automatic headlights

[lavaman]

I have a question for my fellow vibe enthusiasts. My 2005 vibe base doesn't have the automatic headlights. It's been this way ever since my wife bought it with 5500 miles. Every one of our other vibes has this feature & this the only one I've seen like this. Was it a delete option or did the brief first owner have it disabled? What would I have to do to install or re-enable it?

[SeattleJeremy]

Automatic headlights is a standard feature on the Vibe. Are the headlights always on, and never in daytime running mode?
First thing would be to check all the fuses, I'm not sure what part of the car runs this feature.
Is the sensor present on the dash? It's the round thing on the dash next to the drives side a-pillar. Did someone paint over it, or put a dash mat on top of it?

You should be able to reach it (with some difficulty) by removing the gauge cluster. IIRC there is a three or four wire plug that connects to it. Make sure the wires are connected to it, unplug the wires and use a volt meter to verify it's getting power.

My previous car was an Impreza, and it didn't have this feature. I was lost without it . Hope you can get it working.

[lavaman]

The daytime running lights work. The sensor is present & unobstructed. You just have to turn the headlights on & off with the switch. Thanks for the tip. I'll check to see if the sensor is connected

[zbyers]

The sensor was my first guess, as well. However, we recently acquired an '05 that's doing similar things. Once the subframe is back in and together, I am going to try to investigate it.

[zbyers]

So I recently began the course of troubleshooting this on the Black '05 AWD we recently picked up. Seller said battery light has been on for most of the 3 years they've owned it.

DRL's and automatic headlights do NOT work. You must turn lights on and off using the switch. The battery light is also on.

The sentinel on the left hand side of the dash at the bottom of the A-pillar IS good. We swapped it into our other vehicle to test. What it appears the cause is in my case is a not-so-good ground or connection somewhere for the alternator. Battery light was off temporarily one day, and the auto lights and DRL's worked as they should.

Talking with a Toyota tech (hi Zame!) he confirmed that if the battery light is on, the DRL/auto lights won't work.

The alternator does function correctly-- tested it at a local parts store and it is putting out correct voltage. Battery is also good. So this weekend I can hopefully troubleshoot a little further and ensure the wires to the alternator are connected properly, as well as the ground straps in the engine bay.