Need Some Headunit Advice

[Mizan84]

Hi, had this problem for some time, but been too lasy to do anything till now :P .I have a Sony aftermarket headunit installed into my IS200 Sport with an amp bypass cable.

The problem is the Sony headunit display does not dim automatically when I switch the headlight on like it use to in my last car. The display is very bright and is very annoying when driving at night. The only way to dim it is via the remote control but I have to put it back onto "bright" mode during the day or I can't see the display. I have checked the cables and found that the amp bypass cable does not have any connection for the auto dim function to work . Can anyone tell me if there is a wire I can connect to to get the auto dim funtion back on.

If possible I would like the headunit to dim only when the headlight is switched on instead of the sidelight (I have my sidelight on whenever visibility is a bit "poor") . I know which wire on the headunit to connrct to (all the wires are labled on the headunit). I was thinking of connecting to the headlight wire comming from the steering wheel stalt control, if you know what I mean , as I dont use the auto headlight function on the car (got some HIDs which don't work well when I have the auto headlight function) and I dont want the headunit to dim every time I give way to some one (which is alot ).

Thanks for reading and hopfully someone can point me in the right direction.

[Mizan84]

Can't anyone help me, can someone tell me if this is a good or bad idea? I was planning on doing this by this week. Should I have posted this in the IS200/IS300 Clud forum?

[LexIS200Sport]

You may need to tap into the original headunit harness and locate the wire that indicates headlight on/off.

Have a look at the IS200 service manual below:

http://bahamutcars.free.fr/workshop/IS_98-05/index.html

I haven't had a look myself, but I believe the wiring diagram for the original headunit should be in there somewhere.

[TigerFish]

If you did it off the side lights, you can hook into the bulb connection for the cigarette lighter, which is the simplest solution. If it has to be on headlights only, then you can hook into the wiring that goes to/from the stalk like you mention. No idea on wire colours, but the link posted above will have the diagrams to find the right one.

[Mizan84]

Thanks for the help, will see if I can find the right wire.