Puddle Lights - can I keep them ON?

[wrongprotocol]

Hey all,

For those of you who have the puddle lights (those cool little LED's in the doorhandles that illuminate when you unlock your car), is there a way to keep them on all the time? It'd be nice to put them on my foglamp switch so I could toggle them on and off. I took a look through the forum but didnt see anything about this, hopefully I didn't miss a thread.

Any ideas/suggestions?

Thanks

[jeremyc74]

No. And that's a good thing IMO.

What's next? A neon underbody kit?

[wrongprotocol]

white LED kit actually. like an HID cool white, same color as the puddlelights.

just an idea! i think it could be pulled off as looking classy instead of ricey if its not blindingly bright. thats just my opinion.

[1013mm]

no, just no.

[runNgun]

I think you can set the length of time they stay on, but only for pre-set intervals. I don't recall seeing an always on option in my iDrive.

[italiantank26]

ahaha its a good idea, i had two blue neons underneath my white suv before i got a 1er it looked sick

[Lester]

Uh..... no?

[BForbes]

Originally Posted by jeremyc74

No. And that's a good thing IMO.

What's next? A neon underbody kit?

LOL. I agree on this one.

At first I thought it was just an extra thing to drain the battery. But then again, Lexus license plates have the LED's above them. I figure it would be hard to replace those little lights, no?

[jeremyc74]

Originally Posted by BForbes

LOL. I agree on this one.

At first I thought it was just an extra thing to drain the battery. But then again, Lexus license plates have the LED's above them. I figure it would be hard to replace those little lights, no?

Don't get me wrong, I love the puddle lights as I'm walking up to the car. They were a nice surprise that came with the premium package, I just don't want them on going down the street.

I haven't even really looked under the door handle to see what they look like honestly, but the shade of the light makes me think they're white LEDs. Hopefully they won't ever have to be replaced! It might require changing the whole door handle.

[BForbes]

I understood what you were saying. I love them too. I dont want them attracting attention while I'm driving either. I must say though, Audi's LED headlights attract the most attention. I personally think they're gorgeous. Offtopic, I know.

[TPLSM3]

I wouldn't do it...but I believe someone on E90post did do that to their E9x.

[wrongprotocol]

But then again, Lexus license plates have the LED's above them. I figure it would be hard to replace those little lights, no?

yeah, correct me if im wrong but I believe the lights that illuminate our plates are the same type of white LED's as our doorhandles. and I dont think they ever die (unless you break them), i think they just kind of dim over the years. maybe I can jump off of that fuse

I can tell all you people here are wanting to hit me in the head.

sorry haha

[Alext]

I wouldnt speak too soon. My LED tubes in the rear tail-light died...needs a whole new rear light assembly!

[wrongprotocol]

Originally Posted by Alext

I wouldnt speak too soon. My LED tubes in the rear tail-light died...needs a whole new rear light assembly!

crazy! sorry to hear that happened! i wonder if it's a wiring problem or defective LEDs.

I just did a bit of reading, i keep seeing 100,000hrs as the estimated lifetime.

wikipedia sums it up as "Typical lifetimes quoted are 25000 to 100000 hours but heat and current settings can extend or shorten this time significantly"

[tbird]

That is called the "Ambient Light Option", which does come with PP.

When I heard of it, I wish it was like the Ambient Light Option in the Mini Cooper, now THAT is cool. But what BMW has is fine with me, a nice little extra.

[john08135i]

BTW how do you adjust them to stay on longer or shorter without idrive?

[wrongprotocol]

i think another part of the ambient light package is the sweet little orangle led's in the ceiling of the car. they add a very subtle but warm feeling to the car when it's completely dark outside. there are 2 in the front (near the SOS button) that shine onto the shifter, and two in the back that er..shine on the plastic tray in the middle of the seat(joking, they spread in a very broad pattern)

can someone confirm that these are not standard? i am under the impression that they are part of this ambient light package.

by the way, what is that stupid plastic tray in the middle of the back seats for anyway? to put paperclips in?

[john08135i]

Originally Posted by wrongprotocol

i think another part of the ambient light package is the sweet little orangle led's in the ceiling of the car. they add a very subtle but warm feeling to the car when it's completely dark outside. there are 2 in the front (near the SOS button) that shine onto the shifter, and two in the back that er..shine on the plastic tray in the middle of the seat(joking, they spread in a very broad pattern)

can someone confirm that these are not standard? i am under the impression that they are part of this ambient light package.

by the way, what is that stupid plastic tray in the middle of the back seats for anyway? to put paperclips in?

Yes part of premium. I luv the little lights to.
And yes carry paperclips..lots of them..
I am trying to find or maybe make a cup holder that will fit into that place between the rear seats.. that tray is worthless and a pain if you sleep in your back seat like i did a few nights ago..

[bimmerBaron]

Originally Posted by wrongprotocol

i think another part of the ambient light package is the sweet little orangle led's in the ceiling of the car. they add a very subtle but warm feeling to the car when it's completely dark outside. there are 2 in the front (near the SOS button) that shine onto the shifter, and two in the back that er..shine on the plastic tray in the middle of the seat(joking, they spread in a very broad pattern)

can someone confirm that these are not standard? i am under the impression that they are part of this ambient light package.

Those little orange LEDs are standard, at least on the 135. I have them in my car and no premium pkg (so no puddle lights). I only wish there was a way to brighten them up relative to the rest of the lights on the dash, I only notice the little orange LEDs when there's very little other lights outside.

[tbird]

Well crap, the ALP is the same as in the Mini, but since I have a vert, no lights in the ceiling. But the Mini has the lights in the seatbelt harnesses and the doors and floors. My floor lights are just normal.

[Tom K.]

Originally Posted by tbird

That is called the "Ambient Light Option", which does come with PP.

And the door handle lights are referred to as "Courtesy Lamps" - see p.78 of the non iDrive manual or p.94 of the iDrive manual. Either way, while they can be switched off, the timing apparently cannot be adjusted.
Tom