A.N. Posted September 28, 2011 Report Share Posted September 28, 2011 Hi everyone, First time poster, long time creeper. I have a 2011 LIncoln MKX (Canadian model) with the factory HIDs. I feel the lights are aimed too high, has anyone else had this problem? We have had this car now since May and even since the first day I drove it at night I have gotten flashed by other driver. Most often it is by cars that I have passed on a 2 lane highway and even a couple of semis (just got back from a 1600km trip with some night driving), as soon as I get infront of them they give me their highs. My other car also has factory Bi-Xenon (mercedes) and I have never had this happen to me. (It is a car though not a CUV/SUV) I will be getting them to check the aim when it goes in for the first service. Anthony Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tpm419419 Posted September 28, 2011 Report Share Posted September 28, 2011 Hi everyone, First time poster, long time creeper. I have a 2011 LIncoln MKX (Canadian model) with the factory HIDs. I feel the lights are aimed too high, has anyone else had this problem? We have had this car now since May and even since the first day I drove it at night I have gotten flashed by other driver. Most often it is by cars that I have passed on a 2 lane highway and even a couple of semis (just got back from a 1600km trip with some night driving), as soon as I get infront of them they give me their highs. My other car also has factory Bi-Xenon (mercedes) and I have never had this happen to me. (It is a car though not a CUV/SUV) I will be getting them to check the aim when it goes in for the first service. Anthony A simple trip to the dealer will tell. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
akirby Posted September 28, 2011 Report Share Posted September 28, 2011 Hi everyone, First time poster, long time creeper. I have a 2011 LIncoln MKX (Canadian model) with the factory HIDs. I feel the lights are aimed too high, has anyone else had this problem? We have had this car now since May and even since the first day I drove it at night I have gotten flashed by other driver. Most often it is by cars that I have passed on a 2 lane highway and even a couple of semis (just got back from a 1600km trip with some night driving), as soon as I get infront of them they give me their highs. My other car also has factory Bi-Xenon (mercedes) and I have never had this happen to me. (It is a car though not a CUV/SUV) I will be getting them to check the aim when it goes in for the first service. Anthony I thought factory HIDs were self-leveling? Check the OM for adjustment information or have the dealer check it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
A.N. Posted September 28, 2011 Author Report Share Posted September 28, 2011 They are self leveling, that's why I think there's a problem. Once on the road, I met up with a new grand cherokee with factory hids and his were slanted downward similar to the Mercedes. The MKX's slant upwards. It also basically makes my high beams pretty much useless even to the point where I cannot actually see them turn on. Anthony Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
A.N. Posted October 7, 2011 Author Report Share Posted October 7, 2011 Update: Instead of waiting to go to the dealer. I decided to check the manual and the HIDs can be aimed/reaimed with an adjustment screw. So now after being reaimed they seem pretty good. I wonder why they were like that from the factory? It had 9km on it when I bought it. Anthony Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cal3thousand Posted October 7, 2011 Report Share Posted October 7, 2011 I thought factory HIDs were self-leveling? Check the OM for adjustment information or have the dealer check it. Is that on the MKXs? Because my Edge doesn't adjust automagically. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NWS Alpine Posted October 7, 2011 Report Share Posted October 7, 2011 (edited) Not sure if the US versions have self leveling. On the headlights where the adjustment part screws in there is some text that says ECE motor. Once can only assume that there is a euro part that fits in the same spot for auto-leveling which I believe is required for HID lights in parts of Europe. Edited October 7, 2011 by NWS Alpine Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
akirby Posted October 7, 2011 Report Share Posted October 7, 2011 Not sure if the US versions have self leveling. On the headlights where the adjustment part screws in there is some text that says ECE motor. Once can only assume that there is a euro part that fits in the same spot for auto-leveling which I believe is required for HID lights in parts of Europe. I thought that was also a U.S. requirement. Maybe not. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cal3thousand Posted October 8, 2011 Report Share Posted October 8, 2011 I thought that was also a U.S. requirement. Maybe not. Not a DOT requirement. But it should be! Does what NWS Alpine say mean that a retrofit might be possible? I would love the auto level feature. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NWS Alpine Posted October 8, 2011 Report Share Posted October 8, 2011 It's possible but sometimes it's not. There are quite a few parts to get it working. There is a sensor that ties into the rear suspension and there needs to be a control system. That might or might not be able to be programmed. Also ECE requires headlight sprayer/wipers along with the autolevel. Wish the DOT would do the same. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
A.N. Posted October 8, 2011 Author Report Share Posted October 8, 2011 You know, they may not be self-levelling. They swivel on start up to show you that it's working but they don't dip down. Maybe that's why you can adjust the height aim. I alway thought it was a requirement in Canada to be self levelling but I can find any info on that. I knew that headlight washers wasn't required. Thanks for all the input. Anthony Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NWS Alpine Posted October 8, 2011 Report Share Posted October 8, 2011 If they move when you start the car then they are auto leveling. They will return to the zero position. They will not magically adjust to the correct height only the height they were set to. You might need to adjust them manually even with auto leveling still. Also adaptive lights are only side to side while driving. They do not go up or down while driving. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ELation Posted October 8, 2011 Report Share Posted October 8, 2011 It is not auto leveling. It only moves left to right when you start the car to inform you that it is working properly. (Manual says) I find it way too high too. Also an MKX I saw on the road, it was blinding me. I was driving a sedan. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
phlatlander Posted October 28, 2011 Report Share Posted October 28, 2011 We got our '11 Edge Limited, with HIDs, last December. I found the HIDs too high and first chance had the dealer lower them. They were then too low so next trip, up one notch. Everything is ok now but the Edge HIDs do not have self leveling. The really odd thing about Edge HIDs, is the high beam function. The HIDs use a shutter to change the focus distance as there are no separate high beam bulbs. Most European cars (with HIDs) have separate QI highlights as I believe high beam HIDs are not legal in Europe. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
akirby Posted October 28, 2011 Report Share Posted October 28, 2011 We got our '11 Edge Limited, with HIDs, last December. I found the HIDs too high and first chance had the dealer lower them. They were then too low so next trip, up one notch. Everything is ok now but the Edge HIDs do not have self leveling. The really odd thing about Edge HIDs, is the high beam function. The HIDs use a shutter to change the focus distance as there are no separate high beam bulbs. Most European cars (with HIDs) have separate QI highlights as I believe high beam HIDs are not legal in Europe. The problem is you can't start and stop the HIDs quickly so switching from low to high beam is problematic. You have to use separate lights or you use the shutter. I believe several high end brands use the shutter (bi-xenon lamps e.g.). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NWS Alpine Posted October 30, 2011 Report Share Posted October 30, 2011 The shield flips down and allows light to from the lower portion of the bowl to pass through the lens. The lens flips the direction of the light to project light above the original cutoff line. The separate lights are not high beams they are "flash to pass" lights. When driving at high speeds in Europe people will flash their lights indicating they are traveling fast and will be passing to the car in front. It helps prevent the front car from turning into the lane and causing a huge accident. In early days of HID lights they were slow to ignite and warm up so they had to add halogen lights that could be flashed quickly. The early balasts could not restrike a hot bulb either and bulb life was reduced exponentially more than modern bulbs/ballasts. High beam bi-xenon lights are legal and never were illegal Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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