A4 Avant 2004- headlights are awful!

[tom fenton]

Hello chaps. I've just bought an A4 1.9 TDI 130PD to replace my 99 A4 2.5 TDi Quat Avant.

I'm really pleased with the new car so far, it is nice to drive and feels torquey and punchy even compared to my old 2.5

However one thing that is a serious disappointment bordering on dangerous is the dipped beam headlamps- they are just terrible!

Parking near a wall, the N/S headlamp projects a strong beam with a sharp upper "line" and a slant upwards towards the N/S edge as you would expect for a RHD car.
But the O/S headlamp doesn't seem to point or focus any beam on anything in particular, despite looking more or less equally bright if you view it from outside the car a couple of metres away.
Now I'm fairly sure that this is the cause of my problem, I believe the car to have Xenon lights (can anyone say for definite?) but this is the first experience I have had with them.

So really, any comments, do the Xenon lamps go funny over time, or is there a fault with whatever focusses the beam? Or maybe the previous owner has fitted an incorrect bulb? Or really any other input appreciated. I think my next move is to dismantle it at the weekend and see if I can find anything obvious amiss.

 

[quattrojames]

Xenon bulbs will tend to go bluer over time, but the bulb pattern shouldn't alter. You may well have xenon's, they would have been an extra if they are.

A4 headlights are notoriously bad anyway, and an HID kit is a very popular retrofit. Are the headlights both moving when you adjust them with the internal dial? Sometimes the mechanism comes apart at the back of the headlight so they won't raise when you adjust the dial.

 

[tom fenton]

Hmm, maybe they are not Xenon headlamps then, is there a code to look for on the spec sticker, or any other easy way to tell?

I'm not sure it is to do with the headlamp levelling- this seems to work, but there is just no noticeable beam pattern to be seen.

 

[SmoothAssault]

Is there not an extra dial, or settings on the dash with OEM Xenons? Could be talking rubbish, but iirc there's something different.

 

[paul20v]

I would check the bulb positioning in the headlamp that has no pattern ,
H7s are always getting put in lights wrong .

 

[quattrojames]

Do oem xenons have the additional dial for the 'guide you home lights' duration?

Use THIS SITE to enter the details from your data sticker to see if xenons were fitted from the factory.

 

[BILKO1]

Have you got headlamp washers? that should narrow it down.

 

[quattrojames]

Have you got headlamp washers? that should narrow it down.

Yes it would, nice one! I knew there was a sinple way, but couldn't for the life of me think what it was!

Oem xenons will indeed have headlight washers fitted to the bumper as standard :thumbsup:

 

[SmoothAssault]

Have you got headlamp washers? that should narrow it down.

Duhhh. Why didn't I think of that straight away!? Nice one :icon_thumright:

 

[tom fenton]

Hi Guys, thanks for all your info.

My car doesn't have headlamp washers so they must not be Xenon lights. I thought they might be as they are the projector type dipped lenses but it seems not.
I will have to remove the light and have a good look at it, just need to wait until there is some daylight to do it!
Thanks.

 

[quattrojames]

All B6's have projector lights, the non xenon ones are just running H7 halogen bulbs.

 

[golf]

All B6 A4's had projectors which fools a lot pf people into thinking they are HID's.

The standard A4 headlights are dire, the projectors are good but the beam is aimed way too low and the bulbs are crap. When I bought mine I swapped them out to xenons the very same day, corrected the beam and now they're a million times better with a crisp cutoff, and good colour.

 

[tom fenton]

Hi chaps

Well good news, I got chance to have a look tonight, with the air intake duct off I found the lamp back cover missing- this will explain the couple of dead flies in there....

Then looking further the H7 bulb was connected but not clipped into place properly. So 10 secs to clip it in and we are back in business!

I then gave the light a little adjustment as it was low compared to the other side, so now they seem much better, although the next trip down some properly dark roads will see how we get on.

Does anyone know if the back covers can be bought seperately?

Thanks for the help
Tom