Det. Mickylaren

You have to switch on your lights before you turn on the ignition. Otherwise, even if you do have OEM xenons, they won't auto-level.

Also, when you turn on your lights, do they just turn on like regular lights, or do they flare up, turn blue, and then cool down to white?

The latter are xenons.


Here's a good test: at night, when your car has been off, turn on the high beams (push the turn signal stalk away from you). Turn on the ignition and look at the difference between the low beam light and the high beam light. If you have xenon lights, there will be a distinct color difference.

MB The Body

I always turn on my car first then the headlights and they still run the auto-level. Good point about the flare/color change though and about comparing it to your high beams.

Det. Mickylaren

At least on mine ('03), when I turn on the ignition, regardless of whether the lights are on, the headlights do their "dip" action. So if I wait 10 seconds before turning the headlights on, they've already done their alignment.

If I turn on the ignition and then immediately turn on the light switch, I can still see them align, though.

I think they do this simply because it wouldn't make sense to align as you turn on your lights, since you could be switching them on as you're driving and therefore not level.

MB The Body

normally I turn on the lights immediately. I was wondering why sometimes though I don't see the headlights leveling.

Now what you just said answered this for me.

I guess sometimes I'm a little slow on turning on the lights and other times I'm turning them on instantly after turning the car on.

Tgr_Clw

I know because I use to have the halogen setup.

MB The Body

We're talking about xenons though.... *confused*

Tgr_Clw

hid setup auto-aligns and halogen does not.

MB The Body

Yeah I see where you were going...