Headlight Allignment

Purplemon

Member
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2014 MADZA6 GT
Just traded '10 CX-7 for a '14 Mazda6 GT. WOW!

Question: The headlights are aimed too low. Anyone know how to adjust them?

Update to my post. I took the car back to Kelly Mazda here in Scranton and Eddie did his magic. Headlights came out of the factory very low but are perfect now. Great guy that Eddie!
 
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I have the same issue. I was driving it downhill on a late foggy night where there were a lot of twists and turns and found the HIDs had very short range which made driving lil tricky. Thx for the tip, I'll take this to the dealer and have them adjust.
 
Correction

I take my comment back. Sales rep was wrong with the headlight adjustment knob by the trunk switch. Need service to fix it.
 
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However, in most cases, the headlamp aim has gone off, and simply needs readjustment. Why? Replacing the front headlamp assembly certainly could do it—a stack-up in manufacturing tolerances could affect the way the assembly seats. Even a new halogen bulb might be responsible, although that's less likely.

And headlamp aim doesn't last forever, particularly if the assembly loosens and shifts or if the vehicle's suspension sags.

Many models (particularly Hondas and Acuras) have a bubble level in the headlamp assembly to check vertical aim. This does make it easier to diagnose unwanted tilt. Just make sure the tire pressures are at specs and the vehicle is on level ground (check with a carpenter's bubble level on a flat surface). Have the fuel tank half-full and someone in the driver's seat. Reposition the car if necessary to get a level location. Jounce each side of the front end of the car up and down a few times to settle the suspension. Measure from any convenient fixed point on each of the headlamps to the ground; the measurements should be within 1/2 in., indicating the suspension is not sagging excessively at either side. Then, locate the vertical adjuster and turn it to center the bubble.

Even if your headlamps have a bubble level, it's strictly for vertical aim. It's less common, but still possible, for the headlamp aim to be off horizontally. The left headlamp may be aimed at the oncoming cars instead of straight ahead or slightly to the right, and that's equally annoying. But you might be in luck. Some cars with a bubble level for vertical aim also have an alignment indicator for horizontal aim (here again, Honda and Acura). You just have to turn the adjuster to reset the indicator.

On most vehicles, however, it isn't quite that simple because there is no bubble level or horizontal alignment indicator. All you have are the adjusters, and in some cars, only for vertical aim. If the horizontal aim is off and there is no horizontal adjuster, the issue is mechanical alignment of the housing in the front end, and all you can do for this is shim one side of the housing—it's a cut-and-try operation—until the alignment of the beam is acceptable.

Without indicators in the housing or professional headlamp alignment equipment, you have to look at how the beams strike a vertical flat surface, and if they're off, make adjustments.


Proper headlight aim is critical. Check aim with a driver in the car and a full tank of gas. The low-beam cutoff (a) should be slightly below the center of the lens (b) to keep glare out of oncoming traffic and reduce the light reflection that occurs during rainy or snowy weather. The bend in the cutoff should be slightly to the right of the center of the lane, for the same purpose. This will illuminate the road surface in front of the car, as well as the curb area to the right.

There is a standard procedure, using a flat and level driveway facing a gray or dull white wall that is free of any source of peripheral light (perhaps the back wall of your garage, interior lights off). The open space on the wall should be at least the width of the vehicle plus an extra 2 ft. per side. Check the tire pressures—they have to be right. Confirm that the car is on level ground by using a good carpenter's level on the side of the vehicle—on an SUV try the roof, and on most cars, the door frame. Park the car so it's exactly 25 ft. from the wall to the face of the headlamps—don't estimate. Some exceptions include Toyota, which specifies 10 ft., Pontiac GTO at 15 ft., and Chrysler, which specifies 33 ft. on some models. However, the 25-ft. procedure should produce satisfactory results for most vehicles. Use a tape measure in any case.

Check the suspension ride height side to side to make sure there's no excessive suspension sag.

Now comes a lot of very careful measuring. First, identify the physical center of each low-beam headlamp—with today's multilamp housings, actually turn on the lamps to be sure you have the right lamp. Some headlamps have a small dot or circle at the center. Make a tape cross over the center of each lamp, and a vertical tapeline down the center of the windshield. Using a tape measure, make the corresponding alignment marks on the wall.

For this part, you might be able to measure at the wall from the ground up, but it's easier (and good for a double-check) to bring the vehicle very close to the wall. Then, again with tape, transfer the locations to the wall (perhaps using a bubble level to span the gap between vehicle and wall, to ensure an accurate transfer). On the wall, make the tapelines very wide—basically a single horizontal line for both centerlines of the headlamps, and a vertical tapeline for the centerline of the vehicle—and long enough so that it's easy to line up the vehicle and for the lines to form a cross. Make the centerline vertical crossing tapes for the headlamps themselves about 2 ft. long on the wall. The accuracy of any adjustment is only as good as the reference points. In fact, it's a good idea to lay strips of tape on the ground at the midpoints of the rear tires, so that when you back up to the specified distance from the wall, you can be sure you've maintained the overall alignment of the vehicle to the wall. The tape on the windshield and the centerline of the wall also should be useful visual aids.

Next, locate the headlamp adjusters. If you're a veteran Saturday mechanic, this may sound like "are you kidding," but we're serious. The adjusters used to be on the external rim of the sealed-beam headlamp assemblies. But with the change to quartz halogen bulbs, they're on the back of the headlamp assemblies. Some makers simply buried or eliminated the horizontal adjusters. So find out what you have, and where it is.


2013 MERCEDES BENZ SL-CLASS
 
I've got this same issue, but there should be some mention of which headlights we're talking about. I have the Xenon self leveling ones, which one dealership has told me are not adjustable and software controlled. I've opened a ticket with Mazda Customer Service who's checking with the product planning (IIRC) to see if there is a fix coming available. Also waiting on a reply from another dealer on whether there is consensus, or the first place didn't really know better since its a new model (mine was the first they'd sold).
 
I want an update on this when you find out. I also has the loaded GT model with bi xenon HID. They a way to low! I may look for an adjustment or shim it with a fender washer or 2 in the meantime to bring the beam up just a tad. Anything is better than nothing at his point.
 
I was looking for a vertical adjustment on the factory bi-xenon's and noticed a white bolt head with an aluminum washer backing it. This is, of course, behind the headlamp housing. The aluminum washer has little teeth pointing toward the lamp all through its circumference, and the entire "assembly" is positioned about dead center with the xenon lamp. The bolt head has a slot across it for a slotted screwdriver, I assume. Haven't messed with it yet, but I would think this assembly acts as a vertical adjustment for our lamps. Both lamps have this slotted white-head bolt assembly, so I was wondering if anybody knows what their purpose is (i.e. vertical adjuster or just plain fastener). I have not yet attempted to rotate the bolt and watch for vertical movement of the beam. Just wondering if anybody else has noticed what I'm describing. I kind of think if it's a vertical adjuster, others would have noticed it before me.
 
Just to update my last post, the OP is correct, his tech was able to do a vertical adjustment even though his lenses were loaded with adaptive xenon lamps. The adjustment is done using what I described in the above post in the exact place I described. I was able to print out three pages of diagrams/instructions from the service manual. So, for anybody being told there is no vertical adjustment on these headlights due to the adaptive control is talking BS or is grossly uninformed. No software reflash is required to do a vertical adjustment of these xenon headlamps. The dealer spreading that BS should have a foot struck up their ass. It never fails, there are people on these forums that know more about their cars than the dealer does, even some master Mazda techs are clueless. I love it when you reference info on these forums to the dealer service people, and their response is "they don't know what they're talking about" or "those guys are a bunch of nuts". Yeah, right. The only time I turn my keys and my car over to any dealer service dept. is when dealer software is required to complete the repair, or when the work is warranty related and doing it myself would be on my own dime. For minor issues, I weigh the risk of having them touch it and possibly make matters worse or cause physical damage vs. just leaving it alone and living with it. It really shouldn't have to be that way, but more often than not it is.
 
Just to update my last post, the OP is correct, his tech was able to do a vertical adjustment even though his lenses were loaded with adaptive xenon lamps. The adjustment is done using what I described in the above post in the exact place I described. I was able to print out three pages of diagrams/instructions from the service manual. So, for anybody being told there is no vertical adjustment on these headlights due to the adaptive control is talking BS or is grossly uninformed. No software reflash is required to do a vertical adjustment of these xenon headlamps. The dealer spreading that BS should have a foot struck up their ass. It never fails, there are people on these forums that know more about their cars than the dealer does, even some master Mazda techs are clueless. I love it when you reference info on these forums to the dealer service people, and their response is "they don't know what they're talking about" or "those guys are a bunch of nuts". Yeah, right. The only time I turn my keys and my car over to any dealer service dept. is when dealer software is required to complete the repair, or when the work is warranty related and doing it myself would be on my own dime. For minor issues, I weigh the risk of having them touch it and possibly make matters worse or cause physical damage vs. just leaving it alone and living with it. It really shouldn't have to be that way, but more often than not it is.

Badself- is there any way you can post the pages? I would love to see how to fix this issue
 
Badself- is there any way you can post the pages? I would love to see how to fix this issue

I will attempt to scan them into my computer and attach them into a post. I know my cars, computers, not quite so much. If I can't accomplish it, and you are willing, PM me and I will make copies and I will physically mail them to you. I do understand that involves a bit of trust, so I will attempt to scan them in and learn something new.

My descriptiion is actually pretty accurate. I'm not sure how mechanically oriented you are, so please do not take offense. The adjustment screws are exactly what I described above and where I said they are, on the Grand Touring anyway. Basically, you position the car on level ground facing a white wall (like the side of a building) and start turning the hex heads with a 3/8" ratchet and the proper socket (probably in mm.) You might want to use a short extension to clear and minor obstructions near the adjuster behind the headlamp housing. The hex head also has a slot going across it if a slotted short screwdriver makes it easier to rotate the adjuster. If using a ratchet and socket or even the slotted screwriver, be very careful not to strip the adjuster mechanism by applying tension beyond the maximum point of adjustment (up or down), as these adjusters will not spin continuously without reaching an endpoint, Understand that on the GT, the only adjusters are up/down. There are no lateral adjusters since these headlamps are active and move into and out of turns. I'm not sure if the Sport or Touring models have lateral adjusters. Since they are not active, they may or may not, depending on the vehicle model. My Infiniti has lateral adjusters because it does not have active headlamps (even though they are HID's). Conventional wisdom is to place the car about 25 feet away from the wall or whatever whitish screen you choose; however, Mazda specifies that the adjustments be done from 9 feet away. Finally, make sure that both sides are level with eachother, hence the reason for placing the vehicle on level ground to begin with.

I hope this makes sense, and in the interim, I will try to post the pages from Mazda. Just a heads up, the adjusters look a slight bit different on Mazda's diagram, but the location is dead on and the principle is the same. The same slight discrepancy rang true for Mazda's diagram of my 2008 CX-9 headlamp housings. Turning the adjusters in one direction lowers the aiming of the lamp, and turning in the othe direction raises the aim. If I recall, rotating the hex head left lowers the aim, and rotating it right raises the aim (or vice versa).

I hope this helps in the meantime, and welcome to the forum. There are a lot of Mazda enthusiasts here with good information and there's another forum with the name of our car and the word club behind it, also an excellent resource. It's not allowed, apparently to specifically name another forum here, because when i tried to link some images from over there to here, the system placed asterisks in place of the forum name in the URL. So google our car name with no spaces and the word club with no space, and of course add .com to get to that forum. Once there, look for the 3rd generation Mazda 6 thread(s).
 
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I will attempt to scan them into my computer and attach them into a post. I know my cars, computers, not quite so much. If I can't accomplish it, and you are willing, PM me and I will make copies and I will physically mail them to you. I do understand that involves a bit of trust, so I will attempt to scan them in and learn something new.

My descriptiion is actually pretty accurate. I'm not sure how mechanically oriented you are, so please do not take offense. The adjustment screws are exactly what I described above and where I said they are, on the Grand Touring anyway. Basically, you position the car on level ground facing a white wall (like the side of a building) and start turning the hex heads with a 3/8" ratchet and the proper socket (probably in mm.) You might want to use a short extension to clear and minor obstructions near the adjuster behind the headlamp housing. The hex head also has a slot going across it if a slotted short screwdriver makes it easier to rotate the adjuster. If using a ratchet and socket or even the slotted screwriver, be very careful not to strip the adjuster mechanism by applying tension beyond the maximum point of adjustment (up or down), as these adjusters will not spin continuously without reaching an endpoint, Understand that on the GT, the only adjusters are up/down. There are no lateral adjusters since these headlamps are active and move into and out of turns. I'm not sure if the Sport or Touring models have lateral adjusters. Since they are not active, they may or may not, depending on the vehicle model. My Infiniti has lateral adjusters because it does not have active headlamps (even though they are HID's). Conventional wisdom is to place the car about 25 feet away from the wall or whatever whitish screen you choose; however, Mazda specifies that the adjustments be done from 9 feet away. Finally, make sure that both sides are level with eachother, hence the reason for placing the vehicle on level ground to begin with.

I hope this makes sense, and in the interim, I will try to post the pages from Mazda. Just a heads up, the adjusters look a slight bit different on Mazda's diagram, but the location is dead on and the principle is the same. The same slight discrepancy rang true for Mazda's diagram of my 2008 CX-9 headlamp housings. Turning the adjusters in one direction lowers the aiming of the lamp, and turning in the othe direction raises the aim. If I recall, rotating the hex head left lowers the aim, and rotating it right raises the aim (or vice versa).

I hope this helps in the meantime, and welcome to the forum. There are a lot of Mazda enthusiasts here with good information and there's another forum with the name of our car and the word club behind it, also an excellent resource. It's not allowed, apparently to specifically name another forum here, because when i tried to link some images from over there to here, the system placed asterisks in place of the forum name in the URL. So google our car name with no spaces and the word club with no space, and of course add .com to get to that forum. Once there, look for the 3rd generation Mazda 6 thread(s).

Hi Badself,
that worked! I was able to figure it out from your directions. Thanks so much
Alex
 
Hi Badself,
that worked! I was able to figure it out from your directions. Thanks so much
Alex

My pleasure, Alex.

For future reference, those little teeth behind the hexhead are there for a reason. If you shine a flashlight down the round hole on the top radiator support (between the oval hole and the termination point of the radiator support on each side), you will see the plastic bolt and the washer with the teeth behind the bolt head). It's an exact vertical drop. The teeth are there so you can take a very long Phillips head screwdriver (or a long and very thin flat head screwdriver) and drop the screwdriver down the hole until you hit the teeth and then use the head of the screwdriver to maneuver the metal washer left or right , thus accomplishing the same motion as turning the hex bolt head with a ratchet and socket. If you have large hands or one side is obstructed more than the other (in our cars the headlamp on the right front of the car is slightly more obstructed posteriorly), you can accomplish the adjustment using the long screwdriver down the radiator support hole method.

Again, happy to help.
 
For me I used a small 8mm gearwrench and my tiny hands - it worked like a charm. Raising them about a finger width's higher at 3' from the garage wall made a huge difference and I'm still not so high I'm blinding anyone. I highly recommend those that are motivated give it a try. Nothing has to be removed to do this.
 
Can someone post a picture of this adjuster? I'm afraid I might have messed my aim up on one of my HID's and I'm not clear on where the adjusters are. Is it the white plastic cover (with small "scoops" on top) with the small white plastic bolt head in the middle? The pass side of what I'm referring to is under the coolant overflow bottle.
 
Yes it's a white nylon bolt, 8mm in size, and is tender. I could only access mine with a gearwrench as I said above, other tools would mar the bolt head too much and not allow the tiny bolt to be turned.
 
Headlight adjustment

I just had the dealer say they can't adjust them which I thought was bs. Do u remember which way raises the lights? Thanks


For me I used a small 8mm gearwrench and my tiny hands - it worked like a charm. Raising them about a finger width's higher at 3' from the garage wall made a huge difference and I'm still not so high I'm blinding anyone. I highly recommend those that are motivated give it a try. Nothing has to be removed to do this.
 
You guys are going about it wrong and risk damaging the nylon nut using a wrench on it. See the "teeth" around the nut that look like a gear? Now look directly above the gear and there is a hole in your radiator support on the pass. and drivers side. Insert a 6" long #2 Phillips screwdriver into the hole until it makes contact with the gear. You can now raise/lower the headlights by turning the screwdriver clock/counterclockwise.

Here's a pic:
 
For me I used a small 8mm gearwrench and my tiny hands - it worked like a charm. Raising them about a finger width's higher at 3' from the garage wall made a huge difference and I'm still not so high I'm blinding anyone. I highly recommend those that are motivated give it a try. Nothing has to be removed to do this.

Is clockwise up?
 

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