# suspension and Xenon's



## ProjectA3 (Aug 12, 2005)

after lowering my car with the coilovers i noticed my headlights are pointed more towards the ground than they were before.
workin at the dealership i had a tech look at them. he aligned them using their scan tool and the steps they usually do, but once he put the key in and started the car they went out of alignment again and pointed more downwards.
there are sensors in the front and rear of the car that help the headlights level themselves. well when lowering a car your front usually ends up lower thant he rear, in my case it is true, which is throwing off the sensors. Even using the scan tool they cannot make the car "learn" a new mid-point to go on where the sensors realize the car is level.
what have others done to get around this?
they said we can manually tilt the headlights up more and then recalibrate but i was wondering if there was another way.


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## jakbeatz (Nov 26, 2005)

*Re: suspension and Xenon's (ProjectA3)*


_Quote, originally posted by *ProjectA3* »_after lowering my car with the coilovers i noticed my headlights are pointed more towards the ground than they were before.

How much more? Does it really affect the visibility since the Xenons shoot so far out anyway, or do you just notice the ground directly ahead of you brighter than before? If so, is that actually a bad thing?


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## ProjectA3 (Aug 12, 2005)

*Re: suspension and Xenon's (jakbeatz)*

i would say i normally had 50 or so feet outward shining light before, and now only have about 30 or so feet of outward shining light.
they wont really shine onto the back of a car that is about 5 car lenghts in front of me.


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## jakbeatz (Nov 26, 2005)

*Re: suspension and Xenon's (ProjectA3)*


_Quote, originally posted by *ProjectA3* »_i would say i normally had 50 or so feet outward shining light before, and now only have about 30 or so feet of outward shining light.
they wont really shine onto the back of a car that is about 5 car lenghts in front of me.

Poopy.. how much did you lower the car by? what kind of coilovers did you put in?


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## Rogerthat (Oct 23, 2005)

*Re: suspension and Xenon's (ProjectA3)*

FuNNy i was about to post the same topic
I just had my coilovers installed yesterday and when I went driving around some back roads that weren’t well lit I could completely tell the difference. The difference was in the range of the headlights. All I can see now was a little over one car length ahead of me. The difference was so noticeable that I had to slow down around corners because I couldnt see what was ahead, it didn’t feel safe especially because my wife will be driving the car as well.







http://****************.com/smile/emthdown.gif The car was dropped 1.8 in. evenly all around. I’m afraid that I am going to have to raise the car some to compensate for the change in light range but I’m not sure that will fix the problem.
It feels Kind of pointless to have the Xenon lights if there going to point straight down. 
I would also like to hear what other people have done to fix this problem, if thats even possible.



_Modified by Rogerthat at 6:48 PM 1-4-2006_


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## ProjectA3 (Aug 12, 2005)

*Re: suspension and Xenon's (Rogerthat)*

i would too like to hear what others are experiencing with this. i will wait to read some more feed back, and see if there are any alternatives to manually adjusting/tilting the physical headlight housing upwards.


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## Nuvolari (Jun 22, 2004)

Rogerthat,
The manufacturer of your suspension should have a solution to this. Rogerthat?


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## RyanA3 (May 11, 2005)

*Re: (Nuvolari)*

wonder if you guys can vag-com the settings to not adjust or curve the level of adjust.


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## Rogerthat (Oct 23, 2005)

*Re: (Nuvolari)*


_Quote, originally posted by *Nuvolari* »_Rogerthat,
The manufacturer of your suspension should have a solution to this. Rogerthat?

I have H&R coilovers.
Nothing is listed on H&R's website, maybe I can call and ask.
I knew going in to this that I would be messing with the Xenon leveling system, but I didn't think it would be that dramatic.


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## stash64 (Jan 26, 2005)

*Re: suspension and Xenon's (ProjectA3)*


_Quote, originally posted by *ProjectA3* »_I will wait to read some more feed back, and see if there are any alternatives to manually adjusting/tilting the physical headlight housing upwards.

Brian,
What is the drawback to making the "manual" adjustment ??? I wanted to manually adjust my Xenons up just a bit, but if I recall correctly, it was suggested on this forum that a manual adjustment would be defeated by the self-leveling mechanism or somehow mess up the self-leveling. On my previous car (330xi), I manually adjusted the Xenons and it worked perfectly... no problems. And it was very easy to do.
I am also curious as to why the self-leveling mechanism does not work to bring the level back to normal in these cases. Almost appears that the self-leveling mechanism only works one way... if the rear end drops and the front end rises, but that doesn't seem prudent or safe.


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## VR6Vdubbin' (Jan 28, 2004)

*Re: suspension and Xenon's (stash64)*

invest in coilovers and manually drop your car so as to even your car out a lil more... but not too much http://****************.com/smile/emthup.gif


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## VR6Vdubbin' (Jan 28, 2004)

*Re: suspension and Xenon's (stash64)*

I am also curious as to why the self-leveling mechanism does not work to bring the level back to normal in these cases. Almost appears that the self-leveling mechanism only works one way... if the rear end drops and the front end rises, but that doesn't seem prudent or safe.[/QUOTE]
if you think about the logic of what u just said it would make perfect sense. when the opposite of what you said happens ie. the front end drops and the rear end rises the lights will point into to the ground not blinding on coming motorist. This was prob the engineers logic when they made the self-leveling only one way.


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## ProjectA3 (Aug 12, 2005)

*Re: suspension and Xenon's (VR6Vdubbin')*

ok, IIRC from what the shop foreman told me is that even though you can retrain the leveling ballast with the vag-com/5051 tools, once you put the key in the car and start it, it searchs for the front and rear sensors and if they are still unlevel, they lights will relearn their old position.
for my car, they actually put the car up on a lift and used and stabilizing pole at the back of the car to actually lift the rear up a tiny bit higher than the front, did the needed programming and then lowered the car back down. once back on the ground, putting in the key, it again went back to its normal position with the lights pointing down.
the bad thing about manually adjusting the lights is creating possible gaps around the lights where they meet hood, fenders, and bumper. IMO.


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## bassbiker (Oct 30, 2005)

*Re: suspension and Xenon's (VR6Vdubbin')*

Have you all read this info on xenon alignment?
You can't just manually adjust the xenons without doing this procedure.
http://www.ross-tech.com/vag-c....html
Regarding lowered vehicles, check out the note at the bottom of that page:
"Note: There have been reports of lowered vehicles displaying an error message in either Basic Settings group 001 or 002. If the vehicle height sensor(s) are bottomed out, it may be necessary to bend the sensor bracket to allow normal adjustment to occur."


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## ProjectA3 (Aug 12, 2005)

*Re: suspension and Xenon's (bassbiker)*

i will bring mine to work tomorrow and have them go at it again and report my findings.


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## crew219 (Oct 18, 2000)

*Re: suspension and Xenon's (ProjectA3)*


_Quote, originally posted by *ProjectA3* »_
the bad thing about manually adjusting the lights is creating possible gaps around the lights where they meet hood, fenders, and bumper. IMO.

um, no


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## Christopher463 (Jul 16, 2005)

*Re: suspension and Xenon's (crew217)*


_Quote, originally posted by *crew217* »_
um, no

I will agree.


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## 3dr A3 3.2 (Dec 28, 2004)

Whoa! Just read this thread for the first time...
Hood open, in the engine compartment, don't your headlight clusters have a white phillips-head screw (one for each cluster)? Mine do, and that is how I adjusted them.
At night, pull up to your garage door (20 ft or so) and "screw away" ;-) Bring the beams up, go for a drive: if you get flashed by every car you cross, they're too high, if not then go higher.
Granted, the procedure depicted above is quite "ghetto", but it works... Xenons, with their very sharp cut-off suck a** if they point too low.


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## PD Performance (Jul 1, 2004)

*Re: suspension and Xenon's (ProjectA3)*

Its a combination of manual and electronic adjustment.
Yes you can raise and lower the lights with the scan tool but that is not retraining the center point really.
Just follow the directions on the ross-tech site. For the record you can do this with the dealer tool you don't need vag com to do anything vag com can do it just simulates the dealer scan tool.
You need to basically put the car into a learning mode. You manually adjust the headlights using the adjusters in the engine bay and the red hella headlight alinging box thing. Once you have them manually set then you have to save the learned position and from there the lights will adjust.
And no this does not move where the lights areo n the outside of the car. The adjustment is moving the inside of the light, the outside casing is fixedin place.


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## 3dr A3 3.2 (Dec 28, 2004)

What happens if you manually *only* adjust? It seems mine are high (after man. adjust.) and have stayed high...?


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## stash64 (Jan 26, 2005)

*Re: suspension and Xenon's (VR6Vdubbin')*


_Quote, originally posted by *VR6Vdubbin’* »_
if you think about the logic of what u just said it would make perfect sense. when the opposite of what you said happens ie. the front end drops and the rear end rises the lights will point into to the ground not blinding on coming motorist. This was prob the engineers logic when they made the self-leveling only one way.
















What ??? Perhaps I wasn't really clear or you did not understand what I was saying, because I certainly don't understand what you are saying.
All I intended to say was that the leveling should work both ways. Whether the front end dips or rises (vice versa on the back end), the lights should find the proper level. I am a mechanical engineer BTW, and that would be my logic.
My understanding of self-leveling headlights is that they will adjust for different loads inside the vehicle. So if you had a couple of 300 pounders in the front seats and no one in the back seats (and no cargo), the front end is definitely going to be lower than normal and the headlights should adjust "up" to compensate. I don't see how this is physically any different than Brian's situation where his car has been lowered more in the front by new springs (as opposed to a couple of offensive linemen in the front seats). But maybe as the Ross-Tech article suggests, Brian has just run out of adjustment.


_Modified by stash64 at 11:04 PM 1-6-2006_


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## stash64 (Jan 26, 2005)

*Re: suspension and Xenon's (bassbiker)*


_Quote, originally posted by *bassbiker* »_Have you all read this info on xenon alignment?
You can't just manually adjust the xenons without doing this procedure.
http://www.ross-tech.com/vag-c....html


Thanks for the link !!!
Who/what is Ross-Tech ??? Can they be considered a reliable source for Audi/VW tech ???
I did read over the Ross-Tech information, and if it is a reliable source, I only see two potential drawbacks to performing a manual only adjustment. First, it appears there is the potential of an error code in your computer memory because the lights weren't leveled (i.e. centered) at the time of the adjustment. Second, you would not know how much adjustment is enough, again because the lights were not self-leveled at the time of adjustment. This second issue is not a big deal in my mind. The solution is to just make small adjustments at a time, and then go driving (at night) to determine if it is at the desired level. If not, make another "small" adjustment. Does anyone have a different interpretation ???
And if you do get an error code after performing a manual only adjustment, is it not fairly simple just to clear the code or would it come right back ??? I think lots of error codes are simply diagnostic, and can be erased. Anyway, it does not sound like anyone who has mentioned performing a manual only adjustment has had any issue with error codes.
Sorry... lots of questions, no real answers !!!










_Modified by stash64 at 11:16 PM 1-6-2006_


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## PD Performance (Jul 1, 2004)

*Re: suspension and Xenon's (stash64)*

Ross-tech makes vag-com.


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## Rogerthat (Oct 23, 2005)

*Re: suspension and Xenon's (ProjectA3)*


_Quote, originally posted by *ProjectA3* »_the bad thing about manually adjusting the lights is creating possible gaps around the lights where they meet hood, fenders, and bumper. IMO.

I also thought the headlight housing had to physically be adjusted.
I had some time this weekend to fix it and it turned out fine.








Here are the nobs where you adjust it, just take those black tabs off and use a phillips screwdriver.


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## agarc (Nov 19, 2001)

*Re: suspension and Xenon's (ProjectA3)*

AFAIK, auto headlight adjusters do exactly the same thing that the manual adjustment switch (in European models) does (I have this in my Jetta). If the load in the vehicle is significant, the beams will be either too high or low. With a manual switch, adjusting the rheostat simply moves the inner headlight housing (not the housing itself) up or down. The headlights still need to be properly aimed though! When I aimed my e-codes, I had to set the rheostat leveler first (at their default level), then I had to properly aim my lights. Now, if the load changes or if I want my beam to be adjusted, I use the switch; and for normal driving, I set it back to its default level. This is no different with auto-levelers, only the process is automated.
You need to manually adjust (or use a beamsetter) the headlights while the car (and load) is completely level (so, when the modified suspension is in place and the auto-leveling sensors are calibrated correctly). Now that the lights are aimed, the autolevelers should function normally (they have learned their new default position).
There is no way for auto-levelers to actually know the angle that the beams are at; it only knows the angle that's relative to how the lights are aimed at the default level. This is why un-aimed headlights on a lower suspension will be too low.


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## Rogerthat (Oct 23, 2005)

*Re: suspension and Xenon's (agarc)*

yess!
did you say that all in one breath?


_Modified by Rogerthat at 8:39 PM 1/9/2006_


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## stash64 (Jan 26, 2005)

*Re: suspension and Xenon's (Rogerthat)*


_Quote, originally posted by *Rogerthat* »_
Here are the nobs where you adjust it, just take those black tabs off and use a phillips screwdriver.


















I assume one of the knobs is for up-down and the other is for side-to-side adjustment. Anyone know which is which, or do they both have to be adjusted an equal amount for up-down ???
Also, is it counter-clockwise or clockwise turns (when facing front of vehicle) for an "upward" adjustment ???


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## agarc (Nov 19, 2001)

*Re: suspension and Xenon's (stash64)*

Sorry, i forget which screws are which, as well as which direction to turn them...
I do know that if you're manually adjusting these yourself, it's best to use the lower adjustment bolt instead of the top of the screw... The lower spot is more sturdy.
















_Quote, originally posted by *stash64* »_I assume one of the knobs is for up-down and the other is for side-to-side adjustment. Anyone know which is which, or do they both have to be adjusted an equal amount for up-down ???
Also, is it counter-clockwise or clockwise turns (when facing front of vehicle) for an "upward" adjustment ???


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## OO3 (Dec 20, 2005)

THANK YOU Brian for starting this thread! I noticed that I too lost about 20' of light and everyone I talked to said that the lights were self leveling so I shouldn't have lost any distance and others just said deal with it, which I have by turning on the high beams whenever there isn't any cars around. Having only 20-30' of light on the interstate sucks.


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## PD Performance (Jul 1, 2004)

*Re: suspension and Xenon's (agarc)*


_Quote, originally posted by *agarc* »_I do know that if you're manually adjusting these yourself, it's best to use the lower adjustment bolt instead of the top of the screw... The lower spot is more sturdy.

















Either one is fine.. I've leveled hundreds of lights and never used the lower adjuster, never once had a problem.
As long as you are not using an impact gun on that top one you wno't have a problem.. and even if you used one on the lower adjuster you would have a problem
The actually point of adjustment is actually the top one according to all the manuals.


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## Braunschwagen (Mar 13, 2004)

*Re: suspension and Xenon's (PD Performance)*

Just did this adjustment last night. Car is stock with Xenons, but the lights always seemed to be aimed a little too low, and as you know the cutoff on these lights is dramatic. I used a 10mm mini socket on the lower plastic bolt and carefully adjusted the beams up on both sides (a little goes a long way). Used my garage door creases (very scientific







) to keep things level, and took test rides in between each adjustment to make sure the lighting was right. Took me awhile as I wanted to get it perfect, but I won't have to adjust them ever again... hopefully!
Thanx to all who contributed to this post because I probably would'nt have bothered adjusting them otherwise. http://****************.com/smile/emthup.gif








PS: The High beams are also much better aimed now.


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## KnockKnock (Jun 30, 2005)

*Re: suspension and Xenon's (Braunschwagen)*


_Quote, originally posted by *Braunschwagen* »_Car is stock with Xenons, but the lights always seemed to be aimed a little too low, and as you know the cutoff on these lights is dramatic.

You did this to a stock setup? This thread was for compensation after lowering the car. The reason stock Xenons are aimed low and cutoff sharply is so that you don't blind oncoming drivers with the much more powerful beams. Plz keep in mind that a static setting against your garage does not simulate the squat of a car when accellerating, or the up-angle when you go over bumps. By aiming the stocks up, you could be effectively running with high beams on according to oncoming drivers. Of course, maybe yours were just set wrong at the factory....


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## Nuvolari (Jun 22, 2004)

*Re: suspension and Xenon's (Braunschwagen)*


_Quote, originally posted by *Braunschwagen* »_ Used my garage door creases (very scientific







) to keep things level, and took test rides in between each adjustment to make sure the lighting was right. 

So, on your test rides, did you go by the lowest number of casualties in oncoming traffic, together with decent vision for yourself, to find your desired setting?


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## Smartass (Aug 8, 2000)

*Re: suspension and Xenon's (KnockKnock)*


_Quote, originally posted by *KnockKnock* »_Plz keep in mind that a static setting against your garage does not simulate the squat of a car when accellerating, or the up-angle when you go over bumps.

Um, the auto leveling will point your headlights down under acceleration or after hitting a bump. That's kind of the whole point of auto leveling headlights.


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## stash64 (Jan 26, 2005)

*Re: suspension and Xenon's (KnockKnock)*


_Quote, originally posted by *KnockKnock* »_
Of course, maybe yours were just set wrong at the factory....


Bingo.... I think manufacturers set the height very conservatively. Perhaps they have to do so, by law.
I made a similar "small" adjustment on my previous car (BMW 330xi) and did not get flashed by on-coming traffic. Because of the sharp cut-off of Xenons (which is not by design, but an inherent trait), it is much easier to tell if you have adjusted the lights too high. If you no longer see the cut-off, you have most definitely gone too far.



_Modified by stash64 at 10:26 AM 1-12-2006_


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## Braunschwagen (Mar 13, 2004)

*Re: suspension and Xenon's (Nuvolari)*


_Quote, originally posted by *Nuvolari* »_
So, on your test rides, did you go by the lowest number of casualties in oncoming traffic, together with decent vision for yourself, to find your desired setting?









Yea, but only two out of the five cars went off the road, so I figured - hey that's a livable ratio.... j/k of course







.
I actually re-aimed them about ten times total because I noticed the things you all are talking about like bumps in the road etc. The bumps did make a big difference and I could see the lights bobbing up so it was back to the drive to re-aim again. The last thing I want to do is blind on coming traffic because I know how much I like to be blinded







. I definately ended up aiming them on the conservative side. They turned out to be just a little higher than when I started out.


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## KnockKnock (Jun 30, 2005)

*Re: suspension and Xenon's (Braunschwagen)*


_Quote, originally posted by *Smartass* »_Um, the auto leveling will point your headlights down under acceleration or after hitting a bump. That's kind of the whole point of auto leveling headlights.

Is this fact? I mean, that'd be cool if it did it, but I thought the auto-leveling in the A3 2.0T only refreshed upon turning the switch on, and at that, to a factory state comparing the angle of the sensor in the water tank to that of the chassis.









_Quote, originally posted by *Braunschwagen* »_I definately ended up aiming them on the conservative side. They turned out to be just a little higher than when I started out.

That's cool. I'm probably the fourum xenon troll - though I did do some research which shows that at this point, there are no statistics backing up the theory that proper factory xenons cause accidents via blinding. The light is at a frequency that the eye is more sensitive to though, so it feels more irritating than halogens or earlier bulbs. I think there's more consensus that early fixed-xenon, and aftermarket xenons can be hazardous because of the blinding issue not being addressed.


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## Smartass (Aug 8, 2000)

*Re: suspension and Xenon's (stash64)*


_Quote, originally posted by *stash64* »_(which is not by design, but an inherent trait)

It is in fact by design, and not a trait of Xenon lights, it's a trait of all projector headlights. Because the beam is focused by a lense instead of reflectors behind the bulb you get a much more constant spread of light with a nice cut off at the edges. There are cars with Xenon lights and reflectors (like last generation Acura TL's) and they have the same cut off as other reflector headlights.


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## bassbiker (Oct 30, 2005)

*Re: suspension and Xenon's (KnockKnock)*


_Quote, originally posted by *KnockKnock* »_
Is this fact? I mean, that'd be cool if it did it, but I thought the auto-leveling in the A3 2.0T only refreshed upon turning the switch on, and at that, to a factory state comparing the angle of the sensor in the water tank to that of the chassis.










From the Audi Glossary...
*Dynamic headlight range control *
Dynamic range control *continuously* and automatically maintains the correct settings of Xenon headlights or Xenon plus headlights. The control system handles static changes (load and load distribution) as well as the dynamic effects of acceleration and braking. Advantage: the light-dark boundary of the light distribution remains virtually constant. This helps to ensure good visibility and helps prevent the blinding of oncoming traffic.


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## stash64 (Jan 26, 2005)

*Re: suspension and Xenon's (Smartass)*


_Quote, originally posted by *Smartass* »_
It is in fact by design, and not a trait of Xenon lights, it's a trait of all projector headlights. Because the beam is focused by a lense instead of reflectors behind the bulb you get a much more constant spread of light with a nice cut off at the edges. There are cars with Xenon lights and reflectors (like last generation Acura TL's) and they have the same cut off as other reflector headlights. 

I think that makes sense, and I stand corrected. I knew someone who had one of the older Acura TL's and was surprised to find out he had Xenons since the look from the outside was not much different than halogens but with that blue Xenon tint. I never did get to see what the lights looked like from inside the car though.
I am not sure about your use of the word "nice" when you say "nice cut-off". I think I would prefer that it did not have such a sharp cut-off.


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## VR6 NRG (Apr 23, 1999)

*Re: suspension and Xenon's (stash64)*

the solve to the problem is going to have to do the with the sensor brackets as it says on the Ross-Tech instructions.
shop foreman said we will have to bend or install new little arms on them to get them to realize the car is level, shouldn't be hard to do.
i saw both of them tonight when getting the RSB installed and it looks easy to do, we shall see.


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## stash64 (Jan 26, 2005)

*Re: suspension and Xenon's (Braunschwagen)*


_Quote, originally posted by *Braunschwagen* »_Just did this adjustment last night. Car is stock with Xenons, but the lights always seemed to be aimed a little too low, and as you know the cutoff on these lights is dramatic. I used a 10mm mini socket on the lower plastic bolt and carefully adjusted the beams up on both sides (a little goes a long way). Used my garage door creases (very scientific







) to keep things level, and took test rides in between each adjustment to make sure the lighting was right. Took me awhile as I wanted to get it perfect, but I won't have to adjust them ever again... hopefully!


Can you provide a bit more detail on how you made the adjustment ??? Which direction (CW or CCW) to turn the adjustment screws ? And did you just adjust the two outer-most screws ? I am wondering if both screws should be adjusted by the same amount.
I had my lights aimed on my garage wall, but only 10 feet away. I turned and turned and turned on the outside adjustment screws and my lights did not seem to budge. If they did move, I do not know which direction. Seems to be a very "fine" adjustment... meaning a lot revolutions on the adjuster to get a little bit of movement on the headlights.
Would greatly appreciate some feedback from someone who has made an adjustment first hand.


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## bassbiker (Oct 30, 2005)

*Re: suspension and Xenon's (stash64)*

Did you use the VAGCOM instructions before you made your adjustments?


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## bassbiker (Oct 30, 2005)

*Re: suspension and Xenon's (bassbiker)*

Question for European drivers that use factory xenons...do you have auto-leveling or do you still use the manual rheostat headlight leveling switch?
If you are still using the rheostat, what is the available numbered range of adjustment? I've only seen one picture of a rheostat switch and it showed a 0 to 4 range of adjustment.


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## Braunschwagen (Mar 13, 2004)

*Re: suspension and Xenon's (stash64)*









I adjusted just the 10mm bottom plastic screw - the lower one that says adjust in this pic. The white top ring moved the lights, but very slowly as stash64 said. I adjusted them so many times, but can't remember which direction I turned the screws







, but when I did turn the lower screw it was immediately obvious which way the lights were moving.
I have yet to see if this whole process was done in vain and reset by the car's auto leveling system like some other posters have said - the car is my wife's, and I haven't driven it since. I do remember where the lights were aimed, and I will go for a drive tonight and see if there has been any change.


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## stash64 (Jan 26, 2005)

*Re: suspension and Xenon's (Braunschwagen)*


_Quote, originally posted by *Braunschwagen* »_








I adjusted just the 10mm bottom plastic screw - the lower one that says adjust in this pic. The white top ring moved the lights, but very slowly as stash64 said. I adjusted them so many times, but can't remember which direction I turned the screws







, but when I did turn the lower screw it was immediately obvious which way the lights were moving.
I have yet to see if this whole process was done in vain and reset by the car's auto leveling system like some other posters have said - the car is my wife's, and I haven't driven it since. I do remember where the lights were aimed, and I will go for a drive tonight and see if there has been any change.











I went back after the headlights tonight, and discovered that the outside adjustment screw (as shown in the above photo) is NOT the vertical adjustment as I originally thought. The "inside" screws do the up/down chore. I am guessing the outside adjustment screws are only for horizontal adjustment because I could not see the headlight beam move at all when turning the outside screws.
There was a very official-looking schematic posted a while back on this same topic, and it indicated just the opposite... that the outside screws were for vertical adjustment and the inner screws for vertical and horizontal adjustment. For my A3 at least, I can say that is mostly (if not completely) wrong.
When turning the inner screws, it is very obvious that the headlights are moving up or down. CCW = Up. CW = Down. I found that only one or two revolutions CCW was plenty to get my headlights where I wanted them, and they don't seem to be anywhere near the point of being bothersome to oncoming traffic. If I do start getting flashed, I will adjust them down a bit.
I only drove the car once tonight, immediately after making the adjustment, so it remains to be seen if the adjusment holds. But I will be surprised if it doesn't. The adjustment screws seem to be a completely manual mechanism, not tied to the self-leveling mechanism. If the screws were tied to the self-leveling function, I would expect the self-leveling motor to kick in while making the manual adjustments. This did not happen, and I did make the adjustments with the car running and the lights on.


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## Braunschwagen (Mar 13, 2004)

*Re: suspension and Xenon's (stash64)*

Went for a ride last night and the lights seem to be holding right where I put them.


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## VR6 NRG (Apr 23, 1999)

*Re: suspension and Xenon's (Braunschwagen)*

its going to boil down to the acutal sensors for the headlight adjusment. they are on the driver side only and ther eis one for the front and one for the back.
there looks like an actuator switch that moves in a swing arm motion. one end of the "arm" attached to the leveling sensor and the other end attaches to a little metal rod about 2-3" long. the other end of the rod attached to a bracket that is attached to the lower control arm of the rear suspension. so as the suspension moves, the lights raise or lower over bumps.
what it seems is that you can adjust the headlights physically all you want and the next time you start the car it may go back to being low because of the sensors.
This all also depends on how low the car is, mine is lower than most and just physically adjusting my headlights didnt do anything and caused the light warning symbol to come on in the car.
early this week i am going to have the shop foreman and one of the head techs look at it. Both of them have already tried to adjust it using the physical method and the 5051 tool they have (vagcom for pro's). and once the car was set on the ground and turned back on, it reverted back to pointing down.
so its gonna come down to the height of the car and these sensors. the rods are ony so long so either the brackets will have to be bent to give the rod and arm more movement, or another rod that is either screw adjustable or one that has many holes in it to adjust arm over a greater range.
i hope that all made sense.


_Modified by VR6 NRG at 7:33 PM 1-15-2006_


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## PD Performance (Jul 1, 2004)

*Re: suspension and Xenon's (VR6 NRG)*


_Quote, originally posted by *VR6 NRG* »_
early this week i am going to have the shop foreman and one of the head techs look at it. Both of them have already tried to adjust it using the physical method and the 5051 tool they have (vagcom for pro's). *and once the car was set on the ground and turned back on, it reverted back to pointing down.*


dude try another dealer (more then half serious) this must be done with the car flat on the ground not on the lift.


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## crew219 (Oct 18, 2000)

*Re: suspension and Xenon's (PD Performance)*


_Quote, originally posted by *PD Performance* »_
dude try another dealer (more then half serious) this must be done with the car flat on the ground not on the lift.

Lol . . . what idiots. I've never heard of even the most slammed rides needing any modifications to the arms.
Dave


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## VR6 NRG (Apr 23, 1999)

*Re: suspension and Xenon's (crew217)*

i will once again forgo dave's pointless comment and answer chris.....
chris, the reason why the had the car on the lift is they actually had the back raised to try and fool the sensors to think the car was level, with the 5051 scan tool they then adjusted the learning setting, and it didnt work.
the shop foreman has been working on only Audi;s for 20+ years, he is no idiot.


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## ProjectA3 (Aug 12, 2005)

*Re: suspension and Xenon's (Braunschwagen)*

guys, the car is finally being seen by a tech today and it will be on my bill to get these brackets adjusted and to try and get the lights level.
I will report back later today on it.


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## Camc (Oct 26, 2005)

funny ive had no problems at all with my head lights


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## a3lad (Aug 6, 2005)

*Re: (Camc)*


_Quote, originally posted by *Camc* »_funny ive had no problems at all with my head lights 

hmmm, let me guess.. adjustable coilovers?


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## ProjectA3 (Aug 12, 2005)

*Re: (a3lad)*

i can see!!!! we got them adjusted right and i can now see at night.
it took some physical adjusting and messing around with the sensor modules, but the tech got it all to work without the light coming on in the dash and the lights didnt point down when the car was started.
So it sounds like it all depends on how low the car is. Mine is pretty low even with the 19s. On a normal non-coilover suspension you can probably adjust the lights manually like described above. If you go lower then these brackets and modules will need to be adjusted under the car.
next time its on a lift i will take pics if there is anything noticeable.


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## stash64 (Jan 26, 2005)

*Re: (ProjectA3)*

Glad you finally got it all fixed !!!
Just want to confirm that the manual adjustment did work on my "non-lowered" car. I went about two turns (CCW from stock position) on the inner screws, and I would guess I got an extra 20 to 30 feet of forward visibility. The adjustment has held, and there are no apparent negative side effects.


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## jakbeatz (Nov 26, 2005)

*Re: (ProjectA3)*


_Quote, originally posted by *ProjectA3* »_So it sounds like it all depends on how low the car is. Mine is pretty low even with the 19s.

What do you consider "pretty low"? I'm planning on getting the H&R Coilovers for my 3.2Q. I don't plan on cranking them down lower than the highest setting (~1.2" Front and ~1.0" Rear). Think a ~1" lowering all around would affect the 3.2Q BXs as you have described?


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## ProjectA3 (Aug 12, 2005)

*Re: (jakbeatz)*

i'm not sure if that height will effect them or not. 
my car is probably 1.5 - 1.75" lower F/R


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## syntrix (Aug 20, 2000)

*Re: suspension and Xenon's (Braunschwagen)*

FYI:
http://forums.vwvortex.com/zerothread?id=2383036
I just went through a few days of confusion. The second page has a pic of the reassembly error found at the rear leveler. I only found this by looking at the measuring block that Sebastian mentioned, and by watching it as I jacked the rear of the car up.
Hope that helps!


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## raduga9 (Oct 22, 2005)

*Re: suspension and Xenon's (stash64)*

The sharp cutoff on Xenon lights is definitely "by design". If you opened up your projector housing you would see that there is a flat piece of metal (shield) sitting right in front of the lamp. The whole point is to block light going up-and-out of the projector lens, since it is so damn bright. A projector-style lens is great for producing crisp and wide light output, but because the lens is spherical, the light would be emitted evenly in all directions without the shield, which would be BAD for other drivers. Bi-xenon headlights simply move the shield out of the way when you switch on your hi-beams.


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## chrisddo (Mar 17, 2001)

*Re: suspension and Xenon's (raduga9)*

Funny, I Lowered mine with Neuspeed Springs...1.5" and the HID lights seem exactly the same...I drive up many hills and mountainous areas daily..not a problem at all. Oh well.


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## woodchuck11 (Sep 7, 2004)

*Re: suspension and Xenon's (chrisddo)*

sorry to bring this back from the dead...but i need to adjust my headlights after lowering.
how do i open the back of the housing to get to the adjustment screws? also will i need to do physical adjustment along w/ the vag-com to center the beam range?
thanks


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## RyanA3 (May 11, 2005)

*Re: suspension and Xenon's (woodchuck11)*


_Quote, originally posted by *woodchuck11* »_sorry to bring this back from the dead...but 

props for finding this thread


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## woodchuck11 (Sep 7, 2004)

*Re: suspension and Xenon's (RyanA3)*

bump for more info...anyone?


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## ThatGuy (Jan 28, 2004)

*Re: suspension and Xenon's (woodchuck11)*

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


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## Dj Toobs (Jun 10, 2011)

i am having major problems with my xenon. At night my lights seem to be pointing right wards towards the passenger side, leaving the driver side really dark.
Should i take it in a local dealer? (Lowering the car might void this warranty?)
Or should i do the VagCom and/or Manual Adjustment.
Let me know if anyone has recently fix this issue.
Thanks,
Dj Toobs


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## forma (Nov 22, 2005)

lowering the car should not affect the xenon headlights because they are self-adjusted.

put the car up on a lift and check if either/both of the self-leveling sensors is/are broken or put back improperly if it/they had been removed when suspension work was performed.

the elbow of the sensor in the back should point to the outward of the car.




Dj Toobs said:


> i am having major problems with my xenon. At night my lights seem to be pointing right wards towards the passenger side, leaving the driver side really dark.
> Should i take it in a local dealer? (Lowering the car might void this warranty?)
> Or should i do the VagCom and/or Manual Adjustment.
> Let me know if anyone has recently fix this issue.
> ...


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## Dj Toobs (Jun 10, 2011)

forma said:


> lowering the car should not affect the xenon headlights because they are self-adjusted.
> 
> put the car up on a lift and check if either/both of the self-leveling sensors is/are broken or put back improperly if it/they had been removed when suspension work was performed.
> 
> the elbow of the sensor in the back should point to the outward of the car.


Thanks for the info Forma,
if what i did doesn't work, i will definitely take your advise next.

I adjusted the H/V screw on the actual headlight. with just a few twist, the head beam actually rose up good. Well, it looks good inside my garage, but the real test will be tonight when i drive back home.


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## pjunk1 (May 13, 2010)

Dj Toobs said:


> Thanks for the info Forma,
> if what i did doesn't work, i will definitely take your advise next.
> 
> I adjusted the H/V screw on the actual headlight. with just a few twist, the head beam actually rose up good. Well, it looks good inside my garage, but the real test will be tonight when i drive back home.


at least on my 2010 A3, lowering the car did change HID aim. simply adjusting screws on headlight will not complete the job. you'll need to adjust screw and vagcom to learn new height as starting point.

when i got my coilovers, my HIDs were pointing down. pretty scary since i couldn't see too far ahead.


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## Maitre Absolut (Aug 5, 2009)

forma said:


> lowering the car should not affect the xenon headlights because they are self-adjusted.


did you bother reading the thread? Even with self leveling you need to adjust.

I couldn't see **** after lowering my car, running a bit of rake too which doesnt help.

I had the dealer ajust them, free of charge.


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## azoceanblue (Aug 13, 2006)

I read the instructions for the PSS-10's and they state to disconnect the battery when you have xenons. Once you complete the install, reconnect the battery, and the xenon's will self adjust.

Good to know this is possibly false . . . I will have to ask my indy shop if this is true/false. They have done 1,000's of installs.


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## forma (Nov 22, 2005)

yes i did bother reading the tread.

if as you said, even with self leveing you need to adjust, how can you explain the fact that there are many many cars that are on coilovers (including mine) that never had to go through the adjustment process? 





Maitre Absolut said:


> did you bother reading the thread? Even with self leveling you need to adjust.
> 
> I couldn't see **** after lowering my car, running a bit of rake too which doesnt help.
> 
> I had the dealer ajust them, free of charge.


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## Dj Toobs (Jun 10, 2011)

I adjusted the H/V screw on the actual headlight. with just a few twist, the head beam actually rose up good. Well, it looks good inside my garage, but the real test will be tonight when i drive back home.[/QUOTE]



Well as a result to my method of fixing the problem with my xenons, i was able see the road again. last night just did some minor adjustments, as it was morning when i did the original adjustment. 
Problem resolved, yeah!!!! 

I might do the VagCom thing as well, but not in a hurry as i adjusted it pretty perfect.

I guess its in most cases that lowering your car does affect your headlights, whether or not you have self adjust xenons.


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## Maitre Absolut (Aug 5, 2009)

forma said:


> yes i did bother reading the tread.
> 
> 
> 
> if as you said, even with self leveing you need to adjust, how can you explain the fact that there are many many cars that are on coilovers (including mine) that never had to go through the adjustment process?



Maybe you're not low enough for it to be a problem


Sent from my BlackBerry 9900 using Tapatalk


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## newSWARTZ (May 10, 2003)

I lowered mine on coils about a month ago and have been having major headlight problems. I tried bending the brackets and raised the front abit no luck. Just bought some metal to make brackets for the front sensor to raise the mounting point. Fingers crossed


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## Dj Toobs (Jun 10, 2011)

newSWARTZ said:


> I lowered mine on coils about a month ago and have been having major headlight problems. I tried bending the brackets and raised the front abit no luck. Just bought some metal to make brackets for the front sensor to raise the mounting point. Fingers crossed


I dont think you need to do all that, have you tried the H/V screw located on the side of the Xenon? Thats what i did and it adjust just fine. But ill keep my fingers crossed for you. Good luck.


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## S WORD (Jul 21, 2011)

For whatever reason when i lowered mine they were pointing up, not down. Car was still level.

I took car to local indi-shop and they corrected the issues in like 20 mins. Including test drive. Free of charge.
Not sure what they did, likely scan tool. But everything is all nice now. Down side is that drivers infront of me no longer get out of the way due to being blinded. And I can no longer read road signs 300 ft out.

Upside I no longer get brake checked on freeway either.


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## azoceanblue (Aug 13, 2006)

azoceanblue said:


> I read the instructions for the PSS-10's and they state to disconnect the battery when you have xenons. Once you complete the install, reconnect the battery, and the xenon's will self adjust.
> 
> Good to know this is possibly false . . . I will have to ask my indy shop if this is true/false. They have done 1,000's of installs.


An additional instruction from the PSS-10 instructions: "Vehicles equipped with xenon headlight, the 
movable element of sensor for the headlamp levelling controller must removed before."


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## forma (Nov 22, 2005)

aren't these the self leveling sensors that i've been saying all along?





azoceanblue said:


> An additional instruction from the PSS-10 instructions: "Vehicles equipped with xenon headlight, the
> movable element of sensor for the headlamp levelling controller must removed before."


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## azoceanblue (Aug 13, 2006)

forma said:


> aren't these the self leveling sensors that i've been saying all along?


Yes :thumbup:

I am going to have to re-read the thread to understand the problems the others have had. I do not recall these sensors being mentioned.

Do you have a picture of the sensor or the specific location?

Whether I install the Euro Sline springs that I have or have coilovers installed, I want to know what I am talking about with the installer.

Thanks


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## forma (Nov 22, 2005)

#67
#72





azoceanblue said:


> Yes :thumbup:
> 
> I am going to have to re-read the thread to understand the problems the others have had. I do not recall these sensors being mentioned.
> 
> ...


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## pjunk1 (May 13, 2010)

some people have said, after lowering they did or did not experience any change in HID alignment issues. it might have to do with the number of sensors on your car.

from what i know, pre facelift models have two sensors. one each on the driver side front & rear control arms and face lift models only have one sensor on the driver side rear control arm (this i can confirm since i have MY 2010). 

my guess is, if you have pre facelift A3 with two sensors, you won't have an issue with the leveling since there are two sensors providing info to the module. whereas, facelift models with one sensor in the rear must adjust after lowering. 

i dropped close to 2" and it made a huge difference. basically, the car thinks there is a bunch of crap in the trunk (rear is very low). so, it points the beams down. at first, the shop bent the bracket to correct but the aim was still downward. then, adjusted the h/v screw to aim HID level and reprogrammed via vagcom to learn new position as starting point.

adjustments to h/v screw must be done on level ground and it's a good idea to project beam against a wall when doing so. this way when you think you got it level, back up car 30' or so and see if the beam is holding it's position or angling up/down. a slight upward angle at 10' is pretty blinding to oncoming traffic at 100+'. 

azoceanblue mentioned his PSS-10 instructions stated to remove auto leveling sensor(s) prior to install. this probably has nothing to do with the aim. i'm sure they are stating this because if you drop the control arm without disconnecting the sensor, it will break or get damaged. any decent shop will know to do this.

azoceanblue, you wanted a pic of what the sensors look like but i don't know which A3 you have. so, i'll show you both. it's the elbow looking thing in the forefront of this pic: 










here's the rear sensor: 










as previously mentioned, sensors are located on drivers side control arms. soon as you lift your car you'll see them fairly easy.


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## newSWARTZ (May 10, 2003)

I have an 07 with 2 senors. Tried everything. Made brackets to mount the front sensor about 2inches higher still didn't work. Next I'm going to disconnect them both and see what happens. My headlights are pointing down and whenever I give about 50% throttle they go straight up blinding everyone. My car was hammered but I raised it to try to fix this. I have maybe 2 finger wheel gap rear and none front.


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