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LED DRL in empty turn signal space

Discussion in 'Prius v Accessories and Modifications' started by Lexcyn, Mar 23, 2016.

  1. Lexcyn

    Lexcyn Junior Member

    Joined:
    Dec 6, 2007
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    Location:
    Ontario, Canada
    Vehicle:
    2012 Prius v wagon
    Model:
    Five
    Hi all. So I had to replace one of my turn signals a while ago and noticed that only half of the housing is used for the actual turn signal, the rest is empty space. From what I've read, in the EU/Japan this is used for an LED DRL.

    Has anyone modded LED DRL's into this extra space? I was thinking of doing it to replace the halogen DRL's I currently have (Canadian model) but I am not sure how to disable the halogen DRL and replace with LED.

    Any suggestions would be a great help! :)
     
  2. Offline

    Offline Active Member

    Joined:
    Sep 3, 2012
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    Location:
    Lenexa, Kansas
    Vehicle:
    2012 Prius v wagon
    Model:
    Five
    I looked into doing that after we bought our US spec 2012 Prius v and finally found out that it didn't have high-beam based DRL like the dealer salesman said it did. I didn't think it was practical to add LED's to the turn signal housings but I didn't investigate doing it all that much.

    I though about buying and installing the EU turn signal DRL modules per post #19 in the following thread: Explanation why Prius v did not have DRLs | PriusChat He said he did it for $200 or so.

    I decided instead to instead convert the front turn signals to DRL per post #18 in the thread and the link in my signature below.

    Per post #19, he used one or more automotive relays which would have been what I would have done. A relay could be used to light the DRL's only when the headlights are off and another couple of relays could be used to turn each DRL off when the turn signal is being used so that the turn signal would be more visible.

    It might be possible to turn off the existing high beam DRL via Techstream / scan tool like one of my Internet car buddies did on a U.S. spec Toyota Sienna since high beam DRL is not permitted in Germany.

    Personally, I'd leave well enough alone. High beam based DRL isn't the best idea and not even allowed in Europe but it is still probably effective enough. I would have loved to have had high beam based DRL on our 2012 Prius v like the Canadian 2012 Prius v got!

    The DRL kit I installed on our Prius v works very well and I think its turn signals function as DRL about as well as the EU LED DRL. They are bright and the original turn signal bulbs are still going strong with the additional use. Several Canadians on this forum used the same Webelectric DRL kit when importing US spec Prius v.
     
  3. Lexcyn

    Lexcyn Junior Member

    Joined:
    Dec 6, 2007
    38
    8
    0
    Location:
    Ontario, Canada
    Vehicle:
    2012 Prius v wagon
    Model:
    Five
    Thanks for that, I was looking for the part numbers of the OEM parts. Currently I swapped the halogen DRL's (high beams) with LED bulbs, which look nice but I am more a fan of the OEM look.

    Now I just need to find an EU Toyota parts reseller.