Dim dash lights revisited

Got it out, no change but I can't find one anywhere

 

The display you see is reflected from a relatively horizontal window below it. Dust and other things collect down there and gently obscure the screen overtime. I had the same problem before I discovered it and then a soft cloth and a bit of spray cleared things up. Simple and amazing.

 

What keeps dust out of the area which includes the actual display and the first mirror?

This shows how old I am, but that diagram immediately reminded me of this wonder of optical engineering:

 

The clear window you see the projection passing through on its way to the smoked acrylic plate.

That clear window itself, however, does tend to become less clear with whatever dust or gloop gets onto it from the top of the dash.

 

You mean the same sticky residue that ends up on the inside of the windows? Not sure how one would go about cleaning that off of a plastic surface.

Yesterday after seeing your post I wiped that acrylic window with a slightly damp dust cloth. It must have been quite clean already, as there was no smudge on the cloth afterwards, and I couldn't see any difference in the display. It wasn't a problem to start with, but since I wear sunglasses whenever I drive (during the day) it has always been a little too dim. At night it is bright enough.

 

Well, it's a horizontal window recessed into a lowered area of the dash top. Depending on who or what you typically carry in your car—and how old and/or tidy they are—any kind of stuff that gets on top of the dash and moves downhill can end up there.

 

My son has a dog which sheds quite a lot. While the dog has never been in the Prius its hair hitches a ride in on our clothes and I have to vacuum regularly to keep it from building up in the car. Somewhat surprisingly, when I replaced the battery last week there wasn't any dog hair in the pack fan (or in the battery). These hairs do show up on the dash but when all the display surfaces were wiped off I didn't see any hairs from there. My best guess is that the hair sticks tightly to the first surface it hits because of static electricity, and so it has all been filtered out by that mechanism before it can get to the fan inlet or the clear parts of the display.

 

My son's dog sheds a lot. While the dog has never been in the Prius its hair hitches a ride in on our clothes and the car must be vacuumed regularly to keep it from building up. Somewhat surprisingly, when I replaced the pack last week there wasn't any dog hair in the pack fan (or in the battery). These hairs do show up on the dash but when all the display surfaces were wiped off I didn't see any hairs from there. My best guess is that the hair sticks tightly to the first surface it hits because of static electricity, and so it has all been filtered out by that mechanism before it can get to the fan inlet or the clear parts of the display.