I have bought Toyota for a number of years now but find on every model I have purchased the projection on dipped headlight bean has been appalling!! on full beam its fine !!
I just wonder if other makes are the same and if other Toyota owners find the same problem .I know it may depend were you drive (dark country lanes ) but just wonder if it is a Toyota thing or all modern cars are like it now
And before anyone suggests I get an eye test had one last week :-)
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I can't comment on Toyotas but in all the cars I've driven, the more modern the car, the better the headlights on dipped beam. I was recently made redundent and had to buy my own car to cover whilst I had no company car. The headlight performance was easily one of the biggest differences between newer cars in my opinion.
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The dipped lights on my Altea are very good indeed. Broad well defined well lit pattern (non xennon)
Why they are so good I dont turn my foglights on at night any more. (well sometimes)
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Quite variable in my experience. On recent cars in our household there has been a noticeable difference. The Ka is good, the Mondeo is very good, the Signum lights were poor and the Qashqai has excellent dipped beams but I'm fairly sure they are xenons so they should be I suppose. Worst in relatively recent years were on my Xantia, not only did they have a poor beam but it blew bulbs for a hobby.
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The headlights (with original bulbs) on my P reg Fiesta
are still better than either 06 Picasso(uprated Osrams)
or 58 Panda.
It is not age related degeneration as I have driven all 3 cars in the last week.
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Agree with HBB, the Xantia has the worst headlights I've used since a Mini City. The Berlingo is better but still not up to the standard of the BX.
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Big improvement if you sling a couple of Philips Extreme or similar high intensity (legal) bulbs in.
Shop around should get a pair for around £20, every bit as good as those xenon things some rave about.
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Perhaps the previous ones were badly adjusted and the latest ones have correct allignment...
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I just wonder if it will have an effect on the warranty if new bulbs are put in !!
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I just wonder if it will have an effect on the warranty if new bulbs are put in !!
Can't see why CB, they're still 60/55W or whatever the current spec is.
Got them in 2 vehicles, 13 year old Mb with rectangular lights and 2 year old Toyota pick, big improvements in both, particularly noticeable on those intense black nights when the roads are wet and your normal lights might as well be off.
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I just wonder if it will have an effect on the warranty if new bulbs are put in !!
Shouldn't do; on most car warranties that I know of, bulbs are specifically NOT covered by it.
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You need vastly more light to see as you get older, and you don't have to wait until pension age either. This explains to me why my parents always seemed to be saying "how can you read in here without the light on?"
From an article found, as it happens, on Bedford Borough Council's website but I assume ratepayers in other authorities are similarly affected:
Eyesight can deteriorate gradually with age. An older driver may not realise their eyesight has deteriorated but it may be reducing their sight significantly, causing them to be at risk on the road. Poor eyesight can be a particular problem at night. The minimum amount of light needed for a person to be able to see is known as the absolute threshold and this increases as people get older. For every decade over 25, drivers need twice the brightness at night to receive visual information and therefore by age 75, some drivers may need 32 times the brightness they did at age 25 in order to be able to see properly. Glare can also be a particular problem to older drivers. Between the ages of 15 and 65, the recovery time from glare increases from two to nine seconds, and susceptibility to it also increases. Therefore, if a vehicle using main beam appears suddenly round a blind corner, this could prove problematic for the older driver who may have been dazzled, and it may take up to nine seconds for their eyesight to recover ? by which time they may have travelled a considerable distance.
from tinyurl.com/yj2h9bl
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I was just waiting for an answer like that!! I better send my licence back then :-)
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Mk1 Focus headlights were pathetic - like candles on dip and not a lot better on main beam. I hope they've improved.
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Mk1 Focus headlights were pathetic - like candles on dip and not a lot better on main beam.
I had a 1999 Mk I and I now have a 2003 Mk I, both with good headlights. My eyesight suffers from age-related deterioration and a big proportion of my night-time journeys consist of fast driving on rural A and B roads, so I need good headlights ~ which my Mk I Focus has. There must have been something wrong and abnormal about your car's headlights.
Edited by L'escargot on 12/10/2009 at 10:45
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I was just waiting for an answer like that!! I better send my licence back then :-)
Serious point really, not suggesting that there is anything wrong with your eyesight, just that it works differently as we age. I can cope with my relative lack of fitness and senior moments, but the thing I really hate about ageing is my deteriorating sight so I've been researching and pestering opticians about it.
At a mere 56, I still don't need correction for distance but I am aware that I need much more light for reading etc. than I used to. I had a very thorough eye test a few weeks ago and am assured I am in good nick, it's just the "absolute threshold" of light needed that increases steeply with age. Must be the downside of evolving as hunter-gatherers who snuffed it at 35.
My son, 24, although very shortsighted, is often to be found reading in what amounts to twilight and I have turned, inevitably, into my Dad.
Edited by Manatee on 11/10/2009 at 13:01
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and I have turned inevitably into my Dad.
When you first realise it's happening you're horrified, but i have nothing but the utmost respect for him and his kind so i'm actually proud of it.
Really amusing to hear my son sometimes, at 30 he's a smashing chap and when he's in rant mode i can hear my Dad again...great..;)
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At 20 my son is a little git. I think i was too at that age.
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No offence was taken hence the :-)
My daughter also complains about the dipped beam when she drives the car !!
Edited by cuthbert 1 on 11/10/2009 at 13:19
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I have a 57 plate Avensis and have to agree that compared with my CRV, and my old Saab, the headlights are quite poor - but I knew all that before I got the car thanks to the discussion forum on Honest John!
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Having owned Toyota's for a few years now Avensis and Verso I was not surprised that the dipped headlights were poor !!
I just hoped that as it was a new model they would have improved the headlights on dipped !!
The earlier Avensis did have problems with the bulbs melting in there holders
I have booked it in at the dealer to be checked and will ask if changing the dipped headlight bulbs will effect the warranty
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Like others have said, my 07 plate Avensis has really poor dipped beam. I'm afraid to install brighter bulbs because of the previous incidents of melting bulb holders plus the fact that changing one of the bulbs requires moving the battery.
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Rally bulbs all the way. Teach those little fog lit baseball hatted loons a thing or two when you decide to go 3 phase on them.
Ha ha MD
I'm bored.
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I believe the bulb holders were changed from plastic to metal on the later Avensis and those that were repaired under warranty
I may be wrong but i think it was a real pain changing the bulbs in the Avensis !! you needed very nibble fingers
Edited by cuthbert 1 on 12/10/2009 at 21:35
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Have any of you ever driven a 6V Beetle?
Edited by Chris S on 14/10/2009 at 13:32
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......>> Have any of you ever driven a 6V Beetle?
Yes. I used to travel from Notts to my Army base in Wiltshire in one; hideous thing. Also suffered various 6-volt motorcycle lights which weren't a lot better.
I suspect many on here aren't old enough to remember the old 410 tungsten bulbs which predated the 472 halogen ones; ironically these in turn are found wanting by the newer bulbs.
The old tungsten ones really were pathetic, but did have the advantage of forcing drivers to keep night-time speeeds down to a sensible level, or face the consequences
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Have any of you ever driven a 6V Beetle?
Yes - I used to own one. Dreadfully ineffective headlights..... even worse than a Mk1 Focus.
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Cuthbert,
I have a Verso and the dipped beam isn't that brilliant - with the fogs on it's much better but I don't like using them unless it is actually foggy. Quite a few grumbles on the Toyota owners' club forum too. Mind you, they are much better than those on the Polos I've had in the past.
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Just an observation, whilst they look good I find the 'projecter' type halogen dipped beams (fitted to the previous Avensis IIRC) subjectively worse than more conventional Fresnel reflector / lens headlamps with conventional Halogen bulbs.
For example, 6 years back my (then) A4 B5 (I think that was the model) had the projectors and SWMBOs MK4 Golf at the time with Fresnel reflectors seemed much better to me.
These days, I was too mean to pay for HIDs on my new E91 BMW but find the Fresnel reflectors to be OK, SWMBOs CIvic has the unusual combination of HIDs with Fresnel reflectors and subjectively these are better.
I recall an improvement (late 90s) when cars moved from Fresnel lenses to Fresnel reflectors with clear lenses, less chromatic abberation / impedence perhaps ?
I keep meaning to try the 'brighter bulbs' but never get round to it, some commentators seem to rate these highly.
The one nice feature of many projector headlamp soluitons is that it is possible to switch them between left and right hand drive without loss of light through beam benders or blanking tape.
Edited by idle_chatterer on 14/10/2009 at 22:34
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Thanks everyone for your replies !!
I have booked the car in to have them checked out if there is no fault then I will ask about replacement with perhaps a better bulb.
A friend who has a BMW 5 series says his lights are also pretty poor which did surprise me a little
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The current AutoExpress magazine (issue 1085) has a test / review of various bulbs. The standard Ring Autobulb is recommended. The other bulbs recommended were all Philips. The halfords bulbs may have been among the most expensive but among the worst quality.
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Not too happy with the spread and range on dipped beams of my FL Octavia. But on dark and winding minor roads, fog lights make a major difference in being able to see the verges.
If the bulbs pop, I may consider an Osram upgrade. Meanwhile I'm looking at the scars on the back of my hand from when I replaced the bulbs in my B5.5 Passat.
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The dealer had a look at the headlights and said they were all set up correctly !!
I asked about whether it would effect the warranty changing the dipped bulbs and he said it would invalidate any problems concerning the headlights so I think I will just have to put up with it !!
From the replies I have received it seems to be not a uncommon problem !!! My personal opinion is if you take HID headlights out of the discussion headlight technology has not moved on very much over the years
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You can buy on ebay an uprated headlight wiring loom for VWs. I've not tried it but my previous car, a Mk4 Golf had really dim headlights. My new BM 320d is far, far superior. It has standard headlights, not projector, not HIDs.
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Best lights - 2006 Espace.
Worst orginals - 2000 and 2003 Zafiras.
Worst -replacements the Halford bulbs in my 57 Megan. Originals were fine, but one blew. Decided to up rate them a little and getting the good one out it broke. Never mind - two new bulbs later everything appeard okay. Oh no - much worse than originals. Now booking in to Renault to get sorted.
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Strange to relate - I have have had two new H1 dip bulbs this year on the CRV. First replacement was fine.
When the second one popped, I used the replacement from a "RAC" branded spare bulb set I have had for a while. It was feeble and now I've taken it out I can see it's already obscured by deposits on the inside f the glass.
Meanwhile headlamp bulbs appeared among a stack of motoring products* at Lidl, £3.99 a pair. Branded Tesla I think. Blue 'chav' ones or "+20%" ones, so I bought some of the latter thinking that they might be higher powered. They aren't, they're 55W like all the others.
Odd thing is, having put one in to replace the poor RAC one, it is whiter and brighter, as well as having a perfect beam pattern.
*incidentally, went in for silicone oil spray. Good for door rubbers, stops them hardening and sticking with frost.
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Worst, Renault Laguna's x 2
Best, Astra G (Suprisingly) and Vectra C
The Renaults full beam was only as bright as the Astra G's Dipped, full beam on both of my Vauxhalls is truelly so bright its unbeleivable
Edited by redviper on 21/10/2009 at 09:11
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