Car headlights use glass elements that form a directed light flux. During operation, a layer of dirt accumulates on the surface of the parts, which impairs the performance of the headlight.
Car owners replace lenses on the Camry 40 on their own or contact specialized centers.
Types of lenses for Toyota Camry 40
The following optical elements are used for the Toyota Camry 40 headlights:
- Standard parts with a diameter of 2.5″, designed for installation of halogen lamps. When installing gas-discharge or LED light sources, the performance of the headlight is disrupted, and the light beam may damage the plastic transparent casing.
- Alternative bi-halogen optics (eg Hella R H7) using standard lamps. Used when repairing faulty headlights.
- Elements designed for bi-xenon lamps (for example, Hella 3R with a diameter of 3.0″). In this case, the cartridges are changed and a cable is inserted into the cavity of the headlight housing to supply power to the curtain mechanism. The damper allows you to change the intensity of the glow and prevents oncoming drivers from being dazzled.
- Optics using bi-LED lamps (for example, Vision Biled Adaptive). The set includes a control controller, LED light sources are installed in optical blocks. If the lamp fails, the headlight must be disassembled again.
Which lenses to choose?
The most common and easiest option for a car owner is to purchase original lens modules or their duplicates for replacement. You can find them from major suppliers of automotive parts for Japanese cars. To select the correct part, you will need the vehicle VIN or body number.
But it is important to know that in this case the quality of road lighting will practically not improve, since a module similar to the old one will be installed, with all its shortcomings.
A more preferable option for car owners is to install universal bi-xenon lenses. Their advantages include a strong luminous flux, a clear line of light and shade, energy efficiency and a spectacular appearance. By type of design, bi-xenon lenses are divided into:
- round;
- semicircular;
- square;
- equipped with angel eyes.
The principle of their operation is as follows: a special metal shutter is installed inside the lens, driven by a built-in electric drive. In low beam mode, it cuts off the upper part of the light flux, forming a distinct “shelf” of lighting. When the high beam is turned on, the curtain rests on the partition, and the light flux leaves the lens without restrictions.
The principle of operation of a bi-xenon lens
For many car owners, replacing the lenses on a Toyota Camry in the 40 body with bi-xenon is a real salvation - the difference in the quality of road lighting is simply huge.
A special controller connected to the car’s standard wiring is responsible for moving the curtains and igniting the lamps.
How to approach the issue of choice
When selecting original parts, it is necessary to take into account the serial number of the vehicle. You shouldn’t buy optics based on the car’s release date, since it produced several dozen modifications of the Camry XV40, intended for different markets. If you plan to install LED lamps, you should take into account possible problems with traffic police officers.
The head optics of Camry cars require the installation of only halogen lamps (the corresponding markings are applied to the body of the lighting equipment).
If checked on the road, the driver risks losing his license for a period of 6 months. At the same time, traffic police will confiscate LED lamps.
Types of lenses that fit the Camry body - choose the right one!
The optimal solution when searching for lenses for your car would be to purchase original components from an official dealer that are used for a specific vehicle model. This option will allow you to prevent a lot of surprises and choose the optics specifically for your car.
Another common solution is to order components from various online stores that sell Japanese spare parts. In order to protect yourself from making the wrong choice, it is recommended to select lenses not by the make or model of the car, but by the vehicle’s VIN code or identification number on the body.
The optics on Toyota Camry differ in lens architecture and operating principle. The form factor of the optics does not affect the quality of lighting and depends only on the characteristics of the car body - classified:
- Round or semicircular lenses;
- Square version;
- Stylized optics to resemble angel eyes.
Also, headlights differ in the principle of operation: halogen and bi-xenon. Installing non-stock optics with a different operating principle will be a salvation for many drivers, improving the quality of lighting or preventing overheating of the headlight system by using less energy-intensive headlights.
The transition to another type of optics has gained a lot of positive feedback among Toyota Camry drivers, solving the problem of personal driving comfort - halogen and bi-xenon lenses have different technical characteristics that allow you to customize the car to suit your style.
Most common problems
If the driver decides to repair the head lighting equipment on the car, then the following difficulties are possible during operation:
- The design of the headlights uses rubber sealing covers, which do not provide a sealed housing. It is recommended to select suitable boots from other cars.
- When installing xenon lamps, waterproof AMP series connectors are required.
- When restoring head lighting equipment, the lenses are polished, which are factory coated with a special varnish. It is impossible to restore the protective layer in artisanal conditions. To prevent clouding of the plastic, a polyurethane film is glued to the surface.
- The design of the head lighting equipment includes a ventilation duct; the breather hole is closed with a plastic cap with a foam filter. Over time it becomes clogged or destroyed, this element must be restored. It is not recommended to operate the headlight without a plug.
- If the owner of the car replaced the burnt-out structural elements himself, then it is necessary to adjust the direction of the high beam beam on the stand. The work is carried out before installing the diffusers.
- When reassembling, it is recommended to apply additional adhesive to the junction line between the diffuser and the body.
DIY headlight lens removal
Algorithm for removing a lens from a Toyota Camry headlight:
- Unscrew the screws and remove the clips securing the front bumper, then remove the plastic element from the car.
- Disconnect the wiring harnesses connected to the lamp sockets.
- The headlight is held in place by 3 bolts that need to be removed.
- Remove the head lighting element from the mounting socket.
- Remove the lamps and covers, wipe the outer surface of the equipment from dirt and dust with a damp cloth.
- Heat the connection line between the transparent diffuser and the body, and as the glue warms up, separate the parts with your hands or a plastic spatula. During work, it is forbidden to use excessive force. You can use a hair dryer to heat the parts. You should not direct a stream of hot air to one point for a long time, since the plastic may melt. The heated sealant stretches into fibers that should not fall on the working part of the glass. The glue is carefully placed with a spatula on the periphery of the diffuser.
- Unscrew the screws that secure the glass element housing to the headlight housing.
- The glass lens is held in place by a metal ring with clips that must be bent with pliers.
- The internal elements of the headlight are wiped with alcohol; the use of organic solvents (for example, acetone) is prohibited, since the surface layer of plastic will dissolve. Remove dust from the corners of the case using a long-bristled brush and a vacuum cleaner.
Some craftsmen use the method of heating the product in the oven at a temperature of 100°C to disassemble head optics from a Toyota Camry.
Before starting work, it is necessary to remove the lamps and external metal elements and anthers. The assembly is then wrapped in thick cotton cloth and placed in a preheated oven chamber. If it was not immediately possible to separate the glass and the case, then reheat it.
Why might the low beams not turn on?
If your headlights are not on and your low beam lighting is not working, then driving at night with a faulty car is not only prohibited by traffic rules, but also extremely dangerous
Why the low beam on a Toyota Camry does not turn on - there may be several main reasons:
- Burnt out light bulb
- Lost ground from headlight
- Fuse and relay failure
- Short circuit or break in the wires going to the headlights
- Interior switch malfunction
If problems arise with the vehicle's lighting equipment, the cause of the problem should be identified as quickly as possible and eliminated.
Toyota Camry headlight - the light does not light
The search should begin with the simplest and at the same time the most common causes. So, if one headlight of your Toyota Camry does not light up, then most likely the reason is that the bulb of this headlight has burned out.
The simultaneous burnout of two light bulbs in both headlights also happens, but is extremely rare. As a rule, this occurs during sudden changes in voltage in the network and is accompanied by serious damage to other electronic equipment. Checking the serviceability of the light bulbs is very simple - you just need to replace them with new ones.
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The process of installing new lenses on the Toyota Camry 40
The new elements are fixed into the headlight housing using a transition frame, which allows the center of the lens to be correctly aligned with the light source. If installed incorrectly, the beam of light is distorted and goes to the sides, worsening the illumination of the roadway or blinding drivers of oncoming cars. After the car owner or technician has replaced the parts in the headlight, it is necessary to install the unit on the car and check the horizontality of the light beam. The plastic cap can be installed only after final fixation of the glass optics elements.
The plastic outer shell is polished inside and out, and then all parts of the headlight are wiped with alcohol. A heat gun is used to heat the sealant, and the diffuser is evenly glued to the body. Areas without adhesive composition cannot be left, since water and dust enter the internal cavities of the lighting device through the cracks. Lighting equipment is installed on the car using standard screws. If the plastic brackets on the headlights are broken, the parts can be restored using fiberglass and epoxy resin.
What is the problem with headlights on Camry?
During operation, car owners face a number of problems:
- Using lamps that are too powerful causes the inner coating of the lens to burn out, causing the light from the lamps to be less diffused.
- There are cases when the lens glass itself becomes cloudy, which reduces its light transmittance.
- As a result of even a minor accident, pieces of the reflector in the lenses fly off, which leads to a violation of the tightness and fogging of the glass.
But one of the most common reasons: the car owner’s dissatisfaction with the overall quality of road lighting.
To correct the situation, it is not necessary to purchase new sets of headlights - a simple replacement of lenses on a Toyota Camry v40 . You can do it yourself.
