I noticed that my headlights are fixed and are not moving. 

I removed both motors and clean the bits as described in the technical thread and tested them.

Both motors work and screw the adjusters fully out.

When you adjust the switch on the dash the lights do not move. The adjusters only moved the once yesterday when they were connected up after stripping them down. 

I checked for power at the plug to the motors and found one earth, the other outer wire was a fixed voltage and the middle wires' voltage adjusted up and down when you turn the knob on the dashboard.

When the wires are plugged into the back of the adjuster units and you move the knob on the dashboard there is no movement, motor noise or any action at all.

Any ideas on what is going on and why they don't seem to work?

In the destruction book it says that if your car was manufactured with xenon lights it auto levels the lights depending on the pitch of the car. However it also states that you can manually adjust them in "dipped" mode.

Mine has the same issue and I cannot adjust in dipped mode either so it must be an auto thing. Checked fuses but no terminals in port 20 so that rules that out.

Edited 5 October, 201510 yr by shivadow

Mine have just Ordinaire bulbs but should respond to the knob twirling.

 

I'm sure there must be something amiss.

 

From memory, it's on the same fuse as one dipped headlight.

 

When I reassembled the motors and plugged the fly lead into them, they both wound out, that was it!

I have daybreakers in mine so i have no clue what should have been there..

i had this issue, until I realised I was turning the cluster lights up and down, and not the headlight motors.

FML

Definitely using the correct wheel.. Although a valid suggestion!.

Anyone know?

Baffled by this myself. I'm thinking the xenon lights may be part of it or my motors have failed..

My headlights where too low when I got the car and nothing moved when adjusted on the dash.

 

After stripping the motors and reconnecting the leads, the motors wound out fully under their own steam.

 

Now, the lights are at a much better level are even but still don't move up and down.

 

So, a half result anyway as lighting is better at the new level!

In the destruction book it says that if your car was manufactured with xenon lights it auto levels the lights depending on the pitch of the car. However it also states that you can manually adjust them in "dipped" mode.

Mine has the same issue and I cannot adjust in dipped mode either so it must be an auto thing. Checked fuses but no terminals in port 20 so that rules that out.

If you have factory xenons rather than aftermarket HIDs, they are auto adjusted by 2 load sensors - one on the front suspension, one on the rear.

 

They can be put into service mode by VCDS to do basic alignment, but after that they self adjust provided the sensors and motors are in good order.

My headlights where too low when I got the car and nothing moved when adjusted on the dash.

 

After stripping the motors and reconnecting the leads, the motors wound out fully under their own steam.

 

Now, the lights are at a much better level are even but still don't move up and down.

 

So, a half result anyway as lighting is better at the new level!

Do you actually hear the motors operate even though the light level does not move?. If so, the ball joint on the reflector probably has not engaged with the adjuster.

 

If not, are you getting voltage at both the constant 12v pin and the signal adjust pin on the loom to the motor rather than the headlamp plug?. I think from your reply in the original post the answer is yes, but just confirming.

Do you actually hear the motors operate even though the light level does not move?. If so, the ball joint on the reflector probably has not engaged with the adjuster.

 

If not, are you getting voltage at both the constant 12v pin and the signal adjust pin on the loom to the motor rather than the headlamp plug?. I think from your reply in the original post the answer is yes, but just confirming.

 

Motors dont operate and power, earth and variable voltage is all OK.

 

The motors only moved once when I plugged the leads back in.

When you had the board out of the adjuster, could you turn the motor gear quite freely?.

 

They are basically the same as a remote control car steering servo really, so provided there is good contact on the track, and the motor is free to turn and not siezed, there is not much else to stop it.

 

Did you use a contact cleaner when you checked or cleaned the track?, as it may be just non conductive residue stopping the flow of current.

 

Seems very odd it has affected both motors, have you checked for current (amps) at the connector as well as voltage?.

 

Have you tried running a temporary good earth wire into the system?.

 

Edit - also just had a thought - are the connectors in the plug for the motor trying to "back out" of the connector plug when you push it onto the motor?.

All good apart for the fact that I didn't use contact cleaner but WD40.

Also didn't measure amps.

Strange thing is, both don't work but initially wound fully out when reconnected!

I think it affects both motors because left is master and right is slave. What is done to left is copied by the right..

Seriously, you must have the automatic lights. Investigate the xenon lamps that come with the car from factory.

But I have the roller switch on the dash that changes the middle wire voltage and standard bulbs, (lamps).

Only Xenons are auto adjust as legislation says they must not be allowed to dazzle due to the higher burn arc on the bulb. Also the kit unless you get it from a breaker will be a great many hundreds of pounds, even aftermarket copy xenon lamps are 2-250 pounds for just the lamps without igniter control units or bulbs

 

Everybody else gets manual adjust. Do you know anybody that you can borrow a switch off of?.

 

Do you get a rise and fall on the signal wire when you operate the rotary switch?.

 

 

Do you get a rise and fall on the signal wire when you operate the rotary switch?.

 

 

 

Yes, I'm sure I did.

Then if you are getting 12v constant, 12v signal variable and a good continuity earth on both sides, then you must have 2 knackered motors. Not  much else it can be really unless the connecting looms crash as soon as they pull any amps.

What do the 2 slidey things do?

They behave like as a potentiometer for the voltage adjustment to the motor.

So hat if the slidey things were playing up?

This is why I asked earlier what you had used to clean the track to the slider, as a poor connection there can render the adjuster electrically inop. I would try to clean it again with something that will not leave a residue rather than WD40 if you can, contact cleaner/servisol would be better if you have it

 

Did you clean the slider track with a small bit of wet and dry as per the tech how to from Skudman?.

 

When I did my one's, a used a pp9 battery and a spare connector lead to bench test the unit by touching the + and - leads on the terminals to check the motor operates as you slide the slider up and down.

 

I also took the gears out of the case after noting their rough positions with a mobile phone picture, and regreased them with Vaseline.

 

Normally, these work more often than not after rebuild, so to have 1 inop is unlucky, but 2 seems very odd.

Good idea.

I have a can of contact cleaner.

I will try the battery method.

Giving the car a full service, cam belt and water pump today so the lights are a little way down the list!

Had this in several MkI's now.

 

Usually the motors are fine. What normally fails is the internal plastic parts of the headlights for the adjustment that attach to the motors. My first one almost worked in reverse, and the other not at all. Unfortunately, this means a replacement headlight. But quite frankly, for the massive improvement in light a new headlight unit brings (even when the old ones look okay) it is well worth the money.