Hi

Had my vRS for about 3 months now and really pleased with it bar a few squeaks and creaks that have been irritating me (no one else claims to be able to hear them!).

However, I have one big gripe, I spec'd my car with xenons and i've been more than a little disappointed given the price. Whilst there is no denying that the beam is bright, they cut off far earlier than I would have expected so they don't light the road that far ahead of me.

Is this normal? Am I just expecting too much?!

Would appreciate any comments!

Thanks

See your dealer about adjustment (they are self levelling - but still have a facililty for beam setting, obviously). AFAIK the lamp optics are the same for Xenon and halogen. I have found the beam pattern of the halogens very good and retro-fitted some 35W HID units into the housings. Performance is excellent and they are spot-on on the beam setter.

The dealer adjusted mine as I was getting flashed by every car on the road! They have now put them too far down and I can only see 2 white lines ahead on the road. When the nights get darker I will get VCDS and adjust them up a bit.

Tom

Just give those who flash your full beam :-)

Just give those who flash your full beam :-)

They would only flash if the lights were poorly adjusted and dazzling them. Hardly seems fair to dazzle them more by putting your full beam on since you would be at fault in the first place due to the poorly adjusted beams.

To the OP: Be careful when readjusting them back that you do not go too far and cause a hazard to other road users by dazzling them again. I assume the dealer would have set them to the correct height using the proper equipment so that they are legal and do not cause a hazard (although this is no guarantee they got it right!!!!).

Thanks PSM, at least someone understands why I had to get them realigned.

Tom

Just to confirm that yes Xenons can be altered, when my Forester was in for MOT last October my offside one needed adjustment as it was too low.

Your factory fit xenons should throw the light a fair distance down the road, that is the point of the sharp beam cutoff pattern - you can have long range beams but not blind oncoming drivers.

There is a setting in VCDS that puts the xenons into an adjustment position so they can be set using the manual adjusting screws, the car needs to be on a level surface with nothing in the boot.

Messing about with the screws without using the setting option can upset the auto levelling to a point where it defaults to the lowest position for safety reasons. Then you'll see about 6 feet in front of the car.

A tiny adjustment with the beam 5 feet from a wall will equate to a massive adjustment 100 feet away, it's very easy to overcook it.

Thanks PSM, at least someone understands why I had to get them realigned.

Tom

If you've got a fat friend, get them to sit in the back.