I hate to even make a thread about this:

I have followed Shiftice's page instructions on how to align my headlights after a drop. Understand, the instructions and actual process are a NO brainer! I've re-aligned my headlights successfully!

Here is what I just cannot wrap my little mind around. If you lower a car, you should re-align your lights. So, for simplicity, let's say you lower your car 1" and go to align your lights. Measuring to centerline of the headlights should be essentually 1" lower than stock, again, just keeping it simple.

So, set the car's distance from a wall, and verify the upper horizontal edge is 2.1 inches below the centerline (as indicated on the wall).

Question: If my headlights were properly aligned originally, shouldn't they still be properly aligned after being lowered? Shouldn't they still be essentially 2" below centerline?

Also, if I am lowered, instead of the alignment being required to be set at 2" below centerline, shouldn't it be 1" below centerline (assuming a 1" drop) in order to get the same coverage of light as running at stock height? So a 2" drop would equate to the alignment being level with the centerline measurment.

It just seems that if I am lowering the ride height of the car, then lower the headlight beam, I am shortening the distance my headlights will illuminate in front of the car. What am I missing?

 

When I did my headlight adjustment after lowering my vehicle, I just parked the car on the street with nothing in front of me, then raised the lamps until they were high enough but not blinding on coming vehicles, haven't had a problem since and the light coverage is great.

 

Technically, they're not "properly aligned" anymore though...the angle is still the same, but the light output in front of the vehicle has changed.

But basically, yeah, you're still aligned the same as before...Which means:

Yeah. Seems to me you'd need to "compensate" for the lowering of the car by "raising" the beam more (less distance from centerline)

What you're saying makes sense to me. We can get into angles and vector triangle diagrams and **** if we want, but what you're saying makes sense.

 

Oh by the way, you can adjust them from side to side as well!

 

After lowering, I haven't reaimed my headlights and they're pretty much in the same spot

 

Then you probably aimed them straight or close to straight (horizontal). When you aim straight, 1' drop even 2" is hard to tell from 50' away.

The bad thing about lowered car is that you now have less distance coverage if you aim the same. You can't aim high since it will blind others too. My max is 1.5" lower and I have 1" drop from 30' With my old Accord, it as 2" drop with lowering spring and I aimed them straight, but my cut off was not that sharp ( OEM FX35) so it should be easier on the incoming driver than if it would have been razor sharp clear lens.

 

Correct.

 

You could trig it out and get all the hard number, but in the end just drive the car in the parking lot and find an small/smallest car you can find and where the beam is landing. Ideally you want it on their headlights at 20-35' and flat ground. If you see the steering wheel than you are too high, if you see the licence plate then you are too low. Somewhere in the between is OK IMO