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MK7.5 LED Headlight Height Measurements

cb1111

cb1111

Newbie
Location
Virginia, USA
aloha_from_bradley said:
So I'm bumping this thread because I've never seen anything like this. Not sure why I didn't notice it before. Take a look at the beam cut offs. I'm used to seeing a Z shaped pattern that both headlights fit into nicely. On the MK7.5 LED headlamps, I'm getting this bowl shape where the middles come together and meet in somewhat of a point. Even my Tiguan has a nice top line with a cutoff where the beams mate with one another.

Is this normal? Do the headlights just suck on the 7.5s?
Click to expand...
Try this for proper aiming

Daniel Stern Lighting • How To Aim Lamps (torque.net)
 
cb1111

cb1111

Newbie
Location
Virginia, USA
aloha_from_bradley said:
This is all well and good, but where do I find a perfectly flat surface with a wall to aim at from 25’ away?
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Shopping center, business park. You're in Arizona, not NYC
jimlloyd40 said:
Drive to the back of a shopping center where deliveries are made and when it's dark there's lots of buildings to use to aim them.
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Bingo. You might want to discuss you being there after hours with the owners or building management - it is hard to adjust lights with all the flashing blue lights distracting you.
 
jimlloyd40

jimlloyd40

Autocross Champion
Location
Phoenix
Car(s)
2018 SE DSG
cb1111 said:
Shopping center, business park. You're in Arizona, not NYC

Bingo. You might want to discuss you being there after hours with the owners or building management - it is hard to adjust lights with all the flashing blue lights distracting you.
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He doesn't need to discuss it with anyone. There's so many long shut down shopping centers all over the area.
 
aloha_from_bradley

aloha_from_bradley

Autocross Champion
Location
AZ
Anyone can pull up to the back of any building that has docking and use it as an aiming point, but this doesn't mean it's level. There's no way to tell that the surface you're on and what you're aiming against is completely level.

A few years back I did exactly what you mentioned, pulled up to the back of a store and aimed my lights against the side of the building. I ended up busting one of the internal guides from adjusting the headlights too far one direction. This was because the ground I was on seemed level even though it was not. From 25' there's just no way to tell. There's also a reason the instructions state finding a spot to use would be the hardest part of the exercise. A difference of an inch can vary by feet at 25' from a wall. That's the problem.

There must be a documented procedure VW techs / body shops use when needing to swap out headlights. Have we all just been guessing this whole time? I'm fine with just eyeballing the adjustments until they seem right, but finding a wall with a surface that's perfectly flat from 25' along with the math required to aim the headlights properly just seems a little much. There must be a common way this situation is handled other than driving behind abandoned buildings hoping the ground is level.

Also, I'm still confused by the shape of the beams from the projectors. Nothing I've ever seen before.
 
jimlloyd40

jimlloyd40

Autocross Champion
Location
Phoenix
Car(s)
2018 SE DSG
aloha_from_bradley said:
Anyone can pull up to the back of any building that has docking and use it as an aiming point, but this doesn't mean it's level. There's no way to tell that the surface you're on and what you're aiming against is completely level.

A few years back I did exactly what you mentioned, pulled up to the back of a store and aimed my lights against the side of the building. I ended up busting one of the internal guides from adjusting the headlights too far one direction. This was because the ground I was on seemed level even though it was not. From 25' there's just no way to tell. There's also a reason the instructions state finding a spot to use would be the hardest part of the exercise. A difference of an inch can vary by feet at 25' from a wall. That's the problem.

There must be a documented procedure VW techs / body shops use when needing to swap out headlights. Have we all just been guessing this whole time? I'm fine with just eyeballing the adjustments until they seem right, but finding a wall with a surface that's perfectly flat from 25' along with the math required to aim the headlights properly just seems a little much. There must be a common way this situation is handled other than driving behind abandoned buildings hoping the ground is level.

Also, I'm still confused by the shape of the beams from the projectors. Nothing I've ever seen before.
Click to expand...
Loading docks behind buildings are level. You could always pay to get them aimed. I don't think we can come up with a solution for you otherwise.
 
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