Wietse350Z

Hey guys,

Yesterday i've replaced my damaged radiator support frame.
As i had to remove the headlights i've found some things not correct.
The orange indicator light bulb fitting could not be installed because the hole inside the housing seems to be too big.
Questions me if there is a difference in the US and european specs?

Also on the electric motor for adjustment is not installed, instead there is a manual adjuster, which imo can not be removed. (didn't want to force it and break the thing.)

Looking at the interior i can not find any switch for adjusting the headlights so i don't know why these motors are on there, the driver side does have it installed but the passenger side one is not and just hanging there.

Anyone run in to these problems before?
Personally i think that the previous owner had a damaged headlight and replaced it with one from the US, after found that the bulb fitting is different and used tape to keep it in place
And as the motor could not be installed he ty-wrapped it on the frame.....

Any suggestions welcome.

Jennifer 2

Wietse, Euro cars with HID headlights have always had automatic leveling devices. (North American cars only got these many years later) There will be an auto-leveler sensor attached to one side of the rear suspension linkage. When you start the car it measures the weight distribution front to rear of the car and adjusts the headlight aim accordingly. The US spec headlight you have on one side of your car will have manual adjusters, one for up/down and one for left/right adjustment.

dcains

iTrader: (15)

I don't have any left/right adjustment on my '08 lights, just the vertical.

Wietse350Z

Jennifer,

Thx for explaining that.
I was looking everywhere for a switch to adjust the lights :-)
Guess i will have to start looking for a r/h headlight unit, problem here in europe is they are pricey, even second hand.
But it disturbs me big time that this car has a quick fix hidden behind the headlight, some people don't give a damn so to see.

Edit: This headlight has only one adjuster for up/down.

Jennifer 2

The left left/right adjuster is at the top of the unit under a round gray green steel cap. It was a devil for me to find and is not described in the factory service manual. A charming and handsome member here (Bmccann101) answered my inquiry with a picture of a light unit that was out of a car showing the mechanism. Here is a link to the thread with some pictures I posted demonstrating removal of the cap and a tool on the adjuster.
https://my350z.com/forum/maintenance...ml#post9624672

Wietse350Z

Haha, charming and handsome....he must be floating on a pink cloud by now :-)

Thx Jennifer, at least i know now how to adjust it in case i will need it to pass the yearly road test.
I will see if i can hunt down a headlight unit to replace this one.

dcains

iTrader: (15)

Hmmm, don't ever recall seeing that cap on my '08 lights. I have pics of an '08 headlight from just about every angle (I was selling it last year), and I don't see the horizontal adjuster in them, either:

http://deanwcains.smugmug.com/Other/...dlight-4-sale/

In any case, my lights are nice and straight, so no issues on my car.

Wietse, I'm curious to know if there is any difference in the light pattern between the Euro and US headlights. Have you ever pointed them towards a wall and taken any pics to compare them?

Jennifer 2

Dcains, look at picture #4 in your link, the little steel cap is visible.

dcains

iTrader: (15)

It sure is - thanks - I see it now.

Wietse350Z

dcains, i guess the light pattern is the same.
But the angles might be different, here in the Netherlands both lights do not point straight forward to prevent blinding on other cars and light up the area right next to the road a bit as well.
Maybe for spotting drunk-ditched people :-)

I've seen these black version headlight units from DEPO on ebay for around 320 dollars but don't know if these are good quality, i've read some bad things about them on the forum here, maybe some of you guys have experience with these?
Maybe i am better off sticking with OEM to prevent moisture etc.