Lowered X5, constantly being flashed by oncoming traffic

[aroach04]

Hey Guys,
My X5 is on H&R's in the front, links in the rear, and almost every night I get flashed by oncoming traffic when my high beams aren't on. I'm assuming the oncoming traffic thinks my high's are on, and aren't happy being blasted by my LED headlights.

Has anyone else that's lowered their X5 had to adjust their headlight height, and if so, how did you adjust it? I wasn't able to find any instructions on the web specific to the F15.

[Mexecutioner]

I haven't run into this problem after installing the ACS springs. Maybe my logic is wrong, but shouldn't the lights aim a tad lower now that the car isn't as high as it used to be before?

[alphaod]

Just flash them back.

But sometimes it's just dips in the road... which look like you're being flashed if your car sits lower than before.

[r33_RGSport]

Originally Posted by aroach04

Hey Guys,
My X5 is on H&R's in the front, links in the rear, and almost every night I get flashed by oncoming traffic when my high beams aren't on. I'm assuming the oncoming traffic thinks my high's are on, and aren't happy being blasted by my LED headlights.

Has anyone else that's lowered their X5 had to adjust their headlight height, and if so, how did you adjust it? I wasn't able to find any instructions on the web specific to the F15.

Do check on the installation.
Sometime the leveling sensor came off and causing the headlight to aim higher than it supposed to be.
With all of the cars that I lowered or sold lowering springs to, never had issues with it.
But, keep in mind, if you have LED headlamp, most drivers doesn't know that all 4 light are supposed to be on and they think that your high beam is on.
How I know? I got that a sometime, and after I blast my actual high beam, they turn off their high beam.

[MysticBlue]

If you are being flashed all the time, your lights are aimed too high. Adjust them down. Not exactly rocket science. If they can't be adjusted to where they need to be, then the position sensor on your aftermarket suspension was not installed correctly.

[aroach04]

Originally Posted by MysticBlue

If you are being flashed all the time, your lights are aimed too high. Adjust them down. Not exactly rocket science.

Thanks for your feedback

[MysticBlue]

Sorry, didn't mean to sound harsh. But, if before the suspension modification, you weren't getting flashed, and after the suspension modification, you are getting flashed, then it's pretty obvious... You need to adjust the aim down.

[aroach04]

Originally Posted by MysticBlue

Sorry, didn't mean to sound harsh. But, if before the suspension modification, you weren't getting flashed, and after the suspension modification, you are getting flashed, then it's pretty obvious... You need to adjust the aim down.

When I got the vehicle it was already lowered, so I can't speak to what it was like before. I was hoping someone could point me towards how to adjust them. Is it an adjustment at the headlight level, or does the adjustment happen at the leveling system?

[Almaretto]

Originally Posted by aroach04

When I got the vehicle it was already lowered, so I can't speak to what it was like before. I was hoping someone could point me towards how to adjust them. Is it an adjustment at the headlight level, or does the adjustment happen at the leveling system?

Is vehicle coded for NGHB?

[aroach04]

Originally Posted by Almaretto

Is vehicle coded for NGHB?

Nope,
I've been wanting to try this out, but got a bit confused with all the back and forth in the main thread.

[MysticBlue]

LED lights (Xenon also) low beams and high beams are equally bright. Unlike lights of old, the difference between low beam and high beam is just cutting off the upper aim of the lights up higher. If the eyes of oncoming drivers is below the cutoff, they will see no difference between high beam and low beam. Old lights used to be aimed differently but the low beam was also lower wattage so even if your aim was off, it still wasn't quite as bright on low as it was on high. LED makes no difference if it's low beam or high beam, it is equally bright. Avoiding blinding oncoming drivers with your lights is completely dependent on them being aimed properly. If they are aimed too high, the low beam cutoff is above oncoming drivers eyes, so they see a car with their high beams on. This is why you are being flashed. Now, lets talk about the suspension. The lights automatically move their aim up and down based on suspension position. This is so if you load a bunch of heavy stuff in the back, (assuming they are adjusted right to begin with) it won't blind oncoming drivers because it is now aimed too high due to the load in the back. The way it does this is with little suspension position indication instruments on the suspension that tells the lights whether they need to move up or down. I'm quite sure that whoever did your suspension modifications either didn't hook those back up properly, or, at the very least, didn't adjust things properly after reinstallation. You can start by adjusting the the starting point of your lights down. Open the hood. Behind each light housing is a white hex type adjustment. Down should be clockwise. I would park in front of a wall with your lights on while you do it to make sure it's going the right way. Adjust it down a couple of turns and see if it makes a difference. When you get to a point where you don't get flashed very often, then it's probably about right. This is assuming the suspension position indicators were reinstalled in the first place. To confirm they are even there and functional, with the car running and parked in front of a wall, or garage door, and the lights on, open the tailgate and sit on it. You should be able to see slight movement of the light beams as they adjust for the different suspension position. (You might need a fat friend or two to help if you're not very big).

[r33_RGSport]

To add MysticBlue information.
On BMW F15/F16 X5/X6 F85/F86 X5M/X6M, the Xenon headlamp only uses 1 of the outer lens on each side. The inner lens is a dummy.
While the LED headlamp, all 2 lens are lit on each side.
So, if you have the Xenon headlamp, there is no adjustment on the inner lens.

[MysticBlue]

Originally Posted by aroach04

Nope,
I've been wanting to try this out, but got a bit confused with all the back and forth in the main thread.

You should definitely get this straightened out before trying any coding.

[aroach04]

Originally Posted by MysticBlue

You should definitely get this straightened out before trying any coding.

Thanks for the info a few posts up. I'm going to dig into coding anti-dazzle, just need to install the software and such again. I did some basic coding before, so hopefully it won't be too hard to figure out.

Thanks

[admranger]

check that the leveling sensor arms didn't get messed up when the lowering suspension was put in. My 2011 M3 rear sensor arm was flipped so the lights were aiming higher than they should be.

[JonM]

Check your headlight aim.

The easy way to do this:

1. Park 25 feet away from a wall on a flat surface.
2. Measure the height off the ground of your headlights (center) and their width (centers).
3. Transfer those measurements onto the wall. Use blue tape for the aim points.
4. Turn on headlights. The center points of the beams should be at least 1" lower than the blue tape. If not, you need to manually adjust the aim.

Do also do what RG_Sport said and make sure all level sensors are connected properly and working.

[Chadmatic]

I get flashed on a fairly regular basis. I can clearly see where my LED lights are aimed as I approach oncoming traffic and they appear to be aimed properly. Considering that nearly everybody who flashes me has the old (yellow) halogen headlights my theory is that they associate the white light as bright regardless of where it is aimed.

[aroach04]

Originally Posted by Chadmatic

I get flashed on a fairly regular basis. I can clearly see where my LED lights are aimed as I approach oncoming traffic and they appear to be aimed properly. Considering that nearly everybody who flashes me has the old (yellow) halogen headlights my theory is that they associate the white light as bright regardless of where it is aimed.

Is your X5 lowered?

[stewy604]

I constantly get flashed as well, and I'm on ACS springs/links. I'm guessing this depends on how low you have the rear set, since the links "trick" the rear air bags to run lower than OE. With the rear being lower, would that not project the lights upward?

[Chadmatic]

Originally Posted by aroach04

Is your X5 lowered?

Completely stock.

[MysticBlue]

The biggest problem is the cutoff between highbeam and lowbeam in these lights is very distinct. In other words, there is no transition area from dim to bright. If your eyes are a couple inches above the cutoff, they are fine. If your eyes are couple inches below the cutoff, they look like highbeams. Consequently, the aim of these lights is very important. Aimed just a little high, and people will see highbeam. So proper aim adjustment makes a huge difference. The other problem with having such a distinct difference in brightness above and below this line is that roads are not level. If you are going slightly uphill, approaching the top, and someone else is driving towards you, also approaching the top, the distinct line between highbeam and lowbeam will be pointed above their eyes. This happens anywhere the road is not level and your beams are pointed slightly higher than if you were on a perfectly flat level road. Not much you can do about this situation. Just something to be aware of when you are adjusting your light level based on how often you get flashed. I get flashed every once in awhile, but it is usually because of an un-level road situation. If you are getting flashed often, and the road is flat and level at the time, your lights should probably be adjusted down. Try a quarter turn at a time (clockwise).

[aroach04]

Interestingly enough last night when I got in and started my X5 I noticed that maybe 20 seconds after the start-up I saw the headlights make 4 or 5 incremental adjustments higher. It was maybe 1/2 a second between each jump higher, but it appears it might an issue with the leveling system.