Auto Headlights Draining Battery?
#1
Driver School Candidate
Thread Starter
Auto Headlights Draining Battery?
Hi. I bought a 2006 RX330 about a year ago. 130K on the clock. Great car. My wife loves it. But she has turned off the auto headlights because every once in awhile she'll go out in the morning and the battery is dead. She turned off the auto headlights about 6 months ago and never had a dead battery. Until today, when it was dead, apparently because I drove the car last week and used the auto headlights and left them in the auto position. Anyone else ever heard of this problem? Seems to be associated with the auto headlights, but not every night. Car probably sat for 3 days without being used this past weekend, but that shouldn't drain the battery, right?
#2
Driver School Candidate
Yep. Had the same issue when we bought my wife a 2005 as a CPO in 2009. Went through a couple of Lexus batteries due to those lights. Question - Are your headlights programmed to stay on after you open the car door or do they immediately turn off?
Ours stayed on. I seemed to correct the dead battery issue by reprogramming the headlights to immediately turn off once I open the driver's door. Since that time, we haven't walked out to a dead battery and the car now sits for weeks at a time in the garage.
I have the reprogramming software to do it. If you have the factory navigation, you might be able to do it through that (my wife's GX has it so we changed that feature in that car as soon as we got it and have never had a dead battery in that car). If not, a Lexus dealership will do it but you will get charged for it.
Ours stayed on. I seemed to correct the dead battery issue by reprogramming the headlights to immediately turn off once I open the driver's door. Since that time, we haven't walked out to a dead battery and the car now sits for weeks at a time in the garage.
I have the reprogramming software to do it. If you have the factory navigation, you might be able to do it through that (my wife's GX has it so we changed that feature in that car as soon as we got it and have never had a dead battery in that car). If not, a Lexus dealership will do it but you will get charged for it.
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hansenjgh (12-06-16)
#3
Driver School Candidate
Thread Starter
Fascinating. Yes, the lights stay on for about 30 seconds after you close the door (not after you open it). Have it see if I can change that. Not a huge deal as my wife is now accustomed to using the lights manually (I don't have any idea how to do that!). Thanks for your reply chrisp.
#4
Hi. I bought a 2006 RX330 about a year ago. 130K on the clock. Great car. My wife loves it. But she has turned off the auto headlights because every once in awhile she'll go out in the morning and the battery is dead. She turned off the auto headlights about 6 months ago and never had a dead battery. Until today, when it was dead, apparently because I drove the car last week and used the auto headlights and left them in the auto position. Anyone else ever heard of this problem? Seems to be associated with the auto headlights, but not every night. Car probably sat for 3 days without being used this past weekend, but that shouldn't drain the battery, right?
If the car does do a lot of short trips and is in a garage overnight, ever consider a battery tender?
#5
Driver School Candidate
Thread Starter
My battery's age is not known. But I remember checking it when she said it was dying and didn't think it was too old. However, now that you mention it, the problem existed last winter and is coming back now that winter is returning. Hmmmmm. Kept in a garage in Virginia, so not terribly cold. No short trips. Always a minimum of 30 miles. Gonna keep listening to you experts!
#6
The auto headlights have nothing to do with your batteries. All auto headlights does is that it detects whether there is sufficient light outside for them to come on or not. You probably need new batteries.
#7
Driver School Candidate
Yes they do! Headlights staying on after the engine is off can definitely affect the battery life.
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#9
#10
Driver School Candidate
The "auto" headlights have a programming feature for how long you want them to stay on after you turn the car off. Ours was set for 30 seconds, I changed it to "off" once the drivers' door is opened. I got tired of them turning on once we pulled into the garage (even if it was during the day) and then staying on. Plus, my wife's 1/2 mile drive to work and then them staying on after she got home for almost as long as her drive, did drain the battery over time. Obviously, a new battery won't exhibit this issue, but it will over time. I have had no issues since we changed the length of time that they stay on. My experience, yours may very.
#11
Racer
I use the auto headlight feature. When I park the car, the headlights will stay on for about 60 seconds. I have found that by pressing the lock button on my remote, the headlights turn off.
#12
Instructor
iTrader: (1)
The "auto" headlights have a programming feature for how long you want them to stay on after you turn the car off. Ours was set for 30 seconds, I changed it to "off" once the drivers' door is opened. I got tired of them turning on once we pulled into the garage (even if it was during the day) and then staying on. Plus, my wife's 1/2 mile drive to work and then them staying on after she got home for almost as long as her drive, did drain the battery over time. Obviously, a new battery won't exhibit this issue, but it will over time. I have had no issues since we changed the length of time that they stay on. My experience, yours may very.
#13
Driver School Candidate
I used techstream to reprogram. I don't know of a manual way unless you have factory navigation.
Dennis, It was easier for me to reprogram the setting than remembering to lock the doors in the garage which we have never done.
Dennis, It was easier for me to reprogram the setting than remembering to lock the doors in the garage which we have never done.
#14
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Hi. I bought a 2006 RX330 about a year ago. 130K on the clock. Great car. My wife loves it. But she has turned off the auto headlights because every once in awhile she'll go out in the morning and the battery is dead. She turned off the auto headlights about 6 months ago and never had a dead battery. Until today, when it was dead, apparently because I drove the car last week and used the auto headlights and left them in the auto position. Anyone else ever heard of this problem? Seems to be associated with the auto headlights, but not every night. Car probably sat for 3 days without being used this past weekend, but that shouldn't drain the battery, right?
#15
This ^ pressing the lock button twice on your remote will turn off the headlights at least work on my 05 RX330.