How do you adjust Mazda5 headlights?
- Thread starter dreamym5
- Start date
today. i adjusted mine bit lower since, compare to stock halogen.. HID produce least twice much light.. which resuts in some glare...
previous week, i had a chance to go back to stock halogen and compared halogen and HID side by side.. i noticed glare producing from HID side..
Although, glare is minial since Mz5 has projector but i like to stay on safe side..
previous week, i had a chance to go back to stock halogen and compared halogen and HID side by side.. i noticed glare producing from HID side..
Although, glare is minial since Mz5 has projector but i like to stay on safe side..
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Last night was the first time since I installed my Xenon's earlier this summer, that I had the 5 completely loaded down with adults and crap (I mean cargo 
) in the back, causing that nice low butt. Going down to Jersey in the daylight, didn't think twice... however I quickly realized on the way home, that I was gonna piss off a LOT of people on the Atlantic City Expressway. My HID's were shooting WAY high the entire way home, oops.
I got a trip into Ontario coming up Labor Day weekend, again loaded in the back, so I hopped online and found dreamy's writeup, thanks. (thumb)
Here's the important part all HID people should know (and undoubtedly some of you already do). You NEED to adjust your headlight aiming lower from the start. By measuring the height of the center of the projector vs the cutoff line on my 'screen', I was shocked to find the cutoff line was actually a pinch (< 1/4" higher) @ 10ft. Not a lot, but enough that A) at best the beam's staying the same, at worst it's rising a bit with distance... it should drop. B) ANY weight in the back is going to shoot that beam higher. I usually drive with my wife beside me, and son in the middle row, that's it... placing a pinch more weight towards the front, so theoretically dropping the beam a scoshe for me.
These numbers are kind of estimates... The cutoff line was showing as 28.5" from the factory @ 10ft away (for me anyway). Dropped it to 26" @ 10ft, drove it, and found it was too low... WAY below the glare threshold, but also only gave me minimal amount of light in front of the car. So I brought it back up to the 27" mark and it was a good compromise between lighting distance for me, and low cutoff line for oncoming cars (as determined by viewing the relationship between cutoff line vs. side mirrors on cars ahead of me). It's enough that I undoubtedly have some buffer for loading the car down in the future.
I obviously am rambling on here, just figured it wouldn't hurt to share my mistakes and lessons learned. If anyone was blinded by me last night, my apologies (thanks again dreamym5!)
) in the back, causing that nice low butt. Going down to Jersey in the daylight, didn't think twice... however I quickly realized on the way home, that I was gonna piss off a LOT of people on the Atlantic City Expressway. My HID's were shooting WAY high the entire way home, oops. I got a trip into Ontario coming up Labor Day weekend, again loaded in the back, so I hopped online and found dreamy's writeup, thanks. (thumb)
Here's the important part all HID people should know (and undoubtedly some of you already do). You NEED to adjust your headlight aiming lower from the start. By measuring the height of the center of the projector vs the cutoff line on my 'screen', I was shocked to find the cutoff line was actually a pinch (< 1/4" higher) @ 10ft. Not a lot, but enough that A) at best the beam's staying the same, at worst it's rising a bit with distance... it should drop. B) ANY weight in the back is going to shoot that beam higher. I usually drive with my wife beside me, and son in the middle row, that's it... placing a pinch more weight towards the front, so theoretically dropping the beam a scoshe for me.
These numbers are kind of estimates... The cutoff line was showing as 28.5" from the factory @ 10ft away (for me anyway). Dropped it to 26" @ 10ft, drove it, and found it was too low... WAY below the glare threshold, but also only gave me minimal amount of light in front of the car. So I brought it back up to the 27" mark and it was a good compromise between lighting distance for me, and low cutoff line for oncoming cars (as determined by viewing the relationship between cutoff line vs. side mirrors on cars ahead of me). It's enough that I undoubtedly have some buffer for loading the car down in the future.
I obviously am rambling on here, just figured it wouldn't hurt to share my mistakes and lessons learned. If anyone was blinded by me last night, my apologies
(thanks again dreamym5!)Not speaking from my own experience but I’ve found this article..
itstillruns.com
It states there are to Philips head screws that control vertical and horizontal adjustment. The one closest to the fender controls vertical, closest to the center controls horizontal.
That’s the closest to an answer I could get - hope it works! Post back if it does/doesn’t.
Instructions for Headlight Alignment on a Mazda 5
Never let it be said that Eastern auto manufacturers don't know how to learn by a good example. Mazda's been using numbers to designate its models for a long time, but only in recent years has the company gone all-out and taken up the BMW model of designation. Like the BMW 5-Series, the Mazda 5...
itstillruns.com
It states there are to Philips head screws that control vertical and horizontal adjustment. The one closest to the fender controls vertical, closest to the center controls horizontal.
That’s the closest to an answer I could get - hope it works! Post back if it does/doesn’t.
Meant to tag you above.
Thank you! I was able to read that article, however I am finding only one screw (see attached photo). It seems to be that passengers light is "too concentrated".Not speaking from my own experience but I’ve found this article..
Instructions for Headlight Alignment on a Mazda 5
Never let it be said that Eastern auto manufacturers don't know how to learn by a good example. Mazda's been using numbers to designate its models for a long time, but only in recent years has the company gone all-out and taken up the BMW model of designation. Like the BMW 5-Series, the Mazda 5...
It states there are to Philips head screws that control vertical and horizontal adjustment. The one closest to the fender controls vertical, closest to the center controls horizontal.
That’s the closest to an answer I could get - hope it works! Post back if it does/doesn’t.
By saying that I mean that all the projector light is crating one small yellow light concentrated in one little dot.
I am unable to find the horizontal screw
Thank you for your prompt response!
