How to Adjust the Headlights on a 2005 Chevy Malibu
by Steve Bradley
If you own a 2005 Chevy Malibu, one of the regular maintenance jobs that you'll need to have done is yearly inspection and alignment of the headlight beams.Misaligned beam can lead to dangerous driving conditions. Taking your Malibu to a garage or local dealership to have this done can cost over $100, but if you check the alignment at home the cost will be nothing but time. Luckily this job is fairly straightforward making it the ideal do-it-yourself task.
Step 1
Drive your Chevy Malibu to a large wall with 30 feet of flat level ground in front of it and park the car a foot from the wall.
Step 2
Measure the distance from the ground up to the center of each headlight lens.
Step 3
Mark the wall with some painter's tape with a plus sign. The center of the plus sign should align with the center of the lens.
Step 4
Back the Malibu up 25 feet and turn on the headlights. Notice where the light beams land in respect to the marked wall. The passenger light should fall 2 inches below the horizontal arm and directly on the vertical. The drivers side should fall squarely in the lower right quadrant, 2 inches below horizontal and 2 inches to the right of vertical.
Step 5
Go to the front of the Chevy and look along the edges of the headlight lenses. There will be two adjustment screws, one along the top in the middle and one along the inside edge in the middle. These control the horizontal and vertical axis of the light beam.
Step 6
Take a Philips head screwdriver and adjust these screws until each light hits the right spot on the wall.
References
Tips
- If you normally load the trunk while driving, do so before inspecting the headlights. Weight can affect the angle of the beams.
Things You'll Need
- Measuring tape
- Screwdriver
- Tape
Writer Bio
Steve Bradley is an educator and writer with more than 12 years of experience in both fields. He maintains a career as an English teacher, also owning and operating a resume-writing business. Bradley has experience in retail, fashion, marketing, management and fitness. He holds a Bachelor of Arts in English and classics.
