I'm getting flashed... and not in a good way either!!!

[jason.oneill4]

Hi Folks,

I have a T6 with LED headlights and have noticed that they appear to be dazzling drivers in the opposite oncoming lane. They are self-levelling so I can't adjust them... They are extremely white and bright - great for illumination; maybe not so great for others?

Its worse on undulating / hilly roads and I'm receiving very angry flashes and/or full on high beams from the drivers that are obviously being blinded by me (not on purpose obviously). As the ride height in the T6 is elevated I'm not too affected. Thoughts? Solutions? J.

 

[Hotel California]

I can imagine , some flashing at me with normal adjusteble lights on my T5.
Think due the fact the weight is in the back the lights shine up .
I sometimes find LED lights on other cars also blinding , they are so bright they blind...

Are they not at all controlleble with a switch?

 

[jason.oneill4]

I can imagine , some flashing at me with normal adjusteble lights on my T5.
Think due the fact the weight is in the back the lights shine up .
I sometimes find LED lights on other cars also blinding , they are so bright they blind...

Are they not at all controlleble with a switch?

No switch to adjust unless i have missed something... I find 4x4's tend to blind me as their lights are that bit higher... Same issue with the T6?

 

[WelshGas]

Hi Folks,

I have a T6 with LED headlights and have noticed that they appear to be dazzling drivers in the opposite oncoming lane. They are self-levelling so I can't adjust them... They are extremely white and bright - great for illumination; maybe not so great for others?

Its worse on undulating / hilly roads and I'm receiving very angry flashes and/or full on high beams from the drivers that are obviously being blinded by me (not on purpose obviously). As the ride height in the T6 is elevated I'm not too affected. Thoughts? Solutions? J.

Same with the Zenons. Trouble is both have self-levelling which just does not respond quickly enough to any road undulations.

I have the old fashioned bulbs - have never been flashed by other drivers. I'm afraid it is just something you will have to put up with. At least they are only flashing their headlights.

 

[bigmac77]

This happens to me too on my other vehicle, as far as I'm aware there is nothing you can do short of using different bulbs but then you are reducing the quality of your headlights. I just drive now ready to give some full beam to other drivers who flash me. Sort of like 'if you think thats bright have some of this'.

 

[tim batten]

It's even worse when you are driving abroad. We have Xenons, and whilst driving in Portugal and Spain, we were flashed by oncoming drivers all the time. Again, flashing back with full beam demonstrates that you are already dipped. It is sometimes hard to accept VW's assurance that Xenon dipped headlights are central and not adjustable to either side.

 

[WelshGas]

So a driver, blinded by your " perceived " full beam headlights flashes you to let you know. You return the courtesy by putting on Full Beam thus making the situation even more dangerous.
Interesting Road Safety advice.

I think you might change your advice when a Police car is involved.

If your headlights are causing other drivers so much concern then I would suggest you should get them checked out as it is not beyond the grounds of possibility that they have been set up incorrectly.

 

[WelshGas]

I can imagine , some flashing at me with normal adjusteble lights on my T5.
Think due the fact the weight is in the back the lights shine up .
I sometimes find LED lights on other cars also blinding , they are so bright they blind...

Are they not at all controlleble with a switch?

Hi HC, do you not have a dashboard levelling switch to compensate for variations in vehicle load.

 

[Hotel California]

Hi HC, do you not have a dashboard levelling switch to compensate for variations in vehicle load.
View attachment 13474

Yes sure i have ....but the T6 with the led's seems not to....

 

[jason.oneill4]

Same with the Zenons. Trouble is both have self-levelling which just does not respond quickly enough to any road undulations.

I have the old fashioned bulbs - have never been flashed by other drivers. I'm afraid it is just something you will have to put up with. At least they are only flashing their headlights.

Cheers WG. If they flash anything else I'll take a snap! wink!

 

[WelshGas]

Yes sure i have ....but the T6 with the led's seems not to....

They do, but T5 with Zenon and T6 with LED headlights have Automatic Self Levelling headlights. The trouble is the system just cannot cope with any undulations in the road quickly enough to maintain a level beam.

 

[pjm-84]

Yep I have the same and respond in like (Like Bigmac 77).

It becomes annoying as 9 out 10 cars don't seem to have a problem and then one is "insistent" that you are on full beam (flash, flash, flash and then full beam:thefinger) .

My response to their full beam is like for like which puts paid to their "observations" . If they flash and keep flashing I will flash back which also seems to clear the issue up.

 

[iDandelions]

Not sure if this is the same for the T6 but my previous car with self levelling xenons could still have the default level set via an adjustment screw under the bonnet.

 

[Stoneybroke]

The intensity of some modern headlamps can be a problem insomuch as the blue-white appears brighter, that said, if you are getting flashed a lot, there could be an alignment problem. The MOT rules are online, but complex, so whilst you could self check by parking on a flat area and near to a wall, it might be better to get the dealer to check.

 

[tim batten]

So a driver, blinded by your " perceived " full beam headlights flashes you to let you know. You return the courtesy by putting on Full Beam thus making the situation even more dangerous.
Interesting Road Safety advice.

I think you might change your advice when a Police car is involved.

If your headlights are causing other drivers so much concern then I would suggest you should get them checked out as it is not beyond the grounds of possibility that they have been set up incorrectly.

Welsh Gas: In response to your rather patronising comments:
a) A brief flash, not blinding full beam. There has never been a "dangerous situation" !
b) I'm not giving anyone advice. I was saying what I did.
c) My xenon lights were checked out by my dealer before our trip, and I was told they were set up perfectly. The vehicle was almost new.
d) The reason this happens is because xenon headlights are very bright.

 

[bigmac77]

So a driver, blinded by your " perceived " full beam headlights flashes you to let you know. You return the courtesy by putting on Full Beam thus making the situation even more dangerous.
Interesting Road Safety advice.

I think you might change your advice when a Police car is involved.

If your headlights are causing other drivers so much concern then I would suggest you should get them checked out as it is not beyond the grounds of possibility that they have been set up incorrectly.

Perhaps that was written badly, essentially a small percentage of on coming traffic flashes at me repeatedly, I flash back to indicate that I'm not on full beam and stop them flashing me.

I have had the headlights checked, they are bi-xenon they were found to be working correctly. The problem was a lot worse during the first 12 months of ownership, it is now two years old and I don't get flashed all that often these days. so perhaps the bulbs have reduced a little in intensity with age or maybe it's because I don't wash the car very often and the headlights are dirty.

 

[ArunAlec]

I think that in the early days of xenons many drivers, me included, thought oncoming cars with these unusually bright lights were driving on full beam and hence getting a "warning" flash. Now that xenons have been around for some time and are now "accepted" they are not flashed just accepted! I have them and think they are great from the drivers perspective, but are too bright for oncoming traffic.

 

[X4 VWC]

Like others, I've found that some drivers flash at Xenon's and a quick blip of high beam is enough to avoid confusion. I did find that High Beam Assist was too slow to reduce main beam on another vehicle so I disabled it but I haven't tried it on the T6 at all. Just to be clear, T6 LED headlights are Xenon's with daytime running lights (LED headlights haven't made it to the T6 yet and it's cheeky of VW to call them LED headlights!)

(Edit - see later posts in this thread, the T6 apparently has 'proper' LED headlights, not Xenon's.)

 

[MattBW]

I feel your pain it must be frustrating.

I regularly find some modern Xenons headlights are way too bright, but I don't tend to flash. I often find them worse when they are behind me than in front though.

As a contact lense wearer, for some reason the brighter xenon causes strong star burst style light effects in my vision. Something I don't get with traditional bulbs.

I'm all for safer tech, but anything that helps one driver see better and countless others see worse isn't quite right imho. One of those because they can technologies that no-one ever asked if they should...

 

[GrannyJen]

I can't say that I have ever had a problem, well, not with headlight flashers .....

I can say that on narrow highland roads in pitch dark foul weather conditions they were a godsend.

 

[pjm-84]

Don't try a Volvo. Very safe car as the standard headlights are poor.

 

[jason.oneill4]

Thanks folks - all very interesting and topical... I think I may get them checked next service. They do level themselves but I suspect it's the illuminosity may be to blame and may settle down in time with use? I must admit I was tempted to flash back but have opted not to as I personally don't like being 'blinded' myself. I'm intrigued by the comment that the lights are actually xenon rather than LED - I must look into that one...mmmmm J.

 

[T6 CFO]

Thanks folks - all very interesting and topical... I think I may get them checked next service. They do level themselves but I suspect it's the illuminosity may be to blame and may settle down in time with use? I must admit I was tempted to flash back but have opted not to as I personally don't like being 'blinded' myself. I'm intrigued by the comment that the lights are actually xenon rather than LED - I must look into that one...mmmmm J.

Yep and please post results as it says LED headlights on the order form! Would be interesting if their not.

 

[NZCol]

I get flashed with my 2014 with Xenons, not all the time, generally on undulating terrain with lots of corners. Have seen a few T5s with Xenons and they are really bright.

 

[sampsonr]

I have the LED (not xenon) headlights in my Ocean 204 and have had no issues with dazzling other drivers, either in the UK or the French roads including windy mountain roads at night - yet to be flashed once. Auto dip also works very quickly. If other drivers are flashing, until you get the beams checked you could try the travel mode in settings menu which will drop the beams height a bit.