I had a headlight problem that ended up going the cheap route with as well. Mainly because I didn't have the time to get the the junk yard and hunt down a light switch.
I had one headlight completely shut off one day. Bulbs were fine, headlight motors worked fine, just no shine. Turned out to be a bad switch assembly. The lazy cheap fix was to just jumper the positive wire from the working headlight to the non-working one. Worked fine after that. Then I completely forgot about it for months....then sold the car.....
Simple fixes like this are good as long as they're only temporary. Chances are your problem will just come back. Replacement is something you might want to consider down the line.
And yes I can see the difference in the pics....BARELY. Next time, take lighting prob pics at night. Just a tip.
Also try clipping that zip tie excess holding up your rear bumper, there is a limit to how much tackiness is allowed on a 240.
Oh and get new floor mats...that thing is a goner....