Capt. Mike
Moderator
Headlight Adjustment:
I get exasperated with headlight adjusting, particularly in early years when the state inspection station always claimed they were out of adjustment as a way to rip customers off with a tack-on fee.
In most of the years of the sealed beam, the lens had 3 small protrusions called -- well, this is a family site -- but they provided the zeroing attachment point for the adjusters. Most overseas OE equipment, including the highly efficient factory quartz halogen systems, didn't have these. Thus they were "illegal" in many states and most of the garages couldn't adjust lights without them. In those states with regulations requiring the SAE spec lights, the stations could legitimately flunk a vehicle inspection.
In the later years, with the emergence of the smooth aerodynamic lights, other systems came into use that are either freestanding, or use a suction-cup type attachment. Needless to say, they are expensive. Some fancy headlights have a build-in level for vertical adjustment by the user to compensate for different loads. Great idea, which means VW will never put it into our Westies.
In reality, most adjusting equipment is $500 dollar solutions to a $2 problem. All you need is a flat wall at the end of a level space big enough to park the car 5 meters (16.5 ft.) back, a yardstick and a roll of masking tape. And a heavy towel to cover the lights not being adjusted.
Bentley has left manual adjustment out of the later editions, but the older Type II manual has some instructions in Section 4-8.1. I prefer the following from the Porsche 911 factory manual as it can be done in the smallest distance, usually in the pad in front of a garage. They principle is the same for all cars.
1. Park the car with the headlights 5 meters (16.5 feet) from the wall and square on. MEASURE!
2. Measure the height of the center of the headlight from the ground.
3. On the wall, mark that height with a horizontal strip of masking tape. (I prefer to use the top edge of tape as my edge.) Get behind the car and sight very carefully the center of the vehicle and mark that point on the wall with a small vertical strip of masking tape.
4. Measure the horizontal distance between centers of headlights. Mark those same points centered on the wall with additional vertical strips of tape. Measure down 2" and place a second horizontal strip of tape.
5. Adjust the low beams to the intersection of the vertical and lower horizontal tape. If the low beams are to European standards where there is a built-in "V" point or "eyebrow" to raise the right side of low beam, place the center of the V slightly to the right of center, say 1-2". This is due to their raising the right side of low beam above center to read road signs, but would blind oncoming drivers if centered or to left of center.
6. If equipped with separate bulbed high beams, adjust them to the upper light centers.
7. Do it under full load!!! Unfortunately, many don't follow this common sense procedure and adjust lights with no driver or cargo on board. Then spend their highway time being cursed and flashed by oncoming drivers. Load your vehicle as for a trip! Include expected passengers. I fully understand the problem of having to do a headlight adjustment the night of a big trip, but it's the best way.
Some hints from experience:
a. Fudge a little to the low side -- 18-wheelers' huge mirrors make a light adjusted too high miserable on them and they may be less than friendly about it. And they do communicate with the other drivers around them. Learned that the hard way when I heard them talking about my fog lights on the Pickemup that I hadn't adjusted for the trailer tongue weight.
b. You can correct for the load vs. light adjustments by measuring (at that adjustment range of 16.5 feet) the beam height on the wall loaded, then again after you unload at the end of a trip. Then make light load adjustments accordingly. I have to adjust the Pickemup lights 1" low to account for the trailer.
c. DON'T leave the tape on the garage wall. The next hot day will leave tape residue you may never get off. On some of the modern "cardboard" garage doors, you might even damage the panels -- do a little test spot before ruining a door.
d. A roll of heavy dark butcher paper can accomplish the same results and be reused. Maybe two large pieces of cardboard with the joining point as center. My local VW dealer has a gridded chart taped to their front shop wall, great if you have multiple vehicles. But not cheap. I've seen them in some high-end auto boutique type catalogs -- outside my price range.
I get exasperated with headlight adjusting, particularly in early years when the state inspection station always claimed they were out of adjustment as a way to rip customers off with a tack-on fee.
In most of the years of the sealed beam, the lens had 3 small protrusions called -- well, this is a family site -- but they provided the zeroing attachment point for the adjusters. Most overseas OE equipment, including the highly efficient factory quartz halogen systems, didn't have these. Thus they were "illegal" in many states and most of the garages couldn't adjust lights without them. In those states with regulations requiring the SAE spec lights, the stations could legitimately flunk a vehicle inspection.
In the later years, with the emergence of the smooth aerodynamic lights, other systems came into use that are either freestanding, or use a suction-cup type attachment. Needless to say, they are expensive. Some fancy headlights have a build-in level for vertical adjustment by the user to compensate for different loads. Great idea, which means VW will never put it into our Westies.
In reality, most adjusting equipment is $500 dollar solutions to a $2 problem. All you need is a flat wall at the end of a level space big enough to park the car 5 meters (16.5 ft.) back, a yardstick and a roll of masking tape. And a heavy towel to cover the lights not being adjusted.
Bentley has left manual adjustment out of the later editions, but the older Type II manual has some instructions in Section 4-8.1. I prefer the following from the Porsche 911 factory manual as it can be done in the smallest distance, usually in the pad in front of a garage. They principle is the same for all cars.
1. Park the car with the headlights 5 meters (16.5 feet) from the wall and square on. MEASURE!
2. Measure the height of the center of the headlight from the ground.
3. On the wall, mark that height with a horizontal strip of masking tape. (I prefer to use the top edge of tape as my edge.) Get behind the car and sight very carefully the center of the vehicle and mark that point on the wall with a small vertical strip of masking tape.
4. Measure the horizontal distance between centers of headlights. Mark those same points centered on the wall with additional vertical strips of tape. Measure down 2" and place a second horizontal strip of tape.
5. Adjust the low beams to the intersection of the vertical and lower horizontal tape. If the low beams are to European standards where there is a built-in "V" point or "eyebrow" to raise the right side of low beam, place the center of the V slightly to the right of center, say 1-2". This is due to their raising the right side of low beam above center to read road signs, but would blind oncoming drivers if centered or to left of center.
6. If equipped with separate bulbed high beams, adjust them to the upper light centers.
7. Do it under full load!!! Unfortunately, many don't follow this common sense procedure and adjust lights with no driver or cargo on board. Then spend their highway time being cursed and flashed by oncoming drivers. Load your vehicle as for a trip! Include expected passengers. I fully understand the problem of having to do a headlight adjustment the night of a big trip, but it's the best way.
Some hints from experience:
a. Fudge a little to the low side -- 18-wheelers' huge mirrors make a light adjusted too high miserable on them and they may be less than friendly about it. And they do communicate with the other drivers around them. Learned that the hard way when I heard them talking about my fog lights on the Pickemup that I hadn't adjusted for the trailer tongue weight.
b. You can correct for the load vs. light adjustments by measuring (at that adjustment range of 16.5 feet) the beam height on the wall loaded, then again after you unload at the end of a trip. Then make light load adjustments accordingly. I have to adjust the Pickemup lights 1" low to account for the trailer.
c. DON'T leave the tape on the garage wall. The next hot day will leave tape residue you may never get off. On some of the modern "cardboard" garage doors, you might even damage the panels -- do a little test spot before ruining a door.
d. A roll of heavy dark butcher paper can accomplish the same results and be reused. Maybe two large pieces of cardboard with the joining point as center. My local VW dealer has a gridded chart taped to their front shop wall, great if you have multiple vehicles. But not cheap. I've seen them in some high-end auto boutique type catalogs -- outside my price range.
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