How to Adjust the Headlights in Hyundai Cars

The Hyundai car has a pair of adjustment screws on each headlight assembly. These adjustment screws change the lateral and vertical direction of the Hyundai car headlight. Although these adjustment screws can be turned with a screwdriver, you can also use your fingers, since the screws offer a gear-like grip. The most difficult part of adjusting the headlights on a Hyundai car is setting up the correct measurements to properly aim them so they work to illuminate the road.

Under The Hood:

• How to Adjust the Headlights in a Hyundai Sonata
• How to Adjust the Headlights for the 2007 Sonata
• How to Adjust the Headlights on a Hyundai Elantra
• How to Adjust the Headlights in a Hyundai Santa Fe

 How to Adjust the Headlights in a Hyundai Sonata

Find a level spot close to a wall (within 5 feet) and park your Hyundai Sonata. You may want to use your emergency brake as an additional safety feature since you'll be working in front of the car.

Turn your headlights on and prepare your sedan so it matches your normal driving conditions. You may need to add or remove cargo, adjust the tire pressure or add weight over the fuel tank.

Locate the center for each headlight's trajectory and mark it with a piece of masking tape.

Back up the sedan to a distance of 20 to 25 feet from the wall. Put the sedan in park.

Determine what type of headlights you have. Your Hyundai Sonata may have composite headlights bolted to the frame, which means you can't make adjustments to the headlights. If you have an adjuster plate, you should see adjustments screws when you remove the bezel.

Turn the adjustment screws with a Phillips screwdriver. You want to center each headlight on the mark, so keep an eye on the trajectory and the mark as you adjust each headlight.

 How to Adjust the Headlights for the 2007 Sonata

Park your 2007 Sonata directly in front of a vertical flat surface, such as a garage door or wall.

Put vertical and horizontal strips of masking tape on the wall directly in front of each of the Sonata's headlights.

Measure 25 feet out from the wall and place a strip of tape at that point. Reverse your Sonata until your headlights line up above the tape.

Turn on your headlights and prop open the hood.

Look behind each headlight assembly for the two adjustment screws. Twist these with your fingers or a screwdriver to adjust the vertical and lateral aim of the headlights. Aim both headlights so they are about two inches below their corresponding horizontal strips of tape and two inches inward from their corresponding vertical strips.

 How to Adjust the Headlights on a Hyundai Elantra

Park your Hyundai Elantra 30 feet away from a garage door or a wall so that the headlights are facing the wall or garage.

Shine the headlights onto the flat surface.

Open the hood and locate the two access holes on the top of the Elantra's headlight housing assembly. Remove the two rubber stoppers, one covering each hole, by pulling them out with your fingers. This will expose the adjustment screws.

Turn both screws until the headlight beam shines straight forward and toward the bottom of the flat surface where the garage door or wall meets the ground.

 How to Adjust the Headlights in a Hyundai Santa Fe

Prepare to adjust your headlights by imitating your normal driving conditions as close as possible. If you carry additional cargo in your Hyundai Santa Fe, don't remove it. Fill your gas tank to half full or add 6 1/2 lbs. of weight for every missing gallon.

Park the front of your SUV on a level surface with your headlights facing a wall at least 6 feet high and 12 feet wide. The front of the SUV should also be 25 feet from the wall.

Measure the distance from the center of each headlight to the ground. Transfer the measurements to the wall, using masking tape to make the marks visible from a distance.

Locate your adjustment screws. You should find these on the headlight assembly. On some models, you will need to access the screws through holes.

Turn your low beam headlights on and check the aim against the marks on the wall.

Use a Philips or Torx screwdriver to twist the screws. Adjust each headlight until the beams hit the marks on the wall. Ideally, you want the highest intensity zone of the lights to be slightly lower and to the right of the marks.

Check the aim of your high beam lights. Again make sure the beams point slightly down and to the right.