Do I have self level lights.?

SimplyRed · Post by **SimplyRed** » Fri Apr 27, 2012 1:51 pm

How do I know if I have this? Is it standard?

Up to now every car I owned with xenons had self level lights and all the halogen lit cars did not.

My X5 does NOT have xenons, but I am confused because when I turn my headlights on they do that little dip and rise again as though it would have self level. I also have the little adjustment next to the headlights to make them go up and down which is something I assumed self level lights did not need.

So do i have self level lights or not. I have never noticed them move other than on startup. ???

Cann anyone shed and light? boom boom.

weirdfish · Post by **weirdfish** » Fri Apr 27, 2012 1:57 pm

As you say, normally halogens do not and xenons do, if you have a look underneath the front of the car you should see a micro switch on the front RH side suspension lower arm, this is the levelling sensor.

X5Sport · Post by **X5Sport** » Fri Apr 27, 2012 2:27 pm

If you have a little adjuster on the lighting control panel then you do not have self-levelling. The headlight units will move to a default position and then adjust to what the control wheel/adjuster is set to.

Cars with Self-Levelling have no internal adjuster in the cabin.

SimplyRed · Post by **SimplyRed** » Fri Apr 27, 2012 11:31 pm

So if I get pulled by the Police, I literally have zero chance of convincing them that my aftermarket Xenons are factory.

Raj · Post by **Raj** » Sat Apr 28, 2012 7:47 am

[quote=""SimplyRed""]So if I get pulled by the Police, I literally have zero chance of convincing them that my aftermarket Xenons are factory.[/quote]

If you have projectors then the likely hood of being pulled for your HID kit is far reduced anyway as they will still look OE. Also you do have washer jets as standard also and have self levelling rear suspension.

Most won't even look at your lights if you were being pulled unless they were blatantly blinding everyone.

X5Sport · Post by **X5Sport** » Sat Apr 28, 2012 10:51 am

Agree...

If the lights are correctly set when you install them then it's very unlikely you will have any issues. Given the number of non-compliant (I'm being gentle) installations out there that nothing gets done about, you would be lower on the target list, especially as the E53 came with these type of lights - unlike the Citroen Saxo/Vauxhall Corsa......

Raj · Post by **Raj** » Sat Apr 28, 2012 11:48 am

[quote=""X5Sport""]Agree...

If the lights are correctly set when you install them then it's very unlikely you will have any issues. Given the number of non-compliant (I'm being gentle) installations out there that nothing gets done about, you would be lower on the target list, especially as the E53 came with these type of lights - unlike the Citroen Saxo/Vauxhall Corsa......

[/quote]

Agreed. I know peeps with non projector headlights and hid kits and even when pulled at random the lights have never been mentioned as an issue...

kkodal78 · Post by **kkodal78** » Sat Apr 28, 2012 2:34 pm

as far as the self leveling vs manual goes, you still have motors to control the leveling one does it via sensor/switch mentioned above the other is a switch inside. either way the motors get tested by the module to make sure they still work when lights turned on. thats why you see the lights go up and down when you turn it on.

SimplyRed · Post by **SimplyRed** » Tue May 01, 2012 9:58 am

[quote=""kkodal78""]....the motors get tested by the module to make sure they still work when lights turned on. thats why you see the lights go up and down when you turn it on.[/quote]

For years I always thought that was the lights levelling. Doh!

So that little rise and dip the lights do when you turn them on has absolutely nothing to do with whether the car has self levelling lights or not.

I have to say, the X5 is the only car I have ever owned that does that yet does not have xenons. I thought the two went hand in hand.

X5Sport · Post by **X5Sport** » Tue May 01, 2012 10:19 am

Xenons were standard on the upper V8 models, but an option on everything else. Indeed on most of the BMW Models that remains the case. It's just one of those odd BMW traits that almost everything is an extra - even though it really ought to be standard on a 'luxury' car. But then to be fair, they aren't standard on most cars unless you're buying the top trim level. We even had to pay for them on the Mini.

The only BMW I've had that came with them as standard is the X6 40d. That now comes with full LED headlights as an option - for an extra Â£1,600 though.

pvr · Post by **pvr** » Tue May 01, 2012 11:25 am

Standard on all M models as well.

There is a new MOT directive though where they will check the headlights. Wonder if it passes that though?

lezmtaylor · Post by **lezmtaylor** » Tue May 01, 2012 11:42 am

Had my wife's Honda civic in for mot last week and took off the xenons I had fitted and put back in the original halogens.
Need not have bothered as they told me they are still not part of the mot check yet.
Lez

X5Sport · Post by **X5Sport** » Tue May 01, 2012 11:52 am

Interesting.....the MOT Handbook issued to all garages and that came into force on the 4th Jan 2012 makes it very clear that they are part of the checks. Nothing on the VOSA, VCA or DfT site for MOT Testers that says any different (or at least not that I've found yet). I guess we're still in the transition phase and there are people who either don't know, haven't read the new book, haven't been retrained....or don't care..

It's always been the issue with the MoT that some places will go 'by the book' and others just wander round giving the car the odd prod and poke and missing some important stuff. If you query anything it comes down to 'interpretation by the tester'. Makes a bit of a mockery of it really. But then you could say the same about large sections of the whole motor trade if you were really unkind - or honest..

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