Really bright headlights

[menchi]

Every time I go out at night I have at least half a dozen people flick their lights at me, some even turn their brights on, that is untill I turn mine on and then they realize my hi-beams weren't on. Does this happen to anyone else? I've even been pulled over because of it. It's starting to get annoying, I get out of the car and look and they look normal to me.

 

[PoochiePD]

This happens to me even more frequently than when I put a 3in. lift on my truck and didn't re-aim the headlights. Never got pulled over for it though...

I have put aftermarket bulbs in, so that might be why. I know there is a proper method for headlight realignment and I think I have seen it before either on this site or somewhere on the internet. It's a pretty straight-forward procedure. I haven't noticed "high" headlights on any other VW's. Oh well. Good luck.

 

[DoubleReflex]

Has this always been the problem, or is it something new? Chances are that your headlights just need to be aligned. Fill your tank full of fuel and take it to a shop that can check your headlight alignment. You can adjust the headlights yourself, but if you dont know what you are doing, you will most likely make it worse.

 

[menchi]

Thanks, I figured that might be it, I think there is a section in my manual about it. I just wondered if this was just a jetta thing or if I have to realign things, thanks.

 

[PDJetta]

I keep my headlight lenses spotless and I've been brighted a few times. I figure the clean lights were the reason. Almost every time its happened my car was traveling up a slight incline/over a slight hill, relative to the other driver, which throws the lights into their eyes. Then, of course, I flash them back to show them I'm not an inconsiderate a$$wipe that drives around town with their brights on.

Its amazing how dirty people let their headlights (and the rest of their car, houses, offices, etc.) get. Take a look at other cars' headlights after a good snow and road salting. Downright dangerous!

--Nate

 

[Deansel]

We get flashed quite often - mostly when our lights would be pointed up slightly relative to the oncoming car or when accelerating hard. I was wondering if the lights were aimed properly too, could also be off side to side. The low beams should aim down and to the right here in the USA but, it's hard to tell while you are driving these cars. It does warrant further investigation IMO.

I have come to expect to be flashed when we meet an oncoming car as we crest a hill - they tend to wait until just before the last second to closure and then they blast us with their brights so, I always look to the right as the oncoming cars get very close. We had a similar problem with our last car too but, you could just tell that those headlights were really bright. The Jetta lamps don't seem as bright as those were and I have noticed that the brights are not as effective as I would expect so maybe the HL's are aimed too high.

 

[MTB_TDI]

I think it is an aiming issue. Here is a place to look on how to aim the lights.

http://www.danielsternlighting.com/tech/aim/aim.html

 

[PlaneCrazy]

Well I have bi-xenons on the Passat, and e-code lights on the Jetta, which I try to keep clean (wish I had headlight washers). I rarely get flashed; occasionally if I have a load in the trunk (no self-levelers either).

On the rare occasion I do get flashed in the Passat...ooh boy are they in for a surprise!

One cool thing about the bi-xenons is that even without flashing left lane hogs, they move out of the way. At least in Quebec.

I think your headlights need adjustment. That said, the stock US-spec headlights in the Jetta are really crappy, and thrown out more glare than need be. I found that when you adjusted them to not be flashed, your high beam performance suffered as they would be too low and already are marginal to begin with. Getting e-codes will help.

 

[Deansel]

Getting e-codes will help.

What are e-codes?

 

[dknytech]

I have this happen to me all the time . It is at the point now that I just pretend that it is a game to see how fast I can flash them back after they flashed me first - I know real mature, but it sure is fun.

 

[Deansel]

I have this happen to me all the time . It is at the point now that I just pretend that it is a game to see how fast I can flash them back after they flashed me first - I know real mature, but it sure is fun.

It's all fun and games until law enforcement gets involved.

 

[Lagin]

PlaneCrazy - Yeah it's fantastic when they flash you and you let them have the full Xenon experience. I'm flashed about once a day, but I'm on the back farm roads a lot in an attempt to avoid highway traffic... theres next to no other sources of light so I can see why.

 

[PlaneCrazy]

What are e-codes?

European specification headlights.

 

[vaxick]

People flash their brights at me all the time. The worst was when I drove across the US and I can't even count the number of times it happend. I'm so used to it now that it does not even bother me, but I love flashing my brights at them

I have Hella E-Codes on my Golf. Glass lenses!

 

[compu_85]

If people are flashing their lights at you it means you didn't aim them properly

-j

 

[DieselDriver2003]

You can adjust the beams slightly downward, maybe that will help - it can be the angle.

 

[cevans]

The outermost screws on the headlights adjust up down. Look at the passenger-side headlight and you should see a white phillips screw. Turn that, GENTLY, then on the drivers side the screw is under a plastic cover (for your air intake), and you can access it by just putting a screwdriver through the rightmost hole.

cevans

 

[oldpoopie]

Also, remember the amount of weight in the back of the car will effect the headlight aim, this includes fuel, and cargo in the trunk.

 

[20IndigoBlue02]

Put Hella E-codes... install the rheostat--- and aim them up when needed

 

[TDIdenver]

I parked my car at a truck stop, where it was dark, aimed the car towards some trees which were pretty far away, and noticed that the lights were aimed pretty high up. Took out the trusty screw driver, and aimed them. I found it easier to block off one of the lights at a time so I could see exactly where the other was shining. This was all because people were flashing their lights at me while I was on the highway...hence the truckstop...

 

[DaveGaunt]

VW has bubble levels in the headlights. Makes it a DYI no-brainer.

IMO, the VW lights have great optics for an OE system, but if you put 200 lb of sand in the trunk or otherwise "upset" the car's trim height, these great optics will splash more light than the crappy (Ford it the sorst) optics cars.

I only ever get flashed when ?I have four ppl in the car, it raises the low beams quite a bit

 

[compu_85]

Bubble level? Where is that? Something the Golfs and B4 Passats have?

-J

 

[Venturabass]

I get flashed all the time now...at first I thought people were trying to warn me to "slow down, oncoming cop", but that was incorrect. One night I actually had a cop pull me over and tell me I didn't turn off the high beams as I passed him, I disagreed but then dropped the issue, and he did let me go.

Now when people flash me, I flash them right back and they know then and there that I'm not just jackass who never turns their highs off!

Just have the regular old US spec lights, but with the built in fogs, and I run Sylvania Silverstars in them... I wonder if that makes that big of an impact?

 

[compu_85]

Yes, it does, because the fake blue light from those bulbs increaces glare by like 60%. Dump them and go to a clear bulb. I have Synvania Extravision bulbs in mine I think (I'll have to look at the package) and they work very well.

-J

 

[Birdman]

chttp://lighting.mbz.org/

http://lighting.mbz.org/​

This was taken from a vortex forum
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NHTSA ALERT!
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How To Aim Headlamps and Auxiliary Lamps

Although an optical beamsetter is the most accurate way to aim lamps, these are not very common in North America. Foglamps, driving lamps, and visually-aimable headlamps do not require a mechanical aimer or other machine in order to achieve correct visual aim. All ECE (E-code) headlamps are visually aimable, and many newer US (DOT) headlamps can be accurately aimed visually. First, you must determine if your headlamps can accurately be aimed visually. If you have ECE (E-code, European-spec) headlamps, you can aim them visually. If your US DOT headlamp lenses are marked VOL, VO or VOR, they can be aimed visually. If your US DOT headlamps are NOT marked VOL, VO or VOR, STOP, they cannot be correctly aimed visually and will require the use of a mechanical aiming device.

To prepare for aiming, the car should have at least 1/2 tank of fuel, weight in the trunk equal to the most frequently carried load (this may be a full trunk, or it may be an empty one, or anything in between), and weight in the driver's seat equivalent to the most frequent driver. All of the tires should be checked when cold to make sure they're at the correct inflation pressure. Jounce each corner of the car firmly (grasp the bumper and push down several times rhythmically) to ensure that the suspension is settled into a normal position.
Locate the car on level ground with the headlamp lenses 25 feet away from a vertical wall. You will be making location reference marks on the wall. Measure the height from the ground to the axis of the headlamp. The "axis" is usually marked with a dot, cross, bulb type designation or name brand, but if not, it is directly in front of the bulb. Now walk up to the wall and measure this same height from the ground, and place a +C mark at that height. Do this for both headlamps.
Next, find the axis (centreline) of the vehicle itself. You can do this by measuring the distance between the axis of the left headlamp and the axis of the right headlamp -- making sure that on multiple-bulb headlamps you're measuring from the axis of the left beam you wish to aim to the axis of the right beam you wish to aim; low to low, high to high, fog to fog, etc. Split this width measurement in half to get the distance from one headlamp to the centre of the vehicle. Walk to the wall and place a oV mark at that distance in from the left or right headlamp. You can walk to the back of the vehicle and sight through the backglass and windshield to check your work and make sure you've marked the center of the vehicle on the wall.
Next, measure downward 3 inches (ECE European-spec headlamps) 2.1 inches (US DOT VOL headlamps) from the left and the right +C marks, and connect these two newly-measured points with a horizontal line we'll call "b-b". After you've done all of this, your wall will be marked thus:
_____+C_________oV________+C______

[this gap is 3" or 2.1", see above]

------b--------------------b------


NOTE The visual aim procedure for US DOT headlamps marked VOR or VO is slightly different. No separate, lower horizontal line is required. Simply connect your +C marks with a horizontal line. After you've done that, your wall will be marked thus:

---------+C-------oV-------+C---------


Draw a vertical line through through the center of each +C point. Do the same with the oV point. These lines make it easier to see the reference marks when you are standing 25 feet away, adjusting the aiming screws on the car. You now have an accurate plot on the wall of the height and separation of the headlamps (but ONLY if your car is level, the ground is level and the wall is vertical!).
Note that the "b-b", "C" and "V" designations are for purposes of clarity in this descriptive article. It is not necessary to draw the letters on the wall--just plot the points. Of course, you may use the letters in your aiming procedure if it will help you.

VERTICAL AIMING


The low beam pattern of a visually-aimable headlamp has a distinct horizontal cutoff. Below the cutoff is bright light. Above the cutoff is dark. The aim is determined by measuring and adjusting the height of this cutoff relative to the reference marks you plotted on the wall. For European-spec ECE and US DOT VOL headlamps, the cutoff is at the top of the left half of the beam pattern, and it should be lined-up exactly with the b-b line. For US DOT VOR headlamps, the cutoff is the squared-off top edge of the 'hot spot' on the right side of the beam pattern, and should be lined-up exactly with the horizontal line that connects your +C points.

HORIZONTAL AIMING

These instructions are applicable only to European ECE low beams, because US DOT VOL and VOR headlamps cannot be visually aimed horizontally, and in many cases, cannot be aimed horizontally by any means at all, because no provision for horizontal aim adjustment is provided. [This is because US regulators believe there is no way to define a visual cue, such as a kink in the cutoff, that would allow accurate left-to-right placement of a headlamp beam. Apparently they also believe that cars will not get in fender-benders that will knock the headlamps out of horizontal alignment. For what it's worth, the Europeans have been successfully aiming their headlamps vertically AND horizontally since 1955. -ed.]
European ECE headlamps have a "kink" or "elbow" at the top of the center of the beam pattern, where the cutoff bends upwards. Adjust each headlamp so that the kink lines up (left-to-right) with the +C mark for whichever headlamp you're working on. The tolerance here is +/- 2 inches of point (c). Slight leftward aim (-1") increases seeing distance down the road, but excessive leftward aim increases glare to oncoming traffic.
After adjusting a high/low beam headlamp in the low beam mode, do not attempt to readjust it in high beam mode. All high/low beam headlamps are meant to be adjusted on the low beam setting only--the high beam adjustment is correct when the low beam adjustment is correct. If you are experiencing a problem where setting the low beams correctly places the high beams too high, but setting the high beams correctly places the low beams too low, you are dealing with a poorly-designed headlamp.

DRIVING LAMPS, HIGH-BEAM-ONLY LAMPS IN 4-LAMP SYSTEMS


These instructions apply to ECE high beam headlamps, US DOT high beam headlamps marked "VO", and all driving lamps. These must be adjusted so that the bright, center "hot spot" of the beam is straight ahead of the lamp in both the vertical and horizontal planes. Use the intersection of the horizontal and vertical lines at point +C for each headlamp as "cross-hair sights" to center the high beam hot spot.
Make sure to work on one lamp at a time. It is best to disconnect the power to the headlamp you are not working on, so light from the other lamp's beam pattern doesn't mislead your eyes. Also be sure to disconnect or cover the adjacent high/low beam lamp when you are aiming its high-beam-only neighbour.

FOG LAMPS


Fog lamps are aimed using a procedure very similar to that used for European-spec ECE and US DOT VOL low beam headlamps, but the vertical drop is different. Follow the vehicle-preparation and wall-marking instructions given above for ECE/VOL low beam headlamps, substituting "foglamp" for "headlamp", but with the following changes:

· · If the fog lamps are mounted below the bumper, your b-b line should be 1.5" below the fog lamp axis height.

· · If the fog lamps are mounted above the bumper, your b-b line should be 4" below the fog lamp axis height.


Fog lamps produce a wide, bar-shaped beam of light. Horizontal aim is much less critical than it is with headlamps. The fog lamps should be pointed straight ahead, not leftward or rightward.

​

 

[Venturabass]

I wouldn't necessarily say its fake blue light. If anything, theyre supposedly Sylvania's top headlight bulb (vision-wise) outside HID bulbs. Both bulbs offer increased luminance. The blueish coating on the Silverstar bulbs creates a light that appears in color more whiter. They don't look blue at all, and you can still see the yellowishess of the halogen.

I can see how they might appear to be more glaring, as the light is whiter. But this would be the same with an HID bulb, if not worse. And the purpose is to help you the driver see better. I wonder which bulb actually gives more light, im assuming theyre the same because when I was searching to buy them they didn't have any detail to light output, as far as I saw.

I think the brighter whiter light is slighly easier to see with.

Yes, it does, because the fake blue light from those bulbs increaces glare by like 60%. Dump them and go to a clear bulb. I have Synvania Extravision bulbs in mine I think (I'll have to look at the package) and they work very well.

-J

 

[compu_85]

But it's not brigher light. The tint film on those bulbs works by blocking the yellow wavelenthts of light and only letting the blue ones through. What you end up with is a whiter light, but overall less lumens on the road.

I tried these for a week, then went back to my 2 year old clear bulbs. They were that much worse!

-J

 

[PlaneCrazy]

I have had Sylvania Silverstars and the damned things were dimmer than the Philips Premium 9006 headlights I had (this was on my '02 Accord, my previous car). The Philips Premium and the Sylvania Silverstar are both higher-output, xenon-gas filled bulbs. But Philips don't kill their bulb with a coating. The blue tint does indeed remove light and not only that it removes the part of the spectrum that is best in moisture (rain, mist, fog, snow), the yellow portion.

To add insult to injury, they'd burn out in 1 to 2 months. They are absolute junk.

There is simply no way that a blue-tinted bulb will have the same output as a premium non-tinted bulb. They may LOOK whiter (which fakes you into thinking the ARE brighter when staring at them) but the reality is far worse performance.

That said, anyone have any experience with GE Nighthawk bulbs? They're labeled higher output but they are NOT coated. Availability at the local Canadian Tire makes them attractive from an availability POV. You can get them in 9003 style which is functionally equivalent to the H4s that my e-codes use.

 

[Venturabass]

Compu 85, PlaneCrazy:

That is a good point about the blue tint filtering wavelengths...something I hadn't thought of. Sounds like the Philips have a longer life...but how does that work? They're both xenon-gas filled, they don't run extra wattage to the filaments (right?), does that leave the the blue tint to cause the quicker burnouts?

I've had mine SS 9007 and H3s for a year now, and luckily they haven't burnt out yet, cause they are expensive, I'll have to give the Philips a try when they go.

I have had Sylvania Silverstars and the damned things were dimmer than the Philips Premium 9006 headlights I had (this was on my '02 Accord, my previous car). The Philips Premium and the Sylvania Silverstar are both higher-output, xenon-gas filled bulbs. But Philips don't kill their bulb with a coating. The blue tint does indeed remove light and not only that it removes the part of the spectrum that is best in moisture (rain, mist, fog, snow), the yellow portion.

To add insult to injury, they'd burn out in 1 to 2 months. They are absolute junk.

There is simply no way that a blue-tinted bulb will have the same output as a premium non-tinted bulb. They may LOOK whiter (which fakes you into thinking the ARE brighter when staring at them) but the reality is far worse performance.

That said, anyone have any experience with GE Nighthawk bulbs? They're labeled higher output but they are NOT coated. Availability at the local Canadian Tire makes them attractive from an availability POV. You can get them in 9003 style which is functionally equivalent to the H4s that my e-codes use.

 

[PlaneCrazy]

I think the shorter life might be the coating; perhaps interferes with heat dissipation. We run Philips Vision Plus bulbs in our Jetta; currently their best standard-wattage bulb. These DO have shorter life than regular bulbs; for the record our set burned out in about 1.5 years, within a couple of weeks of each other. Still better than 2 months though, and well worth the slightly shorter life for the ability to see better.