I drive a 2006 Nissan Xterra that came from the factory with halogen, lo/hi combined headlight bulbs with a DRL setting.
After 18 years of using the old factory halogens, lightening in all driving conditions was diminished. So I opted for new LED bulbs.
I love the brightness of the new LED bulbs. I had them professionally aimed to not blind oncoming traffic. The problem is my new LED bulbs have eliminated the DRL function. I drive with my headights on perpetually, night and day.
I have checked with Nissan, parts stores and headlight companies to no avail. I do not need an LED decoder, (they are built into the LED bulb) and have no CEL or flickering issues whatsoever with my new LED bulbs.
Any suggestions? All online retailers (overseas names withheld) offer such LED DRL kits for cheap, ($10-20) plus wiring costs, but customer reviews confirm they are very cheaply made.
Any ideas how to restore my DRL LED function? I could continue to drive and manually turn the lo beams on like the olden days, but I wonder about the cost of burning out and replacing the “always on” instrument panel lights.
Also, does driving with fog lights count as DRL?
Cheers – Don, Alberta
I suspect the daytime running lights (DRL) issue is because of the differing electrical resistance between the original halogen bulbs and your replacement LED bulbs. Many DRL systems of that vintage used the existing halogen bulbs, but the DRL module operated them at a reduced voltage thereby making them dimmer. When you turn on the vehicle’s headlights, the DRL module is taken out of the circuit and the bulbs operate at full power.
The LED bulbs you installed have far less resistance than the originals and the DRL module reads the bulb as shorted out and thus disables DRL functionality. Perform an internet search for “LED load resistors” and you will find plenty of options. Choose a kit that matches your vehicle. The resistors will mimic the original bulb resistance and the DRL should again function as normal. If your DIY skills are reasonable, this shouldn’t be a massive project. Otherwise, any repair shop should be able to easily wire the resistors into the circuit.
What is a LED decoder you ask? It is for vehicles using a Controller Area Network, also known as a CAN bus. CAN bus technology is simply a communication protocol that allows onboard vehicle modules to communicate with each other digitally.
Newer vehicle’s use CAN for just about everything but your older Xterra would have only used CAN for engine management and not the headlights. Yes, newer vehicles communicate even with the headlights.
Driving with fog lights does not count as a DRL, but I suspect that not many drivers would care as long as you are not blinding them.