Center Panel Display Dim in Cooler Weather
12-17-15, 08:43 AM
#1
Driver
Thread Starter
Center Panel Display Dim in Cooler Weather
2003 RX300 43,000mi
For the first time, we are finding that our center panel display is quite dim at times, especially in the morning when it is cold. Even full bright (7 Bars) it is almost too dim to view.
Sometimes later in the day it now resets itself to fewer bars of brightness when the car is re-started. If we have 7 Bars set, after start it will be at 5 or 6 Bars and needs to be manually re-set to 7 Bars.
Does this sound like a control problem (part of the radio cluster), or the panel itself?
Anyone experience this?
(I posted previously under a different title, but now that we're correlating this to ambient temperature, I thought a more precise title might elicit more responses)
For the first time, we are finding that our center panel display is quite dim at times, especially in the morning when it is cold. Even full bright (7 Bars) it is almost too dim to view.
Sometimes later in the day it now resets itself to fewer bars of brightness when the car is re-started. If we have 7 Bars set, after start it will be at 5 or 6 Bars and needs to be manually re-set to 7 Bars.
Does this sound like a control problem (part of the radio cluster), or the panel itself?
Anyone experience this?
(I posted previously under a different title, but now that we're correlating this to ambient temperature, I thought a more precise title might elicit more responses)
12-17-15, 08:54 AM
#2
Lexus Test Driver
How cold is cold? The display can take some time to brighten up, when the temps are below 20F. However, only a minute maximum.
The brightness level has 2 saved preferences, the level with the headlights off and with them on. Is it possible that in the morning your headlights are ON, and then later in the day, they are off, perhaps because you have AUTO turned on. That could be why the bars are set lower. However, once you set them at full again with headlights off and on, it should remember that setting.
The brightness level has 2 saved preferences, the level with the headlights off and with them on. Is it possible that in the morning your headlights are ON, and then later in the day, they are off, perhaps because you have AUTO turned on. That could be why the bars are set lower. However, once you set them at full again with headlights off and on, it should remember that setting.
12-21-15, 09:59 AM
#3
Driver
Thread Starter
How cold is cold? The display can take some time to brighten up, when the temps are below 20F. However, only a minute maximum.
The brightness level has 2 saved preferences, the level with the headlights off and with them on. Is it possible that in the morning your headlights are ON, and then later in the day, they are off, perhaps because you have AUTO turned on. That could be why the bars are set lower. However, once you set them at full again with headlights off and on, it should remember that setting.
The brightness level has 2 saved preferences, the level with the headlights off and with them on. Is it possible that in the morning your headlights are ON, and then later in the day, they are off, perhaps because you have AUTO turned on. That could be why the bars are set lower. However, once you set them at full again with headlights off and on, it should remember that setting.
No, no headlights on. I didn't know if system monitored ambient light (as with "auto-on" headlight systems) or not.
I also didn't know the system "remembered" 2 settings (one w/ headlights on, on off). That would maybe explain why they actually brightened when the headlights were turned on, when I expected the display to dim with headlights on as part of a "fixed" program since most people want dimmer displays at night. (We maybe had adjusted the display full-bright one time w/ the headlights on, and the system remembered that?).
The day it "self adjusted," the only difference was I shut down the vehicle with the setting at 7 bars, full bright (if I counted right), then when I re-started it it was 2 bars lower only a couple of minutes later, though I could just re-adjust to the 7 Bar setting).
Is it possible the problem is the display, or the circuit that adjusts the brightness that is on the radio panel?
I would tend to suspect the display itself since I thought that if we see 7 bars on the brightness display, it should correspond to a certain brightness level consistently. In our case 7 Bars at one point is brighter than 7 Bars at another time (minutes later).
At one point, manually dimming one bar at a time caused the display to "wink-out" (like it was turned off) at 2 bars, while 99% of the time, manually dimming allows the display to be seen progressively dimmer all he way down to 1 Bar, and it never "winks-out" or disappears.
The display is usable (not BRIGHT, but usable) but requires the full 7 Bars to be seen now in daylight, whereas I think 5 Bars was plenty bright in the past.
I just am trying to diagnose and figure out how to attack the problem before the panel becomes unusable.
12-21-15, 03:09 PM
#4
Lexus Test Driver
The display does not adjust based on ambient light.
So it sounds like it is the display because as you said, it should be a consistent brightness based on the level you set it at. But, that is just more or less a guess. Since the display shouldn't have an impact on the computer remembering what level you set it at.
So it sounds like it is the display because as you said, it should be a consistent brightness based on the level you set it at. But, that is just more or less a guess. Since the display shouldn't have an impact on the computer remembering what level you set it at.
12-21-15, 09:16 PM
#5
I have recently had some experiences where when I started the car the panel was dimmer. I think they correspond to when I had disconnected (or ran down) the battery while working on the car.
Is it possible what you are seeing is the panel resetting to a default brightness due to a marginal battery dropping below some voltage threshold?
Is it possible what you are seeing is the panel resetting to a default brightness due to a marginal battery dropping below some voltage threshold?
12-22-15, 07:06 AM
#6
Lexus Test Driver
I have recently had some experiences where when I started the car the panel was dimmer. I think they correspond to when I had disconnected (or ran down) the battery while working on the car.
Is it possible what you are seeing is the panel resetting to a default brightness due to a marginal battery dropping below some voltage threshold?
Is it possible what you are seeing is the panel resetting to a default brightness due to a marginal battery dropping below some voltage threshold?
12-22-15, 11:13 AM
#7
Moderator
I don't know how useful my addition here is ... for the proverbial $0.02
First assumption I am making is that the screen setting is not being altered and just the appearance is the issue.
The display itself depends upon voltage and physical pressure on the screen.
As the supply voltage [Battery + alternator] climbs back up after start (assuming the battery is aging) you may see a dim to bright display. Load test of the battery can reveal how strong the battery is after start.
Mounting of the screen, should not stress the display. Try pushing gently on the screen and the plastic around the display to see if it changes.
Salim
First assumption I am making is that the screen setting is not being altered and just the appearance is the issue.
The display itself depends upon voltage and physical pressure on the screen.
As the supply voltage [Battery + alternator] climbs back up after start (assuming the battery is aging) you may see a dim to bright display. Load test of the battery can reveal how strong the battery is after start.
Mounting of the screen, should not stress the display. Try pushing gently on the screen and the plastic around the display to see if it changes.
Salim
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12-28-15, 09:04 AM
#8
Driver
Thread Starter
The battery and alternator are fine, and the lights are bright, so if the display is not getting full voltage, it may be in the circuit itself (connections/harness) which I have not investigated.
The time the display re-set itself lower was with a warm engine (and a fully charged battery from being driven), and the engine spun at proper speed, so I doubt that it re-set due to too low a battery voltage. It only auto-reset to a lower number of bars that once so far.
I did find a post here or the other Lexus Forum where someone who purchased a car from Car Max with a dim screen found it was a bad harness (that Car Max replaced for them), so that's a possibility. I have not yet removed the trim panel around the display to wiggle anything, or measure if I can get a VOM probe on the harness connectors. Of course, I don't know if full bright is supposed to be full system voltage, or some lower, regulated amount.
I have not tried pushing on the screen. It's not a "touch screen," but that doesn't mean that a gentle push might not reveal anything useful.
It's my wife's car, so I don't see it daily, and over the Holiday it's taken a back seat, but I hope to d omore investigations soon now that Christmas is behind us.
The time the display re-set itself lower was with a warm engine (and a fully charged battery from being driven), and the engine spun at proper speed, so I doubt that it re-set due to too low a battery voltage. It only auto-reset to a lower number of bars that once so far.
I did find a post here or the other Lexus Forum where someone who purchased a car from Car Max with a dim screen found it was a bad harness (that Car Max replaced for them), so that's a possibility. I have not yet removed the trim panel around the display to wiggle anything, or measure if I can get a VOM probe on the harness connectors. Of course, I don't know if full bright is supposed to be full system voltage, or some lower, regulated amount.
I have not tried pushing on the screen. It's not a "touch screen," but that doesn't mean that a gentle push might not reveal anything useful.
It's my wife's car, so I don't see it daily, and over the Holiday it's taken a back seat, but I hope to d omore investigations soon now that Christmas is behind us.
12-29-15, 04:16 AM
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The battery and alternator are fine, and the lights are bright, so if the display is not getting full voltage, it may be in the circuit itself (connections/harness) which I have not investigated.
The time the display re-set itself lower was with a warm engine (and a fully charged battery from being driven), and the engine spun at proper speed, so I doubt that it re-set due to too low a battery voltage. It only auto-reset to a lower number of bars that once so far.
I did find a post here or the other Lexus Forum where someone who purchased a car from Car Max with a dim screen found it was a bad harness (that Car Max replaced for them), so that's a possibility. I have not yet removed the trim panel around the display to wiggle anything, or measure if I can get a VOM probe on the harness connectors. Of course, I don't know if full bright is supposed to be full system voltage, or some lower, regulated amount.
I have not tried pushing on the screen. It's not a "touch screen," but that doesn't mean that a gentle push might not reveal anything useful.
It's my wife's car, so I don't see it daily, and over the Holiday it's taken a back seat, but I hope to d omore investigations soon now that Christmas is behind us.
The time the display re-set itself lower was with a warm engine (and a fully charged battery from being driven), and the engine spun at proper speed, so I doubt that it re-set due to too low a battery voltage. It only auto-reset to a lower number of bars that once so far.
I did find a post here or the other Lexus Forum where someone who purchased a car from Car Max with a dim screen found it was a bad harness (that Car Max replaced for them), so that's a possibility. I have not yet removed the trim panel around the display to wiggle anything, or measure if I can get a VOM probe on the harness connectors. Of course, I don't know if full bright is supposed to be full system voltage, or some lower, regulated amount.
I have not tried pushing on the screen. It's not a "touch screen," but that doesn't mean that a gentle push might not reveal anything useful.
It's my wife's car, so I don't see it daily, and over the Holiday it's taken a back seat, but I hope to d omore investigations soon now that Christmas is behind us.
Hi there,
I will tell you that your screen might be gone (as it is not LED, but CRT).
Do a check list:
1. Is there a difference in the brightness when the lights are ON or OFF.
2. See if the screen brightness is changing when rotating the dimmer switch for the brightness.
3. See if the screen brightness is changing via the DISPLAY settings.
Check all this, and I will tell you if the screen itself is gone.
12-29-15, 04:59 AM
#10
12-29-15, 05:19 AM
#11
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I was surprised too. I did DIY navigation installation, and then I noticed that.
http://www.ebay.com/itm/00-03-Lexus-...FWLn--&vxp=mtr
It also may have bad connectors, as the screen is OK from time to time.
Last edited by rosen71; 12-29-15 at 05:26 AM.
12-29-15, 09:31 AM
#12
Moderator
12-29-15, 10:40 AM
#13
Believe or not, on Gen1 the display is CRT.
I was surprised too. I did DIY navigation installation, and then I noticed that.
http://www.ebay.com/itm/00-03-Lexus-...FWLn--&vxp=mtr
It also may have bad connectors, as the screen is OK from time to time.
I was surprised too. I did DIY navigation installation, and then I noticed that.
http://www.ebay.com/itm/00-03-Lexus-...FWLn--&vxp=mtr
It also may have bad connectors, as the screen is OK from time to time.
It seems very unlikely to me. CRT's are superior to flat panels in display quality but this application didn't leverage it at all. In fact the digits displayed are just typical 7-segment. Why do that with a CRT?
In addition CRT's are (or were, prior to some advances) deeper than their diagonal size, they require more power, they require warm-up time, and I don't think flat screen CRT's even existed back then.
12-29-15, 11:10 AM
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What about that part makes you think it's a CRT? The mercury warning? That could be due to use of a florescent backlight.
It seems very unlikely to me. CRT's are superior to flat panels in display quality but this application didn't leverage it at all. In fact the digits displayed are just typical 7-segment. Why do that with a CRT?
In addition CRT's are (or were, prior to some advances) deeper than their diagonal size, they require more power, they require warm-up time, and I don't think flat screen CRT's even existed back then.
It seems very unlikely to me. CRT's are superior to flat panels in display quality but this application didn't leverage it at all. In fact the digits displayed are just typical 7-segment. Why do that with a CRT?
In addition CRT's are (or were, prior to some advances) deeper than their diagonal size, they require more power, they require warm-up time, and I don't think flat screen CRT's even existed back then.
Please check and you will be amazed that the Lexus Gen.1 used analogue screen and CRT flat tube (it is possible to have it on small sizes)
Check the attachment and you will see the typical wiring for CRT (RGB + SYNC)
Also there are some links that is clearly written:
http://lexus-europe.epc-data.com/gs3...ic/8603/86111/
http://toyotapartscatalog.com/lexus/...y-crt-display/
Last edited by rosen71; 12-29-15 at 11:14 AM.
12-30-15, 07:54 PM
#15
Ok guys,
Please check and you will be amazed that the Lexus Gen.1 used analogue screen and CRT flat tube (it is possible to have it on small sizes)
Check the attachment and you will see the typical wiring for CRT (RGB + SYNC)
Also there are some links that is clearly written:
http://lexus-europe.epc-data.com/gs3...ic/8603/86111/
http://toyotapartscatalog.com/lexus/...y-crt-display/
Please check and you will be amazed that the Lexus Gen.1 used analogue screen and CRT flat tube (it is possible to have it on small sizes)
Check the attachment and you will see the typical wiring for CRT (RGB + SYNC)
Also there are some links that is clearly written:
http://lexus-europe.epc-data.com/gs3...ic/8603/86111/
http://toyotapartscatalog.com/lexus/...y-crt-display/
I've never seen the 2003 RX300 Nav display, I had to look up the manual. Based on the pictures there of the brightness and contrast adjustment I don't think the OP has one.
Hope these 2003 manual links work...
This manual shows the standard non-nav display. 7 brightness bars, as described by the OP.
http://drivers.lexus.com/t3Portal/do...3rx300o/22.pdf
This manual shows the NAV display, about ten bars each for contrast and brightness.
http://drivers.lexus.com/t3Portal/do...03rx300n/4.pdf