daytime running light issue

was informed by asian ants about daytime running lights melting the lenses on tacoma headlights. I have a '11 model. haven't noticed any melting yet but i'm about to retrofit it. should i turn off the daytime running light capabilities? i like how they look but if they're gonna melt my lenses i'd rather not risk it with the permanent retrofit.

any suggestions?

 

Mine haven't melted in the last 3 years of daily use .

 

It's an issue with few of the 2nd gens, there's a pretty small chance that it'll happen (but it does)

the 2010 hasn't had any problems with it's DRL

 

thanks guys. i will keep them on. worse comes to worse i just buy new headlights and crack open the old ones and get the projector out.

 

Getting mine replaced tomorrow under warranty. Both lens have burn marks, getting the whole headlight for both.

 

The 2011's have daytime running lights?? Mine doesn't seem to have them as far as I know. Which lamps should be on when the car is running? Do they go on when the truck is in gear only? I'll have to check again.

 

really? the amber reflectors in the front aren't on when you are driving during the day? they go on once the car is turned on.

 

gotcha. did not know that.

 

My original lenses melted, had them replaced at the dealer about 2yrs ago and have had no issues since...

 

I guess I'm one of the "some" that didn't. I can live w/o them. The dealer I bought my '11 from didn't try to pressure me into any dealer-installed options. I think he knew that I wanted my new SR5 "as-is" off the lot or no deal.

 

My drivers side started to melt on my 09 before I turned them off.

 

If I did decide later on that I wanted them on for some reason, what's involved in doing so? I sort of like those LED strips under the headlights and might look at them as an alternative to the lamp within the headlight assembly.

 

do you think thats something i can just pick up from auto zone and install it?
led sounds like a good idea. no heat.

 

and people who say their 2010s haven't melted yet or what not, could that possibly be because they are fairly new. isn't their a certain mileage that it occurred around with the '09s?

 

The DTRL turns on when the car is on and when the E-Brake is in the released position. DTRL continues to be on if you just have your parking lights on

DTRL turns OFF when you have your headlights on.

at least that is how my 2011 goes.... But I disabled the DTRL because I didn't want to risk the burning of my lens, especially on my LS460 projectors...... My fog lights act as DTRL.

 

I replaced the OEM bulbs to a lower temperature set on my 2011 DTRL before I saw any problems. It was an easy $10 preventative fix. Will look for the exact bulb type and #, there are a couple of posts out there about it.

 

Check this out:

http://www.tacomaworld.com/forum/2n...ey-damaged-your-headlights-2.html#post2418344

Hope it helps.

 

Mine looked liked FLETCH AKA's and I had them replaced under warranty about 2months ago and I immediately notice they didn't have a amber reflector like the one pictured above has (hence problem with the melting) they should be fine now. I thought they would have given me a hard time like every issue I took to them before but they replaced them @35k miles no questions asked. Very happy with replacement light bulb.

 

Perhaps someone has said this before... I do not like DTRLs, and I disabled them in all my vehicles. It is my contention that partial voltage through your headlight filaments is not good for them. Ever looked at a regular light bulb when a dimmer is being used? Sometimes that filament is vibrating back and forth. That can't be good for the filaments and it simply can't contribute to a longer life.

Other circuits don't do well with partial voltage either.... so.... I don't run DTRLs. I also don't claim to be any kind of electrical engineer, so I likely don't know what the hell I'm talking about, but that's my claim and I'm sticking to it!

Down with DTRLs!

Roger

 

I had both mine replaced because it cracked the lenses. Do the stealth mod and be done with it. You can put them on a switch in about 30 minutes. I only run my DTRLs in low visibility.

http://www.tacomaworld.com/forum/lighting/85326-dtrl-toggle-switch-mod-stealth-mode.html