Dash/AC button illumination.
Thread Starter
Junior Member
Joined: Sep 2019
Posts: 7
Likes: 1
From: Oklahoma. Born and raised in Texas and ended up in OK by way of CO.
Dash/AC button illumination.
My last two trucks were a 2010 Lariat and a 2013 Lariat and my current truck is a 2015 Platinum and I have had the same issue with all three so I thought I would see if anyone has a fix for it.
With the front door windows tinted to match the rear and an eyebrow on the windshield, when you go from looking out of the windshield to down at the lower part of the dash, It is very hard to see the buttons as far as the fan switch and seat cooling or heating switches. I run my headlight switch in auto but I have tried turning it to headlights on position during the day and that wont even illuminate the buttons so I guess there is a sensor that tells the truck that it's daylight so dash illumination isn't needed maybe?
The ideal fix would have the dash switches illuminated any time that the engine is running but I would settle for having to turn my headlights on and off manually if it comes down to it. Am I the only one with this issue and/or does anyone know how to fix my old eyes issue?
With the front door windows tinted to match the rear and an eyebrow on the windshield, when you go from looking out of the windshield to down at the lower part of the dash, It is very hard to see the buttons as far as the fan switch and seat cooling or heating switches. I run my headlight switch in auto but I have tried turning it to headlights on position during the day and that wont even illuminate the buttons so I guess there is a sensor that tells the truck that it's daylight so dash illumination isn't needed maybe?
The ideal fix would have the dash switches illuminated any time that the engine is running but I would settle for having to turn my headlights on and off manually if it comes down to it. Am I the only one with this issue and/or does anyone know how to fix my old eyes issue?
Senior Member
Joined: Dec 2018
Posts: 301
Likes: 50
I know in my 2013 when I bought it, as a base model STX it did not come with the 4 position "Auto-ON" headlamp switch, or the dash mounted sensor.
It was possible for me to end up running with no lights other than the DRLs on if I was driving through the day to night transition.
So where I'm going with this is that I modded my truck to have the auto-ON feature by:
1. Changing the switch, and adding the sensor.
and
2. Here's the key point, telling the truck that the new parts were now present, using Forscan.
So I'm thinking you could do the opposite, ie make the truck "think" that the parts aren't there anymore (even though they really are) using Forscan.
I don't recall how my truck behaved before the mod but I'm guessing that the sensor that turns the headlights on also dims the dash lights during the daytime.
At the very least it's easy to try and easily reversible. You would of course lose the headlamp auto-ON feature....
It was possible for me to end up running with no lights other than the DRLs on if I was driving through the day to night transition.
So where I'm going with this is that I modded my truck to have the auto-ON feature by:
1. Changing the switch, and adding the sensor.
and
2. Here's the key point, telling the truck that the new parts were now present, using Forscan.
So I'm thinking you could do the opposite, ie make the truck "think" that the parts aren't there anymore (even though they really are) using Forscan.
I don't recall how my truck behaved before the mod but I'm guessing that the sensor that turns the headlights on also dims the dash lights during the daytime.
At the very least it's easy to try and easily reversible. You would of course lose the headlamp auto-ON feature....
Last edited by Narly1; Oct 6, 2019 at 08:38 AM.
Thread Starter
Junior Member
Joined: Sep 2019
Posts: 7
Likes: 1
From: Oklahoma. Born and raised in Texas and ended up in OK by way of CO.
I know in my 2013 when I bought it, as a base model STX it did not come with the 4 position "Auto-ON" headlamp switch, or the dash mounted sensor.
It was possible for me to end up running with no lights other than the DRLs on if I was driving through the day to night transition.
So where I'm going with this is that I modded my truck to have the auto-ON feature by:
1. Changing the switch, and adding the sensor.
and
2. Here's the key point, telling the truck that the new parts were now present, using Forscan.
So I'm thinking you could do the opposite, ie make the truck that the parts aren't there (even though they really are) using Forscan.
I don't recall how my truck behaved before the mod but I'm guessing that the sensor that turns the headlights on also dims the dash lights during the daytime.
At the very least it's easy to try and easily reversible. You would of course lose the headlamp auto-ON feature....
It was possible for me to end up running with no lights other than the DRLs on if I was driving through the day to night transition.
So where I'm going with this is that I modded my truck to have the auto-ON feature by:
1. Changing the switch, and adding the sensor.
and
2. Here's the key point, telling the truck that the new parts were now present, using Forscan.
So I'm thinking you could do the opposite, ie make the truck that the parts aren't there (even though they really are) using Forscan.
I don't recall how my truck behaved before the mod but I'm guessing that the sensor that turns the headlights on also dims the dash lights during the daytime.
At the very least it's easy to try and easily reversible. You would of course lose the headlamp auto-ON feature....
Does any else have any more ideas or solutions?