hubie

they actually took a second glance and saw a huge vehicle bearing down on them.

Q: how can you know it was because of the headlights?
A: you don't know what they saw unless you were sitting in their passenger seat talking to them.

this sort of thing happens to me all the time. i have a cdl and drive vans and busses 40 hours a week. i have had a lot of people start to pull out in front of me and then stop when they saw me coming. i really don't think that extra dim headlights in the daytime are going to make anyone see a full size pickup any better. i usually drive with my headlights on in the daytime anyway. i just want the option to turn the lights off at night.

i read all the links. they all pertain to disconnecting the daytime running lights. i realize that it is not hard. i am fully aware of how to do that. however, my last four or five posts have been about trying to find out what the switch on the left side of the dash does. seems it is the fog light switch. i originally thought that these fog lights were the drls that i couldn't turn off. none of the links say anything about the fog lights, and none of them answer my question about that switch. so you go back and read through the threads on this page again, and you will see where i had to ask the same question four times and still didn't get a good answer until watrd finally realized what i was asking.

the way the drive way goes i would have to back a very very long way to come in backwards. also when i get to my parking spot driving foreward, i step out of the truck onto the sidewalk or the grassy yard. if i were to turn around i would be getting out of the truck in a huge mudhole.

my assistant works days and i work nights. the only other option is the dog and the baby. neither of which are much help in this situation. i thought that i was pretty clear about things. i mentioned a couple times that i have clear lights in the bumper. these are the fog lights. i don't know how many times i have to explain the "pushbutton switch on the lower left side of the dash" to make that any clearer.

i know i was kind of confusing at first, but i didn't realize that the headlights had an extra low setting for daytime running light mode. it just seemed like a completly different set of lights were on when i would turn off the headlights at night. this is why i thought that the drls were the fog lights and mentioned taking the bulbs out of them.

WATRD

Look... no one woke up this morning looking to spoon feed you. If you are having to say things multiple times, then it means that you are either not being clear or you just don't like the answers you are getting. Neither is the fault of the other folks on the forum.

There are 5 billion plus people on this planet. Surely you know more than one, a baby and a dog. Find one, and clear this up once and for all, rather than getting snippy.

In many Toyotas, the "clear lights in the bumper" are the turn signals. If your rig looks like this, CLICK HERE FOR PHOTO, then those ARE turn signals in the bumper and you don't have fog lights. That is not unusual and the switch does nothing. The lights next to the headlights are the marker lights.

That puts us back where we were... with you needing to go around to the front of your rig and actually having a look, so we can compare apples and apples..

Capiche?

rdharper

Fair question.

I believe people unconsciously judge mass... as in a Greyhound bus. But how to explain the effect of lights.

Remember I'd driven a lot of miles on motorcycles without lights. In that case, I'm driving a low mass vehicle, and relatively hard to see.

In those miles, it was quite common for a driver to just blithely pull in front of me from a side-street. Only two cases were close, but in all the cases the driver just didn't see me, as I have no doubt they would not have pulled out into my lane had they seen my bike.

Somewhere in that period, I tried low beams and high beams. I noticed the difference over a period of time. I started using high beams, but over a few years I noticed low beams were enough. People now noticed the motorcycle coming toward them. Often they seemed distracted, which is why the initial movement toward my lane, then an abrupt stop.

Most of the cases come from the right, but I've seen many cases where the driver is starting from the opposite side (my left), and make it across the opposite lane, then stop just starting into my lane. You can tell a sudden change of mind by the sharpness of the breaking action.

A person just positioning their vehicle will have come out as far as they intended, and stop relatively smoothly.

So my own explanation is that people judge mass, but in the absence of that, they respond to "fire". An almost primal response. It produces a question mark in their subconscious for a split second. And they stop.

If you pay attention over your first 100,000 miles, and experiment, you will see what I'm talking about. Lights are the great equalizer.

Also, for what it is worth, many experiments were run in the 90's. For instance, there is a section of two lane road running from Gilroy to Route 5 in California. For at least 20 years, they have had a "lights on" section.

Many city muni experiments have been run.

Loss of life is much more expensive than the 1/10th horse power used in running lights.

Buy a set of drapes. Leave your lights on.

deserttoy84

Duct tape

hubie

why would toyota even put the switch in the truck if it does nothing? i would think that if the switch is there then you must have fog lights.

my truck looks identical to the picture you posted, but the lights in the bumper come on when i push the fog light button with the headlights on low beam. so those lights in the bumper ARE fog lights and NOT turn signals as you have stated. the lights next to the headlights ARE the turn signals and NOT corner markers as you have said. seems like i still can't get correct info on this forum.

i live out in the country, and don't have any close neighbors near to help me with this. my wife comes home, and i rush out the door to go to my night job. when i get there, i am working and don't have time to have a coworker look at the truck with me. so i decided to put my truck in drive with the parking brake on and check things out.

if the parking brake is applied before starting the truck, the the drls do not come on when you put it in gear. i don't understand why, but this is the only time the drls are off with the truck in gear. i don't know if they will come on when the parking brake is released. if you push the fog light button nothing happens.

if you apply the parking brake after starting the truck, then you put the truck in drive the headlights come on extra dim. they will come on anytime the truck is in gear provided the parking brake was not set before starting the truck. this is drl mode. if you push the fog light button nothing happens. the fog lights stay off.

when you turn the headlights on low beam they come on brighter than before. now, when you push the fog light button the clear lights in the bumper come on.

when you turn the headlights to high beam, the fog light button does not work anymore. the fog lights only work on low beam.

sorry if i was confusing, but the whole light system on this truck is kind of confusing. the thing that threw me for a loop was that the headlights work with three different brightness levels.

don't get me wrong, i do appreciate all the info. my original question about why i couldn't turn the lights off was answered very quickly. then when i changed the subject and was asking about the fog light switch, i think that nobody realized what i was asking.

i just thought that people on this forum would know everything there is to know about this truck, and it was just a little frustrating having to ask several times before getting the correct answer about the fog light switch.

deserttoy84

If my truck can survived since 84 with no collisions with another car then i think new cars can too. My brothers silverado is nice, You hit a lamp override button liek 5 times and all the lights turn off.

rdharper

Hubie... if all else fails, check your owners manual.

Could the switch be the clutch-in override for starting with the clutch engaged (and in neutral)?

hubie

i think we already figured out that the switch is the fog light switch. and as i said before, i didn't get an owners manual with the truck. the last owner didn't know where it was. that is why i am asking all these questions. i am sure that the owners manual would be very helpful. anyone know if there is an online owners manual for a 2000 tundra?

DeathCougar

iTrader: (23)

if they are factory fogs, there should be a dial switch mounted on the actual headlight switch, and you should be able to rotate is backwards to shut off the fogs.

hubie

go back and read my post from 4-10 at 6 pm. it describes every scenario that my lights are capable of. the lights in the bumper are fog lights and the push button switch on the lower left side of the dash controls them. i have no dial switch on the turn signal lever that works the fog lights. the dial switch works the headlights only. it has three positions: off, parking lights, and headlights.

86SR522REEFI

Have you tried different window treatments?

PirateFins

hubie,
I read the senarios but you left one out.
What happens when you start the truck, then pbrake it, put in drive.
DRLs come on(correct), what happens if you turn the headlight switch to the middle (parking/marker lights only) do the DRLs turn off? will the fogs turn on go off? just a thought.

Have you looked at the fuse panel and removed the 7.5A DRL fuse in the engine bay? You could add in a by-pass switch off of the fuse wire to have control over them.

oh and I found this for ya.

http://solidwiring.com/Products.html
2000 - 2006 Tundras & Sequoias w/DRL

DRL Switchable Modification
(DRL controlled by a factory switch)

DRL601 - Factory switch, custom wiring harness w/ factory connections kit,
installation accessories, and instructions.

Install Time: 1 hour

Tools Needed: 10 mm & 12 mm sockets, rachet, extension, phillips screw driver, a
cutting tool (scissors or dykes), and 10 mm & 12 mm wrenches.

note: For Tundra DC w/o side air bags, Tundra AC w/ auto trans, & all Sequoias

bomber22

drl's are on all the time when you turn the truck on{dim lights on head lights} turn head light switch one click, parking lights come on with drl's on. turn head light switch one more click park lights and low beams come on. push button switch on lower left{by your knee} turns on or off the fog lights{in the bumper}. if you pull back the head light switch your high beams come on and your fog lights go off { the one's in the bumper}if they were on to begin with. the lights you talk about waking up your family are most likely your drl's because they are on all the time . to disable the drl's disconnect the grey plug that is between the battery and the fwd left inner fender wheel, cover with black electrical tape. your lights will operate normal.you can leave your lights on all the time , when you turn off your truck and open the drivers door the lights will go off I did this to mine a 2000 tundra limited , one more thing alot of imformation @ tundrasolutions.com