I dunno, it sounds a lot like fearmongering. I'm not sure that this problem is as big as the writer makes it out to be. I for one have never seen a car with just its LEDs on. Ever.

I don't get that only the DLR's come on if it's dark out. My wife's car is from 2006, and the primary headlights come on automatically if the light outside the vehicle is low enough (often dusk will do it). In fact, unless you turn the car off, the lights can't be deactivated until the sun or an equivalent source of light is introduced.

I believe the dash lights work on the same principle. However, some other parts of the dash only light up when you activate the headlight switch. I think the main dash lights get a little brighter, too. Wouldn't this solve the problem?

Did drivers get upset that they weren't being allowed to choose to have their lights off and car makers changed how they worked?

Well, night time surveillance/stalking is a bit harder when your damned lights automatically come on, especially in winter when you want to keep the engine running for heat. Not that I have any personal experience with that, of course.

I keep mine on all the time. Take a look on a bright day when there are strips of hard shade across the road, or gray days where even if it's not raining everything shifts more towards a dull monotone, and it makes a HUGE difference in a car's visibility.

My car is from 2002 and it does the same thing with the lights.

More than once I've come upon a driver at night that had no tail lights on, and as I passed them I saw they were happily driving with their DRL guiding their way.

Yes, I see this all the time. Why don't they just put some yellow DRLs on the back end? It can be especially dangerous on crowded highways when someone not only doesn't have their full lights on, but they then decide to change lanes in front of you without signaling.

Again, is that a "feature?" Other cars automatically turn on the headlights when the sun goes down, so is having these controls made to be manually operated something the elite want in their cars?

Is there a reason why headlights don't have an automatic setting for turning on when you're driving in poorly lit conditions? All this space-age technology in our cars, and my nephew's nightlight is more advanced.