Focus Headlight Adjustment not working

Gregy · 07-06-2019, 08:38 AM

My partner has a 2009 LV Focus - it is the base model (I think CL is the model)
A few years ago she blew both low beam halogen headlamp bulbs and went to an auto electrician to have them replaced. Ever since then the light pattern has been really strange - an upside down "V" shape rather than the horizontal line with a 30° upward sweep at the left sides. The lighting on the road is also very poor.
I finally decided to do something about it. I assumed (incorrectly) that the sparky had used inferior quality globes or didn't fit them correctly, so I replaced them with a set of Osram Night Breaker Unlimited H7 globes. These are definately whiter and brighter, but still have the inverted "V" pattern and poor lighting. I then realised the strange pattern is probably because the lights are aimed far too low in front of the car.
I drove to a wall made some markings 50MM lower than the headlight centres and reversed bay 7.5M and attempted to adjust the lights using the white nylon adjustment screws with the 7MM in hex (on top of each light)- but nothing happened!! I turned these first clockwise dozens of times and dozens of times anti-clockwise and the light aim did not move at all. I did he same with the other headlight and the aim of this headlight didn't move either.

Can any one offer any suggestions as to why the headlight adjusters on both headlights don't work and how to remedy this?

**GasoLane** · 07-06-2019, 08:54 AM

Not sure if this will be any help but last year I had the complete RH headlight replaced on my (non Ford) car after bumping into a Roo.

RH light pattern was all over the place. Seems the panel beaters apprentice somehow managed to install the globe upside down!

Gregy · 07-06-2019, 09:36 AM

Thanks for the suggestion, but that is not the problem. There is a locating tab on the globe with fits into a cutout on the back of the headlamp. The auto electrician had installed the globes correctly with the tab in the cut out and I made sure I did the same when I installed the replacement globes

CatonaPC© · 07-06-2019, 12:16 PM

Long shot. Has you partner owned this car from new? Has it been in a smash where the headlight assembly had to be replaced?

Gregy · 07-06-2019, 12:21 PM

She bought it when it was about 12 months old. It doesn't appear to have any accident damage repaired on the front end, but it could have had a minor shunt where the headlights have suffered some damage or have been replaced

CatonaPC© · 07-06-2019, 07:48 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Gregy

but it could have had a minor shunt where the headlights have suffered some damage or have been replaced

Okay, this is what I was thinking. If the headlight was damaged and, in turn, replaced, it would not be the first car to have a headlight replaced with one designed for cars that drive on the right. Some repairers will source a cheap replacement designed for cars that are used in countries that drive on the right hand side of the road.

Check the cutoff lines etched on the glass of each headlight and see that they are angled in the same direction. If not, it's a fair bet the entire headlight assembly would need to be replace, not just the globe.

What I'm suggesting is a long shot, but worth checking.

Gregy · 07-06-2019, 09:26 PM

Good suggestion, but that's not it. There are no etched cut off lines on the glass in front of the low beam reflector, the glass is completely clear. Even if replacement headlights had been incorrectly sourced for a Left Hand drive model, this doesn't explain why the white nylon headlight adjusting screws make no difference to the point of aim when turned both clockwise and anti-clockwise on both headlights.

JasTDi · 12-06-2019, 02:44 PM

I had this issue with my 2010 LV. I couldn't get any of the right adjustment out of it. I had a bulb blow recently so changed out the bulb.

I found that when I changed the bulb the beam pattern changed. What has happened was that the person who put the bulb in before me had not seated the bulb properly. Look into the front of the headlight. If you can see any gap at all between the reflector and bulb its not fitted correctly.

Gregy · 12-06-2019, 07:55 PM

Good suggestion and that was what I thought at first (read my original post). But just to confirm, I looked through the front of the headlight lens and inspected where the base of the bulb mates with the reflector and there is no gap and there is even surface to surface contact. I once again removed the headlamps and double checked that the 2 pins of the globe where completely inserted into the socket and they were. I refitted the bulbs with the tab on the bulb facing upward and located in the cut out on the back of the reflector. The slots on either side of the socket mated with the guides on either side of the rear of the reflector and the socket locked firmly in place. I turned on the lights and went for a drive and guess what?? ........ nothing changed. Still awful light pattern and poor lighting

In Focus · 13-06-2019, 07:43 PM

This link any help?

https://www.fordownersclub.com/forum...cus-any-ideas/

Gregy · 13-06-2019, 08:56 PM

WOW !! I think you are on to something and that link you sent me was most informative. As far as I knew there was only one 7MM in hex nylon adjustment screw for each light (at the top of the top of the light). But when I look from the top down the side of each light there is another 7MM in hex nylon screw. This is difficult to locate without a torch especially as it was covered in a lot of dust and grime. You would need a very long 7MM hex driver or an extension to reach it, but I did find that a long flat bladed screwdriver will fit into the hex and I was able to turn it.
I will have a play around with this screw one night on the weekend and see if it works.
Many thanks for the information. I will report back how I go !

Gregy · 14-06-2019, 10:43 PM

I aimed the headlights at a flat wall 7.5M away and proceeded to turn the LOWER nylon adjustment screw and the aim of the lights started to rise! I tried to aim about 50MM below the center line of the light, but before I reached this point I ran out of adjustment and the adjustment screw just went "click" "click" I still had the strange inverted "V" shape light pattern as before, but at least the lights were now much higher. I went for a drive and the distance of the light throw was greatly improved and much better lighting of the road.
I then tried High Beam (separate reflector with H1 bulb) and the high beam lights were shining up into the trees! Obviously the point of aim of both low and high have gone up when I adjusted the low beam (the high beam was previously aimed correctly) - so obviously there is something wrong with the low beam reflector or bulb mounting. Any ideas?

CatonaPC© · 15-06-2019, 09:04 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Gregy

Any ideas?

Find another exact same model Focus and look at the headlights and check to see if they are any different in design or pattern on glass. I still think the headlight assembly might be dodgy and not designed for left-hand drive country.

In Focus · 15-06-2019, 08:02 PM

Not sure on this, but look for stuff about the Focus Mk2 update (or mk 2.5), which is what they called this model in the UK. There are a lot more forums for Focuses over there.

brucewarring · 16-06-2019, 10:59 AM

As I have said on a previous thread, the 'eyebrows' on my lights are on the right hand side and they should be on the left..my focus is Sth African and the lights are marked LHD, I brought another set from eBay 'guaranteed RHD and when you peel the sticker off it says LHD

AMB · 17-06-2019, 11:00 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Gregy

I aimed the headlights at a flat wall 7.5M away and proceeded to turn the LOWER nylon adjustment screw and the aim of the lights started to rise! I tried to aim about 50MM below the center line of the light, but before I reached this point I ran out of adjustment and the adjustment screw just went "click" "click" I still had the strange inverted "V" shape light pattern as before, but at least the lights were now much higher. I went for a drive and the distance of the light throw was greatly improved and much better lighting of the road.
I then tried High Beam (separate reflector with H1 bulb) and the high beam lights were shining up into the trees! Obviously the point of aim of both low and high have gone up when I adjusted the low beam (the high beam was previously aimed correctly) - so obviously there is something wrong with the low beam reflector or bulb mounting. Any ideas?

Remember the first time you tried adjusting and nothing was happening? Maybe you were turning the high beam adjustment and didn't know it. Just a guess, I dont know focus.
With the low beams, the usual thing to do when you run out of adjustment in one direction, is to loosen the bolts that hold the whole headlight assembly, move it in the desired direction then retighten to lock it in place. The idea is to move it a bit too far in the required direction so then you can wind back the adjuster.

Gregy · 26-06-2019, 10:32 AM

The firt time I tried to adjust and nothing happened, I was actually using the left-right adjustment and not up and down (at that time I thought there was only one adjustment screw - when there are in fact 2). The Focus doesn't have a seperate adjustment for high and low beam - just 2 screws, up and down and left and right which adjusts both low and high beam at the same time.
As for the lights being from a left hand drive model rather than a right hand drive model, is not the case. I have taken photos of the headlights of several other LV Focus's and the makings on the glass are identical. Even if they were the wrong lights this woulld only effect the aim of the lights from side to side with the lights pointing to the right side of the road rather than the left. My issue is the up and down adjustment and the unusual inverted V light pattern

AMB · 26-06-2019, 12:04 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Gregy

The firt time I tried to adjust and nothing happened, I was actually using the left-right adjustment and not up and down (at that time I thought there was only one adjustment screw - when there are in fact 2). The Focus doesn't have a seperate adjustment for high and low beam - just 2 screws, up and down and left and right which adjusts both low and high beam at the same time.
As for the lights being from a left hand drive model rather than a right hand drive model, is not the case. I have taken photos of the headlights of several other LV Focus's and the makings on the glass are identical. Even if they were the wrong lights this woulld only effect the aim of the lights from side to side with the lights pointing to the right side of the road rather than the left. My issue is the up and down adjustment and the unusual inverted V light pattern

Fair enough. Just trying to help out. So high beam is automatically adjusted when you adjust the low beam, as normal.
You have tried to lift up the low beam, and had to go so far that the high beam is now pointing to the sky.
The upside V patttern sounds to me like the globe is somehow installed upside down. But I dont think that applies with h7 globe, dunno.