CX-5 Headlight cutoff WAY too low?

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ejmcguir

Member
:
2014 CX-5
I bought a 2014 CX-5 (GT w/ Technology Package) about 6 months ago, and one of the things I was really excited for was the adaptive HID headlights. My other car is a VW GTI that also has HIDs which are probably my favorite feature of the car.

The first time taking the CX-5 out at night I was amazed at how low the cutoff is. The cutoff on the HIGH beam is lower than the cuttoff for the LOW beams in my GTI.

I haven't bothered to research it much because I assumed it was due to the fact that the CX-5 is higher off the ground, so the cutoff has to be lower to not blind oncoming traffic. In my GTI the projectors can project straight ahead and not blind anyone, but in the CX-5, that would blind anyone in a vehicle lower than the CX-5.

I now am very uncomfortable driving this car at night on the interstate, because I am easily "overriding" the headlights, meaning if a deer was in the road, by the time they are in my headlights, there is almost no chance of stopping or swerving to avoid them. This is not the case AT ALL in my GTI.
With headlights this good (and expensive), I find it extremely unacceptable how useless they are.

Is anyone else having a similar problem? Is this just a given for all SUVs w/ projectors, or can I adjust the cutoff to aim them higher?

Thanks!
 
Where is the cutoff and where do you expect it?

The cutoff in my 2014 GT w/ Tech sits right below a car's rear window. This is because they are so bright you can't go around blinding everyone else. You should also notice that the left cutoff is a bit lower than the right so that you aren't blinding incoming traffic on a two lane road. The Highbeams I don't believe have a cutoff, mine seem to illuminate everything, but I could be wrong.
 
It's hard to say where the cutoff is w/o measuring a distance.

I know how Projectors work w/ the cutoff, so that's not surprising to me. The right side is higher than the left as expected to avoid blinding oncoming traffic and there is a very sharp cutoff which is a good thing.

My problem is that (this is an estimate) at say 50 feet ahead, my headlights are below the car in front of me. In my GTI, the car can be 200 feet in front of me and I'm still projecting at their trunk / license plate (yes my GTI has Projectors and HIDs, just like the CX-5).

It's very clearly aiming downwards in the CX-5 as opposed to straight ahead in the GTI. This is why I think it's the nature of being in a higher car, if they projected straight ahead, it would be in peoples eyes whereas a lower car can project straight ahead without blinding anyone.

In terms of the high beams, they do still seem to have a cutoff and it's very low (this is surprising, because the "shudder" should be all the way open w/ high beams on, so there shouldn't be a cutoff).

tobeychris said:
Where is the cutoff and where do you expect it?

The cutoff in my 2014 GT w/ Tech sits right below a car's rear window. This is because they are so bright you can't go around blinding everyone else. You should also notice that the left cutoff is a bit lower than the right so that you aren't blinding incoming traffic on a two lane road. The Highbeams I don't believe have a cutoff, mine seem to illuminate everything, but I could be wrong.
Click to expand...
 
Take a picture of the cut off height at a reasonable distance. Granted the CX-5 is aimed relatively low from factory, it shouldn't be as significant as you mentioned. The mounted height of the projectors do play a roll in factory aiming. It is true that tall vehicles with projectors normally have the projectors angled at a downward slope more so than a compact car. Exactly what you mentioned in your post.

You can adjust them higher using the adjustment screws behind each projector. You can see the toothed bolt head that can fit(if i recall correctly) a 10mm socket. I forgot which orientation it is to aim the projector higher, I want to say counterclockwise. Mark the cut off for BOTH projectors at a 25ft distance from a wall. At that distance, it should be aimed at the average height of a car mirror. When you adjust the cutoff height, make sure you not only adjust one, but BOTH ACCORDINGLY. Also notice each cut off has a "step" in the cut off beam. The driver side of the beam will be lower, then as you move across the cut off beam to the passenger side, there will be a "step" up. It is best to also take a picture as well as marking the cut off on the wall before you adjust them. Worse comes to worst, you can return the beam patterns back to original settings.
 
Last edited:
Pro-tip - mark the adjuster on the headlight housing with a sharpie before you get started. Makes it easy to find the original settings again if you make a mess of things.

I'd recommend giving it about 1/2 turn on each side, any more and you'll start pissing off other drivers.

You can use a fat phillips screwdriver.

Search around, there are other threads on the topic.
 
The Bi-Xenon headlights in the CX-5 illuminate the road better, especially the width, than anything I've had in the past. Only had the car for about 5 weeks and when passing someone at night they wash-out their light pattern on the road 90% of the time. :) Headlights shouldn't point too far ahead and as other have said, you'll just tick people off.
 
ejmcguir said:
IThe first time taking the CX-5 out at night I was amazed at how low the cutoff is. The cutoff on the HIGH beam is lower than the cuttoff for the LOW beams in my GTI.
Click to expand...

The high beam doesn't have a cutoff. Sounds like something is wrong. It's under warranty, take it back to the dealer.

The adaptive HID's are one of my favorite features as I drive on a lot of unlit back roads at night. EXCELLENT headlights!
 
I have the same issue as the OP, the lights defiantly have a lower cut of than my xtrail with the same lights, something I noticed immediately I used them.

I didn't realise they were adjustable, so will ask the dealer next week when I see them.

Note- never was flashed by drivers with the Xtrail, so I do think the cutoff can be raised.
 
The CX-5 lights have an extremely tight cutoff. Essentially NO bleed-over which means on a dark road it is dark beyond the cutoff. Lights are to be aimed downward, slightly. If you have ever been in front of a CX-5 at night, with it following you, every time the CX-5 hits a bump you will swear they turned the high beams on, as the cut off now rises above your car, and you are flooded with light.

Here is a very good article about aiming lights:

http://www.danielsternlighting.com/tech/aim/aim.html
 
Thanks for the quick replies guys! It's very relieving knowing this forum exists and it's as active as it is.

I will try to get some pictures to post and maybe some measurements to see how far my lights are projecting before the cutoff hits the ground.
 
I like the low beam lights, cut off it's quite sharp and takes a little time to get used to it, but my cut off is very high up, much higher than previous cars do it sounds like there might be something wrong with the OP's setup. Maybe the setup is country dependent? I remember on old (much older) cars, you would get them set for the MOT, then go home and notch them up a little, 1 minute job with a screw driver, enough to see a bit more, without annoying other drivers too much.
 
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