Switch to brighten/dim dash lights?

[KevinH1990]

A friend of mine bought a 2002 Boxster about 6 months before I bought my car. He drove it for about 3 months with the AC on all the time until he figured out that the button with the asterisk on it was really a snowflake and could be used to turn the AC on and off.

Drive an old 911 or 912 sometime if you want to see some arcane controls. This included a 5-speed shift pattern that put first gear in an unexpected location. I think Porsche may have been experimenting with an early anti-theft system. I don't think most driver's could turn on the heat in one - not that it made a difference.

[PaulE]

Originally Posted by KevinH1990

A friend of mine bought a 2002 Boxster about 6 months before I bought my car. He drove it for about 3 months with the AC on all the time until he figured out that the button with the asterisk on it was really a snowflake and could be used to turn the AC on and off.

So I knew the asterisk is a snowflake and is for the air conditioning. But when I put the HVAC on "Auto" the A/C button is always on. I figure it may be cycling on and off, but if it is cold outside and I have the temp set to warm, it doesn't really matter. Is that not correct? One thing I dislike is the windshield defroster. Regardless of the temperature that is set, pressing the windshield defroster button sends the air temperature to full hot immediately, even if it is 100 degrees outside. So I mostly use the button that directs air to the windshield defroster vents.

And what is a derp anyway?

Sorry for the thread drift.

[lkchris]

Originally Posted by KevinH1990

A friend of mine bought a 2002 Boxster about 6 months before I bought my car. He drove it for about 3 months with the AC on all the time until he figured out that the button with the asterisk on it was really a snowflake and could be used to turn the AC on and off.

His first German car, then.

Pretty common on German cars.

Many don't know that German cars are required to have a single button that immediately provides full windscreen demisting, too.