston]

If stopped on a decline, set the parking brake to prevent rolling forward. The parking brake will automatically release when the power pedal is pressed. Easy-peasy…

This is helpful, thank you!