Map Light always on?

Will733

Will733

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I noticed while it was really dark, that there is a small light in the middle of the two map lights that is always on even when the map lights are not. Is this supposed to be on all the time when the key is in, or is there a way to turn it off?

It's the real small black dot in the picture below and it's not bright at all so I'm not sure what it is even for.
 

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Yea, its always on, or at least always on when the lights are turned on. I forget what they call it but it's sole purpose is to light up the lower part of the dash and the center console.

Every time we moved our arms to get to the stereo knobs at night, our arms would light up and we were like WTF! You don't even know its there since the light is recessed so far up.
 
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It is a single LED on a circuit board that I THOUGHT I could figure out how to change but could not. I think you would have to get out the solder gun and the microscope to replace it! It helps with the ambient lighting in the car. My old Audi had them, and they were red, which I liked.
 
It's excellent for night drivers. I can see my black-lidded travel mug without fumbling, as well as other items in the cup holder or storage slot.
 
My GTI had these. I really liked them. It normalized the cluster backlighting so it wasn't so abrasive after a long night drive. I'm glad the 4Runner has them, too.
 
I guess it does have it's benefits then, but does it really need to be on all the time even when the lights are off during the daytime? Seems like the bulb would die quickly being on everytime you drive day and night.
 
I think this is a great feature. Drove a rental Grand Caravan on vacation once and thought it was a great invention for seeing things in the cockpit at night without having to turn on the overhead lights. Not sure why it needs to stay on all the time though.
 
Will733 said:
I guess it does have it's benefits then, but does it really need to be on all the time even when the lights are off during the daytime? Seems like the bulb would die quickly being on everytime you drive day and night.
Click to expand...

Well since it's an LED it will last at least 100,000 hrs typically. It should last just as long as the LEDs in the instrument panel gauges which are also on all the time when the car is on.
 
Will733 said:
I noticed while it was really dark, that there is a small light in the middle of the two map lights that is always on even when the map lights are not. Is this supposed to be on all the time when the key is in, or is there a way to turn it off?

It's the real small black dot in the picture below and it's not bright at all so I'm not sure what it is even for.
Click to expand...

My ambient doesn't turn on. does anyone know why this would be ?
(the light noted with the arrow)
 
Jason11 said:
Thanks for the reply TrkyMfns .. so I guess I would have to go to the dealer and have them re-enable it ? :-(
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They should be able to do it. The Toyota TIS software can be found online if you want to tackle it yourself. All you need is a cable. That being said, it might just be a loose connector.
 
TrkyMfns said:
You can disable it with the Toyota software. I'm not sure why you would want to though.
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because ambient light hurts your night vision

it would be a lot better if they made it red or amber (same with all the dash lights). this is surprisingly one of the top things i miss from owning BMWs
 
TrkyMfns said:
They should be able to do it. The Toyota TIS software can be found online if you want to tackle it yourself. All you need is a cable. That being said, it might just be a loose connector.
Click to expand...

Oh really ? Do you know where I could get the software and cable ? I might want to try that. I really wish it was enabled.

e60ral said:
because ambient light hurts your night vision

it would be a lot better if they made it red or amber (same with all the dash lights). this is surprisingly one of the top things i miss from owning BMWs
Click to expand...

Oh, I was expecting that it would be red in the 4Runner. Yes...Its red in my M3. Love the way it looks in that car !! ///
 
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