I just got my Prius yesterday after work (IV with Nav, Bliz/Bisque) yippee! So far, I really like it a lot. I noticed one thing that kind of bothered me, though. As it got dark, I turned on my low beam headlights, and they seemed to not illuminate far enough in front of me. Also, there was a very sharp and noticeable top line. I took a picture of the light shining on my garage wall. Does this look normal?
The cutoff is normal, and I've noted that they're a bit on the low side as well. This is coming out of a 2004 w/ auto-leveling HID's though. One could adjust them higher, but being on the opposite side of the wrong side of the cutoff may not be pleasant as the lights are pretty bright when focused the way they are. I've accepted them for the time being as when the car is loaded, they're still within normal.
I just replaced my '05 with a '10 V. I also notice that the headlight aim seems low and spoke to my dealer about it today. He states that the self leveling LED headlights are not adjustable. Seemed strange to me and I was going to start a thread on the topic. You folks beat me to it. Something else I found disconcerting was that the LED light output is distinctly white while the high beams are quite yellow (but effective) in comparison. Hope I'll get used to it.
Has anyone replaced their lights with a HID setup yet? I plan to as soon as I get my IV. If you have, please post some pics!
Are the headlights on the IV supposed to be tested and adjusted at the dealership when they arrive from the distributor, or is this something that is typically left alone?
PDI is "supposed" to check this. Item 13 on the Walkaround portion of the checklist is check headlight aim.
That is what my lights look like shining on my garage back wall. (Maybe its the curse of the Prius IV, Blizzard Pearl, Bisque interior!?) I have been pleased with the lights while driving at night so far. We'll see in the coming days as we have a road trip to Michigan from Minnesota.
I agree that the high beams are yellowish compared to the LED headlights, so I replaced them--here's a post with the bulbs I replaced: http://priuschat.com/forums/gen-iii...-parking-lights-rear-license-plate-bulbs.html
I don't have a G3, but I just don't believe your dealer's statement. It sounds like a typical statement by someone who doesn't know any better, doesn't want to admit their ignorance, and just wants to get rid of you. I'm sure that someone here will eventually check the 2010 Service Manual for verification. Maybe side to side is not adjustable. But height certainly should be. I've never heard of or worked on a car without vertical adjustment. The G2 HIDs were autoleveling, and they were also adjustable. However, when I got my 2009, they were adjusted so low as to almost be useless. I couldn't even tell that my fog lights were turned on, since the headlights pointed down so much. I eventually adjusted them with help from the instructions posted by fellow PCers. I had to take them up about 2 full turns on the adjusters. Since then, they've been GREAT. And even with that much vertical adjustment, I haven't been "flashed" once by oncoming traffic, so I guess that I got it right. Best wishes
Looks about the same to me. I guess I'm just not used to projector beam halogens. Thanks for taking the time to get this shot for me -- I appreciate your help.
You're welcome, but in all fairness, it was taken the first few nights of ownership last month More listed in the Picasa link in my sig.
"Are my headlights normal" Your left seems to be pointed too far left and the right is a bit smaller. **SORRY HAD TO BE IMATURE ON THIS POST. DON'T MIND ME.
I was concerned about the head lights on the Prius II, III, and IV. It was not clear if they were HID or not. Today I verified they are standard Halogen bulbs that cost $20 to be replaced. I work with a lot of people that have spent close to $1,000 to replace one HID bulb. The Prius does not offer auto head lights but it does offer auto off. My existing 2000 4Runner works the same way. I decided never to turn them off, day or night they stay on. I plan on doing the same with the Prius because the replacement bulbs are so cheap. If they were HID I would have to turn them off all the time.
