generaltso Posted October 26, 2011 Report Share Posted October 26, 2011 I noticed that this video mentions rain sensing wipers and a "smart beam" system that can automatically turn off your high beams when another car approaches. Do those two options really exist on the Journey? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
drb227 Posted October 26, 2011 Report Share Posted October 26, 2011 Nope. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
generaltso Posted October 26, 2011 Author Report Share Posted October 26, 2011 Nope. I didn't think so. The SmartBeam feature is mentioned briefly in the owner's manual, but there's no mention of rain sensing wipers. I wonder why these features end up in Journey documentation and videos but don't actually exist as options for the Journey. It makes it hard to tell what you really can and can't get. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Powdered Toast Man Posted October 27, 2011 Report Share Posted October 27, 2011 Yeah, it's kind of irritating that no one bothered to proof read the manual before it went to print. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
generaltso Posted October 27, 2011 Author Report Share Posted October 27, 2011 Yeah, it's kind of irritating that no one bothered to proof read the manual before it went to print. And they release how-to videos specifically for the 2011 Journey that mention features that aren't available even as options. I have yet to find an accurate list of options that actually are available on the 2012 Journey. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AstralRT Posted June 2, 2012 Report Share Posted June 2, 2012 I watched that same video that came with mine and was wondering the same thing, couldn't find anything inside the vehicle to indicate rain sensing wipers. Very confusing. Also, the link between the headlights and the wipers was an annoying feature I quickly disabled. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Psyke Posted June 2, 2012 Report Share Posted June 2, 2012 (edited) interestingly enough, my rearview mirror does have the light sensing camera...Guess I should go drive around with my highbeams and see if it works Just went to the store to pick up breakfast stuff for the morning and nope, she no work Edited June 2, 2012 by Psyke Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AstralRT Posted June 2, 2012 Report Share Posted June 2, 2012 I have the same light sensor on mine and was planning on testing it too, thanks for the update. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
generaltso Posted June 2, 2012 Author Report Share Posted June 2, 2012 Are you sure it has the sensor and not just a hole for the sensor? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Psyke Posted June 2, 2012 Report Share Posted June 2, 2012 Are you sure it has the sensor and not just a hole for the sensor? good question; it's probably the same mirror that's found in the Charger/Durango/Cheroke as it has both the uconnect mics and the "sensor" in the front. The three other vehicles have the autodimming high beams as an option, but don't know if the hardware needs to be added to the mirror itself, or if it just requires the appropriate module to be added to the vehicle to have it activated. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
doubleO7 Posted June 3, 2012 Report Share Posted June 3, 2012 Also, the link between the headlights and the wipers was an annoying feature I quickly disabled. Why would you turn off what I think is a fantastic safety feature. In dark rainy conditions or in conditions where there is a lot of spray from the cars around you and yourself, this feature not only turns on the headlights but the rear lights as well. You may thinkg its not helping you because you don't see any better, but helps that other drivers see you and isn't being more visible to others in less then perfect driving conditions more important. As someone who had driven professionally some years ago, its annoys me to no end that people don't turn on their headlights when its raining, so I am going to disagree with you on this feature being annoying. Mine won't be disabled thats for sure. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AstralRT Posted June 3, 2012 Report Share Posted June 3, 2012 Why would you turn off what I think is a fantastic safety feature. In dark rainy conditions or in conditions where there is a lot of spray from the cars around you and yourself, this feature not only turns on the headlights but the rear lights as well. You may thinkg its not helping you because you don't see any better, but helps that other drivers see you and isn't being more visible to others in less then perfect driving conditions more important. As someone who had driven professionally some years ago, its annoys me to no end that people don't turn on their headlights when its raining, so I am going to disagree with you on this feature being annoying. Mine won't be disabled thats for sure. That was my initial thought as well because I have always turned on my running lights during dark/rainy days and thought this would make things just a little easier, but later found it didn't play nice with the auto headlights, which come on when lights are needed anyway. It don't always rain at night, nor is it always cloudy and dark when raining and I noticed that when I turned on my wipers to run some windshield wash my nav and other lights switched to night mood in the middle of a sunny day. Which is not something I want to happen. Now in all fairness I was parked in my driveway with half my DJ in the shade of a tree, so maybe my auto lights were just kicking in until I drove away and it wasn't my wipers+headlights. So I'll give it another try in complete sunlight, but if it starts dimming my nav screen it'll remain off and I'll just rely on the auto headlights or my own common sense to turn the lights on when its needed as I have always done. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Psyke Posted June 3, 2012 Report Share Posted June 3, 2012 Interesting you would say that; my wife and I were talking about it yesterday commenting how we liked that it the auto headlights didn't come on when we were just in the shade of an overpass. They did come on while I was under the tree's of a forest though. As for the safety aspect of the Autolights when the wipers come on; I don't think it's as important if you have DRL's. If you're in the states and DRL is optional (depending on the state), then it becomes more of a safety thing. But I don't think I've ever turned on my headlights in the past when it started to rain, unless it got extremely dark at the same time, which I don't think ever happened. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
doubleO7 Posted June 3, 2012 Report Share Posted June 3, 2012 AstralRT Thanks for your explanation. Since I haven't got my R/T yet, I wasn't aware that there would be a problem with the lights coming on when you use your windshield washer. . I can see what you mean by annoying if your dash lights dim for no reason other then turning the windshield washe feature.Hmmm, I may have to re-think the auto on feature, and just turn them on manually when conditions call for such lighting. By the way, thanks for not taking offence to what I wrote, as my comments were meant to be general in nature and not directed at anybody on the forum. Psyke As for the safety, and DRLs, its more about the rear lights coming on with the headlights on, as this makes you more visible to the traffic behind. Here on the WEsT Coast it gets very rainy at times and with a lot of truck traffic on the roads, there is alot of spray which can really pay havoc with ones ability to see the vehicles ahead when only the DRLs on, as the rear tailamps are not lit. You are correct, there are many times when lights are not needed if the driving visiblity is not hampered with the rain. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
generaltso Posted June 3, 2012 Author Report Share Posted June 3, 2012 In many states in the USA, it's the law that you have to have your headlights on when you turn your wipers on. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Windancer Posted June 3, 2012 Report Share Posted June 3, 2012 In many states in the USA, it's the law that you have to have your headlights on when you turn your wipers on. Interesting, a good idea IMO. Terry Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lebowski Posted June 3, 2012 Report Share Posted June 3, 2012 That was my initial thought as well because I have always turned on my running lights during dark/rainy days and thought this would make things just a little easier, but later found it didn't play nice with the auto headlights, which come on when lights are needed anyway. It don't always rain at night, nor is it always cloudy and dark when raining and I noticed that when I turned on my wipers to run some windshield wash my nav and other lights switched to night mood in the middle of a sunny day. Which is not something I want to happen. And it shouldn't happen, however this car has been designed by morons. The display dimming should only depend on ambient light, not on the headlights on or off. There are many sensors in the car they could have used to control dimming (one in the middle of the dashboard and two in the mirror, @Psyke I think the front one is used as a reference point for the mirror to know when it's just day or there's a car behind with the lights on) and if they aren't enough, they could have mounted a $0.02 sensor just below the screen. Morons. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AstralRT Posted June 3, 2012 Report Share Posted June 3, 2012 AstralRT Thanks for your explanation. Since I haven't got my R/T yet, I wasn't aware that there would be a problem with the lights coming on when you use your windshield washer. . I can see what you mean by annoying if your dash lights dim for no reason other then turning the windshield washe feature.Hmmm, I may have to re-think the auto on feature, and just turn them on manually when conditions call for such lighting. By the way, thanks for not taking offence to what I wrote, as my comments were meant to be general in nature and not directed at anybody on the forum. Its not the auto on/off headlights I had a problem with, it was the headlights turning on with wipers and causing my dash/nav screen to dim as if it were night time. And it shouldn't happen, however this car has been designed by morons. The display dimming should only depend on ambient light, not on the headlights on or off. There are many sensors in the car they could have used to control dimming (one in the middle of the dashboard and two in the mirror, @Psyke I think the front one is used as a reference point for the mirror to know when it's just day or there's a car behind with the lights on) and if they aren't enough, they could have mounted a $0.02 sensor just below the screen. Morons. I can agree with that, they could've added just that little bit more thought and effort and it would've made a world of difference. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moparman Posted June 4, 2012 Report Share Posted June 4, 2012 And it shouldn't happen, however this car has been designed by morons. Morons. So why don't you move on to something else? All you do is complain about it. Lots of other choices out there. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RickyCheung Posted June 4, 2012 Report Share Posted June 4, 2012 So why don't you move on to something else? All you do is complain about it. Lots of other choices out there. I agree, I've seen many of your posts around the forum and most of them are complaints. I recall reading that it's a company car for you so you might not be able to get rid of it. It's a company car, I assume it didn't cost you much, if not nothing. Since you got the car practically for free, I think you should learn to appreciate the good sides of the car. Not every car is perfect, there will be problems and you've got to learn to live with it. If you go buy a Royce, it's gonna cost you half a house, but there'll always be something that doesn't suit you because it's not designed specifically for you. I love my Dodge Journey, sure there are problems, but I consider them minor as long as the car can transport me to places. Back on topic (kind of), I turned off the "headlights on when wipers on" because I find it quite annoying. I've been told that bulbs is most easily burnt out when it turns on/off. I live in Vancouver, there're lots of rain and I use the wipers almost everyday. I also have rain-x on my windshield so I don't tend to leave the wipers on for a long time. I'm just not comfortable with the lights going on and off. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lebowski Posted June 4, 2012 Report Share Posted June 4, 2012 So why don't you move on to something else? All you do is complain about it. Lots of other choices out there. Because they're issues that can be easily fixed if it wasn't for moronic decisions, and I have to keep the car for 4 and a half years more. Besides, if you don't like that I complain about obvious faults, just skips my posts. Lots of others posts out there. @RickyCheung, yes, it's a company car but it's not "free": I have to work hard to gain the privilege of a company car. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AstralRT Posted June 4, 2012 Report Share Posted June 4, 2012 Update to my earlier post. I retested the wiper/headlights today and it does dim my interior lighting when the wipers are on. I tested this while driving without any shade, so it had nothing to do with being parked under a tree as I thought might have happened earlier. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bramfrank Posted June 4, 2012 Report Share Posted June 4, 2012 The dash lights do dim when the headlights come on with the wipers - it's been that way for 25 years and more . . . . why? Because the dash doesn't know if it is day or night. All it knows is that for some reason the headlights are on. If you were my ex-wife you'd never have known, because she used to leave the dash lights up at full bright all the time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lebowski Posted June 5, 2012 Report Share Posted June 5, 2012 The dash lights do dim when the headlights come on with the wipers - it's been that way for 25 years and more . . . . why? Because the dash doesn't know if it is day or night. Maybe 25 years ago it didn't know, but now it does, since there are at least three sensors telling it. One in the middle of the dash and two in the mirror. And 25 years ago not many cars had tft displays, so turning on the dash lights during the day didn't really worsen its visibility. You cannot say the same about the backlight in our screens. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AstralRT Posted June 6, 2012 Report Share Posted June 6, 2012 The dash lights do dim when the headlights come on with the wipers - it's been that way for 25 years and more . . . . why? Because the dash doesn't know if it is day or night. All it knows is that for some reason the headlights are on. If you were my ex-wife you'd never have known, because she used to leave the dash lights up at full bright all the time. The Journey DOES know its day or night, otherwise the automatic headlight feature wouldn't work My dislike was that I didn't like the feature that turned on the headlights when the wipers were engaged because it caused everything to dim, which makes the nav/stereo screen harder to see during the day. The simple fix was to disable the lights with wipers feature so my headlight no longer turn on when my wipers are engaged. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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