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Conference terri::cars_uk

Title:Cars in the UK
Notice:Please read new conference charter 1.70
Moderator:COMICS::SHELLEYELD
Created:Sun Mar 06 1994
Last Modified:Fri Jun 06 1997
Last Successful Update:Fri Jun 06 1997
Number of topics:2584
Total number of notes:63384

1727.0. "Bleep Your Lights are on.." by NEWOA::BOSLEY (What time to go, Nah cant be...) Mon Mar 16 1992 12:18

    Hi,	
    	Anyone know the DIY unit that tells you if you have left your
    lights on is called. Ie if you drive during the day with your lights on
    for some reason, but forget to switch them off when you leave the car.
    It the lets out this bleep noise.. & how much does it cost..
    
    Mod. I did a dir/titl="*lights*" But could'nt find anything..
    
    Cheers,	
    	Stu.
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1727.1MARVIN::RUSLINGSHARK/DOLPHIN Software Project LeaderMon Mar 16 1992 13:085
	Hmmm, I can't remember the name of the unit, but it doesn't cost very
	much (under �10).  There, that was a big help, wasn't it?

	Dave
1727.2Try Halfords, Les Smiths or similar.NEWOA::SAXBYIs that IT?!?!Mon Mar 16 1992 13:126
    
    These are generally available in garages and motor accessory shops and
    are usually known as 'lights-on' warning indicators (Believe it or
    not!).
    
    Mark
1727.3Buzzer off !!!!!!!!!!!NEWOA::CROME_AMon Mar 16 1992 14:0710
    I bought one for the girlfriends Metro (yuk !!!), she kept knocking
    the lightswitch as she got out of the car. Cost me 5 quid, saved me
    lots of early morning jumpstarts. If you live in the Reading area
    "Marparts " in Caversham sell them.
    
    	This must the only extra your car aint got yet ! except for the
    furry dice, but I heard you were looking for a mint green/pink pair.
    
    
    Andy
1727.4YUPPY::ELLAWAYMartin Ellaway@hhlMon Mar 16 1992 17:067
    
    You also get them from any Ford garage. But you can also buy them
    direct for your particular model i.e. Renault 5 has it as a plug
    in unit in the fuse box instaed of cutting your wires.
    
    
    Regards Martin
1727.5KERNEL::SHELLEYRI only _work_ in outer spaceMon Mar 16 1992 17:194
    Because these devices are so cheap and very useful, I don't understand
    why more manufacturers don't fit them on all their models as standard.
    
    Roy
1727.6More useless infoNEWOA::MACMILLANSo many V****s, so little timeMon Mar 16 1992 17:2713
    Ther are two different sorts that I've seen...
    
    One that connects between the lighting circuit (somewhere converient)
    and the earth switch for the door light.  This is simplest and cheapest
    type.  Makes a noise for as long as both the door is open and the
    lights are on.
    
    The other type connects up to the lighting circuit, an earth, and an
    ignition-on connection.  This works when you tune off the ignition and
    the lights are on, but only lasts for a short, fixed time.  These are
    more expensive.
    
    Rob  
1727.7FORTY2::PALKAMon Mar 16 1992 18:169
    re .6
    
    There is another kind. Which connects to the lights, ignition and door
    switch.
    
    This goes on when the lights are on, the ignition is off and the door
    is opened. Stays on till those conditions change.
    
    Andrew
1727.8Oh Andy yes please..NEWOA::BOSLEYWhat time to go, Nah cant be...Tue Mar 17 1992 08:1814
    re .3
    
    Andy,
    	
    	Are you offering them then from your dash....
    
    Ciao, 
    	
    	Stu.
    
    PS re the rest..
    
    Thanks for the comments.. Prices range from 15 quid to 5. Interesting
    an't it..
1727.9dont be silly !NEWOA::CROME_ATue Mar 17 1992 09:489
    Stu,
    
    		No !
    
    
    	Get your own set, it would be a shame to see your car incomplete
    without this the one and only extra left you haven't got !
    
    Andy
1727.10What would they go with then...NEWOA::BOSLEYWhat time to go, Nah cant be...Tue Mar 17 1992 13:296
    Andy,
    	
	Name all my other `Little Extras' then that would be complemented
    by *your* Fluffy Dice.. 
    
    Stu.
1727.11NEWOA::DALLISONSplatterpunx on acid...Tue Mar 17 1992 19:391
    Any info on the rules re:fitting them on a lease mobile ?
1727.12OK - you asked for it ! NEWOA::CROME_AWed Mar 18 1992 14:0536
Stu,

	Now where shall I start,

	1) Chrome tail pipe on the exhaust

	2) Dash mounted compass

	3) Dash mounted fan

	4) Rear window blinds

	5) Loads of cuddly toys - window mounted

	6) Anti-static strip

	7) High level rear stop light (necessity)

	8) Travel rug

	Etc Etc Etc,

	 I dont think I've got enough time to list
	all of them as I 've only got a 1 hour lunch break !

	With regard to fitting them to company cars you'd be Ok
	so long as you dont damage the cars electrical system, or
	it doesn't become the cause of a problem. Then the garage 
	are likely to hand you the bill as the leasing company wont 
	pay it. If I were you Tony I'd get the proper relay from the
	Ford dealer, then your sure to be safe. Cost 5 - 10 pounds,
	and will take about ten seconds to fit.

	Regs 

	Andy
1727.13KERNEL::SHELLEYRI only _work_ in outer spaceWed Mar 18 1992 14:105
    Let us know how you get on Tony if you get one from a Ford dealer.
    I might get one for my RS.
    
    Roy
    
1727.14NEWOA::DALLISONSplatterpunx on acid...Wed Mar 18 1992 19:416
    
    Well, my car is being retuned on Friday (they bodged it up last time)
    so I may ask the Ford garage to fit one (I'm happy to pay for it though
    before any Hertz spys pipe up).
    
    -Tony
1727.15BELFST::FLANAGANBread + Fire = ToastThu Mar 19 1992 14:033
    RE: .13 What do you want to put one there for Roy ;^)
    
    Gary.
1727.16Get a passive switch.CSLALL::FARNHAMThu Mar 19 1992 17:399
    In the U.S. my 1990 Volvo 240 has the best solution.  If the
    headlights are on, they turn off when the ignition is turned off.
    They can be turned off independently.
    
    In Canada headlights on recent model cars are on whenever the ignition
    is on and off when the ignition is off.  They cannot be turned off 
    independently.
             
    These "no action required" relays are foolproof.
1727.17Do you have seperate parking lights??NEWOA::MACMILLANSo many V****s, so little timeThu Mar 19 1992 18:047
    But what about the side-lights??
    
    They can flatten your battery just as easily (maybe not quite so
    quickly) but you can't have the ignition disabling any ability to have
    parking lights!!
    
    Rob
1727.18Well, not completely foolproof.CSLALL::FARNHAMThu Mar 19 1992 18:207
    re:.17
    If the head and parking lights are on, they both go off with the
    ignition.
    
    If only the parking lights are on, they stay on when the ignition is
    off.  So, don't drive with only parking lights.
    
1727.19Fog light audible warning would be useful too!VOGON::KAPPLERSpontaneity is fine in it's place....Fri Mar 20 1992 09:0111
    I believe all cars should be fitted with a bleeper that sound for a few
    seconds when you turn your engine on and any of your fog lights are
    switched on.......
    
    Should be easy to do......
    
    Anyone got a simple fix, e.g. courtesy light delay unit coupled with a
    ligts-on warning bleeper..........
    
    
    JfK
1727.20another solution...VOGON::MITCHELLEBeware of the green meanieFri Mar 20 1992 09:114
    
    On some cars the fog lights are turned off when you switch the ignition
    off, so you have to turn them on again if it is still foggy next time
    you start up the car. 
1727.21Italian engineering every time BERN04::OREILLYThere's a fish on top of Shandon swears he's Elvis.Fri Mar 20 1992 10:049

The TIPO also turns all lights off with the ignition. The ignition switch 
also has a position (past OFF anticlockwise) which just turns the lights on. 
In this position you have to press a button to remove the key. Clever these 
Italians !


/Paul.
1727.22The whole Fiat Range has this...NEWOA::BOSLEYWhat time to go, Nah cant be...Fri Mar 20 1992 11:407
    Sorry Paul,
    	
    	But ALL the FIAT range does that.. But I agree Clever Italians.. My
    Panda had this thats why I never needed any little Light buzzer...
    until no. - I dont have that car anymore.. I bought/accquired British..
    
    Stu.
1727.23the bleep 'your lights are on'MAJORS::ALFORDFri Mar 20 1992 17:392
    
    Most of the Vauxhall range has this as standard :-)
1727.24I found one at leigh-delamare !NEWOA::CROME_AMon Mar 23 1992 09:517
    I found one of these lights on warning gismo's in a motorway service
    station, it was made by "COSMIC" and the price was �7.50 . This in my
    opinion is a bit excessive, its the same as the one I bought two years
    ago and is a hell of a lot more expensive.
    
    Andy
    
1727.25Turn the f-f-f-foglights off!!VOGON::KAPPLERSpontaneity is fine in it's place....Mon Mar 23 1992 10:395
    Does the Fiat feature also turn off the fog lights (front and rear). Or
    does it leave them "on", so when you turn the headlights on again, they
    automatically come on?
    
    JfK
1727.26NEWOA::DALLISONSplatterpunx on acid...Mon Mar 23 1992 12:045
    
    Well, Anchor Ford in Reading said the part was �3.00. Great I said, how
    much to fit it ? �27.00 they replied.
    
    Thud... (my chin hits the floor).
1727.27KERNEL::SHELLEYRI only _work_ in outer spaceMon Mar 23 1992 12:4013
    Re .26
    
    An earlier reply suggested it was a plug in part. Presumably this is 
    not the case as the labour charge would suggest there is more to it
    than that.
    
    Its makes you wonder how much extra it would cost to make this
    procedure part of the production run. No a lot me thinks for a useful
    feature.
    
    I guess I should of got a Vauxhall :-)
    
    Roy
1727.28Grabbit & Run - Ford Dealers?NEWOA::SAXBYClever critters;Squirrels!Mon Mar 23 1992 12:439
    
    I fitted one of these toys to my car (can't remember if it was the
    Triumph or the Cavalier) and it certainly was a plug in (well 2 scotch
    locks and an earthed screw actually!). I suppose it's _possible_ that
    Ford's works on a different basis to everyone else's but the after
    market ones do not required �27 worth of labour (although bearing in
    mind what garages charge these days, that could be 10 minutes worth!).
    
    Mark
1727.29You are dead right !NEWOA::CROME_ATue Mar 24 1992 08:555
    Re .27
    
    Yup ! 	
    
    		You definitely should have got a Vauxhall !
1727.30What About These ***** Fog lamps..NEWOA::BOSLEYWhat time to go, Nah cant be...Tue Mar 24 1992 11:318
    re last
    
    	Your on the Vauxhall side anyway Andy.. 
    But do Vauxhall turn off the Fog lamps also.. 
    Fiat dont. So that was one Minus point but at least they turned the 
    lights off. So that a start in the right direction..
    
    Stu.
1727.31MAJORS::ALFORDWed Mar 25 1992 09:275
    
    >    But do Vauxhall turn off the Fog lamps also.. 
    
    
    The ones I know don't...the more expensive ones might...
1727.32NEWOA::SAXBYClever critters;Squirrels!Wed Mar 25 1992 10:034
    
    Mine doesn't...the more expensive ones might.
    
    Mark
1727.33NEWOA::DALLISONSplatterpunx on acid...Wed Mar 25 1992 10:383
    
    Mine didn't, but then again it was a pile of rubbish anyway (I don't
    have a lot of respect for Vauxhall unfortunatley - fwiw).
1727.34Beware: Ford get it very wrong!RDGE44::ALEUC8Mon Jun 22 1992 14:3619
    Sorry to open this up again but ...
    
    My wife has just bought a Fiesta 1.4 Ghia.  It had everything on it
    except no lights-on bleeper: they're not standard.  So she had the
    standard Ford optional extra fitted.
    
    Oh dear. As fitted to Ford's instructions, it works not off the doors
    but off the ignition.  So with parking lights on, ignition off, and
    doors closed (as when, eg, parked on dark road) the buzzer whines on
    and on and on.
    
    One astonished and embarrassed salesman (well, you can't expect them to
    know all about every optional extra) learned from his service
    department that this is just what it's supposed to do!!!  He has promised 
    to put things right; but I thought other potential Ford owners might like 
    to be forewarned.  (AND it cost over �20 to fit!)
    
    Ken
    
1727.35COMICS::WEGGSome hard boiled eggs & some nuts.Mon Jun 22 1992 15:435
    	I think it says something about Ford that their top of the range
    	models don't have this feature as standard. Peugeot give you this
    	on their cheapest 106.
    
    	Ian.
1727.36NEWOA::DALLISONTime out, this is the real worldMon Jun 29 1992 13:075
    
    �20 ? I've just fitted one to my XR2i and it works fine - just by
    following the wiring diagram on the back of the packet.
    
    Cost me �3.xx in total.