Hi Everyone! My first time posting in a forum but I thought I'd give it a shot.

I'm having an issue with my adaptive headlights. While I'm driving along no matter the speed my passenger side headlight will seemingly randomly swing its beam way down and to the left and freeze there, if my high beam is on at the time it will stay on and wont turn off even though the drivers side will still respond perfectly fine. The headlight will return to normal position when stationary but the problem will return shortly after moving off again.

This fault does not occur when my lights are switched to manual dipped beam, only in auto mode. (Presumably because adaptive lights are only available in auto mode)

I left my car with a trusted mechanic to try and diagnose the fault, after a few days and a local specialist coming down to take a look also, they came to the conclusion that the steering angle sensor (or something similar i can't quite remember) is faulty and the only way to fix it is by replacing the whole steering rack which was quoted as £1000+ for the parts plus labour.

I was advised by my mechanic to simply use the manual headlights and do away with the adaptive beam as it's not really worth the cost for the benefit it brings. I would tend to agree with this conclusion apart from the fact that I really like this feature as I drive a lot of country/winding B roads for my daily commute. In addition to the adaptive beams, switching the lights to manual also disables the cornering fog lights and the reverse assist lights in the headlight housing.

 

If anyone has any similar experiences or advice please do reply, I'm kind of stuck between a rock and a hard place.

 

Many Thanks!

Oscar

2016 Ford Focus ST-3 2.0T Hatchback

If the problem only exists on a single headlight and the other headlight is functioning as it should the problem will not be caused by the steering rack. 

Both headlights use the exact same steering angle sensor signal so if there is something wrong with this signal both headlights would have shown the exact same problem.

Apart from this the steering angle system is also used by the ABS/ESP system. Problems with the steering angle sensor signal will definitely result in ABS/ESP warning lights and messages.


Your problem sounds like the well known adaptive headlight wiring problem. On the adaptive headlights each headlight contains a small electronic module that is installed on the bottom of the projector. The projector (and the electronic module attached to it) move up/down and left/right. During time this movement causes one or more of the wires that are connected to the module inside the headlight to fail. This can either be a (temporary or permanent) open circuit or sometimes even a completely snapped wire.

When this happens the particular headlight defaults to the lowest and most left position (most right for LHD vehicles) to prevent blinding oncoming traffic. 

Ford does not sell the internal wiring or module so in case of this problem Ford will only offer a new headlight which at least costs €1200,-.

Fortunately there is an alternative. Since this wiring problem became extremely common repair kits are offered by several suppliers. These can even be found on AliExpress.

For Ford Focus MK3 Mk3.5 ST ST3 RS Titanium Xenon Headlight Repair/Wiring Loom Fix - AliExpress

 

Despite being rare the electronic module itself can also fail. In this case replacement of the headlight is basically the only option since replacement modules are not available.

 

 

On 12/7/2024 at 9:04 AM, JW1982 said:

If the problem only exists on a single headlight and the other headlight is functioning as it should the problem will not be caused by the steering rack. 

Both headlights use the exact same steering angle sensor signal so if there is something wrong with this signal both headlights would have shown the exact same problem.

Apart from this the steering angle system is also used by the ABS/ESP system. Problems with the steering angle sensor signal will definitely result in ABS/ESP warning lights and messages.


Your problem sounds like the well known adaptive headlight wiring problem. On the adaptive headlights each headlight contains a small electronic module that is installed on the bottom of the projector. The projector (and the electronic module attached to it) move up/down and left/right. During time this movement causes one or more of the wires that are connected to the module inside the headlight to fail. This can either be a (temporary or permanent) open circuit or sometimes even a completely snapped wire.

When this happens the particular headlight defaults to the lowest and most left position (most right for LHD vehicles) to prevent blinding oncoming traffic. 

Ford does not sell the internal wiring or module so in case of this problem Ford will only offer a new headlight which at least costs €1200,-.

Fortunately there is an alternative. Since this wiring problem became extremely common repair kits are offered by several suppliers. These can even be found on AliExpress.

For Ford Focus MK3 Mk3.5 ST ST3 RS Titanium Xenon Headlight Repair/Wiring Loom Fix - AliExpress

 

Despite being rare the electronic module itself can also fail. In this case replacement of the headlight is basically the only option since replacement modules are not available.

 

 

Thank you for this information! I'll look into this!

 

Oscar

On 12/7/2024 at 9:04 AM, JW1982 said:

 These can even be found on AliExpress.

For Ford Focus MK3 Mk3.5 ST ST3 RS Titanium Xenon Headlight Repair/Wiring Loom Fix - AliExpress

80p?? That's a big investment - hope it works out... 😂