Automatic Headlights

not quite

Yes, L7,PIN21 TO I1,PIN4
L47, pin 19 (headlight stalk connector), to L7, pin 28

the 'to ground' was a test prior to using the headlight stalk.

the stalk already does the work, but the wire is missing to carry the signal to the ecu.

my stalk is on order. thanks for making me look thru the summary.. now to get the wire into the sensor connector..

still have to figure out how to remove the upper glovebox..

Sam

 

May I ask where you ordered your stalk? Wanted to see where others are ordering it?

Thanks very much in advance.

 

See this link for the full instructions:
http://priuschat.com/forums/gen-iii.../64812-automatic-headlights-9.html#post953788

Also keep in mind there are two stalks available with the "Auto" position: One with the fog light switch, one without. See the link above for which part number is which.

Connections:
L7,PIN21 TO I1,PIN4 (light sensor)
and
L7,PIN28 TO L47, PIN19

Regarding where to get the stalk:
The cheapest I found the stalk is on parts.com ($93). But toyotapartsoutlet.com often has free shipping promotions (you just missed one for August - now it's $9.99 for September).

 

I'm more interested in what other US Toyota/Lexus vehicles that use the same stalk so I can goto the wrecking yard and pull one out for cheaper.

 

I ordered mine from parts.com, with fog light switch, for [FONT=&quot]108.87. missed the free delivery by a day!..

Sam
[/FONT]

 

I went to Toyota dealer today and asked which vehicle does 84140-07141 belong to. The cute parts counter girl started listing pretty much all the late model Toyotas. RAV4, highlander, camry, avalon, tundra, sequoia 4 runner. The price was 149.99. I also asked the same question for 81980-50030 (LED turn signal flasher) I got the same answer. The price was $63.95. Ouch! I saw the same flasher online for $7.99 I went to the local wrecking yard to locate the turn signal stalk. They told me they don't sell just the stalk. They sell the whole steering column for $140. They would have to locate one for me. The question now is should I just suck it up and buy the turn signal stalk new from online parts? Or should I find one from the wrecking yard, buy the whole column then part it out and keep the stalk.

 

assuming you can find buyers for the other parts..

I've had too much fun (not) parting out things.. slow payback.

Sam

 

I'm thinking ebaying off the unneeded pieces. Maybe I'll be-able to recoup the cost of the column. I just need to find the right column

 

parts.com asks for your vin number, then they check the parts against that vin and adjust!!!... crap.. sent me the US turn signal stalk..

have to order another one and NOT specify the vin..

Sam

 

could someone link to that post? I can't find a foglight thread with over 276 posts..

thanks to search posts by user across the entire 2010 section, here is the link to post 276 by Hawkmoon http://priuschat.com/forums/gen-iii...ofit-fog-lights-2010-prius-28.html#post949216
Sam

 

That should be the red flag right there. When I goto Toyota dealers, they ask for VIN number too. I think rather than just describe the year, model, trim, options to the parts department, they ask for VIN number so the computer knows right away what parts came stock for that car. There's second guessing.

 

well, I can understand the value of verifying the customers order against the vin..

BUT, I would have expected a confirming contact (phone, email, something).. saying, you ordered X, but based on the vin u gave us this won't work.. are u sure?

the fact that they WOULD CHANGE my order wasn't listed on the website concerning the selection checkbox is the issue..

anyhow, new one on order..

and here is a pic of the canadian headlight stalk with fog light switch,
part number 84140-07141

Sam

 

link back to prior post in other topic areas about changing the steering wheel light stalk switch

sam

 

I'm going to try this too next week. just ordered some long hemostats.

Sam

 

btw- 3 years ago subaru change their parts system to vin numbers only

 

I was searching through toyota.com site to see what Toyotas have auto headlight and foglights. I've found 3 vehicles that fit the criteria, RAV4 limited, Avalon, and Camry SE, XLE
The RAV4 is the perfect fit. The settings on the stalk match the Prius perfectly. There's On, Off, and Auto for the headlights and On, Off for the foglights.
The Avalon's Stalk has On, Off/DRL and Auto. The DRL is automatic. When the lights are off the DRL comes on.
The camry I believe is the ultimate headlight switch but I need verification. According to Toyota.com The Camry SE and XLE have auto headlight, manual DRL, and foglight as standard feature. I'm not sure where they put the DRL on/off switch at. I really hope it's on the stalk. When I have time, I'll go check out the Toyota parts store and see what they say as far as the stalk's interchangeability.

 

The parking lights will not turn off automatically when powering off my European Prius 2010 (which is not equipped with stalk switch AUTO position). More precisely, after turning the stalk switch to the headlights position, if I start the car and switch it off, the tail lights and the parking lights will remain switched on while the headlights come automatically off (besides, when opening the door, a buzzer warns to release the stalk switch to its off position before exiting). With this vehicle setting, I can't just turn on the headlights and leave them on.

Anyway, hawkmoon77’s mod is very useful to overcome this constraint.

Follow message 12 at page 2 to remove the bottom portion of the steering wheel column cover. Notice: pull the cover towards the steering wheel while pushing inward the hole to release the claw. Without pulling the cover, the disengaging operation will be difficult.

Identify two connectors.

Connector L47 on the left side of the steering column, below the left stalk switch (lights):
- Pin 20 (thin blue 24AWG): turns on tail lights + parking lights + headlights when connected to ground [A]
- Pin 12 (thin green 24AWG): ground

Larger white connector on the right side of the steering column, below the right stalk switch (wipers):
- Thick 16AWG brown: 12V+ ignition [C]
(notice also a white/black wire, which is an alternative ground than pin 12 of L47)

Notice that, by connecting [A] to , headlights come always on, regardless the vehicle is powered on or off. So, a relay connected to the ignition is needed. Including also a switch in series to the relay coil will allow enabling or disabling this function.

Bill of materials:
- Small button switch (pins [D], [E], normally open)
- Small relay (12V coil pins [F], [G], normally-open contacts [H], )

Current flowing between [A] and : very limited (few hundreds microamperes). A small 12V relay with one normally-open (NO) contact is appropriate.

Connect [C] to [D], [E] to [F], [G] to , to [H], to [A]. To sync the headlights with the vehicle ignition, switch on the button.

Regards

 

Thanks Hawkmoon and everyone for the information on this thread.

 

Jayvee... thank you so much. I just completed this mod on my 2010 level 3. The funny thing is that I actually didn't need to do about half of the work I did. After I got my dash completely taken apart I discovered that I actually had a wire going from pin 4 of the light sensor to the black connector behind the glove compartment. So after all that, I could have done this without 90% of the dash disassembly. However, there was no wire going from that black connector to L7 pin 21. I needed to find a pin to put in the connector on the non-dash side and luckily the larger third pin in the unused L8 connector was the perfect size.

It's 1:30AM right now (I'm not sure starting this project at 9:30 at night was one of my better ideas), so I'm going to bed now. But I'll try to take a picture of the connector behind the glove compatment so others can see if this wire is already run. If it is then this mod can be done with minimal disassembly and minimal cost.

Right now I just permenantly connected L7 pin 28 to ground so I have auto headlights all the time, but I think I'm going to order the canadian stalk with an auto setting just in case I want to turn the lights on during the day or off at night for any reason.

Thanks again for your instructions... this is one of the things that's really bothered me about the Prius since I got it a week and a half ago.

Brett

 

Glad to be of help!

That's interesting that you have the wire. Perhaps they decided the cost of (at least) two different harnesses from the sensor wasn't worth it. Or, perhaps they are planning on offering real auto headlights on the 2011 MY and have already implemented the new harness. In any event, glad you're happy with the mod!

Jayvee