2008 S550 Headlight adjustment woes
Thread Starter
Junior Member
Joined: Apr 2023
Posts: 23
Likes: 2
2008 S550
2008 S550 Headlight adjustment woes
I'm trying to adjust my HID headlights which are way too low. Having failed to find good documentation I resorted to application of common sense and figured out which was the adjuster screw (not hard). The LHS headlight is now correctly aligned; however the RHS one just clicks when I turn the big white 13mm nylon bolt. Before I start disassembling everything I figured I would ask the collective brain if there's an obvious fix.
Any help gratefully received
Thanks
Nick
Any help gratefully received
Thanks
Nick
Senior Member
Joined: May 2019
Posts: 305
Likes: 114
2007 S550
How much force are you applying to the adjuster screw before it clicks? If it's a slight bit of torque, it might just be stuck. Try wiggling anything you can in there while you're turning the screw and see if it adjusts a little. If there's no force at all when you're turning it, you might be at the end of adjustment. Time to take it apart and look inside.
Thread Starter
Junior Member
Joined: Apr 2023
Posts: 23
Likes: 2
2008 S550
How much force are you applying to the adjuster screw before it clicks? If it's a slight bit of torque, it might just be stuck. Try wiggling anything you can in there while you're turning the screw and see if it adjusts a little. If there's no force at all when you're turning it, you might be at the end of adjustment. Time to take it apart and look inside.
MBWorld Fanatic!
Joined: Aug 2014
Posts: 5,320
Likes: 1,676
S500
european cars with xenon's by law must have a self leveling system, and they also go through an indexing procedure when first turned on - this appears to the user, like the headlamps do a little nod when first turned on - the leveling is usually controlled via a level sensor that gets operated via a link to a suspension arm - as such its highly likely they used one of the suspension level sensors...
if pointing at the floor its usually a sign the level sensor is lying - the suspension level sensors seize and or snap off all the time on the w221 models
the lights if not molested / or broken can never go out of alignment ...so in general alignment should never ever be touched
if one is different to the other and no one has molested the car, likely a headlamp has broken inside, so don't touch the alignment
if the headlights don't follow the nodding indexing procedure at first switch on - they or a level sensor is misbehaving - thus never touch the alignment
bit of a theme there - stop touching the alignment its normally never the issue - but if you touch it you just made it another part of the mess
.
if pointing at the floor its usually a sign the level sensor is lying - the suspension level sensors seize and or snap off all the time on the w221 models
the lights if not molested / or broken can never go out of alignment ...so in general alignment should never ever be touched
if one is different to the other and no one has molested the car, likely a headlamp has broken inside, so don't touch the alignment
if the headlights don't follow the nodding indexing procedure at first switch on - they or a level sensor is misbehaving - thus never touch the alignment
bit of a theme there - stop touching the alignment its normally never the issue - but if you touch it you just made it another part of the mess
.
Last edited by BOTUS; Apr 21, 2023 at 01:12 PM.
Senior Member
Joined: May 2019
Posts: 305
Likes: 114
2007 S550
european cars with xenon's by law must have a self leveling system, and they also go through an indexing procedure when first turned on - this appears to the user, like the headlamps do a little nod when first turned on - the leveling is usually controlled via a level sensor that gets operated via a link to a suspension arm - as such its highly likely they used one of the suspension level sensors...
if pointing at the floor its usually a sign the level sensor is lying - the suspension level sensors seize and or snap off all the time on the w221 models
the lights if not molested / or broken can never go out of alignment ...so in general alignment should never ever be touched
if one is different to the other and no one has molested the car, likely a headlamp has broken inside, so don't touch the alignment
if the headlights don't follow the nodding indexing procedure at first switch on - they or a level sensor is misbehaving - thus never touch the alignment
bit of a theme there - stop touching the alignment its normally never the issue - but if you touch it you just made it another part of the mess
.
if pointing at the floor its usually a sign the level sensor is lying - the suspension level sensors seize and or snap off all the time on the w221 models
the lights if not molested / or broken can never go out of alignment ...so in general alignment should never ever be touched
if one is different to the other and no one has molested the car, likely a headlamp has broken inside, so don't touch the alignment
if the headlights don't follow the nodding indexing procedure at first switch on - they or a level sensor is misbehaving - thus never touch the alignment
bit of a theme there - stop touching the alignment its normally never the issue - but if you touch it you just made it another part of the mess
.
MBWorld Fanatic!
Joined: Aug 2014
Posts: 5,320
Likes: 1,676
S500
as I wrote - european cars with xenon's by law must have a self leveling system - there is no user intervention - it looks at the load and maintains a given headlight setting regardless of the body height - a very common feature on cars since 2000
if some idiot moved the wrong, of course they'd be wrong and you might need to put them back to standard - or indeed some child played with ride height to make it drive worse, which could again mess things up
if some idiot moved the wrong, of course they'd be wrong and you might need to put them back to standard - or indeed some child played with ride height to make it drive worse, which could again mess things up
Trending Topics
Senior Member
Joined: May 2019
Posts: 305
Likes: 114
2007 S550
If theres one thing i can be sure of, its that an automated feature of my car will stop working properly at some point. Plus, I'd imagine they installed such easily accessible adjustment screws for a reason.
MB World Stories
The Best of Mercedes & AMG
Manual Mercedes? 6 Times Sindelfingen Let Drivers Have All The Fun
Verdad Gallardo
Mercedes SLR McLaren 722 S Is Extremely Rare Example Modified by McLaren
Verdad Gallardo
8 Classic Boxy Mercedes Designs That Have Aged Like Fine Wine
Verdad Gallardo
Flawlessly Restored Mercedes 190E Evo II Heads to Auction
Verdad Gallardo
Electric Mercedes C-Class Unveiled: 11 Things You Need to Know
Verdad Gallardo
Mercedes EQS Gets A Major Update: Everything You Need to Know
Verdad Gallardo
5 Underrated Mercedes-Benz Models That Don't Get the Love They Deserve
Verdad Gallardo
Mercedes 300D Has Pushed Well Past 1 Million Miles and It Ain't Stopping
Verdad Gallardo
10 Most Reliable Mercedes-Benz Models You Can Buy Used
Verdad Gallardo
Member
Joined: Sep 2017
Posts: 80
Likes: 16
2011 S550 / 2001 S430 - RIP
I just had to readjust mine as they were shooting far to low. As for starters I have my aftermarket wheels and tires on at the moment along with me readjusting the ride height a tad bit lower than how it sits on stock AMG wheels and Pzero tires. I did take note of how many turns I did so when I switch back, I can lower the lights back to their "Alleged" height.
MBWorld Fanatic!
Joined: Jun 2020
Posts: 2,138
Likes: 871
04 E55 AMG (totaled), 07 S550 4Matic, 14 E63S
I thought the adjustment was 6mm Allen key. They adjust manually just fine and then self level from there. I used the common sense method. When I bought my car they were aimed at the ground. Actually all three of my Mercedes required adjustment after I bought them. I abhor improper headlight aim.
