since i dont have a line hooked up to the headlight sensor i thought it might be a coo idea if i could set in the config two times. then if it was after the first time it would dim the display to a configurable brightness, and after the second time would bring it back up. just a thought.

Or you could just hook up the dimmer wire.

heh, lots of work there i think. i looked into it when i installed and i had trouble finding the right wire. also, i drive with my headlights on one click normally, wouldnt that have negative effects on what i want?

also, i drive with my headlights on one click normally

In my state, that's illegal according to the driver's handbook.

Might be interesting to hook up a photosensor to the dimmer wire. When it gets dark out, the empeg dims.

really?
just to be clear, by one click i mean all lights on except for headlights.

just to be clear, by one click i mean all lights on except for headlights.

Right. Also known as "parking lights".

CA Vehicle Code Entry on the subject.

hmm, strange.

In my state, that's illegal according to the driver's handbook.

That IMO makes no sense. Wouldn't turning on the lights be better since you'd end up being more noticable to other drivers? I'm a light freak and I've retrofitted HID projectors into my late model accord. I leave the headlights on all the time to improve saftey. They just shut off after 15 seconds of the ignition cut-off automatically anyways.

Do you have daytime running lights Tony? Just wondering...

To get back on topic... I have been toying with the idea of adding a switch to the dimmer wire with a sunlight sensor but I don't know where I could get one of those buggers? I don't wanna just rip one out of a totalled Cadillac or something. Anyone know where to get these things?

I have been toying with the idea of adding a switch to the dimmer wire with a sunlight sensor but I don't know where I could get one of those buggers?

I think it would be nothing more than a photosensor and a relay, a couple of bucks at Radio shack.

Aargh...Nomenclature

In the UK, and most of Europe - those lights are known as side-lights, a hangover from when they were mounted close to the sides of the car, outside of the headlight itself. If you turn your sidelights on, you get dim front lights, and rear lights lit - useful at dawn/dusk or inclement weather to help people know where you are, and not so in the dark for seeing where you are going.

Parking lights OTOH, normally are side-selectable. ie on my old Mk1 Golf (AKA Rabbit in the US), if I left the indicator stalk turned to the left and turned the ignition off, the front left sidelight (by this time integrated into the headlight unit), and the rear left light would remain on. And vice versa for right, the idea being that if you parked on the side of the road at night, you'd leave whichever side was sticking out lit.

Now over here in the US, we have what's known as DRL - daytime running lights, which are basically front sidelights with no rear lights - which come on with the ignition. What an arse-about-face idea. Whilst it may help pedestrians see me coming during a dull day, it doesn't help me see the car ahead in similar circumstances, and since I see about 1000 times more cars on the roads then pedestrians, I know which is more useful. I've fitted my 2000 Golf with a Latin American headlight switch and disabled DRL. This allows me to turn on sidelights on dull days - and get the benefit that the absent-minded McDonalds-munching, cellphone-talking driver behind stands a better chance of seeing me. I'd better stop now before I start ranting about the idiots who insist on fitting 1MCandela front foglights to blind everyone else on the road without realising that they're screwed if they ever drive in fog since they don't bother with rear foglights...

in the US, we have what's known as DRL - daytime running lights, which are basically front sidelights with no rear lights - which come on with the ignition.

Actually, that is not always the case here in Canada. Most makes do exhibt the configuration you are refering to but some makes like Chrysler differ because they have only the parking lights on rather than just dim headlights.

I'm going to Radio Shack tomorrow...

Actually the time-based dimmer idea works for me, too. You see, I have a Subaru with daytime running lights, but I just leave the light switch on all the time. The car shuts off the headlights if the key is not in the ignition, so I never have to worry about turning on or off my headlights.

My Empeg IS hooked up to my dimmer wire, but since my lights are always on, I adjust my dimmer manually.