help needed to adjust headlights on C5 est 2.2derv exclusive with xenon lights for travelling abroad,
handbook no help any would be appreciated
ellis
handbook no help any would be appreciated
ellis
headlights on citroen C5 est
- Thread starter Ellis_5063253
- Start date
Although i am no expert on Citroen cars I doubt whether you will be able to adjust the headlamps far enough to be legal in Europe. All UK cars are fitted with lights that dip to the left, whereas all European cars have vertically dipping lights. Their cars are legally allowed to be driven in the UK without further adjustment, ours are not legally allowed to be driven in Europe. Don't ask me why we don't have the vertically dipping lights as well. I suspect manufacturer profiteering.
The correct way to meet the law is to fit stickers to the lights. Halfords sell kits at around 6 pounds which are designed to fit just about every car on the road. I fitted a set this year and they lasted the whole 3 months we were away without falling off. Removal was easy using soapy water. Do fit them tho', it is better than risking a long discussion with the Police on the other side.
The correct way to meet the law is to fit stickers to the lights. Halfords sell kits at around 6 pounds which are designed to fit just about every car on the road. I fitted a set this year and they lasted the whole 3 months we were away without falling off. Removal was easy using soapy water. Do fit them tho', it is better than risking a long discussion with the Police on the other side.
Hello Ellis,
I also have Xenon headlamps on my C-Class, and regularly commute to Rotterdam for work.
Please don't do what Scotch Lad suggested - the light from the Xenon lights will bond the masks onto the polycarbonate lenses. His advice is perfectly OK for normal Halogen bulbs - but a real no no with Xenon discharge headlamps.
You have two solutions:
1. Ask the Citreon garage to adjust the headlamps to symmetrical pattern - which is legal in Europe. This is what I've had done.
2. Buy a set of plastic headlamp protectors (clip over the normal lenses) and fit the masks to these - it doesn't matter if the masks bond to the protectors, you just take the masks off when you return and keep them safe for your next trip.
Xenon headlamps must have automatic level control as standard - so you can't change the headlamp vertical height - which would be another solution for normal Halogen headlamps with manual control.
Robert
I also have Xenon headlamps on my C-Class, and regularly commute to Rotterdam for work.
Please don't do what Scotch Lad suggested - the light from the Xenon lights will bond the masks onto the polycarbonate lenses. His advice is perfectly OK for normal Halogen bulbs - but a real no no with Xenon discharge headlamps.
You have two solutions:
1. Ask the Citreon garage to adjust the headlamps to symmetrical pattern - which is legal in Europe. This is what I've had done.
2. Buy a set of plastic headlamp protectors (clip over the normal lenses) and fit the masks to these - it doesn't matter if the masks bond to the protectors, you just take the masks off when you return and keep them safe for your next trip.
Xenon headlamps must have automatic level control as standard - so you can't change the headlamp vertical height - which would be another solution for normal Halogen headlamps with manual control.
Robert
Solution No. 1 is by far the better of the two.
Placing any transparent headlamp protector in front of the lens will increase scatter and consequently the danger of dazzle, especially with xenon headlamps which are sensitive to dazzle anyway (hence the requirement for automatic level adjustment). This would defeat the object of the exercise.
Placing any transparent headlamp protector in front of the lens will increase scatter and consequently the danger of dazzle, especially with xenon headlamps which are sensitive to dazzle anyway (hence the requirement for automatic level adjustment). This would defeat the object of the exercise.
I stand corrected on xenon lights, I can't afford a car that has them.
However, I question the comment that changing the vertical alignment will have any value. It is a legal requirement in the UK that UK registered vehicles have lights that dip to the left. Changing the vertical alignment will make no difference to that. Many cars nowadays have 2 bulbs for the headlamps instead of 2 filaments in one bulb, as in days of old. If the dip bulb can be adjusted to the vertical then this is acceptable, however, on return to the UK they need to be re-adjusted back to UK requirements. This all needs to be done by a garage using the correct machinery. The days of marking chalk crosses on a wall no longer apply.
Why we cannot have the same lights that will be acceptable throughout all Europe is still a question that puzzles me.
However, I question the comment that changing the vertical alignment will have any value. It is a legal requirement in the UK that UK registered vehicles have lights that dip to the left. Changing the vertical alignment will make no difference to that. Many cars nowadays have 2 bulbs for the headlamps instead of 2 filaments in one bulb, as in days of old. If the dip bulb can be adjusted to the vertical then this is acceptable, however, on return to the UK they need to be re-adjusted back to UK requirements. This all needs to be done by a garage using the correct machinery. The days of marking chalk crosses on a wall no longer apply.
Why we cannot have the same lights that will be acceptable throughout all Europe is still a question that puzzles me.
Hi Scotch Lad,
Quite agree - modern headlamps (of all types) are so much very better than those from the 1950's or earlier when the asymmetric pattern was introduced to the UK.
The legal requirement is that the headlamps should not dazzle oncoming traffic, so by pointing the headlamps down - you can comply - but it's not as satisfactory a solution as a symmetrical beam pattern (or a mask).
Robert
Quite agree - modern headlamps (of all types) are so much very better than those from the 1950's or earlier when the asymmetric pattern was introduced to the UK.
The legal requirement is that the headlamps should not dazzle oncoming traffic, so by pointing the headlamps down - you can comply - but it's not as satisfactory a solution as a symmetrical beam pattern (or a mask).
Robert
To digress slightly it does raise an interesting scenario vis a vis the discussion going on regarding breakaway cables in Holland.
If the Dutch police are going to prosecute British caravanners for not following the Dutch laws on breakaway cables, then should we be prosecuting Dutch drivers for not following the British lighting laws? Neither is an issue of proven safety failure, merely interpretation of a rule. Arguments in Strasbourg perhaps??
If the Dutch police are going to prosecute British caravanners for not following the Dutch laws on breakaway cables, then should we be prosecuting Dutch drivers for not following the British lighting laws? Neither is an issue of proven safety failure, merely interpretation of a rule. Arguments in Strasbourg perhaps??
Little would be gained by such tit-for-tat. The behaviour of the Dutch police certainly seems rather over-zealous to me, especially as not all towbars have a dedicated anchorage point for the cable. Sounds to me that some officer is getting extra bonus points (or worse still, a percentage rake-off) on all successful prosecutions.
Like Scotch Lad says, this has nothing to do with safety, it's pure bloody-mindedness.
Going back to the subject of headlamp readjustment, I have been told that Toyota here in Germany actually recommend exchanging the complete headlamp units when coming over to the UK. Bearing in mind the cost of such a conversion, I think that would put most people off coming to the UK on holiday by car. I suspect that the recommendation is just to keep their own backs clean and to avoid potential litigation issues if a foreign registered Toyota was involved in an accident involving dazzle as the proven cause.
Like Scotch Lad says, this has nothing to do with safety, it's pure bloody-mindedness.
Going back to the subject of headlamp readjustment, I have been told that Toyota here in Germany actually recommend exchanging the complete headlamp units when coming over to the UK. Bearing in mind the cost of such a conversion, I think that would put most people off coming to the UK on holiday by car. I suspect that the recommendation is just to keep their own backs clean and to avoid potential litigation issues if a foreign registered Toyota was involved in an accident involving dazzle as the proven cause.
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