'12 ES 350 Headlight issue...

[TheSkipper]

Recently purchased an ES 350 that had a repaired front bumper.  It has HID bulbs on the low beams.  The problem is that they are aimed too low and cannot (according to my dealer) be adjusted because the body shop messed up the lighting assembly.  Is there possibly another bulb I could replace them with that will give me better front coverage?  They currently shine only 30' or so in front of the vehicle, making it very difficult to see at night.

Thanks in advance...

[gbhrps]

TheSkipper,

The dealership MAY be correct. Several things come into play here.

Does your ES have the motorized headlights that follow the terrain as the car moves over it? That's AFLS (Adaptive Front Lighting System). If it does, then on start up you'll see the headlights move full motion up and then full down and then park at the level (about midway) of the car. After start up, the motors take their cue from the rear suspension of the car. My wife's 2011 ES has the headlight motion sensor on the rear passenger side suspension. As the car goes over bumps, and the suspension reacts, it moves the headlights up or down to maintain the same headlight beam distance down the road, and out of the eyes of oncoming drivers.

On top of that, if the radiator saddle that the headlight assemblies are attached to is not properly aligned ( meaning straight) but is bent, then the headlight beam cannot be properly aimed, motorized or not.

As for using different bulbs, just today I purchased a new H7 low beam bulb for my Subaru. One low beam had burned out. While choosing the H7 bulb, the package back advertised that I had 3 other Sylvannia choices for the H7. Each higher cost bulb was supposed to give more distance down the road. So maybe that is something you could experiment with.

On top of that, every car I've ever worked on over the last 55 years had mechanisms built into the headlight assemblies that allowed them to be aimed properly. I assume that your ES has as well.

Here's a link to another site that has the same thread, and pictures and step by step directions for what you want to do. I can't vouch for it, but it may answer your issue:

             http://www.clublexus.com/forums/es-5th-gen-2007-2012/318952-diy-headlights-adjustment.html

Good Luck!