Headlight on/off
 

You can change the behavior regarding when the headlights turn off after the ignition is turned off via the personalized settings. They can be set to turn off immediately or to turn off after 7.5 seconds, 15 seconds or 30 seconds. That setting is setting number 17 for the 2013 ES, and it is in the Light Settings. There is a separate setting for when the headlights turn off when the headlights are in the Auto mode. That one is setting number 14.

I've now had 2 different generation 6 ES cars. Unless I'm missing something, the fob has nothing to do with when the headlights turn off, and it is not possible to have the fob do anything that will cause the headlights to turn off.

Instead, with the personalized functions that I referred to, you can set how long the headlights stay on after you have left the car and closed the door.

The setting that you are referring to is setting #17. With the setting, the headlights should turn off after the set amount of time following when you get out of the car and close the door. It has nothing to do with the fob. Instead, the timer starts when you close the door of the car. Setting #14 is the one that controls how long the lights will stay on when you are in the Auto headlight mode.

I know exactly what you are referring to -- That's a feature on any LS. You click the lock button twice and the headlights will turn off.

My 2015 ES has that feature. Maybe just on Canadian car?

With my headlight switch set to "Auto", mine also turn off on the 2nd click. I wouldn't expect them to turn off, at all, if set to "On", as the OP seems to be attempting.

Really does it stay one? Not after some delay like 30 secs.?

Why do you want the switch set to "On"? It sounds like you want them to function as if they were set to "Auto". :confused:

As I previously said in posts #2 and #4 in this thread, even with the headlights in the On position (not Auto), when you shut off the ignition and leave the car, the headlights will turn off after by themselves. The delay time can be set to 0, 7.5, 15, or 30 seconds via the Personalized setting for Exterior Lights.

I just went out to the car to confirm that it does, in fact, work that way.

The next time that you start the car, the headlights will be on because you have them set in the On position. On the other hand, if you had the headlights set in the Auto position, the next time that you start the car, the headlights will only turn back on if it is dark outside. Also, with the Auto position, different delay times before the headlights turn off are available via the Personalized settings.

I don't believe my 2013 acts this way. If I leave the headlight switch in the "On" position, I get an alert when I open the door. I've never felt the urge to just walk away and ignore it. Also, I just checked the 2013 manual, it seems to show settings for the "Auto" setting timing. I can't find any other mentions in the customization section for controlling the "On" setting timeout.

I am certain that your 2013 works that way. My previously owned 2013 and the 2017 that I currently own operate in exactly the same way.

Yes, if the headlights are in the On position and you leave the car, you will get the audible alert, but, then, the headlights will turn off with a delay based on the Personalized setting for Exterior Lights. That is what I went out to confirm about an hour ago, and, again, my 2013 operated the same way.

There are 2 different Light settings related to what happens when you shut off the engine. The one for Auto just applies to the headlights (and tail lights). The one for Exterior Lights applies to all exterior lights, including the headlights, parking lights, taillights, and any other exterior lights.

This link that I found with a Google search is for the 2015 ES, but I have a print out for the 2013 ES, and the two are identical, except for slightly different number of the Personalized settings. In the link for the 2015 ES, the two settings in question are numbered 13 and 16. In my printout for the 2013 ES, they are numbered 14 and 17.

https://www.lexus.com/pdf/service/MY...i_customer.pdf

I'll try this when I get home. If it works the same as the "Auto" setting, I wonder why they don't turn off after 2 clicks on the FOB.

I still don't understand why anyone would want to have all the lights come on at all times. I turn them on when it rains, but that's the only time during daylight hours. Leaving them on all the time will negatively impact fuel efficiency. We already have DRL's.

I would guess that the purpose of the Exterior Lights setting to be a safeguard to make sure that, if people were not using the Auto mode and if they forgot to manually turn their headlights off (and ignored the audible warning), the headlights would not stay on and drain the battery.

I could imagine a situation in which I was manually using the headlights and, when I got home, I wanted the headlights to remain on until after I got into the house. In that case, I could intentionally ignore the audible warning, and the lights would remain on for, say, 30 seconds. Then, they would, after the 30 second delay, turn off so as not to drain the battery.