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Selecting dipped beam on my 2017 F-Type V6S is about the same as turning them off. They are set so low as to be scarily ineffective. My dealer is some distance away so I thought I'd set them up against my garage door using my other car (which is perfectly set up) as a reference. Anyone know if there are user-available adjustments, or is this a specialist dealer job?
Introduction of the LEDs is so recent that very few would have found a need yet to adjust them.
Yeah, but apparently the factory sets them extra-low, just as they did the older Bi-Xenons. I mean, pointing into the ground? Come on...
The link I posted mentions adjusting the screw 1/2 turn clockwise to raise them, but on our F, I found the best road illumination at 3/4 turn higher. The beam still drops away, farther from the car, so they don't glare in the eyes of oncoming drivers.
I know that European manufacturers LED units are quite sophisticated (thinking Audi and Mercedes headlamps) so my advice may not apply.
As the clocks have gone back and it's dark in the UK before 5pm now, I decided to experiment with this. I parked my other car on the drive and lit up the back of the garage with a dipped beam. I then marked the cutoff points with tape. I then parked the F-Type in the same spot, opened the bonnet, and found some adjusters on each lighting unit. The black ones look like they're something to do with self-levelling, so I left those alone. The white adjusters move the beam up and down. The left headlight took 1 turn to raise it, the right took 2 turns. Pleased to say it's now absolutely perfect. Hope this is useful for anyone else with very low LED headlights.
Last edited by planet_FType; Nov 15, 2018 at 09:16 AM.
The answer is yes, the LEDs have a similar adjustment method to the HIDs. Smaller/lower/inner white adjustment screw raises or lowers them, looks like it can be done with a Phillips screwdriver but a 6mm Allen wrench is a perfect fit for the screw head. Turn clockwise to raise the lights, counter-clockwise to lower. Do 1/2 turn at a time and check.
Just a follow-up on this thread for those searching for the answer on the 2021+ F-Types with new nose. The LED headlight assemblies now have a single adjustment point for up-and-down. It is a bright yellow inset adjustment screw that can be turned either with a Phillips-head screwdriver or a 6mm Allen wrench (same tools as the older models). However, the adjustment direction is opposite from the older models (although it intuitively makes more sense now). Turn clockwise to lower the aim, counter-clockwise to raise the aim. I highly recommend using a right-angle 6mm Allen wrench (see below) because you can easily visualize a quarter or half turn. This is the driver's side headlight on a left-hand drive car.
A little is a lot, so start with no more than a quarter or half turn. Check/measure and then adjust again as necessary:
Last edited by Thunder Dump; Dec 4, 2022 at 09:13 PM.
The first time I drove my 2021 F Type at night it was immediately obvious that the headlights had not been properly adjusted at the factory. I live up in the mountains and there are no streetlights in the residential areas nor along the State Highway. And on moonless nights, it is dark around here. The risk of hitting a deer, coyote or coming around the corner to find big rocks in the road after a storm at night is high. The headlights were pointing about 25 feet in front of the car. No bueno.
I used an Allen wrench to crank the nylon socket head screws like Thunder Dump shows above. I found a tutorial online that tells how to adjust the lights (not specifically on a Jaguar) by measuring the height of the car, parking it on a level surface a certain distance from a garage door and then adjusting the beams to strike a certain height on the door. That didn't work as my driveway is far from level, I live on a steep hill. So I just cranked both of them up, went out for a drive with the Allen wrench in my pocket and pulled over a couple of times to fine tune the height until the beam throw was satisfactory.
Selecting dipped beam on my 2017 F-Type V6S is about the same as turning them off. They are set so low as to be scarily ineffective. My dealer is some distance away so I thought I'd set them up against my garage door using my other car (which is perfectly set up) as a reference. Anyone know if there are user-available adjustments, or is this a specialist dealer job?
one could find this info on Topix, with a daily subscription (assuming they still do that)?
Very useful forum! I've just had an MOT failure, due to nearside headlamp aim too low. I've had a look myself (after reading this forum) and it seems that the nearside adjuster is at its upper limit for raising the beam, clicks and skips if i turn it clockwise any further (albeit, marginly lower than the offside). Any advice on what could be causing the nearside one to not raise the headlamp aim higher? Offside seems fine and raises with no problem. (Hoping its something simple and not a replacement headlight unit)!!!
Very useful forum! I've just had an MOT failure, due to nearside headlamp aim too low. I've had a look myself (after reading this forum) and it seems that the nearside adjuster is at its upper limit for raising the beam, clicks and skips if i turn it clockwise any further (albeit, marginly lower than the offside). Any advice on what could be causing the nearside one to not raise the headlamp aim higher? Offside seems fine and raises with no problem. (Hoping its something simple and not a replacement headlight unit)!!!
For our Murican friends, nearside = left hand side.
When talking about cars our Pommy friends tend to use the strange term "nearside", dunno why, except that it comes from driving on the left side of the road so that the nearest gutter is on the left side of the car.
Here in Oz we also drive on the left but we don't use the term "nearside" at all, it took me many years to figure out that it means left hand side.
For our Murican friends, nearside = left hand side.
When talking about cars our Pommy friends tend to use the strange term "nearside", dunno why, except that it comes from driving on the left side of the road so that the nearest gutter is on the left side of the car.
Here in Oz we also drive on the left but we don't use the term "nearside" at all, it took me many years to figure out that it means left hand side.
To further confuse things, we call it the near side because it's nearer the pavement, which we walk on (you call it a sidewalk).
Usually when an adjuster is maxed out and sitting too low, there is a broken mounting point on the headlamp. Easy enough to remove on the Ftype and check, but unfortunately if the lamp itself is damaged, it's not cheap to replace.
Try to turn the adjuster on other direction and see what direction the bean move. Sometimes otherside you turn ckockvise for up and anti-clockvise on otherside. (mechanics mirrored)