Is there any way to turn off the DRL's? I don't see the Canadian government paying for my replacement lamps, nor do I see myself ever driving to Canada unless Ted Cruz or Marco Rubio gets elected President and the car is still running.

I turned 'em off with the DIC in my Aurora, but I already know that's not an option here.

 

Why would you want to turn off the DRLs? They help visibility of your car to others, and help prevent liability in the case of an accident.

Bulbs should last years and years, and not be an issue. That's like saying stop signs shouldn't exist because you want to save your brakes.

With that said, you can't turn them off. You can run tape over the sensor and use parking lights, but that also runs lights.

 

if you have an 06-07 you can turn them off with the headlight switch. 00-04 you're out of luck, 05 you can cut a pin on one of the relays.

 

Except that stop signs prevent accidents, and DRL's don't. I live in Florida. I don't need more light to make my car visible. And, since we're in simile mode here, saying headlight bulbs should last years is like saying that my nine-year old transmission should shift perfectly because the same transmission in my Grand Prix worked perfectly until the car was killed at the age of twelve.

 

My experience with good halogen bulbs (going to late 80's/early 90's) is that they last almost the half life of the car, pending you are not subjecting them to abusive behavior. And what I mean by good bulbs, not the high priced super bright, just a good set of stock spec Sylvania bulbs that may cost a total of $20 for the pair, if that. Bulb life spans are getting so good that some vehicles require removing the front bumper cover to change them (which I feel is nuts, but it's true and manufactures are not hearing many complaints from consumers because it's not often that needs done).

Are you running though bulbs at a fast rate?

As for DRL, a lot of states (if not all) have a variety of vehicle laws that DRL help with. Such as any time you use your wipers, your headlights should be on (well, with DRL, no worries, they are already on). I think DRL are a bit over kill, but the Monte is not a Cadillac which has systems to control high beams and low beams and other features of fancy.

My primary point is that the DRL may just assist with complying with various newer laws that came about around the time of the 6th gen Monte and aids in being visible no matter the weather conditions.

 

Using the light switch did, in fact, turn them off, although the lights did still come on automatically at night, which I don't quite understand.

 

Um...yeah. Sylvanias are precisely what I buy, and I've never gotten more than two years out of a pair. What I have gotten is flagged down, and once cited, by the Florida Highway Patrol. And this is on every sealed-beam car I've ever had, going back to my '88 Beretta. (The mini-quads never burnt out on my '93 Camaro, and I had that almost five years. That alone makes me wish composite headlights would vanish and it were the '70's again.) And it's not just my cars, or GMs--same thing on my wife's '99 Mercedes C-Class. (And replacing those bulbs is almost as complicated as removing the bumper cover.)

 

If your Sylvanias keep going bad that quickly, then I wouldn't keep buying them. Try a different brand. I like the GE NiteHawk

 

Never even heard of those. Where do you buy them?

 

Not sure what to say. Cars I have driven a LOT are my '94, 02 and '04 Grand Ams, in addition to my '04 Monte. The '94 I replaced the halogen bulbs once in that car (bout with 86K, drove it for 9 years and sold it with 215K). The '02 Grand Am, I had a year and half, I had to change the actual headlight housings when I first bought it and put new bulbs in, never an issue. The '04 Grand Am, I currently drive as a daily driver, same as the '02, had to replace the headlight housing and so far no issues. All those cars go through the cold winters and hot summers, never head light issues. The '04 Monte is summer only, owned it since '08, I have put 30K miles on it, still the original headlights.
I can even add my ex-wife's '05 Impala and '01 Mustang to the list, never any headlight issues.
I have found halogen as reliable as the solid bulbs found on my '84 Camaro.

Installation of these halogen lights can also play a factor. Such as, you are not to touch the actual bulb with your bare skin (oils from your skin can get on the glass and shorten their lifespan). Or if any of the seals on the housing are not doing their jobs can also cause problems.

I agree with Chibiblacksheep, if you are having trouble with Sylvanias, check out other brands and options.