I bought a US 07 350Z (w/ Navigation) and imported it to Canada. As part of the process, I had to get daytime running lights (DRL) installed. Not wanting to screw anything up myself or give it to a place unfamiliar with the Z, I decided to pay the extra premium and have it done at the Nissan dealer.

They used an after-market relay (Hasmar relay) and hook it up to the battery, ignition point in the engine (coil packs?), and to the parking light wiring at the headlight area.

The result? parking lights now are lit when the engine is running. BUT the backlight for the headunit doesn't work anymore if the headlight is in the 'off' position. If I put the headlight switch in the parking light or headlight position, then the headunit is properly lit up. Otherwise it stays really dim and is un-readable in sunlight.

Another problem is that the navigation system doesn't recognize when the headlights are turned on. Normally, when you turn on the headlights, the navigation system goes into the night mode & when you turn it off, it goes into the daytime mode. This does not occur anymore.

If I remove the fuse that powers the after-market relay, the lighting works perfectly as before, but I lose my DRLs. Not a big issue, except I spent just under $300CDN at the dealer thinking they would do a proper job. They claim this is the way it is and they cannot fix it. They claim it is because the car has navi and they have never dealt with an '07 350Z w/ navi.

Apart from that, this is a relatively new car (it feels new to me) and now I feel it is tainted a bit. The car was perfect and now, not so much, not to mention I'm out $300. I'm not so much worried about the money as I am the principle behind it. I feel cheated.

Anyway, do you guys know how the navi wiring affects the lighting. I can't think of why the navigation system would not recognize when the headlights are on & go into day/night mode. Also how to get my backlit radio back if the headlights are in the off position.


Thanks