Strange headlight aiming?
Thread Starter
Melting Slicks
Joined: Jul 2006
Posts: 2,094
Likes: 5
From: The 7th layer of hell - Western Washington
Strange headlight aiming?
My drivers side high-beam shines directly over the low beam when facing a wall. My passenger side beam aims up and to the left of the low beam, so a proper aim for both beams on the passenger side is impossible. Is this normal?
I have removed and re-installed both bulbs to make sure they are correctly seated and they look fine. I compressed the metal tabs to make sure they are getting a firm lock on the socket, and everything is fine there. Also I don't see how it could be a housing problem cause it looks like the high and low beams are all in the same housing.
WTF?
I have removed and re-installed both bulbs to make sure they are correctly seated and they look fine. I compressed the metal tabs to make sure they are getting a firm lock on the socket, and everything is fine there. Also I don't see how it could be a housing problem cause it looks like the high and low beams are all in the same housing.
WTF?
Drifting
Joined: Feb 2003
Posts: 1,761
Likes: 235
From: North Carolina
Maybe this will help, I wasn't able to back my car up tonight, but a quick check from about 10 feet from the wall.
Driver high beam about 3 inches higher and 3 inches to the right above the low beam
Passenger side high beam about 3-4 inches higher and 3 inches to the left. Similar pattern to yours, and these are just eyeballed measurements, its too late to go taping off the wall and measuring.
There is no adjustment capability to change the high or low beam within the same headlamp The adjusters move the entire headlamp capsule and both bulbs.
Driver high beam about 3 inches higher and 3 inches to the right above the low beam
Passenger side high beam about 3-4 inches higher and 3 inches to the left. Similar pattern to yours, and these are just eyeballed measurements, its too late to go taping off the wall and measuring.
There is no adjustment capability to change the high or low beam within the same headlamp The adjusters move the entire headlamp capsule and both bulbs.
Le Mans Master
Joined: Dec 2005
Posts: 6,420
Likes: 5
From: "This is not a psychotic episode, but a cleansing moment of clarity."
I've got the exact same thing going as the original poster. My high beams are both tight and well defined. The low beam on the left is fairly well defined and the high beam is right above it. The passenger side low beam is significantly off the right side of the high beam and not nearly as well defined. I think we both have a problem, as I don't think it should be like this. The only thing I can think of is that the passenger side might indeed dip to the right in order to better illuminate street signs, curb, stuff like that. So I'm not too hung up about it just yet. I wish that I would have paid better attention to the light pattern before I changed the bulbs... 
Thread Starter
Melting Slicks
Joined: Jul 2006
Posts: 2,094
Likes: 5
From: The 7th layer of hell - Western Washington
I spent a couple hours driving around with the low beams on and adjusting them until they were perfect for what I wanted. All of the road was lit directly in front of me and I could clearly see both of the lights hitting the road, but still far enough ahead of me to where I wouldn't "out-run" them at highway speeds. Since I assumed the highs would follow suit with the lows I never even tried them until about a week after the final adjustments. Now it looks as if my passenger side beam is more useful for spotlighting aircraft than anything else...
Pro
Joined: Dec 2005
Posts: 619
Likes: 2
From: Destin FL
I recently replaced my headlight bulbs and discovered the exact same aiming issue that you describe. (I wish I would have checked the aiming before changing the bulbs). Driver's side high and low almost pointing exact same position. Passenger side high is REALLY high, or low is REALLY low. If I adjust the passenger side so that the low beam is about same height as driver's side, then the passenger side high beam is shining the tree limbs for possums (or spotlighting for aircraft as you say). If I lower the passenger side capsule until the high beams are about the same height, then the passenger side low beam is shining on the road so close to the car that it's practically useless. I've also noticed that the horizontal adjustment on the passenger side capsule doesn't change the aiming direction at all, even though I can clearly see the carriage moving half and inch or more on the jackscrew. If you found a solution for this please let me know. This really irritates me. The lighting while driving at night is terrible.
Le Mans Master
Joined: Dec 2005
Posts: 6,420
Likes: 5
From: "This is not a psychotic episode, but a cleansing moment of clarity."
After much trial and error, I've finally got my HIR's dialed in just the way I want them. The driver's side pattern looks perfect to me. The high beam is above the low beam and since I'm running high beam bulbs in the low beam sockets as well, I've aimed a little lower. The passenger side is another matter. The high beam resides a good bit to the left and above of the low beam position, but when I hit the brights, it seems that most of the light is now concentrated in the center. Not exactly sure how that works, but the low beams are aligned horizontally and light up the road terrific and the high beams are fine and rarely used anyway. I went for a good long drive the other evening and nobody flashed me, so I think it's all good.
Of course, after all the fiddling, I discovered a problem with the pop up motor on the left headlamp and took the car into the dealer this morning for warranty repair. That has nothing to do with the bulbs, so they'd better leave THOSE alone!!! I should know soon enough, I guess!
Of course, after all the fiddling, I discovered a problem with the pop up motor on the left headlamp and took the car into the dealer this morning for warranty repair. That has nothing to do with the bulbs, so they'd better leave THOSE alone!!! I should know soon enough, I guess!
