Hey y'all, just got a very weird question.
I have been one of the newest member to the "broken headlight" club.
After trying to obtain a new one , on line, and not being too sucessfull, i've decided to pull
it apart and try the old epoxy fix.
Now when I pulled the light apart I noticed there is a piece of half moon shaped metal between the headlight bulb and the projector lens. I find it kinda stupid that this would be there to block the light, so I removed it.
Does anyone know why this is there? By me removing it, will it cause a problem?

 

If it is on the low beam, it probably controls the light pattern. Some HID systems use a shutter to allow for flashing since HID requires a warmup that is too long for instant flashing.

In the former case, you will blind oncoming drivers.

In the latter case, your main beams will always be exposed, again blinding drivers.

If you leave them out, someone may decide to fix the problem for you ... permanently.

 

why wouldn't they just put a lower watt bulb instead of blocking half of the bulb?
do you know for sure that is the reason or you are assuming?

 

That my friend would be the "cut-off shield." I suggest you put it back in immediately. What you are doing is very illegal, and VERY, VERY UNSAFE. It's what keeps the low beam low and to the ground, instead of everywhere blinding everything in sight. Without that, you're essentially driving with the high beams on at all times.

With the shield in, it aids the projector bowl in controlling where the light is dispersed. This is what the light beam looks like with it in. That straight line across the top of the beam is thanks to shield. It keeps the light low where it needs to be to be a proper low beam.


This is what your beam looks like pretty much with the shield taken out. Under normal circumstances, this is what high beams look like if you have the bi-xenons. In those systems the shield is flipped out of the way via an electromagnet (or other system) to let the light disperse everywhere. It's essentially the same as you taking the shield out completely. Light is scattered everywhere, especially upward.



Is what I'm saying making sense? I suggest you do your homework very thoroughly before attempting any similar modifications to your headlights - for the sake of your safety, as well as everyone else on the road.

 

Thank you very much for your input, I will replace the schield before reassembly today.