Has anyone else noticed this when you have the headlamps on during the day or even when they are off the Gas guage, radio, and tach displays dim when it gets dark like if your in the shade then when you get back in the sun it gets full brightness. Is there a way to turn this off its sorda annoying.

Where is the sensor at? I see what looks to be a sensor in the Tach area.

 

I'd be surprised. My '94 BMW did this.

 

Yeah, I noticed that too. However, I dont know how to turn it off or where the sensor is.

Just rest assured that your car isnt broken......

 

I believe that is the correct sensor.

 

With the 07 nav, the black dot just after the red line section in the tach is a sensor and there is one just above the nav screen too. The one in the tach controls the dimming of the instruments and has to be activated (in dimming mode) in order for the one above the nav screen to dim the nav screen. I would assume that non nav minis just have the one in the tach.

 

I like this feature. My last two Audi's have had this and it worked perfectly. If the displays didn't have this feature you'd probably think they were either too bright in the shade, or too dim in direct sunlight.

 

In my mazda I hate that the displays dim whenever you turn the headlights on. You have to press a button to override it if you have lights on during the day because of rain, for example. I much prefer how it is in the MINI where the displays react to ambient brightness only and are not related to the headlight switch.

 

If you program for 'daylight lighting', your outside lights will be always on and your inside lights will only come on when headlight switch is on.