[m3jala]

I recently had a dealer address some suspension and alignment issues for me. When I got the car back, the adaptive headlights were pointing up (as if I had the high beams on).

When I spoke to the dealer, the answer I got was "sure, we'll adjust your headlights" which makes absolutely no sense considering it was working fine before, and the only thing they touched was the rear suspension. On reading the forums, it seems like this a fairly common issue, and worse still, it seems like many shops are not addressing the issue correctly by instead band-aiding it with a headlight adjustment.

The adaptive headlights have an auto leveler that is tied to sensors on both the front and rear wheel assembly. These sensors are mechanical and are attached on one end to the stationary body and to the moving wheel support. When the wheel support moves, the sensor detects the position and together with the front and back knows how to level the headlights.

The back sensor is designed in a way where it is very easy to install incorrectly, as it is a double jointed arm which by gravity falls into an incorrect downward position. When it is in this position, the headlights are fully extended up.

The below pictures show you the angle of approach to take on the car. Rear driver side wheel needs to come off, and you will see the sensor in the wrong position from the rear side of the suspension. You will need to remove a screw on the lower joint and reposition the arm on the lower sensor.

Credits for this fix go to other members. I just posted some clearer photos than I found and put it into a dedicated DIY as I saw the solution buried in a couple posts out there. Hopefully this helps prevent wasted time and money for some of you out there.

Good luck!