Is it possible to repair aiming motor in headlight

[mmartin110]

It appears from asking around the aiming motor on the headlight assembly fails and starts making servo noises. My drivers side (06 M35) twitches ever so often making this noise. Dealer says need to replace entire headlight assembly for $1055. (not including labor) It seems very wasteful and stupid to have to change the entire assembly when a servo motor is bad. (may be a good biz to reduild them if this is the case) Wanted to poll the group here if anyone has researched this in the past. BTW checked the repair manuals and ETC on getting it assembly out, it appears possible that the motor could be replaced thru the wheel well procedures I have seen to replace zenon bulbs. TIA

[mexillis]

possible? yes. how? IDK. I would PM steve the tech if I were you to see what needs to be done.

[audtatious]

Is it possible to replace? Sure, assuming someone can determine part numbers and get the part. Has it been done and instructions posted on the net? I have no clue but would be interested to know as my G sedan has that configuration and it would be nice to know how to fix it cheaply in case of a problem.

Time for some research.

[jedgington]

I have experienced this issue on my 06 M35X, with the up-and-down motor. There is no part number to order. However, I have found a light assembly on ebay from a wrecked car. The lens was smashed, but the mechanicals are there. For the up-down motor, there is a motor/gearbox assembly that is attached to the back of the lens. I think there is a similar arrangement for the side-to-side motor. I have been successful at removing it from the wrecked assembly, but I have not yet installed it on my car. It's wintertime, and I have no desire to be out in the garage working on it right now. When it gets warmer in Iowa, I will install it and post my progress. Until then, scour ebay for used headlight assemblies and you might find a good one.

[yosM45]

Check out car-part.com, and do search for the headlight. It's a salvage yard database. You should be able to get a used one pretty cheap. And all these guys ship if you can't find one near you.

[mmartin110]

Thank guys, I have not removed it but since its such an expensive part, it makes sense to try and fix the part itself. Was reading a post where a guy took out both headlight assemblies and put them into the oven just to crack them open so he could paint the inside. I am sure he is going to have problems with his AFS servos!! Have not had a look at the part yet and was wondering if the AFS motors would even come off the assembly..

Hey jedgington I am in Florida so tinkering with my new/used 06 M35 now in garage. Changed the belts, Cabin air filter and will need to replace a fog light that is cracked. Good to have a community like this to simplify complex machines like the M35!!

[mmartin110]

Checked Ebay and the parts place. I know what OEM means (original equipment manufacturer) however there is a number after the term does anyone know that that means? IE.,,
07 08 09 INFINITI M35 M45 XENON DRIVER HEADLIGHT OEM 77 <<<77??

[jedgington]

Sorry it has taken me a while to respond to this post. I finally took at look at this today. I thought the rattling was coming from the motor itself or a stripped gear or something like that. After doing all of this, though, I couldn't find what was wrong and ended up putting it all back together. On top of that, I realized I obtained the motor for the LEFT light and my problem is with the RIGHT one. Maybe the parts are the same, maybe not, I didn't take the chance. Hopefully, someone else gives this a try and can figure out what to do to fix the problem.

If you look at the back side of the headlight assembly, the up-down motor and gear assembly is inside a squarish black box. It will have either an "L" or "R" in white lettering, depending on which side of the car it's on. It might be a little hard to see on the right side since there is a fuse box or something in the way. This little box is really easy to get off the headlight assembly once you remove the front inner fender (I think the service manual calls it a fender protector)...whatever it is called, it is the black curved plastic piece at the front of the wheel well.

NOTE: from this point on, continue at your own risk. I'm not a technician, nor do I warrant what I say below. It is quite possible that you will irreversably mess up your headlights.

You need to take out two small screws that connect a geared shaft to the blue plastic gear on the back of this black box. That is easy to do through the wheel well. Then, you need to turn either the blue nut or the black gear to which it is attached so the black gear turns counterclockwise. This will loosen a screw that ties into the mechanism that aims the light up and down. Keep turning, it took about 30 complete revolutions to get mine loose. Then, grasp the box and turn the whole thing about 1/8 turn counterclockwise and it will disengage from the headlamp assembly and pull out. if it doesn't pull out easy, try further loosening the aforementioned screw.

Now comes the fun part. CAREFULLY loosen the cover from the black box by CAREFULLY prying on the tabs. I managed to break one off of my junk part during the process, so go easy. Once you get the cover off, you'll see the motor, worm gear, and actuating gear that pulls on the screw we loosened above. Be very careful when disassembling this, as the whole assembly is delicate and also contains a sensor that tells the car where the light is aimed.

To put it back together, reverse the procedure. Before you reinstall the remote shaft, though, you should adjust the aim of the headlights by turning the blue nut.

Good luck to anyone who gives this a shot. If you're successful, please post a reply to this thread.

[mdstahl1]

Just wanted to revive this thread --- anyone else successfully change out the aiming motor?

jedgington - how did this work out for you?

[L36]

Resurrecting the thread. Is this a motor issue or the servo is inside the headlight and would require disassembly of the headlight? I have found places where i can just buy the motor assembly which is sub $50 vs near grand for both headlights.

I would PM Jed but his PM is turned off.

[Ilya]

It's likely a motor issue.