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Exterior lighting systems in modern vehicles are designed to enhance safety and visibility while driving in various conditions. On the 2015 Chevrolet Equinox, the exterior lighting system offers a range of features, such as the Exterior Lamps Control, Daytime Running Lamps (DRL), and Hazard Warning Lights, etc. to ensure optimal visibility and communication with other drivers on the road. These features are essential for safe driving, especially at night or in adverse weather conditions, as they help illuminate the road and make the vehicle more noticeable to others. This article provides a comprehensive guide to operating the exterior lighting system on your 2015 Chevrolet Equinox L4 2.4L, ensuring that you can make the most of these features for improved safety and comfort.

System Guidelines

Exterior Lamp Controls

The exterior lighting system is operated using the turn signal lever, which has four positions for controlling various exterior lights.

• Off: Briefly turn the lever to this position to turn the automatic lighting system off or on again.
• AUTO (Automatic Headlamps): Automatically turns the exterior lamps on and off depending on the surrounding light conditions. The vehicle defaults to this setting when started.
• Parking Lamps: Activates the parking lamps, which include all lights except the headlamps.
• Headlamps: Turns on the headlamps, along with the parking lamps and instrument panel lights.

Headlamp High/Low-Beam Changer

To switch between high and low beam headlamps:

• High Beam: Push the turn signal lever away from you and release to turn on the high beams.
• Low Beam: Push the lever again or pull it back toward you and release to return to the low beams.

An indicator light appears in the instrument cluster when the high beams are active.

Daytime Running Lamps (DRL)

The DRL feature automatically activates the low-beam headlamps at reduced brightness during daylight conditions when the following criteria are met:

• The ignition is on.
• The exterior lamp control is set to AUTO.
• The transmission is not in P (Park).
• The light sensor detects daytime conditions.
• The parking brake is released.

Note: When DRL is active, the taillamps, sidemarker lamps, instrument panel lights, and other lamps are off, while the instrument cluster remains illuminated.

To turn off the DRL while idling, shift the transmission into P (Park). The DRL will remain off until the shift lever is moved out of P (Park).

Flash-to-Pass

To flash the high beams regardless of whether DRL is on or off, pull the turn signal lever fully toward you, then release it.

Automatic Headlamp System

The automatic headlamp system activates the headlamps when it gets dark enough outside, such as when driving through a tunnel or parking garage.

Note: Avoid covering the light sensor on the top of the instrument panel, as it may cause the headlamps to turn on when unnecessary.

Hazard Warning Flashers

To activate the hazard warning flashers, press the hazard warning flasher button. This causes both the front and rear turn signal lamps to flash on and off, alerting others that the vehicle is experiencing difficulty. Press the button again to turn off the flashers.

Turn and Lane-Change Signals

Turn Signals: Move the lever fully up or down to signal a turn.

Lane-Change Signals: Raise or lower the lever slightly until the arrow in the instrument cluster begins to flash. Hold it in place until the lane change is complete. If the lever is pressed and released quickly, the turn signal flashes three times.

If the arrows flash rapidly or fail to light up after signaling, it may indicate a burned-out signal bulb.

Fog Lamps

To operate the fog lamps:

• FOG (Fog Lamps): Turn the fog lamp control on the turn signal lever to the “FOG” position and release it. The fog lamps will turn on or off accordingly. The lever will return to its original position.

The fog lamps can only be used when the parking lamps or low-beam headlamps are on. They will automatically turn off when the high-beam headlamps are activated and will return when the high beams are switched off.