LED daytime running lights
 

It seems the DRL on the SA cars are not working as they should.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v1...n/photo-50.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v1...n/photo-51.jpg

According to the manual(above) and everything else I've read they're supposed to light up when the car is switched on and moving with the handbrake down. Mine is only on when the headlights are switched on, or in parking light mode. They also don't come on when in Auto mode during the day.

I've emailed Toyota customer care about this but I'm still waiting for a reply. I've also asked a dealer who said they would investigate but the guy came back to me and tried convincing me those are not DRL.

So now, what can we do?

Yeah. Noticed that too. I expected them to be on during the day while in Auto mode but the only way I can turn them on is by manually switching them on. So every morning and evening I toggle between Headlights/Running lights. Auto seems like a waste since it only activates when it's dark but doesn't switch on DRL when it's light out. pity.

Not sure what to do about it though. All i can say is that it's not only yours that does it.

Exactly and it seems like all the SA ones are like that. I could accept it if that's the way they wanted them to be but the manual clearly states that they're supposed to work differently.

thanks, i've also been wondering about that. Given that i have a dark car, i would actually prefer to have the DRL on. For now i switch on the parking lights, but it's starting to annoy me.
If anyone gets an answer on this or figures out a way how to wire it differently, pls share...

Same here, I want auto lights and I want them to work as they should.

I don't think it's a wiring thing as the lights are controlled by an ECU. (not the engine ECU btw). There has been a recall in the States with regards to DRL but that was because people wanted them switched off.

My understanding is that the DRL is not customizable and the replacement ECU allows the dealer to switch them on and off. This might also apply to us actually because from what I've been told by a dealer is that the DRL can't be customized on our cars...new ECU would solve that problem.

@ZakD : could you shed some light (pun intended) on this ?

I have a connection, I will try and find out what I can.

Thanks!

Response from Toyota:

so basically f u, u guys don't get them, go bye bye now

Running lights / Parking lights. I'm pretty sure it's the exact same part. It's just programmed to be always on in Europe and off here in SA. I very much doubt that the headlight units themselves are any different. Nevertheless, I'll just have to keep switching between park and on mode everyday, i guess. sigh.

Yep, same part but the ECU is probably programmed differently. The dealer wasn't able to help.

Isn't that always the case...

Guess so. They could apparently not find any customizable settings for it. Let's hope it's just a software issue on their side.

Found this on the Toyota SA website:
http://www.toyota.co.za/VehicleHighl...cleModelId=221

So that's the end of the line for the DRM then I guess...

They sneaked it in after your complaints :)

Oh well, it sucks but what can you do?

suck in your gut

Snip the wire going to the cutout relay. There is a diagram in the DIY forum

was thinking of this too. since I want it as an "Always On" type thing, I'm sure some wiring bypass could have it sorted. Although I'm probably not the best person to do it:bonk:

Guess I'll rather just stick to toggling the switch between on and park forever and ever.

I'm sure that could have warranty implications?

i struggle to find that post, can you pls link to it?

Damn, I saw this a long time ago. Now there are so many threads, that I can no longer find it. I will keep looking and post when I find it.

Here u go.......
http://www.ft86club.com/forums/showthread.php?t=17236

Service bulletin send to dealers saying no DRL, parks only.
The owners manuals will also now state that

Serious? Hectic and all because I've asked a question?:D

Oh well, I'm still very disappointed that we're not getting DRL.

Seems they were caught with their pants down

I have managed to enable the LED DRL strip to come on at full brightness whenever the engine is on and the parking brake released :D

Open the fuse box on the right hand side of the engine bay and plug in a relay on the emptly slot for the DRL. You can test it out by unplugging the horn relay and plugging it into the DRL slot. Start thr car, release the handbrake and the DRL should activate. This was done to my Philippine spec car, I hope it works for you SA guys. Enjoy! :)

Wow! Thanks, I will definitely give that a try!!

Got any pics of where the relay should go?

Going to try that

You should be able to see the location of the DRL relay slot by looking at the diagram printed on the fuse box cover :thumbsup:

Thanks! If I knew how to add a thanks to your post then I would :D

Also, what rating should the relay be? Warranty implications?

Great, thanks I'm going to have a look now.

if i'm not mistaken you need to have a certain number of posts before a TY button appears in the bottom right corner of each post...

I've just tried it - no luck. :(

would have been waaayyyy to easy

Did you start the engine and release the parking brake? Can you check if you have 8 wires going to the headlight connector? One of the wires supplies power to the DRL mode of the LED strip. If you only have 7 wires at the connector, it won't work.

Haha yeah, but I think there's more to it - the dealership probably fitted the relay then enabled it via Techstream. I'll play some more tonight.

Also - wow on earth do they expect us to get those relays and fuses out without breaking your fingers? You have to try it to believe it.

Yep, I've done that - I also drove off with somebody watching from the other side, thinking it could be speed and handbrake activated.

I'll go have a look at the headlight connector and report back.