LED headlamps

If LED lights Auto Level, do they change based on speed. If I going 70 MPH they should be raised a bit, If going 20 MPH they can point down a lot. I am sure this is not what you mean when saying the lights are auto level. I am sure it more about angles not speed.

 

Back to the original question; that was my decision too.

I ultimately selected Package 5 over Package 4 with sunroof. Even though I live in South Florida and the sunroof and solar powered ventilation sounded cool, I picked the 17" wheel handling and LED's. The extra lighting (had the HID's in my 06) and improved highway stability are features I use every day. I rarely use the sunroof on my other car and I've learned to park in the afternoon shade.

I doubt I'll ever use the headlamp washers.

 

Ahh . . . But you will!

Even if you don't intend to use them, you will under one condition: If the headlamps are on, the headlamp washers will run once after you turn on the windscreen wipers.

 

Man, I thought we covered this before... Doesn't the headlamp washer switch need to be 'on' in order for the washers to operate? I thought Rick checked into this in the online docs.
I may be wrong - but can someone that has the manual please confirm. My V will be in 2 weeks from today - not a big deal but the "auto spritz' of the headlamps is a waste IMO unless driver activated.
IMO the 2 biggest waste of features is the headlamp washers and the water-repellent windows. I'm sure a lot of you folks feel different due to your driving conditions. But in my case I believe those $$ could have been put to use more popular/useful option features.

 

I agree.

I've had headlight washers on the last several cars I've owned, and they make a mess of the surrounding fender and hood.

 

Here's what the owners manual says. You can manually activate them by pressing the button, but they also work automatically--see below:

The headlight cleaner can be operated when
The “POWER†switch is in ON mode and the headlight switch is turned on.
If equipped, the headlight switch is in the “AUTO†position and the headlight is on.

Windshield washer linked operation
When the windshield washer is operated with the “POWER†switch in ON mode and the low beam headlights on, the headlight cleaner will operate once.

 

Is it okay to blind other drivers at high speed, but not at low speed? High beams should point down the road, low beams should have cutoffs. I understand your intention, but I'm not sure this is a good idea.

Tom

 

Here's how this feature worked in several other cars I've had with auto leveling headlights--I assume it's the same in the Prius:

The auto level process takes place when you first turn on the headlights, to compensate for passenger and cargo load--you can see it when you turn the headlights on in your garage, for example. It's a one time event, to automatically level the beam. There are legal requirements for headlight beam direction, and varying them as you describe isn't part of that.

 

Not trying to be anal on this, but - I understand about the "manual mode" - perfect... So the 'work automatically' - the "Power Switch" refers to the headlamp washer switch? ie if it's off the headlamp washer will not operate when the windshield washers are operated and the headlamps on?

 

i'm pretty sure this isn't the case. even easier, just drive a prius with HID or LED headlmaps over a bump and see what happens. if the lights temporarily point at the sky, you know that the autoleveling works only while you're stopped (though this would make absolutely 0 sense – who cares where they are pointing when you're stopped?). if the lights remain pointed at the road, as they should, then you know auto-leveling is constant. given that europe apparently requires this for all new vehicles, under the premise of safety so that you don't blind people in precisely such scenarios (or going over the top of a hill), i don't really see how there are legal "ramifications" for having auto-leveling be constantly on.

many lexus models offer – on top of auto-leveling – automatic directional adjustment while the car is in motion to compensate for going around turns.

 

It turns out that in the SF bay area, we don't have those weather conditions, so a slightly different perspective.

 

it's not that illogical. the idea is that if your windshield is dirty, your headlights are probably dirty as well. one of the tenets of good user interface design is to keep it simple; having endless buttons and switches is a sure-fire way to guarantee that no one will bother figuring out how to use them.

this isn't the only component of the car where multiple features are triggered together. for example, when you turn on the rear window defroster, your sideview mirror defrosters turn on as well. makes plenty of sense to me.

 

Sorry - I'm A CHOICE guy - especially in a vehicle that I bought... I find this a TERRIBLE user interface. I wouldn't want Microsoft to bring up MSN and Powerpoint everytime I boot - although Gates wanted that to happen....

Why is there a separate headlamp washer switch then???
Hey - why doesn't the back window wiper go on when the windshield wipers are turned on????? Let's keep THAT simple too.....so the user isn't troubled to flip that switch manually.
?????????????

 

because there's no connection between them (both of those examples, actually). front windshield + headlights are both getting splattered with bugs and dirt. rear window, not so much.

look, you can argue all you want, but i'm not pulling these ideas out of my behind, and these are not personal opinions. search the web for user interface simplicity and see what you get. these design principles have been around for decades.

paradox – have you seen these washers in action? if they spray your hood, then the problem is in how the squirters are designed, not with the fact that they go on together with your windshield washer.