2010 prius: low beams misadjusted or what?

That’s the cutoff, if not for that you’ll blind everyone.

 

The only possible thing wrong in your description is the distance at which this cutoff line hits the ground. But it must hit the ground in a not-too-far distance. The law in my state (written before headlights had good cutoff lines) is that the brightest part of the low beam must hit the ground no more than 50 feet away. Fortunately this absurdly short distance is not enforced, but the concept still applies.

Functionally, directly ahead, that upper cutoff line needs to slope down towards the road in order to keep from blinding oncoming drivers. Any significant light going up, or out perfectly horizontally to infinity, should be cast off-center to the right, where the traffic signs are placed. (Or the opposite in UK-Commonwealth countries driving on the left.)

If you want any real amount of light cast directly forward to the far distance ahead, or even up, then you need to use the high beam. But this is forbidden by law when facing close oncoming traffic, because the glare blinds them. These compromises are simply a fact of life when driving at night in the presence of other traffic.

Another effect of the low beam's sharp upper cutoff is to improve driver vision into fog and falling snow. Any upward light illuminating close-in bright white fog or flying snow hampers your view to the road beyond.

 

Sounds like nothing wrong with the lights, as others above noted, except that they're aimed low. Park the car with the front 25' from a wall, measure the height to the center of the lenses, and then adjust them using the 8mm bolt on the back of the headlight housings until the cutoff line on the wall is 2-3" below the height you measured.

 

That unless you have LED headlights, Then you are permitted to blind all traffic NO CUTOFF LINE is apparently necessary !!!

 

Especially if you're in a truck and your headlights are at the same height as everyone elses' eyes....