Headlights power off at standstill, on when accellerating?

[beasd mr Friendee]

HI, hoping someone might know what the problem might be. have an s reg v6 petrol, recently the headlights started to dim or switch off when at a standstill (traffic lights , junctions etc) reminds me of wind up torches, then as soon as you accellerate forwards or reverse they come back on.
Whilst we do at least have lights while travelling, it's still obviously illeagal to have faulty lights but wondered, before we take it into a garage and have to spend heaps of money, if this indicates a really simple problem?
Anyone know?
cheers

[westonwarrior]

I seam to recall that some in Japan had this mod fitted so they were not constantly blinding the persons in front when in city Jams.

the cure would be to get an sparky to look at it for you

noticed your in nth somerset

[beasd mr Friendee]

thanks rob, this is encouraging news, does this mean i have inadvertantly hit a button somewhere then? and perhaps i can hit it again and have them on as normal?

I'm local to you then!!!

[missfixit70]

Have a play with any switches you're not sure about & see what happens. Just don't hold me responsible when the ejector seat fires It may not be an obvious one, I vaguely remember someone having a similar issue & it was'nt that easy to spot, try under the steering column for a knee knocking possibility?

[westonwarrior]

If you want to meet we can do and I will have a look at least that way we should avoid the ejector seat, and take a look at the linkage problem too

[beasd mr Friendee]

thats a very kind offer and one i'd be a fool to turn down. Where abouts are you. i live near nailsea but work in weston thursadys and fridays.
Did you buy a manual for your bongo? i thought we would get one with the bongo since we bought through a dealer but they wanted to charge us £40 for it and i'd already been on this site so said no and meant to get one, would it help me do you think? only if its technical and expects a certain amount of skill or understanding of mechanics it would be wasted on both me and my husband.
thanks

[mister munkey]

This is almost a regular modification in Japan & has been bought up on here a couple of times before.

They do indeed fit this as an aftermarket cool kit to avoid blinding those in front. (no idea of the ligic behind it though . . )

There will be a switch somewhere that disables this function, just a question of finding where its hidden.

[missfixit70]

thats a very kind offer and one i'd be a fool to turn down. Where abouts are you. i live near nailsea but work in weston thursadys and fridays.
Did you buy a manual for your bongo? i thought we would get one with the bongo since we bought through a dealer but they wanted to charge us £40 for it and i'd already been on this site so said no and meant to get one, would it help me do you think? only if its technical and expects a certain amount of skill or understanding of mechanics it would be wasted on both me and my husband.
thanks

May be an idea to get hold of the owners glovebox manual which is usually around £20, but to be honest, you'll probably find more useful info on the forum, factsheets & archives & meets than buying the full workshop manual. this website http://www.lushprojects.com/bongopartsmk2/ has all the schematic diagrams if they're any use to you.
I'm sure Westonwarrior'll see you right, hopefully see you at the Wookeyhole meet - http://www.igmaynard.co.uk/bongo/forum/ ... 37&t=27773

[tomsk]

Mine has a switch just below and to the right of the steering wheel. I knocked mine when I first bought the van and thought my headlights had gone.

Hope this helps.

Tom

[csermanni]

Mine does this ..., also switches the lights on automatically when it gets dark or in a tunnel ...

On mine, there is a light sensor on the top of the dash, in the far right corner ... it also has a switch on top of it that allows you to turn this behaviour off ...

[westonwarrior]

thanks guys great info have to store this in my memory.

[bigdaddycain]

They do indeed fit this as an aftermarket cool kit to avoid blinding those in front. (no idea of the ligic behind it though . . )

It's a pity this feature can't be adapted to all vehicles, just what is the point of having headlamps glaring at others when stationary?

I'm thinking along the lines of cars momentarily parked on the wrong side of the road,facing you,with lights glaring in your face before you move over to pass them.

My dear old pops used to manually dip the lights of his lorry when he pulled up at a red light if there was a car in front of him at the queue. I believe that the "yellow headlamps" on some bongo's is a special coating applied in japan as a cheaper method of achieving the same objective.

[mikeonb4c]

They do indeed fit this as an aftermarket cool kit to avoid blinding those in front. (no idea of the ligic behind it though . . )

It's a pity this feature can't be adapted to all vehicles, just what is the point of having headlamps glaring at others when stationary?

I'm thinking along the lines of cars momentarily parked on the wrong side of the road,facing you,with lights glaring in your face before you move over to pass them.

My dear old pops used to manually dip the lights of his lorry when he pulled up at a red light if there was a car in front of him at the queue. I believe that the "yellow headlamps" on some bongo's is a special coating applied in japan as a cheaper method of achieving the same objective.

I agree. I've long wondered too what the greenhouse gas cost is of the habit that got started some while back of having sidelights/headlights on even when visibility is quite OK. The problem with the habit is once everyone starts doing it, you are at risk when you don't as you'll get overlooked. But you'd start the mother and father of a road safety row if you suggested restraint

[beasd mr Friendee]

haven't located the switch YET but hoping there is one! the idea of not blinding people when sitting behing them in a traffic queue is nice BUT there are several downsides and here is why we want to disable it:
if you are stop starting in a queue you effectively start 'flashing' your lights every time you move forward a couple of inches, (this may lead to all sorts of embarrassing miscomunications let alone road rage!)
if you get stuck at an intersection of junction you effectively sit with no lights ( they don't just dim they actually switch right off)
i am not sure about the legality of this, could we get done for having faulty lights, i suspect the answer would be yes?
thankyou to all of you who have suggested help to my enquiries, it's really helped but also, it really makes you feel good about the human race when strangers give a helping hand!!!

[beasd mr Friendee]

Thanks so much to all of you who knew it was a specification added. And many more thanks to Weston Warrier who turned up to have a look and discovered the elusive button that we must have knocked at some point now we know where it is- right under the dash where your knees are!!!

Anyway, problem solved and with out any expensive head scratching and intake of breath!!!