Now that the sun sets later in the evening I've noticed the automatic lights come on when the sun is setting. It will be very bright out and I will need sunglasses/lower sun visor to see. It still is perfectly bright out. I dont mind the lights on, but it lowers the stereo/dash lights really low. Its very annoying. I can turn the brightness up but then at night I have to turn it down.

- I have tried to modify the "Automatic Lights Sensitivity" option in the car, putting it to "MIN", and it makes no difference. I tried it on max for fun and it had the same results. Performs the same whether car is dirty or just got out of the car wash.
- Windows are tinted. Very dark in the back and lighter in the front.

Does anyone have a remedy for this? Where is the sensor? Is it in an area where the window tint is covering it, causing the sensor to think its night?

 

Your light sensor is not working properly, they are located on the top of the dash near the bottom of the windshield, there should be 2 bubble like things. Those are them.

 

Thanks for the reply. I am researching the topic now. Not too common of an issue. Actually I cannot find any posts about users complaining about this issue. I'll try cleaning them but I have my doubts that they are dirty. Have you ever heard of this?

 

No I have not heard of it before, or at least in general it is not very common. On my old 2007 MDX it worked like it was supposed to and on my current 2012 sorento there is a mild delay between the headlights coming on/off and the dash dimming if I was to go under an underpass for example. You can try cleaning them, bur this sounds like a different problem to me.

 

Is your windshield tinted?


Have you looked into just not using the AUTO function?

 

Windshield is not tinted. I love the auto function! I would rather deal with turning the brightness knob rather than playing with the headlights.

 

Turning on the auto headlights is annoying when you have the Tech. Package because your navi screen turns black when entering and leaving a tunnel. Also I've heard that the auto headlights slightly drains the battery so it makes sense to turn off the auto headlight feature.

 

Auto headlights also aren't the best for those HID ballasts if you just so happen to drive under overpasses often and they turn on and off .

 

If I'm not mistaken you can turn the sensitivity down or up in you vehicle options.

Turn the key into the on position and hold either the up or down button till the driver 1/2 menu appears.

 

I have the same issue, but I blame it on my desire to have the interior lights dimmer at night. I've resolved to adjust their brightness manually as I like. It's a problem I've had with all my cars no matter if they have auto lights or not.

 

I gave up on the auto function years ago. Every time I drive under the many overpasses on my slow commute home my lights came on. Plus more wear and tear on the lights/ballasts being turned on and off all the time.

Now I'm a caveman and turn the switch myself instead of letting the stupid robots decide. #teamhumans

 

I found out where they are when I threw my sunshade in when parking before I turn the engine off. Maybe its the low angle of the sun skimming over the top of the sensor, or the sensors are failing. Hard to believe both going at the same time.

Throw a dark piece of paper, or some other opaque object (aluminum foil) over each one separately, see if / when they switch the lights? Then, in the late afternoon, see if they are in sun or shade when you are driving

 

I can't imagine having to turn the lights on manually, anymore.

 

I was looking at mine (2012), and swear I only see a single sensor, dead center on the windshield.

 

Hey everyone... I am having a similar issue with my 2010 TSX. My auto headlights are ALWAYS on. Even though they are set to "auto," they never shut off, even in direct sunlight. I looked through my owner's manual and it shows me a step-by-step of how to change the automatic headlight sensitivity, but then in small print it says *Except on the Canadian TSX 4-cylinder model* ... which is the exact model that I have. I do not have that option in my "setup" menu. Does anyone know how to adjust this sensitivity an alternate way on the 2010 TSX Canadian 4-cylinder model? There must be a way... I would hope at least... if not, does anyone have any other suggestions to fixing this? Thanks in advance.

 

I have a Canadian 4-cylinder TSX and the sensitivity setting is there. Do you have halogens or HID? Base, Premium, or TECH?

 

Hey xtcnrice, thanks for getting back to me. That's strange. I have the premium package with HIDs. Where are you finding this setting?

 

Do you think it has anything to do with the fact that yours is a 2012 and mine is a 2010?

 

I doubt it. This thread exists, and there are posts from 2010:
https://acurazine.com/forums/second-...tivity-793627/

 

Hmm, that's super weird. I have no idea why I am unable to change this setting in my car. Maybe those users have the tech package? I know where I should be finding these settings as my mom's 2014 RDX has the ability to change auto light sensitivity and all those other functions in the menu on the dash beside the speedometer. I don't have that. When I press the "info" button, it toggles between Trip A, Trip B, total KM, oil life %, fuel economy, tire pressure, range, and that's it. There's no "customize settings" option. I guess I'll have to ask the dealer next time I'm there. Thanks for your help.

 

I believe you have to long-hold the i button on your steering wheel while the ignition switch is in accessory mode. Give it another try

 

You know what... I am an idiot...lol. I was just coming on here to say that I figured it out - I was not long-pressing the "i" button, I was simply clicking up and down thinking the option would be in that list. I ended up pulling my owner's manual out again and re-reading that section and it said to hold for at least 3 seconds, which I was not doing. Lol. I guess I missed that part when I read over it last time. Thanks for your patience in helping me... clearly I am not the smartest!!! Glad I figured it out though. Hopefully this will solve my auto headlight sensitivity issue. Thanks again, I appreciate it.

 

Np! It's what the forums are here for

FWIW, even with the auto headlight sensitivity setting on the lowest, it'll still sometimes trigger when you're under an overpass, or on a cloudy day, etc. If the weather conditions are just right (or wrong rather), it'll hit that not-so-sweet spot and just want to turn on/off every minute or so. I actually stopped using my auto-headlights altogether haha. But hope this helps you with your current issues

 

Yea, I'm not sure if something is wrong with my sensor, cause even with the sensitivity changed, my headlights are still ALWAYS on (been trying for a few days now). So I'm just going to stop using my auto headlights. lol. I wonder if this is a common issue with these cars? Whenever I see TSXs around they almost always have their headlights on during the day. I rarely see DRLs. Well anyway, I appreciate the help We solved the problem of the missing menu options!! But I still have problematic auto headlights. hahaha

 

Mine have been acting up lately as well. Previously set to Min sensitivity so they didn't bounce on and off if I drove under trees. Had a dead battery one morning last month. Lost my seat settings after that. Then realized the headlights were coming on, and the Nav display was dimming a lot. Tried setting to High sensitivity yesterday, will turn back to Min today see if they work better. Wonder if something wiped the memory on the system, or just a sensor fail.

More in a few days.

 

Turning it back to Min seemed to help, but still bouncing. I think I had the Nav system set to Not Auto Dim, will be looking for that tonight.

 

Have you tried just putting the headlights back on non-auto? I never understood Auto headlights. It' puts so much stress on the ballasts every time it activates when going under underpasses or tunnels.

 

Auto headlights is an awesome feature. I believe the stress on the ballast occurs when a short stunt of electricity is passed through them, IE a turn signal, not 3+ seconds under a bridge. Sure it cant be good for them, but I don't think its a death sentence. Are failing ballasts a common problem on our cars? The ballast assembly seems to run about $65 new.

 

It really frustrates me that my auto headlights don't work. I had auto headlights in my previous car (Mazda 3) that worked as they were supposed to and it was so nice to not have to keep turning them on and off manually all the time. They had a fairly low sensitivity so they did not come on driving under over passes or bridges - only at night. The only time they came on during the day was if I went through a tunnel, which is understandable. I don't like just leaving my headlights on all day cause I have LED fog lights that are very bring and it just seems like a huge waste having them on all day long when its sunny (plus I don't want to have to replace bulbs more often if I don't have to). I would love to find a way to make my auto headlights work so that only the DRLs come on during the day when the headlights are not needed.

 

Figured out my light problem, it wasn't the headlights bouncing so much as the Nav display echoing that action. Somewhere along the line I must have lowered the dash brightness a bit (twist the odometer reset knob), and that caused the Nav display to dim.


Not sure why I only lost the power seat settings when the battery died, but that's a story for another day.

 

I guess we can agree to disagree on the ample amount of time to decrease the longevity of a ballast..

@220bucks here:
https://www.oemacuraparts.com/oem-pa...dXRvbWF0aWM%3D

You can... turn them off and then on at night

Also LED lights have a much higher lifespan than their halogen or HID brethren so it's really a non-issue for them. LED, unlike halogen/HID are a solid state technology.