Nissan Patrol Y62 and Infiniti QX56 DRL Activation Without Wiring
On the Patrol Y62 and QX56, daytime running lights are a BCM setting: fog lamps, low beams, or LEDs can do the job. All you need is an ELM327 adapter and the Canfiti app.
You don’t need aftermarket lamps or a wiring harness to get daytime running lights on an Infiniti QX56 or Nissan Patrol Y62. The DRL logic is already in the body control unit (BCM), and on the QX80 it’s even switched on at the factory. On the QX56 and Patrol you turn it on yourself. According to the Canfiti developer, Nissan’s own dealer software doesn’t expose this setting for these vehicles, so he had to work out how it’s stored in the unit.
Below: which DRL modes are available, how to set one from your phone with an ELM327 adapter, when the lights actually come on, and what to check if nothing changes.
What’s under “DTLR Mode”
The setting is called “DTLR Mode” (yes, DTLR, not DRL) and sits on the “Body control unit” screen. It’s a drop-down with six options:
| Option | What lights up as the DRL |
|---|---|
| “Without DTLR” | Nothing — DRLs are off |
| “Fog lamp” | Front fog lamps |
| “Head light” | Low beams |
| “Head light(euro)” | Low beams, “euro” variant |
| “Led” | LED running lights |
| “Led(euro)” | LEDs, “euro” variant |
Head light and Led each come in two variants — regular and “(euro)”. To pick the one you like, switch between them and compare how the car lights up.
The “Led” modes are meant for LED running lights. On one pre-facelift Patrol Y62, choosing “Led” didn’t change anything. Which headlights these options are for — the 2014 facelift, for example — nobody has confirmed yet.
“Fog lamp override in AUTO”
The same screen has a separate switch, “Fog lamp override in AUTO”. It controls what the fog lamps do when the low beams come on automatically from the light sensor with the switch in AUTO. It has nothing to do with picking a DRL mode — you don’t need to touch it to get running lights.
When the DRLs turn on
This is the one thing to know up front, or you may think the setting didn’t take.
A Patrol Y62 owner who runs his fog lamps as DRLs adds a few details:
- the fog lamps only light up with the engine running;
- the parking lights don’t come on with them;
- in AUTO, when it gets dark, the car turns on the low beams and shuts the fogs off.
You don’t have to move the headlight switch to AUTO or to parking lights — picking the mode in the app is enough.
Where it’s been confirmed
| Vehicle | Result |
|---|---|
| Infiniti QX56 Z62, 2011 | Fog lamps work as DRLs, including with the lights in AUTO |
| Infiniti QX80 Z62 | DRLs on from the factory; the mode can be changed — one owner switched to fog lamps |
| Nissan Patrol Y62, 2012 (Russian assembly) | Fog lamps as DRLs work; AUTO turns on low beams and shuts the fogs off |
| Nissan Patrol Y62 | Didn’t work: modes wouldn’t change, ECU part number read “1Z” — most likely the adapter |
| Infiniti QX70 | Partly: low beams as DRLs work, fog lamps don’t — the unit doesn’t support that mode |
It may work on other CAN-bus Nissan and Infiniti models — connect and check. No promises, though: if a model uses different unit addresses, the setting won’t work. The US-market Nissan Armada (Y62) hasn’t been reported yet. More on these vehicles: Infiniti QX80 / QX56 Z62 and Nissan Patrol Y62.
Before you start
- An ELM327 adapter. iPhones work with BLE and Wi-Fi; Bluetooth Classic is Android-only. See ELM327 adapters.
- Canfiti 0.3.4 or later — ideally the latest version.
- A spot where you can idle the engine and see the front of the vehicle.
Step by step
- Plug the adapter into the OBD2 port under the dash on the driver’s side and turn the ignition on.
- In Canfiti, tap “Connect” on the “OBD2 Device” card and pick your adapter on the “Scanning devices” screen. For a Wi-Fi adapter, join its network first.
- Tap the BCM card (“Body control unit”) and wait for the settings to load.
- Tap “DTLR Mode”. A list opens with the current mode highlighted.
- Choose the option you want, such as “Fog lamp”. The app writes it to the unit in a couple of seconds.
- Back out of the screen and reopen it — “DTLR Mode” should show your choice.
How to tell it worked
- Set the parking brake and put the shifter in P.
- Start the engine.
- Release the parking brake.
- Look at the front of the vehicle: the lights you picked should be on. A helper or a reflection off a garage wall makes this easy.
If you went with fog lamps, check AUTO too: in the dark or in a tunnel, the low beams should come on and the fogs should go off.
Troubleshooting
The lights don’t come on
- Get the order right: engine running first, then release the parking brake. If the brake was already off before you started the engine, set it and release it again.
- Reopen “Body control unit” and confirm your mode was saved.
- Try another mode. Not every unit supports every option: on the QX70, low beams work as DRLs but fog lamps don’t.
The mode won’t change
One Patrol Y62 owner couldn’t change anything: “DTLR Mode” showed no value and “Fog lamp override in AUTO” wouldn’t toggle. The ECU part number at the bottom of the screen read “1Z” instead of a full number like “1LA0ASB”. A reply that short looks truncated, so the first thing to try is a different adapter.
The app won’t connect to the adapter
Close other OBD apps, make sure no second phone is connected to the adapter, and update Canfiti. For a full rundown, see the troubleshooting section of the one-touch lane change signal guide.
How to switch back
Open “DTLR Mode” and pick the option from your screenshot. On one QX56, for example, it was “Without DTLR” before the change. It’s fully reversible and takes a couple of taps.
Related
- How to turn off the headlamp washers — same screen, same steps.
- All hidden BCM settings.