why doesn't the light around transmission area come on right away?

[bellwilliam]

I have this naggin question:at night, when I shift the car out of park (I have an automatic), the light around transmission area does not come right away (even though headlight comes on right away). so I have to do my shifting (to reverse, then to "D") by memory because I can't see a thing. but the light will eventually come on in 10-15 seconds.why is this? is it because I left the headlights at "off" position (because of automatic headlight thing)? any one with similar thing?

[Triton]

quote:why is this? is it because I left the headlights at "off" position (because of automatic headlight thing)? any one with similar thing?That is exactly it. The day time running headlight sensor doesn't turn mine on until about 10-15 seconds after I release the parking brake (I have a 6 speed). It may be in an automatic that the sensor doesn't take over until you shift into another gear. I would suggest turning on your lights manually if you are having a hard time seeing. At least that way you won't put it into a different gear by mistake.

[bellwilliam]

I am suprised that Pontiac does this. for liability reasons, I think they shouldn't let that happen. At nights, I usually have to back out of the driveway, what if I advertently put it in wrong gear? all other instruments light do come up right away.why does it take 10 seconds for the sensor to work?

[Sub-Vibe-R]

quote:I am suprised that Pontiac does this. for liability reasons, I think they shouldn't let that happen. At nights, I usually have to back out of the driveway, what if I advertently put it in wrong gear? all other instruments light do come up right away.why does it take 10 seconds for the sensor to work? I doubt Pontiac set it that way. May be it is more a Toyota thing case my Montana turned on the light right away at night.

[kaybeejay]

Turn on your lights manually when you are ready to back out. Problem solved.I swear, in a few years nobody will know how to maintain their own cars or worse - they won't know how to drive them. Technology has replaced common sense. For example, the federal regulations have required that all new cars (Starting in 2004, I think) will be required to have tire pressure monitors. Why? Cause there are too many people driving around with poorly pressured (is that a word?) tires and its probably causing extra accidents or on the road blowouts. The majority of car owners don't know or are too lazy to get out of their cars - grab a pressure gauge, and check their tire pressures. Now we all get a nifty "dummy light" on the dash which tells us when the tires are low. I mean come on, this is beyond lame - either learn how to take care of your car (and drive it too) or you don't deserve to own one. Simple as that.

[bellwilliam]

my point is that it is not common sense, to turn the headlight on manually, when my headlight (and instrument lighting) is already on!! It is just a bad design. either there shouldn't be automatic headlight thing, or the transmission lighting should come on automatically.

[Lorin]

People rely too much on "Idiot" lights. A girl I worked with changed the oil in her Lexus faithfully, whenever the red oil light came on. Only needed one oil change during the first 30,000 miles, but then the light started coming on a lot more frequently!

[kaybeejay]

quote:my point is that it is not common sense, to turn the headlight on manually, when my headlight (and instrument lighting) is already on!! It is just a bad design. either there shouldn't be automatic headlight thing, or the transmission lighting should come on automatically.Yes it is common sense.Problem: "hmm..its too dark, and I can't see. I might shift into the wrong gear".Solution: Flip the switch, and turn on the light, done.How did people ever get by without the innovation of DRL's? Is it annoying to have to turn on the lights yourself? - yes. Should you be intelligent enough to turn the light on yourself when its difficult to see? - also yes.On a side note: I think the "real" reason is listed in the owners manual. Something to do with the electronic checks and light sensors take that long to boot up.

[DopeVibeGT]

I agree. Most cars that dont have this feature, you turn on the light manually at night. It's not a defect. Toyota just assumes that people will turn their lights on at night. The sentinel is only meant to turn on the lights when it gets a little dark, for safety reasons so no one rear ends you in the rain. Or for those people that forget to turn their lights on. Never understood how someone can drive down the road with their lights out. How do they see their gauges?? (I'm talking about other cars, not the Vibe)

[bellwilliam]

if my car don't have automatic headlight, FINE, I will just turn the light on manually.if my car do have automatic headlight (like other GM cars), then all interior instrument lights should come on in dark RIGHT AWAY. why should the manufacutrer expect me to turn my headlight switch on when my headlight is ALREADY ON.* I think someone at GM messed up: Since Toyota don't have DRL, and GM has it. somewhere in conversion, some engineer forgot about it.

[kaybeejay]

HAve you considered disabling the DRL? (although I don't exactly recommend doing that. It may or may not do bad things to your warranty, messing around with the electronics I mean.)

[DopeVibeGT]

Those arent really your headlights. Those are you DRL. Thats the reason the other lights dont come on right away.

[DopeVibeGT]

How true. They have cars that tell you when you need an oil change. The tire pressure one is new to me. LoL Thats a little overboard. I check my tires once a week.

[Mr. Poopypants]

quote:I am suprised that Pontiac does this. for liability reasons, I think they shouldn't let that happen. At nights, I usually have to back out of the driveway, what if I advertently put it in wrong gear? all other instruments light do come up right away. Not to be rude but it is only 10 seconds. It's not like you are sitting there for an eternity. And you should know the shift pattern on an automatic. PRND2L

[bellwilliam]

no, it is not rude. but if you read the other threads, http://forums.genvibe.com/zerothread?id=1511 it takes up to 60 seconds for the light to come on. yes, I do shift by memory, because I have been driving for over 20 years. what if someone shift into D instead of R, and run over the cat !! or may be Pontiac should have a sticker right on the dashboard, "turn on your headlights WHENEVER your headlight is ON"You guys must have a 5 speed, that's why it doesn't bother you. I will just disable the DRLs.

[NSimkins]

quote:it takes up to 60 seconds for the light to come on.That isn't normal. That person could have been in the zone where the lighting was bordering just dark enough and not dark enough for the sensor to activate... or there was genuinely something wrong with the sensor.15 seconds is normal for the sensor.quote:You guys must have a 5 speed, that's why it doesn't bother you. I will just disable the DRLs.I have an Auto. I just unplugged the light sensor and now have full control on when I want the lights to come on or off. I did not modify my DRL's though as they aren't a bother to me.

[kaybeejay]

quote:You guys must have a 5 speed, that's why it doesn't bother you. Actually I have a 6-speed. Reverse and 1st gear are right next to each other. However, there is an audible *beep beep beep* when R is engaged. (plus, you gotta really rock the stick to the left to get it into R) I have caught myself shifting into 3rd instead of 1st a few times and stalling out the engine. Thats just driver error and not a design flaw.hmmm.... should I complain to whoever made the stupid "double H" shift pattern for putting 1st and 3rd so close together, and then not putting lights on it to help me see better? Its a bad design afterall, putting them so close together, someone might shift into the wrong gear when its dark. (kidding..... really)

[bellwilliam]

actually, with manual, you don't look (at the shifter) when you shift. but with automatic, you should always look when shifting. Don't you do that? try an automatic next time, see if you comfortable shifting w/o looking.

[kaybeejay]

quote:actually, with manual, you don't look (at the shifter) when you shift. but with automatic, you should always look when shifting. Don't you do that? try an automatic next time, see if you comfortable shifting w/o looking.I know that. Didn't you see the "kidding" at the end of my post? Question: Since, I have only driven an automatic Vibe on a test drive (and I don't remember if there was or wasn't) - Is there a dash indicator telling you what gear you have selected? Something that is in the gaugepod. I am guessing no, otherwise this whole thread would be pointless.

[NSimkins]

quote:I am guessing noThat would be a correct guess.

[bellwilliam]

oops, I missing the kidding part.there is no indicator on the dash. I don't think there is a dash indicator on any car if there the auto stick is in the middle (shifter type rather than pull type), I might be wrong.

[kaybeejay]

I have seen them on Honda's and Mitsubishi's. I am sure they are on other cars as well. I think the idea is to keep your eyes up instead of having to briefly look down to shift gears. If there is an indicator in the gauge pods somewhere, then you wouldn't have to look down.I wonder why they didn't include this feature in the Vibe?(No hard feelings about the "kidding" stuff.)

[Sub-Vibe-R]

quote:oops, I missing the kidding part.there is no indicator on the dash. I don't think there is a dash indicator on any car if there the auto stick is in the middle (shifter type rather than pull type), I might be wrong.I know Honda Civic does and some other models too.

[PBFlash]

If you can't wait 10 seconds for the dash lights to kick on, then you're in too much of a hurry. I let my car run for at least 5 minutes before putting it into gear to let the engine warm up a little bit.

[bellwilliam]

you are thinking like a Northerner, here in Los Angeles, it is never below 50 degree. 90% of time it is 70 and above.you are also thinking about starting a cold engine. what about backing out of local store or something.warming up for 5 minutes is really an overkill, in my opinion.

[DopeVibeGT]

If it's 40+ degrees, you should still wait 30 seconds before taking off. It never hurts to let the oil get around the engine, only hurts when the oil isnt protecting 100%. If it's below 30, when I leave work, I let it run for 5-10 min. I cant do that when I leave my house, since I live in the city. But, I still sit there for 1-2 mins to let her warm up.

[NovaResource]

quote:actually, with manual, you don't look (at the shifter) when you shift. but with automatic, you should always look when shifting. Don't you do that? try an automatic next time, see if you comfortable shifting w/o looking.I never look at the shifter in any automatic. When I start the car, I put my foot on the brake and shift in Neutral. I never have to look because I know it's always 2 clicks down. Then I release the parking brake and either pull back one click into Drive or press the button and push up one click into Reverse. Going from Reverse into drive is just 2 clicks down without pressing the button. Going from Drive into Reverse is one click up, press the button and another click up. No need to ever look at the indicator.As a matter of fact, the aftermarket auto shifter in my Nova doesn't even have an indicator (actually it does but you just can't see it in the factory console:

[NovaResource]

Yes, they do tilt to the driver. It's a Autometer piece to semi-replicate the factory setup. Here's a closer view:The factory gauges were rectangular and didn't tilt to the driver. Here's a pic:

Attached files

[DopeVibeGT]

I dont see a "Boost" gauge, Scott.