Lights not adjusting

[rkde]

After several complaints from people that my lights are too high I have to agree.

I noticed when towing that my lights are in the sky and people I pass are covering their eyes, if you keep adding loads to the boot the lights go up and do not adjust back down as I would expect.

Surely this is not right? as all my other cars with xenon lights have automatically dropped when the mass has been increased to keep them level.

The only change to the car I have made is to disconnect the AWS which I did not think would control the lights... I can't see them being linked

Thoughts or should I take it back to mitsubishi?

 

[maby]

Others have made similar comments here - I believe that gwatpe adjusted his down manually. I have to say that they are higher than I like, but I've not done anything about them. From the point of view of the driver of the PHEV, they are very god, but I find them embarrassing. Knowing what I now know about them, I think I would prefer to have standard halogens.

 

[gwatpe]

MMC are only interested if an error message is retained in an ECU.

My present PHEV, as well as the 2 I had before all have a problem with the self levelling of the HID low beam. When driving, on a motorway, very smooth, at night, the operation of the leveling can be seen to raise and lower the beams, in a way that is not related to any car movements. The fact that 3 diferent vehicles do the same thing, indicates a problem with the control of the lights. Some have said that the lights are only supposed to self adjust when stationary. This is not the case. This is only some programming that MMC have not got right. Wonder if the 2016 model has a similar problem.

The effect on cars coming the other way on a 2way street, is that at a distance, the other car gets lit up, like I am flashing my high beam. A lot higher than bonnet level. When following another car, I often see my low beams lights, lighting up a street sign in front of the car in front of me, and you can see the sharp line move up and down on the back of the car in front. The lights, sort of bobble, and seems to be started by slight undulations in the road, that the PHEV tries to correct for when driven. This is surely not supposed to happen. The lights do not follow the movement of the chassis, so it is not just the road surface causing the lights to move up and down.

I use a wall and a level surface to set up my lights. Measure the height of the lamp at the car and make the beam hit the wall at an angle down about 10 degrees. A bit of experimenting was needed to suit my preference. Still lower than the factory setting. I have noticed that the beams do drop when the car is placed in park, so this does suggest some sensor may be working to move the beams up in drive.

 

[jaapv]

MMC are only interested if an error message is retained in an ECU.

My present PHEV, as well as the 2 I had before all have a problem with the self levelling of the HID low beam. When driving, on a motorway, very smooth, at night, the operation of the leveling can be seen to raise and lower the beams, in a way that is not related to any car movements. The fact that 3 diferent vehicles do the same thing, indicates a problem with the control of the lights. Some have said that the lights are only supposed to self adjust when stationary. This is not the case. This is only some programming that MMC have not got right. Wonder if the 2016 model has a similar problem.

The effect on cars coming the other way on a 2way street, is that at a distance, the other car gets lit up, like I am flashing my high beam. A lot higher than bonnet level. When following another car, I often see my low beams lights, lighting up a street sign in front of the car in front of me, and you can see the sharp line move up and down on the back of the car in front. The lights, sort of bobble, and seems to be started by slight undulations in the road, that the PHEV tries to correct for when driven. This is surely not supposed to happen. The lights do not follow the movement of the chassis, so it is not just the road surface causing the lights to move up and down.

I use a wall and a level surface to set up my lights. Measure the height of the lamp at the car and make the beam hit the wall at an angle down about 10 degrees. A bit of experimenting was needed to suit my preference. Still lower than the factory setting. I have noticed that the beams do drop when the car is placed in park, so this does suggest some sensor may be working to move the beams up in drive.

Well, my car certainly does not manifest this annoying problem, and it is a 2013 one.

 

[anko]

Same here. Nobody ever signalled me. But more 'convincing': on my daily commute I see at least 10 other PHEVs coming my way. And I have never noticed anything being wrong with their lights. Now I know the driving position in the PHEV is rather high, but still, if there was a structural issue I think we would have noticed it. Especially in a high-PHEV-density country as the Netherlands.

 

[Regulo]

I manually adjusted mine down within 2 weeks of acquiring the car - I was getting flashed by oncoming traffic continually. Trouble being, of course, the main beams are aimed lower too. Not much of a problem in the Southern UK, barely get the opportunity to use them!

 

[anko]

Maybe a structural issue with non-Dutch PHEVs then?

 

[maby]

There may be some psychology involved as well, you know. HIDs are still relatively rare around here. Standard filament bulb lights dip diagonally down and away from oncoming traffic - drivers approaching a car with HID lamps will see a beam pattern that extends right across the road and may interpret it as a main-beam.

 

[jaapv]

That is quite possible. HID lights are getting to be rather common around here.

 

[jaapv]

Maybe a structural issue with non-Dutch PHEVs then?

:lol:
But you are right, I never noticed it with oncoming PHEVs either -sometimes it seems like every third car.... Not even driving my wife's Suzuki Swift.

 

[anko]

Not even driving my wife's Suzuki Swift.

Yours has a Swiffer too? :lol:

 

[jaapv]

Bought her a Shogun eight years ago - cheapest car ever - she refuses to buy a new one and it has never needed any repair.

 

[anko]

Exactly the same here. (Sorry for OT)