What is this light for on my Prius v (lowercase v)?

Discussion in 'Prius v Accessories and Modifications' started by MisterH, Aug 20, 2015.

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  1. MisterH

    MisterH New Member

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    Hello everyone,

    I just got my 2015 Prius v (lowercase v for the Prius v wagon) a little over a week ago and it's fantastic so far! I'm very much enjoying it's fuel economy, EV mode and all of the other things on it that work (door locks! no check engine light! non-squeaky suspension). My last car was a 10 year old VW, so this is a vast improvement...

    I'm curious about the lights on the front here:
    [​IMG]

    Which actually appear to be nothing more than reflectors. They're not fog lights, or DRL's here in Canada, so I wonder if anyone knows what purpose they serve? Are they fog lights on upper trim levels? Mine is a base model so no fancy stuff. Remember this is the 2015 refresh, and the front end is quite different from the 2014's.

    I would love to ditch the stock high beam DRL's for something that is lower voltage and more reliable.

    Any thoughts?
     
    #1 MisterH, Aug 20, 2015
  2. xliderider

    xliderider Senior Member

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    Doesn't Canada require highbeam DRLs though?
     
    #2 xliderider, Aug 20, 2015
  3. MisterH

    MisterH New Member

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    No, Canada requires high beams period. It doesn't matter what kind of bulb or where.

    Most manufacturers chose high beams lit at 80% brightness for DRL's because when it was implemented it was cheap and effective - a single relay and it was done. Now most cars use LED DRL's because they're always on and LED's are the best for that purpose - low power, long life. Which is what I would like...
     
    #3 MisterH, Aug 20, 2015
  4. Beachbummm

    Beachbummm Senior Member

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    should be in your owners manual under "lights"
     
    #4 Beachbummm, Aug 20, 2015
  5. MisterH

    MisterH New Member

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    You would think so, but it's not.
     
    #5 MisterH, Aug 20, 2015
  6. Air_Boss

    Air_Boss Senior Member

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    Flip side of the DRL function on the 2012 Prius v that WAS in the promotional materials and Owners Manuals, but not on the cars... "if equipped".
     
    #6 Air_Boss, Aug 20, 2015
  7. MisterH

    MisterH New Member

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    Sorry Boss, not sure what you mean by flip side of DRL function?

    Since this is a world car, it must be there for a reason - maybe in some countries it's the DRL? Or possibly a city light?
    What function do the lights in that position serve in the pre face-lifted cars? I was hoping an owners of v (It's a lowercase v, trust us) might chime in, especially if it's a 2015 higher end model with LED Low beams and fogs.
     
    #7 MisterH, Aug 20, 2015
  8. xliderider

    xliderider Senior Member

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    The 2015 Camry has LED DRLs in that position.

    You can raise the front end and remove one of the corner under panels and see if there is an unused wire harness coming out of that assembly. If there is, then you can probably test if they work using a 9v battery. LEDs are polarity dependent, so if it doesn't work, switch the wire polarity and test both possible polarity combinations. If they are LED lights, then you will be able to get DRL function simply by applying 12v power to the wires by tapping one of the engine compartment fuses that's hot when in Ready mode.
     
    #8 xliderider, Aug 20, 2015
    Last edited: Aug 20, 2015
  9. Air_Boss

    Air_Boss Senior Member

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    "Flip side" in the sense that the 2012 Prius v was described in the promotional literature as having DRLs, the DRL function appears on the lighting stalk, and DRL function appears in the Owner's Manual, but has never been found natively on any U.S.-spec 2012 v.
     
    #9 Air_Boss, Aug 20, 2015
  10. MisterH

    MisterH New Member

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    @boss - Oh, I see what you're saying. Weird that there would be a stalk position?

    @rider - I haven't had a look at the underside, I'll try this weekend and snap some pix. I can't tell if it's just a reflector (like the back red ones) or a wired up light. If so, would it be part of the CAN bus or just old fashioned wires? I like the idea of just tapping into a key-on 12v source. But there wouldn't be much point in doing that if I couldn't somehow disable the high-beam DRL's.
     
    #10 MisterH, Aug 20, 2015
  11. xliderider

    xliderider Senior Member

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    If it comes down to it, there is a way to bypass the oem wiring to the highbeams, for DRL function, while retaining highbeam functionality (flash to pass, highbeams). It would involve using two SPDT or one DPDT relay.
     
    #11 xliderider, Aug 20, 2015
    Last edited: Aug 20, 2015
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  12. MisterH

    MisterH New Member

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    I just read your DRL Mod thread - damn that's a nice install! The clean OEM look, exactly how modifications should be done. Now I can't wait to have a look at what's behind the front bumper.

    It's funny how some people want to add DRL's, some want to ditch them and like me want them implemented differently.
     
    #12 MisterH, Aug 21, 2015
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  13. xliderider

    xliderider Senior Member

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    I have my oem lowbeam wiring bypassed on my Camry as well. I wanted thicker wires and a dual relay setup for reliability on my HID kit installation.

    Yes, it would be interesting to find out if they're real lights, or just dummy lights. If they're non-functional, then you might still be able to install the USDM equivalent parts to get what you want.

    You can look for a relay in your engine fuse box for the DRLs. If you find one, pull it out and test all functions of your headlights and highbeams (lowbeams, highbeam switch on, and flash to pass, both with and without lowbeams on).

    Then the appropriate terminal from the DRL socket might be used to power your LED DRLs.
     
    #13 xliderider, Aug 21, 2015
  14. ricomtl

    ricomtl Member

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    I got mine 2 days ago and I've been asking myself the same question. I'll be going somewhere I can see my car's reflection and try out different combinations and see if these light up! I'm really curious. By the way, I just upgraded my fog to JDM LED H16 (type 2) and the color matches the LED headlights. It looks amazing!
     
    #14 ricomtl, Aug 21, 2015
  15. xliderider

    xliderider Senior Member

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    On the USDM, the setting to turn on the DRL might be in the setup menu via the MFD screen.
     
    #15 xliderider, Aug 21, 2015
  16. ricomtl

    ricomtl Member

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    2015-08-21_15-20-49.jpg The user manual (Canadian) version doesn't mention anything about it...
     
    #16 ricomtl, Aug 21, 2015
  17. mikefocke

    mikefocke Prius v Three 2012, Avalon 2011

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    Where on the lighting stalk? Don't recall any such on my '12 v three. I did have DRLs added in a distributor supplied $$$ kit which gave me LED lights that are always on but I don't recall any switch that would control them.
     
    #17 mikefocke, Aug 21, 2015
  18. Offline

    Offline Active Member

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    The dummy lamps the OP is asking about are LED DRL on the 2015 Prius+ sold outside of North America. The EU does not allow high beam headlamps to be used for DRL.
     
    #18 Offline, Aug 21, 2015
  19. Air_Boss

    Air_Boss Senior Member

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    There are three configurations of lighting stalk illustrated in the U.S. Owners Manual (Type A, Type B, and Type C -- presumably trim/level/equipment dependent, such as "Auto" lights), each of which mentions DRL functions -- none of which exist on the U.S. spec factory v.
     

    Attached Files:

    #19 Air_Boss, Aug 21, 2015
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  20. sean v4

    sean v4 Junior Member

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    MisterH
    What model Prius v is yours? Four or five?

    Sean

     
    #20 sean v4, Aug 21, 2015
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