-
Want to remove ads? Register an account and login to see fewer ads, and become a Supporting Member to remove almost all ads.
After market headlights
- Thread starter Neilio
- Start date
I just been checking my '2021' M3 lights in a shed because I'm convinced they're too low, I can't seem to see where I'm going on dip.
They look to have changed the lights on the newer M3 and they have very good spread (I think) but they seem pretty much flat, no uptick on the left (that fires into the hedge) which you normally see on most UK lights. (i suppose that will mean no adjustment for france).
But done the tape on the shed wall thing and they are very low. Strangely tho, when you go into the adjustment mode to move them, then set them up. Once you leave the adjustment mode, they seem to then drop. It's like something is different in adjustment mode, then something else comes into play when you exit.
I do wonder whether I might see if I can visit a local MOT garage sometime and have them set there.
I wondered if something like another high rear-screen internal braking light could be fitted to the rear glass but comprising bright white LEDs for reversing purposes or some variant of the floodlight but with masking to ensure there's minimal light leakage into the car?
Manually switched would be fine (run it off the fag lighter socket?)
A large torch with an angled suction cup for inside the rear window might work too - I've not seen anything like that for sale
Manually switched would be fine (run it off the fag lighter socket?)
A large torch with an angled suction cup for inside the rear window might work too - I've not seen anything like that for sale
Glan gluaisne
Active Member
It has it's plus and minus points! Keeping the car clean is a never-ending battle, and the hordes of pheasants that invade the garden and do battle with their own reflection from the car (damaging the paint in the process) are a couple of the other downsides. I did get a great shot on my old dashcam of a red kite, taking off from the middle of the road, heading straight for my car. It was feeding on a deer carcass, one of the unlucky ones that had had a fatal encounter with a car. It's wingspan was around 6ft at a guess, completely filled the windscreen and only just cleared the roof of the car (I think it may have misjudged whether it was over max take off weight when full of venison). It's a mixed blessing living in an AONB and Dark Skies area, too. It makes it a great place to live, but it does mean that getting consent to do things (like building this house) can be a bit difficult (it's essentially one step down from being in a National Park). It also means always remembering to have torches charged and ready to go, as it really can be so dark that when walking around the lanes here at night you have no idea where the edge of the road is.
ACarneiro
Active Member
I have recently adjusted mine as oncoming motorists started flashing their lights at me. I used my garage doors to check the relative positions of the headlights which showed the the offside light was pointing high. I readjusted it slightly lower than the nearside light. This seemed to work, even though my driveway slopes back towards the road as motorists stopped flashing their lights at me. However, on dipped beam the headlights only illuminating ~50 m ahead. So I readjusted them to bring both head lamps up higher. So far after a week and a half of driving, no one has flashed me and the road ahead is well illuminated. Also unlike before, my headlights do not illuminate the car in front when following at a normal distance at 50 mph.
As the headlights are so easy to adjust from inside the car, doing it by trial and error is a reasonable strategy and saves having to visit a friendly garage or a service centre.
My M3 is a 2019 M3P.
As the headlights are so easy to adjust from inside the car, doing it by trial and error is a reasonable strategy and saves having to visit a friendly garage or a service centre.
My M3 is a 2019 M3P.
MrBadger
Badger out
I had never seen the point of turning (fog lights when turning) lights until Model 3, but on experience of roundabouts (and similarly tighter turns) with Model 3 and how hard the dropoff is to the sides I can see that this would be a useful feature.
I found it really useful on sweeping country roads it just illuminated more of where you were actually going
MrBadger
Badger out
A few comparative pics of old LED vs new matrix headlights on a US Model Y.
tbh, doesn't look to be much in it although newer matrix does seem to have a bit longer throw which is good, but in these scenarios the benefits seem negligible. At first sight, I prefer the fade in beam pattern of the older units - I just get a sense that they infill better some of what are darker areas on the matrix lights, especially closer to the vehicle, although mentally adjusting for RHD, maybe matric better illuminate the near (kerb) side. But at end of the day, its how well they illuminate when driving that counts but from those, not quite the night and day difference I was expecting.
Nothing to suggest if the new matrix lights may one day become adaptive.
teslamotorsclub.com
tbh, doesn't look to be much in it although newer matrix does seem to have a bit longer throw which is good, but in these scenarios the benefits seem negligible. At first sight, I prefer the fade in beam pattern of the older units - I just get a sense that they infill better some of what are darker areas on the matrix lights, especially closer to the vehicle, although mentally adjusting for RHD, maybe matric better illuminate the near (kerb) side. But at end of the day, its how well they illuminate when driving that counts but from those, not quite the night and day difference I was expecting.
Nothing to suggest if the new matrix lights may one day become adaptive.
New Matrix projector LED vs "old" reflector LED headlights comparison on US cars
Ok guys here they are! I've been contemplating whether I should get a Model Y Performance vs a Y LR. Luckily I was able to secure an overnight YP with the new matrix projector loaner this weekend. I already have a model 3 with the "old" LED and a buddy down the street happens to own a YP with...
teslamotorsclub.com
Last edited:
People are calling them matrix lights but that seems to be basically a belief based on the knowledge that the logical next step up from projector headlights are “Matrix LEDs”, and it seems to be something people are familiar with, as a term.
I watched the RSymons video and the light throw is definitely different, giving a staggered/steps pattern, but I think people conflating that to be “matrix” are setting themselves up for disappointment, in my opinion.
Notwithstanding how long Tesla seem to take to do anything actually meaningful (if it’s a bugfix or new skins for Fallout Shelter they’re all over it like a tramp on chips) the fact they haven’t even sorted MIC SR+s being able to upgrade to heated steering wheels doesn’t fill me with confidence that they’re going to “unlock” some groundbreaking matrix-like tech any time soon. Why even deliver the cars with something so fundamental missing?
I watched the RSymons video and the light throw is definitely different, giving a staggered/steps pattern, but I think people conflating that to be “matrix” are setting themselves up for disappointment, in my opinion.
Notwithstanding how long Tesla seem to take to do anything actually meaningful (if it’s a bugfix or new skins for Fallout Shelter they’re all over it like a tramp on chips) the fact they haven’t even sorted MIC SR+s being able to upgrade to heated steering wheels doesn’t fill me with confidence that they’re going to “unlock” some groundbreaking matrix-like tech any time soon. Why even deliver the cars with something so fundamental missing?
That model Y comparison is a different beam pattern than ours in the UK. It's very symmetric and flat in those images, whereas ours have a pattern that drops down towards ongoing traffic and not on the other side. The "matrix" lights on mine don't give the beam pattern shown in images in that thread.
The matrix headlights clearly allow different beam patterns per global market. I find them really good here.
The matrix headlights clearly allow different beam patterns per global market. I find them really good here.
PR-UK
Member
I assume they are being termed 'matrix' because they are made up of a matrix of LEDs rather than a single LED or group focussed via a lens.
As for whether they'll ever be adaptive or be able to draw pretty patterns on the wall/road when you approach the car who knows. I just assumed they'll be slightly wider/brighter than the previous versions and left it at that.
I don't think we'll ever get the dream of adaptive headlights. As I understand it they are still illegal in the US, I think the regulations state the beam should be a fixed shape.
This is a crying shame as I find adaptive headlights such a wonderful safety feature. True, my last set were significantly brighter than the Tesla ones but changing with steering, dipping only the parts of the matrix that are blinding other drivers and spreading out when you approach a roundabout (to better illuminate both entrance and exit) are safety features that should be encouraged.
Similar threads
