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my wife was driving the maxima behind me and ive noticed the DRL doesnt light all the way to the top. It only show the half bottom part. Did the led go out or its normal?
That's counter-intuitive. I'd assume the brighter the sunlight, the brighter (bigger) the DRLs. The darker outside, the smaller the DRLs should be.
The purpose of the DRLs is to make you visible to other traffic participants, not to illuminate your path. I think...
That's counter-intuitive. I'd assume the brighter the sunlight, the brighter (bigger) the DRLs. The darker outside, the smaller the DRLs should be.
The purpose of the DRLs is to make you visible to other traffic participants, not to illuminate your path. I think...
yea thats what i thought because when night comes you turn on the headlights the drl gets dimmer
I've always wondered about this. All the Maximas I come across during the day, only show 2/3 of the "horseshoe" illuminated. At first I thought it was due to the sharp angle on the top part of the DRL. I've taken photos of the car during the day, and the whole DRL is illuminated; I guess the intensity changes as the sensors kick in. Would be really nice to have the full DRL illuminated ALL the time. I consider this a serious design flaw. Can anyone come up with a rational reason for Nissan to design it this way?
I've always wondered about this. All the Maximas I come across during the day, only show 2/3 of the "horseshoe" illuminated. At first I thought it was due to the sharp angle on the top part of the DRL. I've taken photos of the car during the day, and the whole DRL is illuminated; I guess the intensity changes as the sensors kick in. Would be really nice to have the full DRL illuminated ALL the time. I consider this a serious design flaw. Can anyone come up with a rational reason for Nissan to design it this way?
I thought I knew my Max inside and out. Am I surprised that I never knew these DRLs operated in this way. The only way I've seen them is approaching the car at night, and then all I see is what is shown in chue's .jpg above. So they actually light up top, all the way across the bottom, and insides huh, and just during daylight hours. Yeah weird science indeed.
I just tested the DRLs function by looking at the reflection of the truck in front of me during night time. By switching the headlights on and off, I noticed the top portions of the DRLs did not change the intensity (brightness). With headlights off, the 2/3 bottom of the DRLs is very bright and it overpower the top portions so it appeared as the top portions are off but they are just dimmer. With headlights on (night time), the 2/3 bottom of the DRLs reduce the intensity to the same as the top portions so you can see the whole "horseshoes" DRLs.
Thank you @calab for bringing to our attention the "serious design flaw". No doubt design flaws have a continuum, I would imagine from "minor to serious". Glad to see that Nissan rose to the top in that category.
I wish I would have known about this "serious design flaw" before I bought my Maxima, I may have purchased a Pontiac, Oldsmobile, Saturn, Saab or Plymouth instead.
Who am I kidding?
Without losing sleep about this, I will attempt to enjoy my car.
Yes, if you put the headlights “ON” DRLs gets dimmer.
Mine randomly stopped doing that for some reason! They don't get dimmer when the headlights are on and that's annoying for the car in front of me because they are way too bright at night
Any idea on why that's happening?
We have no way of knowing how or why the DRLs are designed the way they are on the 8th gen Maxima. Maybe the top bulbs are difficult to get to, so Nissan doesn't have them on during bright sunlight in order to prolong bulb life. Of course that is just a wild guess.
I guess I am fortunate in that the way they operate is perfectly fine with me. I'm sure some technician or engineer at Nissan put thought into this, and that person would be able to explain why. But since I like the way they operate, I have decided not to put Nissan Engineering on speed-dial.
We have no way of knowing how or why the DRLs are designed the way they are on the 8th gen Maxima. Maybe the top bulbs are difficult to get to, so Nissan doesn't have them on during bright sunlight in order to prolong bulb life. Of course that is just a wild guess.
I guess I am fortunate in that the way they operate is perfectly fine with me. I'm sure some technician or engineer at Nissan put thought into this, and that person would be able to explain why. But since I like the way they operate, I have decided not to put Nissan Engineering on speed-dial.
The whole LED thing is in a single PCB, so if one of them goes out you have to replace the whole housing if you want OEM.
There are aftermarket ones you can replace with like the switchback one from Diode Dynamics but you have to open up the housing to replace it.
I’ve never owned a car with DRL’s that stayed the same intensity at night compared to day. Guys, trust me, it’s not a Nissan “engineer” thing lol. I don’t think some of you realize how bright the DRL’s actually are during the day. If they stayed at that intensity at night you would blind oncoming traffic, **** everyone off, etc. Twice (on previous cars) I modded oem DRL’s to keep full intensity at night and both outcomes were the same- you’re going to **** everyone off in front of you. I immediately put them back to stock settings. Experiment over, not doing that again lol
As a side note I've noticed that many other late model cars and trucks (actually every one I've seen) lose the DRL entirely on the side that is flashing a turn signal. Once the turn is made and the turn signal cuts off the DRL on that side comes back on. The Max's DRL's stay on whether turn signals are on or not. I like this.
As a side note I've noticed that many other late model cars and trucks (actually every one I've seen) lose the DRL entirely on the side that is flashing a turn signal. Once the turn is made and the turn signal cuts off the DRL on that side comes back on. The Max's DRL's stay on whether turn signals are on or not. I like this.
I like that also. I do pay attention to how the DRLs on cars behind me look in my mirror at night, and I like the look of the Maxima DRLs.
When I turn on my headlights during the day The DRL dims to the point where I can barely tell if they are on anymore but at night it’s vivid. Does anyone else’s Maxima does this?? ‘16 model btw
When I turn on my headlights during the day The DRL dims to the point where I can barely tell if they are on anymore but at night it’s vivid. Does anyone else’s Maxima does this?? ‘16 model btw
Yep, this is normal. DRLs have two settings. Bright when lights are off, and less bright when lights are on. Some folks have complained about one side being "stuck" in headlights-on mode when lights are off.
Yep, this is normal. DRLs have two settings. Bright when lights are off, and less bright when lights are on. Some folks have complained about one side being "stuck" in headlights-on mode when lights are off.
The complaints must have been heard since the 2019 Maximas are brilliantly lit full boomerangs during the daylight hours now.
05-31-2017, 03:39 PM
