Litronics head lamps

[boxster1]

I have Litronics head lamps on my 03 S, and while the high beams are great the low beams appear to fall short of where they should reach to, and the left lamp appears to be slightly askew to the outside. I've been told that Litronics are supposed to be self-leveling. Is there any way that I can test these to see if they need adjustment?

[Lil bastard]

Litronics are only self-leveling if factory installed. Aftermarket installation excludes this feature.

[Samson]

I'm not sure where the adjustment screws are on these headlights, but I can check in my Bentley to find specifics.

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

I have noticed that the HIDs on this car are pretty weak in general, so it might just be that.

[Travis]

Adjustment

http://986forum.com/forums/showthread.php?t=9511&highlight=headlight

[FrayAdjacent]

You can easily tell if they are self leveling. At night, when you start the engine, immediately flip on the headlights, and you should see the beams adjust. They adjust when the ignition is turned on, not when the headlight switch is turned to the on position.

[Jeph]

Factory litronics are superior. Any question of this is a result of improperly installation, misalignment, or damaged equipment. Seriously.

Find some one that has factory litronics installed, with the leveling system. Put your lights in that car and turn on the lights. The motors for leveling unit may not be centered, and this may remedy that. (It's kinda like if you've ever had a higher end radio controlled car, and the front wheels are turned to the left when the car is off, but when you turn on the power, the servo straightens them out...)

After you've done that, align them following the instructions in the manual or posted above.

Also, the light could be damaged. This is noticeable when you hit bumps in the road and can see the light shine wobble/vibrate.

[eightsandaces]

Factory manual suggests weight or a person sitting in the drivers seat when making the final adjustments. Be patient, keep the screw holes open and carry a screwdriver. I tweaked mine over the course of two months till I was satisfied.

[Adam]

Originally Posted by FrayAdjacent

You can easily tell if they are self leveling. At night, when you start the engine, immediately flip on the headlights, and you should see the beams adjust. They adjust when the ignition is turned on, not when the headlight switch is turned to the on position.

I think you have it reversed. My headlights dip when I turn the headlight switch on first then start the engine but not the other way around.

[boxster1]

I finally got around to having my mechanic look at this problem. First he is sure the head lamps were factory installed; he demonstrated the head lamp start-up process where the lamps first dip down and then rise up.

After doubting that I was correct about the left lamp being misaligned, he pointed out to me that there are little white measuring sticks inside the headlamp enclosure. These sticks have black lines on them so that we can see how the lamps are leveled. The left lamp was off the chart, downwards. So, come Thursday, they will try to level my lamps with the inside screws that several of you were kind enough to inform me about.

Thank you for all your input and suggestions.

[BoxsterLewis]

Yes please let us know, my left headlamp seems to point downward also.

[boxster1]

It turns out this is a very easy adjustment to make. For Litronic lamps all you need is a 5mm Allen wrench. Open your front trunk and unscrew the plastic knob on the side of the wall next to the lamp you wish to adjust. Peel back the wall and follow the diagram that Travis linked to us below.

While it is easy to adjust these lamps, it appears that aiming them correctly will take a lot of trial and error unless you have level ground with a wall you can mark.

[boxster1]

These were not as hard to aim as I thought I they would be. In fact, now that I have them aimed ( I think ) properly, they are fairly amazing. The illumination of reflectors in the distance down the highway is remarkable. If I hadn't used them and seen for myself how good they are, if faced with the choice, I probably would not have paid extra for the option. However, now that I've experienced them, I think I would be unhappy to drive without them.

[BoxsterLewis]

my 5mm allen wrench doesnt reach and the tool in my tool bag seems to be missing a piece bc it doesnt fit, can you tell me exactly what tool you used?

[boxster1]

I used a standard 5mm allen wrench, however the wrench I used was double-ended and I did have to use the long end because the short end would not reach. I recently bought a whole set of standard metric allen wrenches for $9 at a generic auto supply store.