A break light that is pressure sensitive. The harder you press the more red it gets.
Posted by Soft_Cranberry6313@reddit | CrazyIdeas | View on Reddit | 14 comments
This would let you know exactly how hard to brake and how soon to start. The lights would go from yellow to orange to red depending on how hard your are braking either by pressure in the pedal, or the deceleration of the car. Alternatively, there could just be a large light bar across the back where it lights up starting in the middle and spreading outwards depending on how hard you are breaking.
This way, cars behind you will know exactly how much brake to apply at any given speed.
maverickzero_@reddit
I don't really need to give anyone behind me an excuse to brake less and follow closer.
Ok_Rip_5960@reddit
Slamming the breaks at over 60mph shoots lasers out the back
Appropriate_Rock1278@reddit
Kind of the same idea but I always thought that your brake light should turn green when you're pressing on the accelerator that way idiots behind you know when you're coasting or not.
YesterShill@reddit
I just wish they would get rid of the ones that flash rapidly every time. Flashing your brakes indicates more than you slowing down. It indicates a road hazard ahead.
Having brake lights flash for standard breaking just takes away a good tool that has been used by drivers for decades.
Soft_Cranberry6313@reddit (OP)
I agree. Idk about where u live but here even for a drop of rain ppl insist on driving with their hazards on
faz712@reddit
A lot of cars have done this for years
ScaryTerry51@reddit
I'll just put an LED with a meter/gauge on the back of my car instead, green for accelerating, yellow for coasting, red for braking.
dr_wtf@reddit
Is that a real thing? Because I was just going to let OP know that those definitely exist for brakes. Used to see them quite often about 15 years ago, but haven't seen one for a while.
ScaryTerry51@reddit
I'm not sure if what I said exists, but if it doesn't it probably wouldn't be that hard to get a basic form of it working (different colors for different statuses), pressure sensitivity might be more of a pain.
Regardless I don't think I'd be comfortable poking around the electronics that literally control my ability to control the car so I am too much of a coward to try it.
All tail lights that are also brake lights should get brighter when the brakes are depressed, but not progressively like the OP said. There are now a lot of brake lights that flash when the driver first starts braking and then holds bright and solid thereafter.
dr_wtf@reddit
Red ones for brakes definitely exist. The other colours might be illegal in some places.
The ones I've seen are a bar of LEDs that lights from the middle out, but don't go all the way if the driver is just covering the brake pedal. Not sure how they handle the pressure sensitivity part of it. I think it was just Audis that I saw them on, so they might have been built in by the manufacturer on some models.
ScaryTerry51@reddit
Oh, I know for a fact that certain color lights are illegal in my state, and most cars brake electronically now so they do know how hard you're pressing the pedal. I mean more that if the car isn't manufactured with a device like what you mentioned for the Audi, I'm not taking the chance of breaking my brakes (ha) by fiddling with them.
I haven't seen that bar but I do think it's interesting, and come to think of it I think there are brake lights that have a softer brightness for barely braking and a harsh brightness for heavy
Aniso3d@reddit
Yes, or people could just stop tailgating
XROOR@reddit
Ram Promaster City(like the transit connect) flashes the brake lights really fast if you stomp on the brake
balki42069@reddit
How about after red it goes to white and explodes? Would really make commuting more interesting and add some teeth to driving.