General Motors Corp. said on Dec. 20 it has asked the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) to require daytime headlights on new cars and trucks sold in the United States. The world's largest auto manufacturer, which already installs daytime running lamps (DRLs) on all its vehicles, said studies show that the lights reduce the number of daytime, multi-vehicle, front-end collisions by at least five percent. A study published by NHTSA found a 28 percent drop in fatal collisions with pedestrians, according to GM. DRLs of various configurations are already required in Canada, Sweden, Norway, Finland, Hungary and Denmark. They are also standard equipment on all Toyota, Mercedes, Saab, Subaru, Isuzu, Suzuki, Volkswagen, Volvo and BMW models sold in the United States. "It should not be cumbersome to adopt that technology used in Canada throughout North America," said Robert Lange, in charge of safety at GM. According to Lange, daytime running lights usually cost between $20 and $40 to install. A NHTSA spokeswoman said it would give GM's request careful consideration and respond within 120 days, as it is required to do. Some groups and auto manufacturers oppose daytime lights, saying they cause disorienting glare and their effectiveness is questionable. Ford Motor Co., which offers DRLs as standard equipment on its Volvo vehicles but not on its other cars and trucks, said it would leave it up to GM and NHTSA to decide the merits of the lights. A Honda Motor Co. spokesman said many Honda customers were opposed to the daytime lights.