Has anyone found a solution for Day/Night illumination problem in the most European countries? Headlights must be switched on days and nights. How to tell AVIC-F20BT unit that brighten the screen automatically in daytime and dim it in the dark if the car headlights must be always switched on?

My car is VW Passat 2009 and I am using Connects2 CAN Stalk interface CTSVW002. When the car lights are in AUTO position, lights are controlled automatically (on/off) and Pioneer unit also change its brightness according to the signal from the CAN interface. But nowadays the lights must be on on the daytime as well. So my Pioneer thinks it is night and darkens the screen! Pretty hard to see anything when the sun shines on to the screen...

It`s hard to believe that car radio with navigation in this price class is having this kind of problem still in 2011!! It doesn`t have its own light sensor!! I am planning to build separate light sensing unit which is controlling the unit`s brightness via orange/white ill wire.

Do you mean daytime running lights? They should be on a separate circuit. I have a 2011 VW GTI and the DRL's do not trigger the harness illumination.

Do you mean daytime running lights? They should be on a separate circuit. I have a 2011 VW GTI and the DRL's do not trigger the harness illumination.

My car, 2009 model Passat doesn`t have "day time running lights". It only has normal headlights that are switched on automatically when it gets dark. Radio harness (CAN interface) is connected to the same circuit. Radio illumination is behaving the same way, bright screen in the day time and dark screen in the night time. When the car`S headlights must be switched on on the day time as well, Pioneer illumination is dark in the day time.

You said you have Daytime running lights? Interesting! Maybe I can update my headlights as well and have it all working. How are the lights working in your VW? Do you keep the car headlights always in "AUTO" position?

Are the Daytime running lights switched on in the day time ( car`s light switch in AUTO position) and when it gets dark, the car`s main lights are switched on automatically and the daytime running lights switched off?

If it works this way and the DRL`s do NOT trigger the CAN harness illumination, then that is the solution. I will ask VW service how much it would cost to upgrade the lights in my Passat.

Oh, On mine:

Headlight switch only has on/off, no auto.

DRL's are on whenever headlights are off.

Check your manual, there might be a way to turn DRL's on or off.

It looks like this:

DRL's are a U.S. DOT feature. Do you have fog lights? If so you can use those as you have to turn those on via the switch

DRL's are a U.S. DOT feature. Do you have fog lights? If so you can use those as you have to turn those on via the switch

In Europe fog lights can be switched on only in the dark and misty, foggy weather conditions. I asked from VW service for upgrading the lights (daytime running lights) but the price is terrible.

I should change the car to get Pioneer radio working correctly... At the moment I am building an automatic day/night switch. It will measure the lighting conditions and give the signal to Pioneer via orange/white illumination cable.