# HID beam cutoff



## advocatexxx (Apr 14, 2004)

After installing my new OEM HIDs i was wondering whether this is the proper beam cutoff.
the car in this photo was sitting on a level surface about 25 feet away from the wall.








the following two photos are a comparison between my halogen Sylvania Silver Star capsules and the HIDs in the second (camera settings were identical in both photos, shutter, aperture, ISO, etc.)
















the only reason i ask, is because i couldn't really find any photos of cutoff beam patterns on the net to compare them to.
the only awkward thing with these OEM HID units i've noticed is that the high beam seems to be offset at a slight angle to the left. i guess i'll have to adjust those separately.


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## BlahBoy (Jan 31, 2004)

Looks good!


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## dennisgli (May 17, 2003)

*Re: HID beam cutoff (advocatexxx)*

Pattern looks fine to me.
You didn't happen to take any comparisons of the high beams did you?


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## advocatexxx (Apr 14, 2004)

*Re: HID beam cutoff (dennisgli)*

thanks, by the way guys, do any of you have any info on how to make the low beam Xenons stay on when i turn my high beam halogens on? when i jerk the stalk back to flash the beams, it works fine, but when i push it down my low beam HIDs turn off.
i know there was a post somewhere about running a cable from the center console to the light switch, but i was looking for more of a simpler approach.


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## Glenn J (Feb 16, 1999)

*Re: HID beam cutoff (advocatexxx)*

Amazing difference between the stock and the HID set up. Great comparison pics. http://****************.com/smile/emthup.gif


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## robin_lantigua (May 10, 2000)

*Re: HID beam cutoff (Glenn J)*

Looks good.


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## daniel.ramirez (Nov 24, 2001)

*Re: HID beam cutoff (advocatexxx)*


_Quote, originally posted by *advocatexxx* »_thanks, by the way guys, do any of you have any info on how to make the low beam Xenons stay on when i turn my high beam halogens on? when i jerk the stalk back to flash the beams, it works fine, but when i push it down my low beam HIDs turn off.
i know there was a post somewhere about running a cable from the center console to the light switch, but i was looking for more of a simpler approach. 

http://forums.vwvortex.com/zer...83495
I did it like this, it's really simple http://****************.com/smile/emthup.gif


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## 71sbeetle (Apr 12, 2002)

*Re: HID beam cutoff (daniel.ramirez)*

http://****************.com/smile/emthup.gif http://****************.com/smile/emthup.gif http://****************.com/smile/emthup.gif 
I used this one







with pics, took me like 5-10 mins to do
http://forums.vwvortex.com/zerothread?id=1167457


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## 71sbeetle (Apr 12, 2002)

*Re: HID beam cutoff (71sbeetle)*

Oh yeah and your driver's side seams a littler higher than passenger side
try this :
http://www.autooptiks.com/aiming.html


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## VWParts (Sep 22, 2000)

*Re: HID beam cutoff (71sbeetle)*

Good info http://****************.com/smile/emthup.gif


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## daniel.ramirez (Nov 24, 2001)

*Re: HID beam cutoff (advocatexxx)*


_Quote, originally posted by *71sbeetle* »_ http://****************.com/smile/emthup.gif http://****************.com/smile/emthup.gif http://****************.com/smile/emthup.gif 
I used this one







with pics, took me like 5-10 mins to do
http://forums.vwvortex.com/zerothread?id=1167457

http://****************.com/smile/emthup.gif http://****************.com/smile/emthup.gif http://****************.com/smile/emthup.gif 


_Modified by daniel.ramirez at 12:06 AM 5-26-2004_


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## advocatexxx (Apr 14, 2004)

*Re: HID beam cutoff (daniel.ramirez)*

the only issue at this point is the high beams which seem to be offset to the left a few degrees.
i have realized that the adjustor screws not only adjust the projector low-beams, but the whole unit as a whole, including the high-beams.
the problem seems to be that low-beams and high beams are not aligned as you see in the below photos:
this photo was taken with the low-beam HID on (the black dots was where i put black tape as a reference point).. and sorry for the pic quality, only had my phone with me.








now as for what the pattern looks like with the high-beams on as well:








as you can see the high-beams are offset to the left quite drastically.
even when i drive on a dark road at night, my low-beam HIDs illuminate the road evenly, but when i turn my high beams on, they seem to point off to the left by about 2-5 degrees or so.
so i tried adjusting them with the adjustor screws, and got the high beams to point straight ahead, but then, inherently, my low beam HIDs were offset to the right.
i wonder why this is, considering they are brand new factory HIDs. perhaps the high-beam capsules are loose? they certainly don't seem to be.
pity there aren't separate adjustors for the high-beams.


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## dennisgli (May 17, 2003)

*Re: HID beam cutoff (advocatexxx)*


_Quote, originally posted by *advocatexxx* »_so i tried adjusting them with the adjustor screws, and got the high beams to point straight ahead, but then, inherently, my low beam HIDs were offset to the right.

Are you saying that the two bottom "dots" in the picture are not straight ahead of the car?


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## advocatexxx (Apr 14, 2004)

*Re: HID beam cutoff (dennisgli)*

those dots represent where the low-beam HIDs project their light. in the second pic you'll notice the bright oval areas lit up by the high-beams being quite off to the left instead of in-line with the low-beams, which are lined up directly ahead.


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## 71sbeetle (Apr 12, 2002)

*Re: HID beam cutoff (advocatexxx)*

low beams are supposed to be offset to the right btw


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## dennisgli (May 17, 2003)

*Re: HID beam cutoff (advocatexxx)*


_Quote, originally posted by *advocatexxx* »_in the second pic you'll notice the bright oval areas lit up by the high-beams being quite off to the left instead of in-line with the low-beams, which are lined up directly ahead.

If I look at the lower left "dot" it looks like the left high beam is higher (which it should be) and to the right of the dot - not too the left. Or do you see it differently? The right high beam does seem to be to the left - maybe that light is defective?


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## advocatexxx (Apr 14, 2004)

*Re: HID beam cutoff (dennisgli)*

yes the left high-beam seems to be fairly within the acceptable range, it's really the right high-beam that is really offset to the left.
when i aimed these lights i only did so vertically, and only used an educated guess as to how far apart they should be horizontally.
i'll re-aim them this weekend and take measurements, both vertical and horizontal and see if i can get that right high-beam where it should be. not that i use high-beams in NYC much anyway, but having dropped almost $1200 i'd prefer to have them working properly


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## advocatexxx (Apr 14, 2004)

*Re: HID beam cutoff (advocatexxx)*

and by the way, for all those looking to aim their lights, this article is as good as it gets, down to the point, informative and totally clear.
http://home.att.net/~borrani/a...2.htm


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## dennisgli (May 17, 2003)

*Re: HID beam cutoff (advocatexxx)*

You say that these are factory HIDs - and then you mention high-beam capsules. I thought the factory HIDs had tungsten bulbs for the high beams?
You can't tell from the pictures where the centerline should be and how far apart the beam patterns should be. If the bulbs/capsules are seated correctly in the lights then you should be able to get them aimed properly. But I've never seen these lights - does the HID projector bolt on to the rest of the headlight - maybe that isn't mounted correctly?


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## advocatexxx (Apr 14, 2004)

the HID low beam projectors are part of the whole headlamp unit as a whole. they are not adjustable independently from the rest of the headlamp. and yes the high beams are separate halogens.


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## daniel.ramirez (Nov 24, 2001)

*Re: (advocatexxx)*

Maybe the H7 bulb is somehow damaged? Can you interchange them from left to right and visceversa, and check for any difference?
Also I remember noticing that the HID proyector has somehow a way to be adjusted (it's supported by four screws), I mean if the H7 bulbs are properly seated and damage-free, maybe you could play moving the proyector to compensate the high beam mis-adjustment...


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## advocatexxx (Apr 14, 2004)

*Re: (daniel.ramirez)*


_Quote, originally posted by *daniel.ramirez* »_Maybe the H7 bulb is somehow damaged? Can you interchange them from left to right and visceversa, and check for any difference?
Also I remember noticing that the HID proyector has somehow a way to be adjusted (it's supported by four screws), I mean if the H7 bulbs are properly seated and damage-free, maybe you could play moving the proyector to compensate the high beam mis-adjustment...

that's the problem. projectors are not adjustable independently. the adjustor screws move about the headlamp internal assembly as a whole. i'll check it out tonight, i'm paying $2 for commercial parking where i can be sure to get a straight level surface with a perpendicular wall to aim them on.


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## daniel.ramirez (Nov 24, 2001)

*Re: (advocatexxx)*

I guess they are... maybe with no that much movement though...
I'm referring to the internal screws, inside the headlight, the ones which hold the projector to the whole unit...
Images are better than words:








See those 4 screws?, beneath them is some kind of soft rubber, using your hand try to move only the optical projector... If you think you can compensate the high... move the screws, otherwise, don't mess with them!


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## advocatexxx (Apr 14, 2004)

*Re: (daniel.ramirez)*

hey thanks bud, really appreciate the input.
well it turned out that i was optically mistaken. when i first adjusted the beams i only did so vertically, and horizontally i merely "guessed" where they should be pointing out.
turns out that the passenger side headlamp was aimed far off to the left (along with the high beam) making it seem as if though both high beams were offset.

i went to aim the lights again today according to this graph:








http://home.att.net/~borrani/a...2.htm
and think i've gotten an awesome aim, the high beams seem to be centered now.
i filled up the tank and checked all tire pressures.. here's the low-beam HID pattern








the center vertical line is the vehicle centerpoint. left and right vertical lines represent the position of the projector low-beam lens horizontal position.
the topmost horizontal line represents the vertical level of the low beam projector headlamps and the bottom horizontal line is positioned 3 inches below the top.
now the low beams are purposely aimed another 2-3 inches below the bottom line (even though they should be on it), reason being that i do not have auto-leveling servos, and so whenever i carry a load in the back the lights would inadvertently end up being too high ... i tried this by standing on the trunk in the rear and see how much the beams increase vertically (they increase by about 4 inches on the wall)..
here's the same photo enlarged with description:








finally here's a shot with the high beams on as well.. as you see, they're much close to the center now.








thanks to everyone who tried helping me solve this silly little dilemma and boy do i love these lights!!!
-----------------------------------------------------------
Finally, here's a recap of the whole procedure:
*Prep the car –* 
Fill the gas tank 
Equalize tire pressure 
Put a normal load in the car (your weight in the driver’s seat + weight for any regular passengers) 

*Initial positioning of the car –*
Put the car’s nose right up close and perpendicular to the wall 
Rock the car side to side to level the suspension. I strongly suggest that you go to a commercial garage as many outdoor buildings/parking lots only appear to be level when in fact they're not.

*Mark the wall –*(either with chalk or dark tape. don't use permanent marker as that is technically property damage








Line "*A*" - Vertical, at the center (measured side-to-side) of the car 
Line "*B*" - Horizontal, at the same height as the vertical centers of the headlight projectors
Lines "*C1* and *C4*" - Vertical, at the horizontal centers of each projector lamp (Lines *C2* and *C3* in this case are not applicable as the OEM HID headlamps do not have separate adjustors for low-beam HID projectors and the high-beam halogens, so just disregard lines C2 and C3 from this diagram.)
Line "D" - Horizontal, parallel to Line "B", 3 inches below "B"
*Final positioning of the car –*
Keeping the car perpendicular to the wall, back it up until the lights are 25 feet away from the wall. I suggest using a measuring tape as people often have misconceived notions about how far 25 feet really is.









*Aiming the Low Beams –*
Turn on the low beams 
Cover one side (you'll be adjusting the other side) 
Turn the adjusting screws on the uncovered light so that the top edge of the light beam is at Line "D" and the angled cut-off point is centered on the intersection of Lines "C" and "D" (see above illustration) 
Move the cover to the side you just adjusted and repeat for the (now) uncovered side

*Aiming the High Beams – *
Turn on the High beams 
NOTE: Turning the high-beams on will turn your low-beam HID projectors off (unless you have rewired your car). I suggest you avoid turning the HID lights on and off in a short period of time as this puts excessive stress on the ballast, being that once the gas inside the capsule has been heated, it requires even more energy to re-ignite it.
Furthermore, being that you will spend 98% of your time driving only with the low-beams, and being that high-beams are not independently adjustable from the low-beams, just let them point wherever they may.
If you've followed the above procedure thoroughly, they should aim straight ahead and above.
Have a safe night drive!

*NOTE:* Please keep in mind that if you follow the above procedure with dummy load in the car to simulate the weight of your regular passengers your lights will actually illuminate a slightly shorter distance in front of the car if you only drive in it alone. In addition, if you ever carry more than your regular share of passengers and heavy load, your lights will inherently point higher, possibly blinding other passengers Furthermore, when you accelerate your low-beam cutoff line will be raised so keep all these factors in mind in determining the proper vertical position of the cutoff lines. 
In my case, as you see in the above photos, I have aimed the low-beams another 2-3 inches below the line *D* because even though I carry a full number of passengers quite rarely, I don't want to be pulled over and ticketed for having headlights with too much glare.



_Modified by advocatexxx at 4:04 PM 5-28-2004_


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## colombia98gti (Feb 8, 2003)

*Re: HID beam cutoff (advocatexxx)*

that's normal cos' u got factory headlamps. that happen to me







so when i put the hella 4look i got perfect view(no cut off)


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## chiefsalami (Aug 25, 2003)

*Re: HID beam cutoff (colombia98gti)*

I think I am missing something here. Where are the lights adjusted to the side? Seems like both screws only adjust the lights up and down. Is this right? I aimed mine tonight and it seems like they are off to the left a bit.


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## chiefsalami (Aug 25, 2003)

*Re: HID beam cutoff (chiefsalami)*

nevermind - I take it back... hadn't realized that one of the adjuster screws actually moves the slights slightly to the left and right, but at the same time it causes the up and down motion as well. I was thrown off by that


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