Drove yesterday my 2002 SE and noticed that when I go over some bumps on the road the light patern kind of shakes. Feels like loose bulb or something.
I looked and everything seems pretty solid there.

Anybody else noticed that?


Thanks.

 

Same thing here, I guess it's normal.

 

Yes, mine does the same thing.

 

Same thing with the aftermarket HID kit in my 4th gen. The bulb is really long and I think is more prone to movement, especially if your car is really tight. It kind of shakes things up a bit.

 

I read when Mercedes Benz first introduced the world to HIDs that they have an automatic level adjuster so that if the nose of the car comes up a bit (hard launch off the starter line, hitting a speed bump) the beam of light will do it's best to stay focused on the road and not momentarily blind on-coming traffic.

The result? If you go over a series of bumpies, the beam will appear to juggle around. I AM NOT SURE IF THIS FEATURE IS FOUND IN THE HID UPGRADE KITS, I do know that most OEM HID headlight assemblies have automatic leveling.

 

Yeah, I've heard the same thing about the leveling, although I don't know if the Maxima has it. Mine shakes as well. I know one thing, the first thing a LOT of people say about my Max at night is how much they like the headlights. Especially when they see them turn on ;-). Looks like a florescent bulb when you flip the lightswitch (how it flickers a bit).

 

My 2k2 owner's manual states the procedures for leveling the headlights by adjusting some bolts or screws, so I would take that to mean they are not self-leveling.

 

BMW has the self adjusting HID lights on the 7 series. It's very cool to see them in action. I went down the driveway forward and stopped just as the wheels hit the street, in about one second the headlights adjusted up so I could see down the road. As soon as I pulled onto the street, they came right back down perfect again. Same thing happens as you go over a big hill, at the top of the crest the lights jump down so you see the road, not whats up in the air. I think BMW uses laser technology to sense the road crest and car angle, then adjusts the lights accordingly. It works perfectly. The headlights are always pointed perfectly on the ground. I guess you should expect something like that from the new 7 series, which is an absolutely beautiful car!

 

Only european made cars with HID's are required to have self-leveling headlights, according to their law overseas. The only car with leveling HID's in the states is the Q45 and the QX4, I think.... Don't quote me on that. Even so, they are not automatically adjusted, only manually through a switch. Lexus offers auto leveling with their HID's

One thing I HATE about my car is that there is no tube with liquid/air, like on a leveler, to tell what height the headlights are at. You have to adjust them by looking at the beam on a flat wall and guessing if they are straight. Civic's have them, why not Maxima's?

 

The lights on my 2k altima exhibit the same symptoms, just like njmaxseltd says, it is probably the long bulb.

 

Yeah I have the same thing, guess it's normal

 

Mine do the tango.......

J/K....mine do it too

 

My new SE does the same thing. I also drove an 02 Audi A6 and that was the same way also. My opinion is that the length of the bulb combined with the beams crisp pattern makes it more noticable.

 

Both my parents' cars (a Benz and a Lexus) have self-leveling HID lights. They dont jiggle at all when driving.