Factory set Bi-Xenons too low?

[Marakai]

Hi all,

The German Passat forum now has a 7 page/90 post thread going on about issues with the factory settings of the Bi-Xenons being set hopelessly too low.

As in "feels like you're shining a torch at the floor while smacking face first into a wall that you couldn't see" too low.

Some service centres there are aware of it and will gladly fix the issue with the help of VCDS, others are in denial.

Anybody here has/had that issue and were able to get it fixed? If so, how? Service? Self-help? (probably not a good idea, as you may end up with them too high and getting into trouble for blinding oncoming traffic)

It's supposedly been a on and off problem since the B6es. Some have it, some are adjusted just fine. It most often occurs when you order the vehicle with lower than normal suspension.

Cheers
Mike

[booba]

Grab a big screwdriver, drive up to a wall on flat ground at night turn your headlights on, pop bonnet and adjust it youself, problem solvered.

[Marakai]

Grab a big screwdriver, drive up to a wall on flat ground at night turn your headlights on, pop bonnet and adjust it youself, problem solvered.

Hmm, they made it sound like with the cornering ones it's not just a "grab a screwdriver" thing but has to be done in the code (hence VCDS). And of course, what may look great once I'm done with the 'driver actually turns out to drive oncoming drivers nuts.

[booba]

Ok well approach the dealer them.. cornering just goes left and right. i thought that it was "too low" which means that you can can adjust them higher and lower but i didn't bother to find the german thread that you mention.

[wind]

Mine were slightly low BUT the most annoying part was that the bi-xenons were delivered pointing about 20 degrees to the right!!

Only figured this our when I was driving in the country late at night: under high beam, I got a great view of the trees/bushes just to the right of the road (straight stretch) and not much coverage of the road in front of me or to the left . . . rather dangerous from the perspective of wildlife coming your way (did collect a wallaby/small roo, but that was a fair bit later!)

I used booba's big screwdriver approach (was in the middle of NSW at that time and no VW dealer within a hundred or two kms) and adjusted the height and angle of the headlights (using a convenient servo wall) and, presto, problem solved.

The auto moving lights use the fixed position that the screwdriver sets as the basis of their movement - they will move left-right based on the neutral setting you give them.


Also, about low beam lights pointing low - I did aim them higher but I found that it was dazzling on-coming traffic to easily, so ended up aiming them down a smidge (a little higher than what they were originally at but lower than what I initially had them at - based on what I would aim at with halogens).

[Marakai]

Well, I'm certainly going to keep the screwdriver handy if it's that east. Not sure why it ended up as such a drama on that German thread with VCDS entering the game if it's so easy.

[wind]

When I did mine, was middle of the night, in the middle of nowhere (and was rather p-ssed at VW at the time for delivering a car with lights adjusted to view bushes not the road ahead!) and had some, self-inflicted, stress figuring out which screw does what for light aim adjustment (have one white plastic screw on left and other white plastic screw on right side of each light - the screws obviously mirror each other for the left light and the right light, needs a screwdriver with a longer shaft), never can remember which does what - so is suck and see for me each time as I went back and forth to see how it looked from inside the car.

To figure left/right adjustment I found it easier to do it with high beam on and have the other light covered (easier to see which way it is moving) as you have a pronounced bright spot in the center that moves on the wall, whereas with low beam you can easily tell if it goes up/down as there is a clean line at the top of the light on the wall - however, you can't really see it move left or right easily as the light is quite even across most of its spread.

I tried to do the horizontal adjustment first (bloody thing was pointing at the bushes to the right instead of straight ahead) before I figured out that having the high beam to do this works much better - hence the self-inflicted stress as I worked the screwdriver but did not see much movement happening!


Earned learning:

1. cover the light you are not working on (top/blanket/someone in front of it)

2. use low beam for vertical adjustment - easier to see top of light line move

3. use high beam for horizontal adjustment - easier to see the high beam bright spot move


If in doubt or are unsure re adjusting your headlights - there's plenty of info on the internet about how to set them right . . .

[Cossor]

G'day wind
I am considering moving from TSI118 Golf to 125TDI passat sedan.
Not happy with Golf headlights, with low beam on RH side a bit too low. (Been back to dealer twice.)
(Was told due to Australian regulations)

But, anyway, tossing up if I should include Bi Xenons in the option list.
Live in country area, lots of wombats. But due to reasonable size population, have to do lot of driving on low beam.
So now yours are adjusted to your liking, I wonder if Bi-Xenons do a better job of illuminating side of road on low beam, or are more of a
focussed narrow beam?
BTW, Will give my Golf to my son, not trade in. at least I purchased extended warranty with it!!

[booba]

bs from the dealer. just adjust them yourself with a screwdriver.

G'day wind
I am considering moving from TSI118 Golf to 125TDI passat sedan.
Not happy with Golf headlights, with low beam on RH side a bit too low. (Been back to dealer twice.)
(Was told due to Australian regulations)

But, anyway, tossing up if I should include Bi Xenons in the option list.
Live in country area, lots of wombats. But due to reasonable size population, have to do lot of driving on low beam.
So now yours are adjusted to your liking, I wonder if Bi-Xenons do a better job of illuminating side of road on low beam, or are more of a
focussed narrow beam?
BTW, Will give my Golf to my son, not trade in. at least I purchased extended warranty with it!!

[wind]

bs from the dealer. just adjust them yourself with a screwdriver.

I agree with booba here, it does sound like bs. Grab a screwdriver and adjust them yourself.

It is pretty simple to do - just find a wall and some flat ground (car park at night??) and if you can move the car back so that you can get some distance to the wall and then adjust to suit your tastes/needs (obviously, you will need to make sure you point them down at least a little so as not to annoy/dazzle/blind oncoming traffic).

But, anyway, tossing up if I should include Bi Xenons in the option list.

In terms of light output (lumens), the bi-xenons do have a significant advantage over the normal headlights. The issue of the light spread/pattern for low/high beams is something you will need to be happy with.

I think it is a personal thing as to whether you like the bi-xenons or the normal lights (there are people in both camps). If you are able to, I would suggest that you get your dealer to show you a Passat with normal lights and one with bi-xenons (probably better to do this when darker/night so you can see how they light up the road) and see which one does it for you - have the dealer do some work to get your sale!

Personally, I like the white light of the bi-xenons and to me the spread is pretty good.

With all the cars I have driven over the past few decades, re headlight performance in country driving, I find that they all could do with more light straight down the middle of the road on high beam . . . alternatively, I try to find someone going in my direction at a speed I am OK with and pace them - letting them light up the scenery for me.




The 'ultimate' solution for your consideration: the Passat has standard fog lights and turn lights (that light up the sides of the road when you use the indicator or the steering wheel turns past a certain angle). Put higher intensity LED's (with CAN-bus 'safe' circuit so that you do not get errors due to lower power draw) in both the fog and turn lights and have them turned on when running at night (there are posts you can find for people who have done this - that is have the side-turn lights come on when you turn the fog lights on, as well as instructions how they did it, I haven't gone down this route . . .). This way you will get a whole lot more light hitting the road and the turn lights do point at about 45 degrees to the sides.

As I said above, test drive both types of lights at the dealers and see if which one does it for you. You do have options that you can pursue should you wish to get more light onto the road.

[booba]

Or one step further, Retrofit DLA. I have new headlight units with DLA coming from poland. Hopefully, I can get them to work properly.