can you turn auto-dimming OFF?

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01-05-2007, 02:23 AM

#11

Raighne

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My Ride: 320d SE (E90) manual - Sapphire Black, Beige Leather Sports Seats, Burled Walnut, Heated Seats, Sunroof, Comfort Access, Hi-Fi sound, Bluetooth, Side-Window blinds, Through-Load, Luggage Net, PDC Front & Rear, Adaptive Xenons, Style 158 17", Chrome Grill & Window Trim, Blackline Tailights, Power folding/dimming side mirrors, Split Armrest, Dual Zone Climate, Cruise, LEDs on door handles, iPod nano, SE K750i

Quote:

Originally Posted by aybeesea' post='373840' date='Jan 5 2007, 08:54 AM

You US guys get it so easy.
Pay up the few bucks and keep driving - that's it isn't it?

Well, it's not that soft in all states in the US.
Speaking from my experience in California...
There is a penalty points system and if you get caught ... you will of course get fined AND you get points on your license. Too many points and your insurance will go up and eventually you would lose your license altogether. Pretty much like many countries in Europe.
One of the nice things about the CA system is something called 'Traffic School'. You are allowed to erase points from your license by going to an 8 hour course on road safety (after work or at the weekend). You are only allowed to do this once every couple of years but if you just got unlucky it means you can erase those points and not see your insurance affected etc. Trust me, traffic school sounds nice but once you have been there once you will not want to go again. It's as effective a deterrent as fines.
California friends chime in as my information may be a few years old at this stage.

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01-05-2007, 04:51 AM

#12

So-Serene

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Originally Posted by Rudy' post='373801' date='Jan 5 2007, 12:24 AM

Yeah, except that wouldn't the tint cause the same problem as 550Steve is having? Either the mirror is dark and the windows are clear or the mirror is clear and the windows are dark -- either way, it would make it harder to spot the troopers, right?

You are somewhat correct. Oddly, even with the windows being tinted (Note: not extremely tinted-35% or lighter) I am able to see and determine cars traveling behind me. Now when the auto-dimmer activates...those things get so dark that it is very hard to determine who/what is behind me, even without tint. For those who have tinted windows and want to test the difference, grab the BMW flashlight from the glove box, and while you are driving at night, flash the light on the rear-view mirror sensor and then glance into the side mirrors (have one window down and one up to fairly compare). The difference is serious.