Strange shaped Beam !

[GoonerKev]

Drove my Auris Hybrid 2014 for the first longish journey tonight in the dark since getting it on Monday and noticed that the dipped beam has a strange pattern I have never seen before in car headlights, don't get me wrong, the lights are nice and bright, both High & Low (which surprised me after reading so many comments on how poor they were), the pattern I have drawn is as close as I can. Is this normal.

[xrhstosgr]

good morning Most likely, a light bulb inside the traffic light has been broken in the past, leaving this line that you can not see with the naked eye. I had the same problem and found it at a local power plant, in the headlight adjustment machine

[GoonerKev]

1 minute ago, xrhstosgr said:

good morning Most likely, a light bulb inside the traffic light has been broken in the past, leaving this line that you can not see with the naked eye. I had the same problem and found it at a local power plant, in the headlight adjustment machine

Thanks, but it's the same pattern on both sides. have tried to take off-side bulb out (the usual twist & turn) to see what bulbs are in there, but doesn't seem to want to come out.

[xrhstosgr]

Different observation so look for another version

[Gerg]

On the pre-2015 Auris, customer complaints about the headlamps, in the UK and Europe, drove Toyota to change the internal design of the headlamp to fill the beam spread out.

These modified headlamps were available for free if the customer complained to their dealers whilst the car was under the 5 year warranty.

There will be an English language Toyota official TSB for this, but I only have the French one, which I have lifted this picture from, that document shows the headlamp beam change as being like this, before and after:-

The cost to change to the newer, improved headlamps, which is presumably all that is made now, as a non-warranty job, will be around £1000+ for the pair.

In France (different Toyota importer, note!) the dealers generally change the car's lights for the modified ones if a car comes in as used car stock for resale.

HTH.

[GoonerKev]

2 hours ago, Gerg said:

On the pre-2015 Auris, customer complaints about the headlamps, in the UK and Europe, drove Toyota to change the internal design of the headlamp to fill the beam spread out.

These modified headlamps were available for free if the customer complained to their dealers whilst the car was under the 5 year warranty.

There will be an English language Toyota official TSB for this, but I only have the French one, which I have lifted this picture from, that document shows the headlamp beam change as being like this, before and after:-

The cost to change to the newer, improved headlamps, which is presumably all that is made now, as a non-warranty job, will be around £1000+ for the pair.

In France (different Toyota importer, note!) the dealers generally change the car's lights for the modified ones if a car comes in as used car stock for resale.

HTH.

Gerg, many thanks for that detailed information. I will leave it as it is then, I cant afford to pay that, besides I'm happy with the light it shines as it's bright but was curious about that "Beam throw", now I know. Thankyou👍👍👍

[Gerg]

You are most welcome.

I can't remember if your car was bought by you, secondhand, from a Toyota dealer.

If it was, then the fact it was a recent purchase might give you some leverage to get these changed for free, especially as there is a known technical service bulletin (not a recall at all, just goodwill), but this is unlikely.  Worth a punt though.

The headlamp bulbs are the much-maligned HIR2 (Halogen Infra Red 2) variety.  They are not as freely available as some, and the one bulb (and its single filament) does both low and high beam functions via an electromagnetic shutter. A little bit weird.

It's worth carrying a spare or two, not least so you can get 'good' ones at a reasonable price; when the urgency isn't there.

An offside (driver) bulb replacement needs the washer bottle neck removing first to get proper access.  This is easy to remove, but not obvious at first.  It is described in the owners manual.  Do be wary of the small circular clip/pin that needs lifting out to do this, it would be so easy to drop this into the engine bay, which I have never done. Yet.

If the bulb is very stiff to twist, it could be that it is a 'less popular' brand - if the dimensions and plastic tapers aren't 'just so', then it can be stiff, initially. 

I'm a bit surprised that your headlamps are so bright.  No one ever says that.

Usual rules about not touching the bulb glass apply here.  It's quite a highly stressed bulb. This is documented from when this HIR2 'system' came out (GM use it too, amongst others).

The factory-fit bulbs are usually Phillips, Osram or Toshiba (who actually don't make them anymore, I think).  Happy to be corrected on any of this, of course.

In a few weeks time, you might start to notice that the car makes a disturbing graunching noise as you brake whilst turning bumpy, slow corners - don't worry, there is a simple and cheap fix for that one!

HTH

[GoonerKev]

4 minutes ago, Gerg said:

You are most welcome.

I can't remember if your car was bought by you, secondhand, from a Toyota dealer.

If it was, then the fact it was a recent purchase might give you some leverage to get these changed for free, especially as there is a known technical service bulletin (not a recall at all, just goodwill), but this is unlikely.  Worth a punt though.

The headlamp bulbs are the much-maligned HIR2 (Halogen Infra Red 2) variety.  They are not as freely available as some, and the one bulb (and its single filament) does both low and high beam functions via an electromagnetic shutter. A liitle weird.

It's worth carrying a spare or two, not least so you can get 'good' ones at a reasonable price; when the urgency isn't there.

An offside (driver) bulb replacement needs the washer bottle neck removing first to get proper access.  This is easy to remove, but not obvious at first.  It is described in the owners manual.  Do be wary of the small circular clip/pin that needs lifting out to do this, it would be so easy to drop this into the engine bay, which I have never done. Yet.

If the bulb is very stiff to twist, it could be that it is a 'less popular' brand - if the dimensions and plastic tapers aren't 'just so', then it can be stiff, initially. 

I'm a bit surprised that your headlamps are so bright.  No one ever says that.

Usual rules about not touching the bulb glass apply here.  It's quite a highly stressed bulb, it is documented from when this 'system' came out (GM use it too, amongst others).

The factory fit bulbs are usually Phillips, Osram or Toshiba (who actually don't make them anymore, I think).  Happy to be corrected on any of this, of course.

Many thanks Gerg for that additional info, yes I purchased it last Monday from a Toyota main dealer so might try my luck with them you never know, they owe me a favour😉. And great info on the removal process too👍👍👏👏

[GoonerKev]

16 hours ago, Gerg said:

In a few weeks time, you might start to notice that the car makes a disturbing graunching noise as you brake whilst turning bumpy, slow corners - don't worry, there is a simple and cheap fix for that one!

HTH

Gerg, that sounds a bit worrying 😳😳😳. Intrigued now.

[Gerg]

Apologies about that teaser!

I'm stuck at home with the virus, hence my answers being 'a bit long'.

There is a front suspension arm rubber mount that can, when otherwise in good condition, make disturbing and disheartening graunching noises, especially when turning slowly/braking moderately/crossing uneven road (usually when done all at the same time).

Silicone grease or oil, easily obtained in the shops (£6-7?), seems to cure this quickly.  But Toyota dealers didn't used to be aware of this problem or of a fix. Perhaps they do now.

The general peace and tranquility of the car at slow speeds is quite addictive, and when that is upset by an odd, unexplained suspension noise, the Zen bubble can easily be burst...

Lots of posts on that topic, on this forum, to fully help on that one.

But, with regards to favours owed by your dealer - the 'C' word!

Has your catalyst been security marked yet (free at a Toyota dealer when it's in for other work), or have you got a protection plate of some description over (under!) the catalyst?  The dealers have a Toyota 'solution' for around £250 (might be negotiable in your case, although, this is offered at 'cost', because of the nature of the theft problem.) 

Other suppliers of different fittings are available on eBay etc. for significantly less, but they aren't Toyota approved...

Please ignore this if it has already been mentioned in your earlier posts or investigations.

[GoonerKev]

1 hour ago, Gerg said:

Apologies about that teaser!

I'm stuck at home with the virus, hence my answers being 'a bit long'.

There is a front suspension arm rubber mount that can, when otherwise in good condition, make disturbing and disheartening graunching noises, especially when turning slowly/braking moderately/crossing uneven road (usually when done all at the same time).

Silicone grease or oil, easily obtained in the shops (£6-7?), seems to cure this quickly.  But Toyota dealers didn't used to be aware of this problem or of a fix. Perhaps they do now.

The general peace and tranquility of the car at slow speeds is quite addictive, and when that is upset by an odd, unexplained suspension noise, the Zen bubble can easily be burst...

Lots of posts on that topic, on this forum, to fully help on that one.

But, with regards to favours owed by your dealer - the 'C' word!

Has your catalyst been security marked yet (free at a Toyota dealer when it's in for other work), or have you got a protection plate of some description over (under!) the catalyst?  The dealers have a Toyota 'solution' for around £250 (might be negotiable in your case, although, this is offered at 'cost', because of the nature of the theft problem.) 

Other suppliers of different fittings are available on eBay etc. for significantly less, but they aren't Toyota approved...

Please ignore this if it has already been mentioned in your earlier posts or investigations.

Gerg, firstly, I hope you get well soon from the dreaded virus and recover soon. I must admit that I have not looked under to see if the CAT has any protection on it, also I will enquire with Toyota regarding it and also the graunching sound (but have not heard that yet, so fingers crossed). It certainly is a bit earie on the quietness especially in car parks or pulling off the driveway, but getting used to it. Just fitted my Dashcam, took 15 minutes. Now feel better with it installed.

[Gerg]

1 hour ago, GoonerKev said:

firstly, I hope you get well soon from the dreaded virus

Thanks very much!

If you haven't heard the graunching sound then I wouldn't ponder on this over much.  

My concern, (if that's how its best described), is that with your Auris, you have 'new purchase goodwill', the dealer warranty, and 'sale of goods' legistlation all stacked up behind you at the moment.

It may be that seeing a short list of common (evidently to some other owners too) annoyances , might highlight if your car has them too, they are sometimes quite subtle.  And if they bother you, then now is the very best time to get some attention from the dealer!

If I remember correctly, there are Toyota Technical Service Bulletins (TSBs) for these, so some technical authority at Toyota has already done the homework on them:

The headlamp beam spread (as above).

The steering wheel can offer up a 'click' at the extremes of travel, usually when parking at slow speeds.  

The seat heaters (fitted on yours? Probably not) come on immediately, but after reaching temperature, switch off thermostatically, and then take too long to cycle back on, by which time the seat has cooled off.

The seat height adjuster has some slack in the mechanism underneath the seat, which can allow a 'click' and a slight rocking movement to be felt when the car is braked to a halt and/or accelerated away again.

The reversing camera, especially if the car is pressure washed, can allow water to enter into its optics, ruining the image.  After drying out, which it will eventually, the accumulated 'water marks' reduce the contrast on the dash-displayed image a bit, but the camera works fine.

I suspect most of this era (2012-15) of Auris have these problems, but they don't get noticed, or they get noticed after the warranty has run out!  And some of these problems are not problems at all to plenty of (most?) owners.

Hopefully (genuinely!), this does not take anything away from your new owner experience, which is absolutely not my intention.

I am responsible for two cars like yours.  One was bought with warranty, on the other it had just expired.  I have first hand experience of most of these problems.  Back then, some of these were not known about, well, to me anyway.

We still have these cars, some years later. Which is a good indicator as to if we like them!

 

 

[GoonerKev]

4 minutes ago, Gerg said:

Thanks very much!

If you haven't heard the graunching sound then I wouldn't ponder on this over much.  

My concern, (if that's how its best described), is that with your Auris, you have 'new purchase goodwill', the dealer warranty, and 'sale of goods' legistlation all stacked up behind you at the moment.

It may be that seeing a short list of common (evidently to some other owners too) annoyances , might highlight if your car has them too, they are sometimes quite subtle.  And if they bother you, then now is the very best time to get some attention from the dealer!

If I remember correctly, there are Toyota Technical Service Bulletins (TSBs) for these, so some technical authority at Toyota has already done the homework on them:

The headlamp beam spread (as above).

The steering wheel can offer up a 'click' at the extremes of travel, usually when parking at slow speeds.  

The seat heaters (fitted on yours? Probably not.) come on immediately, but after reaching temperature, switch off thermostatically, and then take too long to cycle back on, by which time the seat has cooled off.

The seat height adjuster has some slack in the mechanism underneath the seat, which can allow a 'click' and a slight rocking movement to be felt, when the car is braked to a halt and/or accelerated away again.

The reversing camera, especially if the car is pressure washed, can allow water to enter into its optics, ruining the image.  After drying out, which it will eventually, the accumulated 'water marks'  reduce the contrast on the dash-displayed image a bit, but the camera works fine.

I suspect most of this era (2012-15) of Auris have these problems, but they don't get noticed, or they get noticed after the warranty has run out!  And some of these problems are not problems at all to plenty of (most?) owners.

Hopefully (genuinely!), this does not take anything away from your new owner experience, which is absolutely not my intention.

I am responsible for two cars like yours.  One was bought with warranty, on the other it had just expired.  I have first hand experience of most of these problems.  Back then, some of these were not known about, well, to me anyway.

We still have these cars, some years late. Which is a good indicator as to if we like them!

 

 

Gerg

Thank you, the headlamp beam I can live with at the moment but will paying the dealer a visit about it, I do have seat heaters on the car and have noticed as you have said, on getting hot very quick then it dies off for a bit, which I prefer really. My only gripe with the base of the seats is, they seem a little bit down at the back making the back of knees resting too much on the edge of the seat, so I will have a look at maybe putting some spacers on the rear fixing points to raise it slightly, giving it a more flatter seating position.

[Packard]

On 4/2/2022 at 3:35 PM, Gerg said:

On the pre-2015 Auris, customer complaints about the headlamps, in the UK and Europe, drove Toyota to change the internal design of the headlamp to fill the beam spread out.

These modified headlamps were available for free if the customer complained to their dealers whilst the car was under the 5 year warranty.

There will be an English language Toyota official TSB for this, but I only have the French one, which I have lifted this picture from, that document shows the headlamp beam change as being like this, before and after:-

The cost to change to the newer, improved headlamps, which is presumably all that is made now, as a non-warranty job, will be around £1000+ for the pair.

In France (different Toyota importer, note!) the dealers generally change the car's lights for the modified ones if a car comes in as used car stock for resale.

HTH.

I took up this at the time silent “offer”, and yes it really did make a difference getting them swapped out.  
 

also I replaced the bulbs with Philips X-tremeVision Pro150 HIR2 (Single), and this alongside the physical unit made a massive difference. 
 

and re the seat heaters, I’ve had both heating units replaced under warranty and that again made a BIG difference the heated seats now work correctly all the time.