It is a dim small white led light right next to the map lights/ moon roof control


what exactly is the purpose of this light and how do you turn it on and off?

 

I believe those little L.E.D lights are there to add to the ambiance of the cabin at night ....they obviously do nothing more than shine a little glow on the shifter stack.The only way to turn them off is to probably remove the roof liner and manually disconnect them or un plug them (if you can)

Or

You can just put something over them, if they bother you.

I personally like them and like the effect the light has on the Washi Paper at night.

 

It tells you that it is dark in the car.




J/k ... what UltimateGee27 said.

07's have 2, 08 has one.

 

helps me see the buttons inside enough that I'm not fumbling for switches.

 

They actually light up the center dash console quite well at night. It is surprising how much cool light they add to the interior.

 

i like em.

 

I like them too. The one thing I missed when I went from Audi to Subaru a few years ago.

On a related note, since the headlights are in Auto setting I use the LED to tell if the headlights have turned on. I thought it was strange there was dash indicator telling you the lights are on. Subaru had that (without auto setting) and I got used to it.

Also, I can sometimes tell from the dash lights going dimmer, but still an indicator would be good.

 

i have never noticed that light.... imma go outside and check it out...

 

07 has two lights, 08 only has one...

 

2 for the win.

 

Its for ambience, not runway lighting

 

yeah I thought that was odd too. I just tell by the dimmer in the LCD screen though. If I'm wearing my sunglasses and I go under a long bridge or something, I'll suddenly notice that I can no longer see a damn thing on the screen. Its at that point I know the headlights are on.

 

You can control the brightness too...

 

Easiest way for me to tell if my lights are on is by looking at the Navi.
If the map's sky is sunny, the lights are off.
If the map's sky is full of stars, the lights are on.

 

I like the ambience lights.

They also help me see things in the car without the map lights. Plus, they don't hurt your night vision.