Auto Headlight Dipping

[Swanthecat]

I recently had several systems in my car, including the auto full beam, screwed up by condensation on the windscreen in the camera unit itself. Seems to be sensitive to outside factors.

[RzrAzr]

my update on auto high beam: love it! I've got the matrix led in mine. The only minor gripe, or more that I'm just not used to it, is that the road signs are all of a sudden very bright because they are treated with reflective coating. They don't blind me, just never had them shine so bright in the last 20 years of me driving, unless I switched to high beams.

[Cyker]

Are yours the type of matrix LED where it's essentially in high beam all the time, but where it senses people and other cars it turns off just for those sections so they're 'shadowed' but everything else is still under 'highbeam'?

 

[RzrAzr]

1 hour ago, Cyker said:

Are yours the type of matrix LED where it's essentially in high beam all the time, but where it senses people and other cars it turns off just for those sections so they're 'shadowed' but everything else is still under 'highbeam'?

 

From what I gather i haven’t seen it go to high beam in the city, also seems that it needs a minimum speed of 50 km/h, so definitely not all the time. Not sure about people but, cars are “shadowed”

oh also it does this cool dance of leds when you first turn on the car in the dark, maybe some sort of a system check but sure looks like an animation 

 

 

[Kental]

12 hours ago, Cyker said:

I just do it manually as, like the radar cruise control, I'm just far better at anticipation than the auto systems  

I still get flashed occasionally when I'm not even using my high beams so I just chalk it up to people like me who hate LED lights... (If you can't beat 'em...)

 

Not quite; The switch positions are:

• Auto (i.e. car decides on Front DRLs at 100% brightness, rear sidelights Off or Main Beams as below)
• Side Lights (DRLs dimmed 50%, rear sidelights On)
• Main Beams (Dipped or Full, rear sidelights On)

No off! This means I get some weird situations in broad daylight where the system will keep turning the dipped beams on and off because I'm driving under trees or overpasses or something and my only options to stop it doing that are to switch to side lights or main beams.

The stupid thing is there *are* models of Mk4 that have a 4-position light selector that includes an Off position (Which presumably would be just DRLs and nothing else), and I don't know why they'd go to the expense of having two different stalks unless it's a compliance thing. (i.e. some countries require an Off and some countries prohibit it?)

Auto lights are part of NCAP score so car can’t start with all lights off. 

[Cyker]

18 hours ago, RzrAzr said:

From what I gather i haven’t seen it go to high beam in the city, also seems that it needs a minimum speed of 50 km/h, so definitely not all the time. Not sure about people but, cars are “shadowed”

oh also it does this cool dance of leds when you first turn on the car in the dark, maybe some sort of a system check but sure looks like an animation 

 

 

Ahh cool - Those are what I wish were mandatory with LED lights, assuming the system is more accurate than the auto-highbeam system anyway! It is pretty neat watching the shadow 'follow' cars while keeping everything else lit, but yeah you will get extremely bright reflections from anything retro-reflective - That's just how blindingly bright a lot of LEDs are, so not a lot can be done about it.

I really want some sort of retroreflective sign on the back of my car so people with badly aligned headlamps or who don't know how to turn their highbeam off get a taste of their own lights!

 

11 hours ago, Kental said:

Auto lights are part of NCAP score so car can’t start with all lights off. 

Funnily enough, my Mk4 will sometimes start with DRLs off as long as I don't take it out of Park - When I shift out, that's when the DRLs will come on (And stay on). I think it only does this after the first time I turn it on in a day tho', as when I turn it on in the morning the DRLs usually turn on as soon as I hit Start.

[Woofwoof]

As a passing car these matrix systems are terrible

you don’t get blinded but you’re surrounded by light

[RzrAzr]

4 hours ago, Cyker said:

Ahh cool - Those are what I wish were mandatory with LED lights, assuming the system is more accurate than the auto-highbeam system anyway! It is pretty neat watching the shadow 'follow' cars while keeping everything else lit, but yeah you will get extremely bright reflections from anything retro-reflective - That's just how blindingly bright a lot of LEDs are, so not a lot can be done about it.

I really want some sort of retroreflective sign on the back of my car so people with badly aligned headlamps or who don't know how to turn their highbeam off get a taste of their own lights!

I have HIDs on the FJ, with high beams signs do reflect in the same way. Having said that I’ll take shiny signs over a higher illumination of the road, especially when driving at higher speeds and spotting possible animals or even people way before one would with dipped lights. Also night driving becomes a lot more pleasing especially for more senior drivers. 

[RzrAzr]

1 hour ago, Woofwoof said:

As a passing car these matrix systems are terrible

you don’t get blinded but you’re surrounded by light

probably even a bigger sensation when you’re followed by a car with matrix leds .
Definitely something we aren’t used to, but with more cars on the road with matrix leds it would be pretty neat to have a lot more surface illuminated. 

[nielshm]

I got my answer fra Toyota Denmark after my complaint.  The answer is pasted below, but it has just been through Google translate, so I hope it makes sense.

The conclusion is, that toyota don't see a problem. Maybe just fog around the camera?

There is no fog, garantied, and the dealer has been in touch with Toyota several times. I'm far from the only costumer that's frustrated, and the dealer makes a report every time. But now I know that my issue won't bee fixed (ever).

----------------------

Thank you for your interest. I'm sorry to hear that you're unhappy with the automatic dimming and dimming function on your Corolla Touring Sports.

Like all the other systems in Toyota Safety Sense, automatic dimming is intended as an aid to supplement general alertness and attention - ie. there will be situations where it will be necessary to dazzle manually. I have investigated the matter with our technical department, and they can see that your dealer has submitted an inquiry, where they also received a response with the above. In addition, they were asked to convey that we typically see this happen when fog arises around the camera's position on the windshield, which of course obscures the camera lens, making it difficult to assess whether to dazzle or not.

We are not aware that there should be a general problem that requires changes in the system.

If you are sure that there is no dew around the camera, and still experience problems, then I would recommend that you contact your local workshop again so they can have it thoroughly examined. If there is a general problem with your car, such as can not be repaired by repair, Toyota Nykøbing Mors can again contact our technical department and get further assistance if they need it.

Really good day from here.

[Swanthecat]

7 hours ago, nielshm said:

I got my answer fra Toyota Denmark after my complaint.  The answer is pasted below, but it has just been through Google translate, so I hope it makes sense.

The conclusion is, that toyota don't see a problem. Maybe just fog around the camera?

There is no fog, garantied, and the dealer has been in touch with Toyota several times. I'm far from the only costumer that's frustrated, and the dealer makes a report every time. But now I know that my issue won't bee fixed (ever).

----------------------

Thank you for your interest. I'm sorry to hear that you're unhappy with the automatic dimming and dimming function on your Corolla Touring Sports.

Like all the other systems in Toyota Safety Sense, automatic dimming is intended as an aid to supplement general alertness and attention - ie. there will be situations where it will be necessary to dazzle manually. I have investigated the matter with our technical department, and they can see that your dealer has submitted an inquiry, where they also received a response with the above. In addition, they were asked to convey that we typically see this happen when fog arises around the camera's position on the windshield, which of course obscures the camera lens, making it difficult to assess whether to dazzle or not.

We are not aware that there should be a general problem that requires changes in the system.

If you are sure that there is no dew around the camera, and still experience problems, then I would recommend that you contact your local workshop again so they can have it thoroughly examined. If there is a general problem with your car, such as can not be repaired by repair, Toyota Nykøbing Mors can again contact our technical department and get further assistance if they need it.

Really good day from here.

This would be consistent with what I experienced when the unit was affected by cold weather and resulting condensation. Without condensation it works well however. If there is a heater unit in the camera housing it is not sufficient to prevent this problem.

[nielshm]

I've done a little experiment the other night. If I ignore on coming traffic, high beam dips with just 50 meters between. And people flashes like crazy. 

If I slow down and let a car overtake, the high beam dips right away, and it does'nt come back on, before the distance is 300 meters. 

I think is a software bug. The way it react to white and red light is different. It could be interesting to place a bright red light in front of a on coming car, and see if the beam dips sooner or later. 

[Swanthecat]

2 hours ago, nielshm said:

I've done a little experiment the other night. If I ignore on coming traffic, high beam dips with just 50 meters between. And people flashes like crazy. 

If I slow down and let a car overtake, the high beam dips right away, and it does'nt come back on, before the distance is 300 meters. 

I think is a software bug. The way it react to white and red light is different. It could be interesting to place a bright red light in front of a on coming car, and see if the beam dips sooner or later. 

I have noticed this also the system reacts to rear lights much faster and is very consistent 

[Pagey179]

3 hours ago, nielshm said:

I've done a little experiment the other night. If I ignore on coming traffic, high beam dips with just 50 meters between. And people flashes like crazy. 

If I slow down and let a car overtake, the high beam dips right away, and it does'nt come back on, before the distance is 300 meters. 

I think is a software bug. The way it react to white and red light is different. It could be interesting to place a bright red light in front of a on coming car, and see if the beam dips sooner or later. 

You're right the sensitivity isnt good. I keep harking back to the Honda Civic I have just sold to get the Corolla. It used to dip when under town street lights. If there are no other cars around the Corolla doesnt... 

[AndrueC]

That's my experience as well except that I rarely get flashed by anyone. Almost never in fact.

[andrewR2022]

Noticed my auto dipping function not good in frosty weather after demisting window at startup. Just noticed condensation in the camera module looking from outside at the top of the windscreen, condensation still there even after a long journey which is causing the issue. Back to the dealer...

[Paul john]

4 minutes ago, andrewR2022 said:

Noticed my auto dipping function not good in frosty weather after demisting window at startup. Just noticed condensation in the camera module looking from outside at the top of the windscreen, condensation still there even after a long journey which is causing the issue. Back to the dealer...

Almost a toyota design feature. 
had that on my prius for 6 years. Every winter. Fixed with a long blast of heater on full heat and ac on, every time. 

[AndrueC]

Quite frankly after driving a bit more at night I've come to the conclusion that it's just a rubbish system. It clearly has a couple of blind spots (car below is one of them). At the very best it can be thought of as a backup system in case the driver forgets to dip and even then it does a poor job.

Considering how much better the Honda system was I'm surprised and saddened at how much of a balls up Toyota made of this feature.

[simond64]

6 hours ago, AndrueC said:

Quite frankly after driving a bit more at night I've come to the conclusion that it's just a rubbish system. It clearly has a couple of blind spots (car below is one of them). At the very best it can be thought of as a backup system in case the driver forgets to dip and even then it does a poor job.

Considering how much better the Honda system was I'm surprised and saddened at how much of a balls up Toyota made of this feature.

The adaptive high beams on the Excel model works perfectly, previously I had a gr sport with auto dip and that didn’t work well