my headlights are ok although not great on main beam and very dim on dip, is this normal or is something not right , would changing the bulbs make any difference, thanks, mark.

Yep, probably just need new bulbs. My recommendation

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Mark, have you a friendly local MOT station? If so, run by and ask them if they will check the beam pattern is set where it should be? Your MY had an issue with self levelling ECU’s and lots of them failed in the lower position or are missing from factory!... So many owners either find the headlamps have failed in the lower position or had the lights aimed/re-adjusted to point lower so they stopped getting flashed by oncoming drivers...

Remember in 2004 Xenon headlamps were a relatively new technology and irritated most oncoming road users!

i wonder if its the bulbs that are dim or the light projection on the road, if the latter then your theory sounds plausible Craig.. ... - .- -.




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I have to be honest that the low beam (HID) in my 2003 is woeful, and that's coming from someone used to Impreza's which are hardly the best in the business. High beam is fine but the light on dip is poor. The pattern is fine but given that the bulbs in there are of unknown provenance I suspect that it may be worthwhile putting new bulbs in. I know that in my Impreza the higher output (+120%) bulbs just don't last and after 6-9 months they usually need replaced as they've dimmed significantly. Not sure if the HID's really suffer from that same issue but it wouldn't surprise me.

Ennoch the HID's on you car are Bi-Xenon , that means the same bulb is used for high and dipped beam and all that happens is a small shutter comes down and blanke off a small part at the top of the beam to stop dazzling oncoming traffic and the halogen high beams are really only there to fill in a bit and to give you a "flash" facility because the xenons take too long to warm up . Xenon bulbs don't fade so much as yellow a bit then fail so your problem is either alignment or less likely the shutter is coming down to far , on the whole people have nothing but praise for the headlamp set up unless the get all funny about the different colour in the various bulbs and things up with LED high beams . 2008 MY Supercharged
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The halogen lamps still add enough light to make a considerable difference though, which is why the main beam often appears OK even when the HID bulbs are getting tired. It's a common misconception that the xenon lamps are much, much brighter because of the lumen figures but they also have a wider beam so the difference is not quite as big as people think because the colour temperature misleads.  Visiting from DISCO3.CO.UK
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My 2003 bi-zenons are superb on dip and main, there must be something up with yours... As has been said, flap or bulb... Pete

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..........but we still dont know from the OP if its the bulb that is dim or the actual light on the road... ... - .- -.




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sorry stan i would say its definitely dim bulbs as its been on the mot light tester device and was fine, if i stand in front of the car at night, the lights certainly seem to be dim, thanks, mark.

thanks for that Mark...gonna fit new bulbs then? ... - .- -.




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yes certainly, had a fair bit to do this week, fuel pump, boot seal, dsp, bm54, gearbox diffs and engine filters and oils, trying to get all the usual suspects done before the wife takes a shine to it , transfer box is about the only thing left,

Do you have a code reader Mark? To check for codes in the LCM or either headlamp?

yes craig got the britpart lynx, will have a look, thanks for all the help