Faulty indirect night lighting

[Duncan]

When driving up to the NE the other day I noticed, once it was dark, that the Indirect Night Lighting wasn't working (little orange light in the bottom of rear-view mirror that casts a soft pool of orange light onto the gear stick/centre console area). I couldn't imagine that it was a bulb that could be replaced, so I popped into the dealer today to ask. I was right, there's no bulb to replace, it's an LED (SMD) so not replaceable. May not have necessarily been the LED, could be the light sensor on the windscreen side of the mirror housing is faulty. I couldn't see it being a fuse as the auto-dimming still works as does the electric motors that move the mirror for the memory positions. If it's a faulty light sensor or the LED has gone then it's a whole new housing - bargain at £240 odd (and VAT to add I think!) :eek: :eek:

The guy said he's going to talk to some people and see if it could just be a programming thing. Some glitch has happened and it needs to be Tech 2'd again.

I'm hoping Network Q will cover it 'cos I certainly aint paying that sort of cash just to have the little light back again - not when the memory motor and auto dimming still works (and even if the auto dimming didn't work it wouldn't be a big deal due to the heavy tint on the tailgate).

See what they say when they get back to me.

D

[Beavis]

sounds expensive!!!!

but there have been a few on e-bay recently worth a look if you have to pay out

[willc01]

Duncan,


I have a new Vectra Elite, have I missed something or is it an option. The electric mirror postions!!!! WOW have I got that, how do i make it work or is it only where you have electrically adjustable seats.

[Duncan]

It only comes with electric seats that have the memory positions - standard on a Signum Elite. :) (Well it was until the 05 version where they dropped even the electric seats as standard!!)

Looking at the facelift brochure, I can't even see electric seats (never mind memory ones) listed on either the Vectra or Signum - not even as an option!

D

[willc01]

Duncan,

It was a nice dream, even if it only lasted for a few minutes. Thanks I think:(

[ion]

I know it's only a little light, but it's galling when anything like this goes.
It's these little touches that make the car.

Hope it get sorted D.

[SignumPhil]

Duncan,
This post has made me realize 2 things:
1. I've got this feature on my '04 elite
2. It doesn't work on mine, either, and never has!

It's in the dealers tomorrow, having the squeaky rear suspension looked at, so I'll mention it to them. Mine's still under warranty, so I'll see what they say.

Oh, and thanks for finding another feature of the car I didn't know about!

Cheers, Phil

[Duncan]

Oh, and thanks for finding another feature of the car I didn't know about!You're welcome! :D

If yours is under warranty it should be straight forward. I'm waiting to hear back from my dealer and whether Network Q will cover it.

D

[Gsi3.2]

your extended networkQ should cover it D.. isn't it the same cover as the standard policy??

all that won't cover is tyres and brakepads.. should do an electrical fault..gawd knows you paid enough up front.. :rolleyes:

[Duncan]

That's exactly what I'm expecting Mark. I just rang the dealer and he's just been making a few enquiries to make sure it's not some easy solution - Tech 2 or whatever (I doubt it). He also thinks it'll be a whole mirror assembly and therefore put into Net Q for a claim. He's just waiting for some further info. If it goes into Net Q I'm not expecting there to be a problem with approving it.

D

[Gsi3.2]

should hope not as well.. :rockon: :rockon:

you dealer is a good'un so lets hope it's not going to trun into trouble..

[SignumPhil]

I dropped my car off this morning, and the service manager (who runs service reception before 9am) reckoned they'd seen a few of these. Some needed the photocell cleaning, others had to have a new mirror.
We'll wait and see which one mine is!
Oh, and the rear suspension squeak was much in evidence on the way to the dealer this morning, so I'm hoping they'll be able to sort it out!

Phil

[Gsi3.2]

Where did you take it Phil??

motorbodies?

[SignumPhil]

Where did you take it Phil??

motorbodies?

Not flippin' likely!
I actually go to Billington's in Flitwick. They're the best I've found in the area. Not a big dealer, so they're small enough to give a stuff. As I work in Luton town centre, I can just cross the road and get a train to work from there.
We've now brought 3 cars from them -my Omega and Signum, and the wife's Astra.

Cheers, Phil

[willc01]

My INL packed in last night and only 4 months old, guess where my car is today. Will let you all know what they replaced or ordered if anything when I pick it back up this afternoon.

[DennisTheMenace]

Mine still works !!!!!! Surprisingly after the muppets have been working on it .

[SignumPhil]

The dealer says that the cleaned the sensor and checked the wiring,and it's working now.
Can't say the same for the rear shocks, though.......

Phil

[Duncan]

Interesting! - do you know if they just cleaned it 'in situe' - or did they have to remove anything? If it's an easy job I'll just do it myself. :)

[SignumPhil]

Interesting! - do you know if they just cleaned it 'in situe' - or did they have to remove anything? If it's an easy job I'll just do it myself. :)
Not sure, I'll be picking it up around 5-ish, so I'll ask.

Phil

[Duncan]

That'd be great - cheers.

[willc01]

Got the car back, groan parts on order for new boot motors. Tech2 say nothing wrong with INL and no fault codes despite the dealer putting a sheet over the car, putting tape over the sensor and it still didn't work. It stopped working last night and the dealer has the gall to say the computer says it's ok, take it home and try it again.

Am I banging me head against a brick wall.

At least me new Irmscher pillar trims looks the dogs boll***s so something to cheer me up nd me new headlight protectors, shame they are not the carbon ones though.

[SignumPhil]

The tech who looked at mine had left for the day when I got there on friday, so I don't have any more details. It's supposed to be back in on Thursday for the new shocks, so I'll ask then. It's working reliably, though.

Phil

[Duncan]

OK - not to worry Phil.

Had a phone call this morning from my dealer - the whole mirror assembly is covered by Network Q and they'll replace it. The dealer just wants to have a better look at my one to see if it's something that can be easily fixed. Fair enough I suppose as it's only been my word so far that it's not working - they haven't looked at it themselves yet. So it's going in for an hour on Wednesday and assuiming it doesn't work (which I guess it won't) they'll order a new one :)

D

[Brocks]

The dealer just wants to have a better look at my one to see if it's something that can be easily fixed. D

You're talkin about a VX dealer here...Contradiction in terms...

[Duncan]

Ah, but I'm one of the lucky few that have a really good Vx dealer! :)

[DennisTheMenace]

same here , cant fault lanehouse in bridport . my mirror has just survived screen no 4 INL still works :D

[Duncan]

Popped the car into the dealer today for them to have a proper look at the mirror and confirm that it is faulty. Before I took it in I tested the auto-dimming feature and that wasn't working either - so it must be related to the sensor on the windscreen side of the mirror. The motor for the memory seats position works fine so it is obviously still getting power.

It's all one unit (no replaceable parts) so, new mirror assembly ordered under the Network Q extension I took and back in again when it's in stock. Glad it was covered as the price is, from memory, £224 + VAT (£263) :eek: :faint:

[Duncan]

Car went in today for what was supposed to be a quick swap over of the mirrors as the new one had come in. They had a huge problem programming in the new one and so they investigated further! They discovered a recurring fault code being stored to do with low voltage in the mirror, so they think there may be a fault/break in the wiring feeding the mirror i.e in the loom or wherever. So the cars going to have to be booked in for a day or whatever for them to look at in in greater detail!

Thank goodness for the Network Q warranty I took out! :)

D

[Gsi3.2]

It's proved well worth the extra money hasn't it.. :rockon: :rockon:

Just imagine having to pay cash on the nail for all this, particularly if you need a new loom.. :eek:

[stehanson]

. I was right, there's no bulb to replace, it's an LED (SMD) so not replaceable. D

whats smd stand for? - I was thinking of replacing the orange led with a different colour at some point but from what you say you cant?!! :mad:

ste

[Green Growler]

whats smd stand for? - I was thinking of replacing the orange led with a different colour at some point but from what you say you cant?!! :mad:

ste
SMD is a surface mount device.
IE; the legs or pins or the device, in this case a LED, mount directly onto the surface of the printed circuit board, rather than into holes through the board like they did in the good ole days, lol. :D

[stehanson]

Ah cheers for that - well at least I know what I was planning cant be done!

[Green Growler]

Well it can still be done, but you certainly need to know what you're doing.
Crazy LED's will do the whole car for you, but you're looking at a couple of days labour and a cost in the region of £400 !!! :eek: :D
I'd love mine done in blue, but I really stuggle to justify that much !!! :(

[DennisTheMenace]

I would rather have a pure white than blue , seen a few cars with all blue dashes and its just too much , dont mind the orange of the vecs dash , its easy on the eye in the dark .

[Duncan]

Car went in today for what was supposed to be a quick swap over of the mirrors as the new one had come in. They had a huge problem programming in the new one and so they investigated further! They discovered a recurring fault code being stored to do with low voltage in the mirror, so they think there may be a fault/break in the wiring feeding the mirror i.e in the loom or wherever. So the cars going to have to be booked in for a day or whatever for them to look at in in greater detail!Car went back in today for them to look into what the problem was. They popped down the front headlinging to look at the wiring (as they were getting a fault code of low voltage to the mirror - even though the motor part was working) and they found a loose connection! They redid the connection and voila - all is well - so the mirror probably wasn't faulty in the first place! Connection maybe just worked loose with vibrations etc. during driving. Ah well, I've got a new mirror out of it - whatever advantage that is! - and they didn't charge me for fixing the connection. Don't think Net Q would have covered that - but maybe it did. Anyway, all sorted. :)

D

[Elite2.2DTi]

Excellent news D!

[Gsi3.2]

With the mirror and the paint, it's had a bit of a birthday recently then hasn't it.. :rockon: :rockon: :clap:

[SignumPhil]

Car went back in today for them to look into what the problem was. They popped down the front headlinging to look at the wiring (as they were getting a fault code of low voltage to the mirror - even though the motor part was working) and they found a loose connection! They redid the connection and voila - all is well - so the mirror probably wasn't faulty in the first place! Connection maybe just worked loose with vibrations etc. during driving. Ah well, I've got a new mirror out of it - whatever advantage that is! - and they didn't charge me for fixing the connection. Don't think Net Q would have covered that - but maybe it did. Anyway, all sorted. :)

D

Sounds like the same as mine. I was surprised, as I thought the supply would be the same for the motor and the LED.
Mind you, now it's working I don't really notice the effect, as my phone lights up the centre console, anyway!

Phil

[Harry]

glad it's sorted for you Duncan.

[Duncan]

Car went back in today for them to look into what the problem was. They popped down the front headlinging to look at the wiring (as they were getting a fault code of low voltage to the mirror - even though the motor part was working) and they found a loose connection! They redid the connection and voila - all is well - so the mirror probably wasn't faulty in the first place! Found out today that the above wasn't quite what the problem was. That's what the reception girl had told me, but she had only been given a fleeting explanation. The service guy had heard her talking to me, but he was with a customer and couldn't come over and correct her - so he rang me today.

What the problem was apparently was that the ribbon cable that runs inside the headlining to one of the control modules in the rear of the car had got a bit kinked, and this was apparently what was stopping them from programming the new mirror! Once they dropped down bits of the headlining and unkinked it they could then program the mirror! How it became kinked is a mystery, and it could mean that the original mirror was okay! Anyway, as before all sorted and working properly! :)

D

[SignumPhil]

So, how long before someone offers a conversion to make it a blue LED? :)

Phil

[stehanson]

well if they do ill be one of the first to purchase lol