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Headlights

Discussion in 'Gen 2 Prius Technical Discussion' started by jdoom38, Apr 4, 2010.

  1. jdoom38

    jdoom38 New Member

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    texas
    Vehicle:
    2006 Prius
    Model:
    V
    I just bought my first prius this week and am loving it. It rides great and I see why so many people drink the "kool-aid".

    I do have two questions that probably have been addressed already however I have not found them on the forums:

    1) Is there a way to set the instrument panel to automatically dim at night? The speedometer panel reflects onto the windshield at night which is annoying. I manually turn the panel lights to minimum at night to stop the glare. The odd part is that the GPS recognizes that it is night and dims. According the users manual if you keep the lights in the 2nd position the panel is supposed to be bright during the day and automatically dim as the sensor on the dash senses dark. Am I doing something incorrect?

    2) There are 2-3 types of rubber floor mats. Which do you recommend and where is the best place to buy them?

    Beyond my first question I look forward to driving my Prius and participating in this forum.

    Thank you for your input.
     
    #1 jdoom38, Apr 4, 2010
  2. Patrick Wong

    Patrick Wong DIY Enthusiast

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    1) The instrument panel lights are supposed to dim when the light switch is on, as long as the rotary switch that adjusts instrument panel light brightness is not set to full brightness, at the detent.

    2) I believe that Toyota has stopped selling the black rubber all-weather mats because of the pending accelerator pedal recall. Therefore you'll probably have to buy a set of aftermarket mats if you want some now. I have the Toyota-brand mats for my 2004 and they are great.
     
    #2 Patrick Wong, Apr 4, 2010
  3. jdoom38

    jdoom38 New Member

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    2006 Prius
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    V
    thank you fro the quick reply. regarding the lights, when you say the light switch is on, do you mean the the 2nd or 3rd position? Does this work with lights on the automatic setting too? I have not figured it out, quite frustrating.

    thanks again
     
    #3 jdoom38, Apr 4, 2010
  4. owl1966

    owl1966 New Member

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    n.tonawanda ny
    Vehicle:
    2010 Prius
    Model:
    III
    i got black all weather rubber mats from weathertech ,they fit and look great
     
    #4 owl1966, Apr 4, 2010
  5. Patrick Wong

    Patrick Wong DIY Enthusiast

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    My headlight switch has three positions:

    1. Off
    2. All exterior lights except headlights
    3. All lights from #2 plus headlights

    I mean both 2 and 3. Not sure what you mean by "automatic" setting.
     
    #5 Patrick Wong, Apr 4, 2010
  6. BAllanJ

    BAllanJ Active Member

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    Vehicle:
    2017 Prius
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    Two
    I think the rubber mats sold by Toyota Canada are not a problem... at least I remember something like that in their letter (they just said that sometime in future they may trim my pedal anyway but i can still use either but not both sets of mats). So maybe you could get some Canadian dealer to ship a set to you.
     
    #6 BAllanJ, Apr 4, 2010
  7. Hytec

    Hytec New Member

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    Vehicle:
    2005 Prius
    Apparently some Gen II Prii have a fourth position, "Automatic", on the light switch stalk. This position is shown on page 102 of the '05 Owner's Manual, although my '05 does not have it. Since you are using the term "Automatic", you may have the four position switch which should be covered in your Manual, along with the Panel Dimmer control. In either case, the Panel Dimmer control should work as Patrick describe it as long as the control is not rotated fully bright all the way into the dentent position.
     
    #7 Hytec, Apr 5, 2010
  8. deeno

    deeno Junior Member

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    Vehicle:
    2008 Prius
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    I actually test drove an '06 that did this too. When the headlights (HID) were turned on, the speedo etc did not dim. I didn't really pay attention to the MFD at the time so I couldn't say if it dimmed or not. The owner said that Toyota retrofitted the HID lights so I assumed they botched the install somehow. Not sure if she knew what she was talking about though now that I think back on it as the car had smartkey and the JBL / CD changer...

    [edit] oh nevermind I just re-read Patrick's post. Didn't know that if the brightness adjuster was rotated to full bright that they would stay that way when the lights are turned on
     
    #8 deeno, Apr 5, 2010
  9. fgoodyear

    fgoodyear New Member

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    American model Prius's do not have an automatic option, I wanted one , nope not available. Should off, parking lights, headlights, and if you have fogs, separate switch on same stalk. Dimmer wheel is on lower dash to left of steering wheel. Should be able to turn dash lights completely off with the dimmer.
     
    #9 fgoodyear, Apr 6, 2010
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