Adjusting Euro headlights for 190e - PeachParts Mercedes-Benz Forum

rbort · #1 03-21-2004, 04:02 PM

OK, I bought a set of euro headlights and put my car back in the original condition it used to be before it came to the US. Much nicer looking lights and I just rewired the connector to get them working. Now for the adjustment question.

There are 3 screws on the lights. One adjusts the height of the fog light, one adjusts the height of the lamp, and the third (in the far left or right corner) does what? It is so hard to turn I'm not even sure what it is doing.

Another question. Last night I adjusted the fogs and low beam lights to go the distance I like, but when I go to high beams the light gets worse. I cant see the road in the distance going up a hill (which I should) and it seems like I get some stray light pattern on the ground about 10 feet from the car going to the left. Could the far left/right adjuster be for the height of the high beams? Or is something else wrong?

I am using H4 bulbs that are 60/55w and I'm wondering if I can use higher wattage lamps for more highbeam light? I should be able to see further, but when I go high beam it just seams that the light scatters everywhere and there is no decernable place where the light is pointing. Its just difused everywhere and no good to me.

What is wrong? Help to anyone who can please!!

-=>Raja.

psfred · #2 03-21-2004, 04:45 PM

The third adjuster is for right/left angle. Sounds is if you are WAY off (not shocking).

If you cannot adjust the lamps with a guage or with the correct measurements on a wall at 25 ft, the best thing to do is find a long driveway or quiet stretch of level road where you can fiddle about for a while. Cover one headlamp (or unplug it), then adjust the high beam so that the main part of the brightest part of the beam contact the road about 50 yards out or closer -- unless you are coon hunting, it's the road you want to see, not the trees or the planes overhead. The bright area should be centered in front of the car, not the center of the road, so that oncoming drivers can see, too. Low beams will then be pretty much OK. Don't try to do this with both lamps shining on the road, it's nearly impossible to tell which one is where.

The better prodecure is to find a level spot 25 ft from a vertical wall. Measure the headlight height on the car, and mark the wall at that height in front of both beams. Mark the spot on that line exactly in front of the headlight. Set the high beam so that the bright portion of the beam is just to the right and below the mark. Should be just about perfect.

You can see better with the headlight aimed straight ahead, but no one coming the other way will be able to see diddly from teh glare.

Peter

Arthur Dalton · #3 03-21-2004, 05:31 PM

When adjusting E code lights , you do not adjust the high beams. You adjust the low beam so that the cut-off line is 2-3 inchs below the headlamp height at the car. This is on a wall at a distance of approx 25 feet.
You then adjust the rising angle starting point intersection
[ where it starts to rise to the right from the cut-off line on LHD vehicles] at dead ahead of the headlamp measurement at the car.

An easy way to mark the wall is to place a piece of tape at midpoint on the rear window . Square the car to the wall at 25 feet . Looking from the rear of the car , sight the tape using the hood emblem star like a rifle sight. That is the cars mid-point vert. line on the wall.
Now measure the distance of the car headlamps from the ground . [Measure from the center of the relector]. Deduct 2-3 inchs from this and mark the wall with this horiz line.
Now measure the distance from headlamp to headlamp on the car . Divide that by two and use that measure on each side of the vert line on the wall, marking the distance on the horz- line. These 2 marks are where the cut-off line height should be adjusted to and also
where the beams right rising angle should originate.
For accuracy, use your dominate eye for tape/emblem sighting
[ Golfer trick]
PS -- Proper tire pressure and tank of gas [ie. load] give best results....

rbort · #4 03-21-2004, 06:11 PM

OK, I will go out again tonight and try to readjust. So you are saying there is no independant adjustment for the high beam versus the low beam.

I did adjust the low beams yesterday to my liking. Maybe I adjusted them too far out. I was covering one bulb then the other by hand to make them equal. I will take a towel out tonight and retry.

The thing that concerned me was that the high beams seems to do nothing. Maybe the low beams were too high the high beams were shooting for the stars!

I live on a dead end street so its easy to adjust the lights in the cul-de-sac. The idea about drawing lines on the wall sounds interesting, but I don't have a wall that I can be 25 feet away from. I could do it on the garage doors, but my driveway is on a slight uphill incline and it doesn't seem like it will give good results. I will try again on the open road and see if I can figure out what the far left/right does (aim lights left and right?). They seemed rather straight as they were but I will fiddle with it.

Thanks guys for the inputs!

-=>Raja.

Arthur Dalton · #5 03-21-2004, 06:27 PM

The R/L centering is difficult w/o the wall geomerty and that adjustment is critical , being that they are independent..

A good place to find a wall where the pavement is also level is behind/side of any small strip mall...

Give a friend a couple pieces of black tape to hang at the two final spots on the wall and , using your blanking towel, do each one and then remove the tape from the wall and take a ride to see how you like it . The reason for the varient of 2-3 inchs on the cut-off height is to give you a little high beam up/down preference ... just make sure you never have the cut-off ABOVE the horz line....
I personally use 2 inch drop at 10 meters....full tank/gas

rbort · #6 03-21-2004, 08:34 PM

I went out and readjusted the beams, low beam lower than before, and then went for a ride. Looks like its too close to me so I can see far enough down the road. I adjusted the low beams upwards a bit, and now I can see better.

However, the high beam seems "useless" for a lack of better words. Whether the low beams at higher or lower, high beams do not seem to have much of a directed light. They just seem to go everywhere and a little light everywhere means all is dark. No concentration of light anywhere. I can use the vacuum switch to lower the low beams (from position 0 to 2 on the knob), but the high beams still don't do much for me.

If I park the car in the driveway, the high beams light up the whole garage door, while the low beams light up the bottom foot or so.

Is it possible I installed the H4 bulb wrong? I mean it has three tabs, and they have to fit in slots. I think there is only one way they fit, but I'm not 100% sure. I put them the way I thought was right.

How about more powerful bulbs? Can I go to 100w or is something going to melt or too much load on the electrical system?

-=>Raja.

ebennz · #7 03-21-2004, 08:58 PM

rbort

2 times you said you want to adjust them to your liking, that would be a HUGE MISTAKE!

you need to adjust them to the correct height. there is a little room for fudging, BUT not much.

read dan stern's take on aiming

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

like someone else said, if your high beams aren't good your lights [low] are too high.

if you still have questions post them, there are enough of us here to help you tune these in.

peter

psfred · #8 03-21-2004, 10:39 PM

Relative beam position is determined by the filament placement in the bulb.

High beam is more or less straight ahead, low beam is lower and to the right of the high beam.

If you can see to drive on back roads with the low beams, they are too high, and the high beam will be off the road.

High beam should have a hot spot a bit smaller than the low beam, a bit higher. You can see it on the garage door even if you can't aim them correctly.

Make sure your fog lights aren't coming on instead of the high beam (the wires could be wrong in the connector plugs) -- if this is the case, the beam will be spread out and low (unless the fog lamps are set too high).

You must change the plug from a four pin to a six pin one when you switch to euro lamps from DOT -- I'm going to pick mine up tomorrow and hopefully swap them tomorrow evening.

Peter