Prius (2004-09) :: Repairing Headlight Leveling Sensor?
Jun 21, 2012
I just got the warning symbol that mine has failed, so I'm thinking of trying the repair myself, too. But I thought I'd ask here: how have people's repairs held up? Have you had to go back and eventually replace it? Is there anything you wish you had done differently when you repaired it?
On a related note, I see that the Toyota Service Bulletin for this problem instructs the mechanic to "Perform the Headlight Leveling ECU Initialization procedure using the SST" and then to "Perform the Headlight Aim Only procedure." This doesn't seem like something an individual can do without specialized equipment / knowledge. Is there a way to do it? Is it unnecessary?
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First a bit of history: About a year ago, I received the headlight leveling system warnings comprising a red triangle alert with exclamation point in the middle located on the dash, combined with a yellow(ish) warning symbol on the center stack display comprising what looks like a headlight with up and down pointing arrows. Eventually, the warning lights went out, but the HID headlamps were left pointing in a down position that lit barely 10 ft in front of the car.. This is is supposedly their default position when the sensor breaks, most commonly due to moisture entering the sensor innards resulting in corrosion of the contact points. I effected the repair quoted elsewhere on this forum, and it was good to go.
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My 2005 Prius with around 60K has the occasional Headlight Leveling Warning Light. My question is how serious is this? Do I need to go to the dealer or can I wait on it? The lights still work fine.
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The springs on my load leveling sensor keep getting corroded. This time I sprayed them with contact cleaner and then dipped them in dielectric grease so hopefully they won't go bad again, but I fear they might. It looks like there was some kind of anti corrosive treatment on them which was removed when I cleaned them off.
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My '05 Prius with just 16k miles on it just started displaying the red triangle with exclamation mark (multifunction warning lamp?). It displays about every 3 times I start the car... The Info screen shows the icon for the Automatic Headlight Leveling System. So Ive been searching, and have found a few threads related to this, but the fix Ive seen referenced I cannot find since the posts referencing the fix are about 5 yrs old. Exactly where on the car I can find the sensor, and how it can be fixed?
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The dealership states that this is not a big problem and that the headlights will not be affected but the malfunction light stays on and the exclamation point is on the dashboard. The fix: replace the rear sensor harness where corrosion on the connection and pin was found - new harness assembly needed. What about just replacing the pin? Dealer states you cannot cut the wire and replace because the wires are not sealed.
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I just got my IS350 F-sport which equipped with HID headlight for few days, but I have encountered a weird problem as every time I start the car the HID headlight never does a self-leveling job. It just never goes up and down and back to its original spot in which I have never encountered in my previous owned vehicles.
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I have a 2013 rx350 rebuilt suv. I had a mechanic check out my Headlight leveling error that comes up. Turns out the motors are missing for my headlights. I called the dealer and they said I have to buy the whole headlight assembly. Are those motors part of the headlight assembly? Can they be bought separate? I found some on ebay but need more information where they are located.
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I noticed the light below which seems to be a headlight self leveling error appear today. I know it came on a while back and disappeared butt the place its located is unnoticeable as its in the top corner and you have to tilt your head to see it so not sure if it came on many times.. But yeah I saw it today while waiting for my turn at the car wash since it was nice and sunny out and I leaned over to pull the foot brake release then saw it... It seemed to disappear a few minutes later.. then I stopped somewhere, came back started car and same thing and then it disappeared again. A while later it came on stayed on..
what could it be? I am aware that there maybe a 2 sensors, one in front and other in rear axle? I also know there is a module for left and right side... I am wondering what it could be, but I haven't got the code read yet..
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The gist is that my 2006 Prius would not start, even with an attempted jump, and now the dealer (Keany Mesa Toyota in San Diego) says the total cost of repair will be $2400 for a new junction box relay and water pump ($800/$2400). I am stunned at the cost and am questioning the need for both jbr and wp -- but apparently, wp is leaking. About a year ago, the expensive battery was replaced, luckily under warranty , so no cost. Don't know if jbr, wp and battery failures are related, typical repairs or we just have a lemon or getting ripped off. is the water pump recall from years ago relevant here? Should we get a competing bid from a non-dealer/Prius expert (is there one in SD, a search of Prius chat found 1 recommendation but it was rather weak), or just get the damn work done and have a stiff drink to deal with it, or maybe it is time to get a new car - Prius or other (what's the chance the dealer give us a good trade-in deal?)
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I was in a low-ceiling car garage when I opened the trunk of my Black 2010 Prius and it hit a copper pipe in the ceiling and got this ding. I attached a pic of it. I'm now desperate in trying to figure out how to repair it - either through a scratch remover or touch-out paint.
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I have a small dent on the rear door edge. How do they repair those dents? Do I need to go to the body shop or just a rubber hummer and touch up paint? The paid on the edge is gone and metal edge is showing, scratched.
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I had read that the auto leveling only works when you first turn on the lights. But, I have caught mine doing it in traffic. When I come to a stop behind a car, a second after the front end bounces back, I notice the beams dip down half of an inch, on the car in front of me. I have seen this a few times. Seems the auto level feature is always at work. Is this new for 2012?
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The auto leveling warning light has come on a couple of time now on my daughters 04 rx330. The lights do adjust when vehicle is started so the motors are working. I assume this leaves the sensor? I will also note that the lights are operated in the "auto" mode and the warning light has come on when just the daytime running lights are on. If this sounds like a sensor issue, great, probably a fix that I can take care of. 1st question, is there a sensor front and rear? And for question #2, where is it or they located?
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I put on a leveling kit a few months ago and pretty much replaced a lot of worn out parts in the front fenders. With the exception of lower control arms, shocks and springs. Just about everything else that moved was replaced I think.
Well now it seems like every time I hit a decent bump in the road my truck jumps to the side. It's very noticeable if I'm going around a corner and hit a bump. The steering wheel is thrown from side to side so I'm fairly certain that the issue is up front but don't really know where to start looking.
The truck may have done this before the leveling kit but it's very exaggerated now. It's so bad at times that my husband won't drive it.
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I'm not too familiar with the difference between lift kits and leveling kits. I want to lift my truck 2" but in doing research do i need get a lift kit and a leveling kit? For the front and the back? I have a 2006 F150 4.6 V8 RWD I also haven't been able to find any good places to but the kits (also because I don't know what all i may need) It would be ideal to get a kit i can bolt on myself.
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I have my daytime running lights on all the time since purchase in 2004 - this is the first time I am changing any kind of bulb on the car.Headlights are ok when starting car, but after it warms up the headlight goes off. Took it to my local repair shop and they said the connector was loose but that night the headlight was off again.
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Bought an 04 a couple of weeks ago and the passenger side headlight is way high.I turned the adjustment knob and it does nothing.The drivers side light is fine,but out of curiosity I turned that knob and it didn't do anything either.I'm thinking about buying an aftermarket assembly.
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Every now and then one of the HID headlights goes out on our 2006 Prius, seems to be a random event not favoring either headlight. Shutting the headlights off, then turning them back on again corrects the issue. The problem with using this fix is that it isn't good for the HID bulb.
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I have a 2009 Prius with about 36,500 miles on it. I dropped a friend off at the airport tonight and noticed in the reflection of the car in front of me that my right headlight was out -- a fact my friend confirmed when he got out of the car.
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One of the headlights will turn off after some driving time. If I turn the light off and on it will come back on. Asked Toyota, of course they said it is because you are not using OEM Toyota bulbs. I have the same bulbs on both sides. I even replaced the bulb on the "bad side".
Still the same issue. If the bulb is the problem, it would just be off, why it comes back on after "off/on" exercise? Another symptom I saw last week. When switching to high beam light both lights go off. "Off/on" of the car resolved this. This happened only once though.
The car was in the front accident 2 years ago and Toyota repaired it with life time warranty. But I am not sure if it related or not and how to convince Toyota that there is an issue here and not a "bulb" issue.
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