Pre-FL 8V Xenons - Poor Light Ouput

[jimmymidnight]

I have a 2014 8V TDi Sportback with the Xenons and the light output seems to be horrendous - on dipped beam they're no better than a pair of tea lights in a fishbowl.

Is this a common observation, and are there any recommended upgrades? My old 2004 Range Rover Vogue had much brighter bulbs but these just seem a bit pathetic.

Thanks in advance.

 

[eribaMotters]

A week after collecting my 2019 model I took it into the local dealership to be checked. The Xenon lights are appalling but I was told all was fine. Since then it has had it's first MOT and again I was told all was fine.

Colin

 

[SDB]

Are your lights aligned correctly, I found mine to be set quite low and since adjusting have been much better. I think they have a habit of vibrating downwards, there are two white screws with Allen hex heads that can be tweaked. Just do half a turn at a time, you don't want to over do it or you'll dazzle oncoming drivers.

 

[Dubjam]

Yep, they are terrible. Utterly terrible.

I put brighter bulbs in and not a massive improvement but somewhat better. When the alignment is spot on they are far too dipped down so you get a few metres in front of you.

One of the things I definitely won't miss about my A3!

 

[jimmymidnight]

Yep, they are terrible. Utterly terrible.

I put brighter bulbs in and not a massive improvement but somewhat better. When the alignment is spot on they are far too dipped down so you get a few metres in front of you.

One of the things I definitely won't miss about my A3!

Yes, the last car I had with lights this bad was an '89 VW Corrado. Hopefully, some new bulbs might at least be a bit of an improvement.

Are your lights aligned correctly, I found mine to be set quite low and since adjusting have been much better. I think they have a habit of vibrating downwards, there are two white screws with Allen hex heads that can be tweaked. Just do half a turn at a time, you don't want to over do it or you'll dazzle oncoming drivers.

I'll have a look - they seem to be in the right place, just not very bright... Thanks!

 

[JohnM100]

Back in the day when I had my PFL the Xenons were fab.

By now, PFL bulbs will be getting old but note you have replaced them. Is the headlight polycarbonate clean or is it starting to haze as the UV coating wears off.

Also, is the inside of your windscreen properly clean?

So many cars nowadays with super bright LED headlights that the whole headlight scene has moved forward a lot in the last 5-7 years.

 

[rowdyz]

I bought a used FL 2017 A3 Sportback Etron and the xenon lights were very bad. I found out it uses a D5S bulb at only 25 watts. I bought and replaced them with 35 W 5500k bulbs but I am still not happy with them.

 

[MattDC]

I've been wondering if mine aren't as bright as they were when I first got it (which was only in February). I've all but convinced myself they were brighter (and whiter) then they are now, from the drivers point of view. I'm wondering if maybe they dim over time as they march towards the end of their working life?

 

[jimmymidnight]

Back in the day when I had my PFL the Xenons were fab.

By now, PFL bulbs will be getting old but note you have replaced them. Is the headlight polycarbonate clean or is it starting to haze as the UV coating wears off.

Also, is the inside of your windscreen properly clean?

So many cars nowadays with super bright LED headlights that the whole headlight scene has moved forward a lot in the last 5-7 years.

Everything, as far as I'm aware is at it should be. I've had many cars over the years with Xenons and these are by far the worst. The light is fairly blue in comparison to other cars I've run, so I'm starting to think there could be some inferior afermarket bulbs. Either way, I'll be replacing them soon.

I've been wondering if mine aren't as bright as they were when I first got it (which was only in February). I've all but convinced myself they were brighter (and whiter) then they are now, from the drivers point of view. I'm wondering if maybe they dim over time as they march towards the end of their working life?

I had a long drive late last night and when on dipped beam, visibility was very sub-par. A new pair of shiny bright bulbs is on the list for the next few days...

 

[Damo S]

As mentioned, alignment makes a big difference. Mine were rubbish as well so I adjusted them myself. I did it so that the top line of the light beam dropped just a bit down the road. There seems to be a distinct border line it creates with no light above that line. To do this I found a flat quiet road with bushes on both sides. Car parked stationary with the lights on and adjusted them both. The drivers side light I angled down such that the border line was dropping down to road level probably 100 metres up. The passenger side light I kept slightly higher, so that the line dropped just a little bit, and actually the light fizzles out before you could see where the line point would actually meet the road. They now light up a 100 metres or road on dip really well. Btw it passed the MOT a month ago so no issues there either. I've never been flashed by oncoming drivers. But you can see when you are behind people that the top of the light beam is just below the rear screen on the car infront no matter what the distance (unless the car is bouncing because of bumps), so it isnt dazzling people set like this.
It did take several readjustments to get it right. There isnt much turning of the screw needed to make it go from dipping down a bit to flat or potentially a tiny bit up. so have patience when doing it. A good location to make adjustments I think is helpful. You want a dark flat road with bushes or solid objects on either side of the road at least the height of a car. These help show where the beam border stops and is pointing to making adjusting them easy otherwise you wouldnt have a clue if it was in open fields. Its pretty easy to do you just need a torch or some form of light, and a screwdriver, and to know where the adjusters are each side.

The other issue is they just degrade over time. I had one go earlier in the year and had a philips replacement fitted by my local garage, I believe it was a like for like with the standard bulbs, no upgrade as such. It was so much better, so much so I replaced the other one with the same almost immediately. There is absolutely no need to have uprated bulbs above what I now have, but I can see why someone people might want them even brighter.

 

[jimmymidnight]

As mentioned, alignment makes a big difference. Mine were rubbish as well so I adjusted them myself. I did it so that the top line of the light beam dropped just a bit down the road. There seems to be a distinct border line it creates with no light above that line. To do this I found a flat quiet road with bushes on both sides. Car parked stationary with the lights on and adjusted them both. The drivers side light I angled down such that the border line was dropping down to road level probably 100 metres up. The passenger side light I kept slightly higher, so that the line dropped just a little bit, and actually the light fizzles out before you could see where the line point would actually meet the road. They now light up a 100 metres or road on dip really well. Btw it passed the MOT a month ago so no issues there either. I've never been flashed by oncoming drivers. But you can see when you are behind people that the top of the light beam is just below the rear screen on the car infront no matter what the distance (unless the car is bouncing because of bumps), so it isnt dazzling people set like this.
It did take several readjustments to get it right. There isnt much turning of the screw needed to make it go from dipping down a bit to flat or potentially a tiny bit up. so have patience when doing it. A good location to make adjustments I think is helpful. You want a dark flat road with bushes or solid objects on either side of the road at least the height of a car. These help show where the beam border stops and is pointing to making adjusting them easy otherwise you wouldnt have a clue if it was in open fields. Its pretty easy to do you just need a torch or some form of light, and a screwdriver, and to know where the adjusters are each side.

The other issue is they just degrade over time. I had one go earlier in the year and had a philips replacement fitted by my local garage, I believe it was a like for like with the standard bulbs, no upgrade as such. It was so much better, so much so I replaced the other one with the same almost immediately. There is absolutely no need to have uprated bulbs above what I now have, but I can see why someone people might want them even brighter.

Thanks for this - I'll have a look at the alignment at the weekend when I next get a chance. Fortunately, there are plenty of quiet/dead single lane flat roads near me with hedges at either side so it shouldn't be too difficult.

 

[jimmymidnight]

I finally had a free evening and decided to have a look at adjusting the headlights - fortunately, my driveway / car port is dead flat with 3 sides and the beams were definitely pointing too far down. I've adjusted them so they shoot a bit higher now (within the correct range) but light output is still very poor, especially on the passenger side which seems to have little-to-no light at the side. I think it's new bulbs for me next, and given that these are probably after-market bulbs, I will just bite the bullet and go for the correct OEM bulbs to hopefully restore them to their factory glory. Merry Christmas to me...