Disable Daytime running Lights?
CL Community Team
Joined: Apr 2004
Posts: 17,335
Likes: 212
From: Miami, Florida
Welcome to Club Lexus. 
An unfortunate thing that there is not an easy button to push to turn off the DRLs. I favor them off as for years it has brought me unwanted attention given that the BIG, BIG majority of vehicles down here don't have them and recently it gave me a 'little' extra boost on the track by not having this electrical device running.
To turn them off go to your battery and look underneath the battery plate and find this area circled in white and with red tape on it. I covered up the connector piece here with tape. This is a male-female connector and you have to disconnect the cable attached to this piece. Might take a little bit of extra effort with your hand and thumb, but it will come out if you give it a strong tug. Also recommend taping up both pieces of this connection.
An unfortunate thing that there is not an easy button to push to turn off the DRLs. I favor them off as for years it has brought me unwanted attention given that the BIG, BIG majority of vehicles down here don't have them and recently it gave me a 'little' extra boost on the track by not having this electrical device running.
To turn them off go to your battery and look underneath the battery plate and find this area circled in white and with red tape on it. I covered up the connector piece here with tape. This is a male-female connector and you have to disconnect the cable attached to this piece. Might take a little bit of extra effort with your hand and thumb, but it will come out if you give it a strong tug. Also recommend taping up both pieces of this connection.
Thread Starter
Driver School Candidate
Joined: Aug 2007
Posts: 6
Likes: 2
From: IL
Thanks for the reply but...
I have a 2001 and look around the battery and did not see any red tape. Do I have to take the battery out?
I might bring it my dealer and have them do it?
I might bring it my dealer and have them do it?
CL Community Team
Joined: Apr 2004
Posts: 17,335
Likes: 212
From: Miami, Florida
Sorry, I should have been clearer, there is no red tape. The red tape is what I used to cover up the location of electrical connector. If you look in that location that I outlined with the circle and red tape, that is where there is a cable that you must pull out from an eletrical connector or plug.
Over the years I have heard the dealers are less than friendly in doing this or even remotely telling you how to do it. There was a poster in this forum by the name of wwest a few years back who introduced me to this trick.
No, you shoudn't have to take the battery out at all.
Over the years I have heard the dealers are less than friendly in doing this or even remotely telling you how to do it. There was a poster in this forum by the name of wwest a few years back who introduced me to this trick.
No, you shoudn't have to take the battery out at all.
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Driver School Candidate
Joined: Sep 2004
Posts: 27
Likes: 1
From: California
Maybe, the guy swap the wiring of the high beam & fog light. If the wires are long enough to reach each others end. It's kinda similar to what I did when I swap my low beam & fog light, so I can turn on the fog light without the low beam. When it get's darker, then I turn on my fog light switch for the low beam. I ask my wife to drive the RX while I'm in my other car in front of her to see how it looks like. You cannot tell what car it is with only the fog light on. I also change the parking light to amber because I disable my front side marker & changed the reflector to clear.
Lexus Test Driver
Joined: Jul 2003
Posts: 1,002
Likes: 152
From: Texas
Lexmex, thank you so much for posting a picture of where this connection it.
DRL's have bugged me since GM introduced them to the US. I used to ride a motorcycle, and to me, this is one more thing helping them to be less visible.
Plus, the lower voltage turns the bulbs grayish/brown on the inside, making them less effective over time.
DRL's have bugged me since GM introduced them to the US. I used to ride a motorcycle, and to me, this is one more thing helping them to be less visible.
Plus, the lower voltage turns the bulbs grayish/brown on the inside, making them less effective over time.
CL Community Team
Joined: Apr 2004
Posts: 17,335
Likes: 212
From: Miami, Florida
My pleasure, they bug me, too.
I had a friend with them on a Volvo some years back and through some strange fault, they kept wearing down the battery and then once Volvo replaced the the bulbs and circuitry, the bulbs would wear out, finally he got a mechanic to turn them off completely.
I had a friend with them on a Volvo some years back and through some strange fault, they kept wearing down the battery and then once Volvo replaced the the bulbs and circuitry, the bulbs would wear out, finally he got a mechanic to turn them off completely.