DRL turn off when main lights go on

[AnotherLife]

DRL turn off when main lights go on, is there a way to keep those little LED lights on when the main car lights are turned on?

I have an 2020 Ibiza 1.0T 115ps Style with the non-LED main headlights.

 

[SRGTD]

The intensity of LED DRL’s is fine during daylight hours. However, they’re likely to dazzle oncoming road users after dark if they’re on with the headlights - hence why they turn off when you switch your headlights on.

I may be wrong, but I think that some car’s DRL’s do stay illuminated with the headlamps on - they double up as sidelights. However, they then operate at a lower light intensity (than during daylight hours) so they don’t dazzle.

 

[AnotherLife]

Is this normal for other cars/models that have halogen main lights and LED DRLs? I mean, for it to be impossible to have them both on?

 

[SRGTD]

It’s normal if that’s the way they’ve been designed to operate. AFAIK, if LED DRL’s are designed to stay illuminated when the headlights are on, then it’ll be at reduced brightness / intensity (the brightness of sidelights / parking lights) as they’ll be functioning as sidelights rather than DRL’s. The reduced brightness means they won‘t dazzle other road users during night time driving conditions.

This is the UK Government’s guidelines on daytime running lights;

Daytime running lights

www.gov.uk

Your signature details show an image of the national flag of Greece, so it’s possible the the use and operation of DRL’s may be different in Greece compared to the UK.

 

[AnotherLife]

Interesting, thanks for the info. I am indeed in Greece.

If Ibiza owners bump into this thread, please post whether your DRLs and main headlights are impossible to be on at the same time, like it is on mine.

 

[andycupra]

agree that it depends on how bright the DLR lights are.
There is a peugeot i pass each day which has really bright DRLs and they are always driving around in the dark just using DRLs meaning they have no rear lights.