Aftermarket HID Conversion Kits & required setting XENON=PRESENT thread

[cw203]

HI...i'm curious if anyone successfully install the xenon replacement kit for H7 from hid4less or autolamps or any place else...please comment about the improvement of light also...thx

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[renncpe]

Originally posted by cw203
HI...i'm curious if anyone successfully install the xenon replacement kit for H7 from hid4less or autolamps or any place else...please comment about the improvement of light also...thx

I have a set on order theyare late getting here, but should have them by Friday. I will let you know about the install. They made a custom relay for me we are not sure if I will need it yet or not. I might be able to change the settings in the computer, to allow for the diffrent lights.

Randy

[cw203]

Thx Randy...can't wait to see your comment

[young]

what's the delay? i can't get any email responses from hids4less. i, too, await your hid upgrade eagerly!

[renncpe]

Originally posted by young
what's the delay? i can't get any email responses from hids4less. i, too, await your hid upgrade eagerly!

They told me that it required some custom pieces to be made for the bulb assembly, and that I should have it Thursday or Friday.

I'll keep you posted.

Randy

[Fuzzo]

i'm curious, this replacement kit, is it just for the headlight? basically is it the same as ordering xenon's from the dealer where only headlights are xenon and the rest are just normal halogen (rest being foglight and the light closest to the grill...can't remember what the $%^% it's called)

[bagwell]

Uh I saved the cash and went to www.bmwxenon.com
and order the H7 bulbs from there.

they look identical to the real c-class xenons.

[young]

what about light output of these bmwlights? i was concerned about many blue lamps b/c i thought they produced less light although they were blue-white.

[bagwell]

I'll try to take a pic of the car at night with lights on.

They seem bright/hi quality to me, but they offer a money back guarantee if your not satisfied.

[young]

$120 on ebay?

[bagwell]

Yep I paid $125....


but like I said satisfaction guaranteed!

[vadim]

Originally posted by bagwell
Uh I saved the cash and went to www.bmwxenon.com
and order the H7 bulbs from there.

they look identical to the real c-class xenons.

You didn't save cash, you wasted it.

Look up "XENON" or "HID" on this forum and visit some links in the posts found if you believe otherwise.

What do you think prevents MB from offering a better lighting solution than stock H7 that would be cheaper than a true HID and "almost as good", in the first place?

Just take a closer look at that website - www.bmwxenon.com. They can't even write in English. Perfect bogus.

[bagwell]

K.....feel free to spend $1000+(or whatever) for the true XENON kit....I've got better things to spend the money on myself.

My friend with true XENON in his 330i vs my C320 can't tell the difference.

but...again....to each his own.


maybe I'll spend the $1000 on an exhaust system for a .000001 HP gain...haha.

[cw203]

Do you know that the bulb (xenon like) life time is quite short...
i have PIAA Plasma before and one fail around 8 month.....
Looks is good...can't really tell difference from real xenon but visibility is really a problem....give a light blue light output...so you know what happen when it's rain hehehhee.....

[STKLAW]

I just ordered at set of bulbs to replace my City Lights so the color would match the Xenons. All I care about is that they are white instead of yellow up next to the Xenons. I think they will be fine. I put a set in my daughters 98 Jeep Grand Cherokee and they have plenty of light (better than stock) and they look white. We'll see what these new ones look like when they come in. They were only $25 for the set so don't have much to lose. I found them at www.cartoka.com. Someone on this board turned me onto this guy and said he had had good luck. Ships 2-3 day UPS for no charge.

[vadim]

Originally posted by bagwell
K.....feel free to spend $1000+(or whatever) for the true XENON kit....I've got better things to spend the money on myself.

My friend with true XENON in his 330i vs my C320 can't tell the difference.

but...again....to each his own.

maybe I'll spend the $1000 on an exhaust system for a .000001 HP gain...haha.

Your friend must be a very polite person, because HID lighting systems throw on the road nearly 3 times the amount of light even the most advanced halogen lamps do.

What makes HID systems so superior is that they are based on gas discharge (electric arch running through gas (Xenon) between two closely positioned electrodes) compared to glowing filament (which halogen bulbs are). Granted, they are not cheap, but that's the only way to achieve improved road illumination, if that is your goal.

The presence of Xenon in halogen bulbs is nothing but a cheap marketing trick exploiting certain individuals' lack of knowledge of the subject. It makes no sense from an engineering point of view.

So if you get a "white" halogen bulb, you either have an overwatted one (drawing higher current that stock) or blue-coated one... or both, like it or not.

But if you're going for the look only, it shouldn't matter, I guess.

-----------------
*)upon receiving numerous angry stares, Politically Correct Censorship has been applied to the original text by the author

Originally posted by vadim

The presence of Xenon in halogen bulbs is nothing but a cheap marketing trick exploiting people's ignorance. It makes no sense from an engineering point of view.

Ignorance, Neanderthals, constant negative descriptions of fellow owners.

I am personally quite happy with my hyper white bulbs which I purchased from a local distributor for 36 bucks and I changed out the city lights to match for 10 bucks. No I didn't change the turn indicators to white, but it does put out a clean white light now, instead of a yellow.

Sometimes if you can't say anything nice, you shouldn't say anything at all.

[young]

vadim's disapproval of blue light lamps is like the passing of time... relentless and forever

[greg230]

to be honest with you, i think the knock off HIDs "look" ok when you watch em drive by, but i dont think they really compete as far as road illumination goes.

but hey, people make decisions based on THEIR needs and THEIR desires. i may not agree with your decisions, but that doesnt make you ignorant.

greg

[vadim]

Originally posted by young
vadim's disapproval of blue light lamps is like the passing of time... relentless and forever

lol, young
I'm just trying to help fellahs save a few bucks by avoiding making a silly mistake

But, on the other hand - people come and go, but I'm standing here at attention, guarding MB's eternal virtues

Frankly, my goal is to shed some light on the subject of which a lot of people have rather distorted knowledge (e.g. "HIDs are drop-in replacement bulbs of much higher quality"), thanks to marketing efforts of those crooks selling bogus products... Just look at eBay... cell phone antenna boosters, HID-like bulbs, phony little inserts that allegedly protect your head from electomagnetic waves emitted by cell phones, airbox inserts giving you an instant power and fuel economy increase, etc. Just feel it's a moral crime not to help if I can...

[vadim]

Originally posted by greg230
to be honest with you, i think the knock off HIDs "look" ok when you watch em drive by, but i dont think they really compete as far as road illumination goes.

but hey, people make decisions based on THEIR needs and THEIR desires. i may not agree with your decisions, but that doesnt make you ignorant.

greg

Greg,

some people honestly think that HIDs are drop-in replacement bulbs... These are the folks I'm trying to give more info, sometimes presented in an overly straight way hoping that it will make it less difficult to part with dreams based on false information. I never mean to attack anyone personally.

[bagwell]

Well here's my question Vadim:

Does anyone really NEED 3 times the light compared to a standard Halogen bulb ???

Its exactly $1690 extra for the C320....and I can't justify it. I like the look - I'm sure everyone wants XENON because they see so much better....yeh right.

Nuf said !

now how to get an extra 1 HP from the $1500 I saved..hummm

[greg230]

Originally posted by bagwell
Well here's my question Vadim:

Does anyone really NEED 3 times the light compared to a standard Halogen bulb ???

I DO!! I DO!!! I DO!!!!

i have ****ty night vision, and am eagerly awaiting my dealer recieveing in the hid retrofit for the c230 (although not holding my breathe) supposedly i am looking at about 800-900 bucks per assembly

but hey, for me i dont want just the "look" of hids, i want hids

greg

[vadim]

Originally posted by bagwell
Well here's my question Vadim:

Does anyone really NEED 3 times the light compared to a standard Halogen bulb ???

Its exactly $1690 extra for the C320....and I can't justify it. I like the look - I'm sure everyone wants XENON because they see so much better....yeh right.

Nuf said !

now how to get an extra 1 HP from the $1500 I saved..hummm

Ok, do you prefer driving at daylight or at night? I prefer the first. But - even 3 times more light on the road HID provides, compared to halogen, STILL isn't anywhere near daytime illumination.

Also, bought as an option, HID costs between $500 and $900, depending on make and model. Of course retrofitted systems cost well over that, but from a safety standpoint, it's a very good investment.

[Silver Bullet]

Tried to install the Phillips REAL H7 HID kit today on my C-coupe.
Didn't work, the MB computer and Control Unit for the the lights were not "communicating" with each other. However, there was signs of life with some flickering going on. I'm sending the kit back and may just have to spend the extra $$ for factory ones.