Now I'm sure I'm not going mad. But I was driving the other day and I'm sure every time I went through a shady patch the dial lighting on my 500s would come on. Going in to the light and hey presto off they would go again. My other car has auto lights and intelligent interior illumination, I wasn't aware that the 500 did any of that kind of stuff. Is this a normal standard feature on a 2014 s???

bruceiow said:

Now I'm sure I'm not going mad. But I was driving the other day and I'm sure every time I went through a shady patch the dial lighting on my 500s would come on. Going in to the light and hey presto off they would go again. My other car has auto lights and intelligent interior illumination, I wasn't aware that the 500 did any of that kind of stuff. Is this a normal standard feature on a 2014 s???

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Yep it's normal our 09 does it too

Does this mean that during darkness and you turn your lights off, the dash lights stay on?

Can't say I've noticed anything one way or another about the dash lights on our 2011 85hp 500TA Lounge.

Regards,
Mick.

There's a light sensor behind the top of the speedo (small dot if you look carefully).

I've noticed that lots of new cars drive with "NO" lights on in the dark, this is due to the DRL's being so bright and virtually every car having at TFT display type dash that lights up at start up, drivers end up totally oblivious they (in particular) have absolutely no rear lights, this seems to be an increasing problem?

I have seen several of no-lights car at night, sadly- I was one of them a month ago- for the exactly the reason you mentioned: very bright day lights and illuminated dash made me 'forget' to turn the lights on! :bang: Since then I have been religiously checking if I turned the blasted things on!!

You'd think with all the safety malarkey that goes on they'd fit a light sensor that operated an alarm similar to the seat belt alarm that would sound if you drive over a certain speed with the lights off

Yep, I'm also guilty as charged. It happened to me tonight for the first time. Left work and drove out onto street lit roads without putting on the headlights. I can no longer call other no light drivers muppets anymore!

Mick F said:

Does this mean that during darkness and you turn your lights off, the dash lights stay on?

Can't say I've noticed anything one way or another about the dash lights on our 2011 85hp 500TA Lounge.

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Well, the dash lights don't stay on in our 2011 500TA.

It must be something that has come in with the newer 500's.

Mick.

Just to clarify the dash lights don't come on with the headlights in bright sun light but will come on if I trivet through the tunnel but go off again back in bright light, not sure why they bothered fitting a cut out.

Odd, my wife's 500 only does that if the headlights are on. Won't do it with the headlights off

Our dash lights come on with the head lights. They stay on. They only go off when I turn the lights off.

Must be a later edition with the later models. Goodness knows why they need to go off automatically.

Regards,
Mick.

Mick F said:

Our dash lights come on with the head lights. They stay on. They only go off when I turn the lights off.

Must be a later edition with the later models. Goodness knows why they need to go off automatically.

Regards,
Mick.

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Mick,

Our 09 plate 500 Lounge definitely illuminated the instrument cluster in low ambient light even with headlights off. As Maggie notes, there is a sensor on the speedo (at about 60mph) that measures cabin light levels.

gazz_bee said:

Mick,

Our 09 plate 500 Lounge definitely illuminated the instrument cluster in low ambient light even with headlights off. As Maggie notes, there is a sensor on the speedo (at about 60mph) that measures cabin light levels.

Click to expand...

Just looked very closely. Just above the 60mph, there's a little "disc". That must be where the sensor is.

The centre unit Multifunction Display is lit of course with the ignition on, but the rev counter and speedo lights don't come on until the lights are on. TBH, I've never ever seen them come on without the lights being on.

Looking through the handbook, there's nothing to say that the speedo and rev counters will illuminate in poor lighting.

I'll check again tonight.
We have no street lights here, and I can turn the house lights off, so have complete darkness. With the ignition on and lights off, the speedo and rev counters should be lit.

Thanks,
Mick.

I checked just now.

I can categorically state that our lighting on the rev counter and speedo do NOT come on with the engine running in the pitch dark with the lights off.
To be sure, I turned off the DRLs via the menu too.

I turned the lights on - the dash lights came on.
I turned the lights off - the dash lights went off ................. and stayed off.

No lights, no lighting. Complete darkness.

Therefore, there's more to this than meets the eye.
Some cars do it, others don't.
Why?
What's going on?

Regards to all,
Mick.

On our last car, a vauxhall zafira, the lights were automatic. Put the light switch in the correct position and they come on when needed. My 2013 500 does not have auto lights. I think they must have been an option on certain models ?

Seems like a really odd feature to me.

In my insignia, if it gets dark the exterior lights come on by themselves. The entire interior lighting system is ambient depending on light levels, with some really swish submarine lighting and door bin lighting.

I get that the 500 wont have most of that, but having a light sensor and not having auto lights seems like a missed opportunity to me