My HID Install with DIY Instructions

[amaycg]

After months of asking questions and researching HID kits, I decided to finally install one on my E350 with P1. At first, I took it to Benz Works in Huntington Beach, CA, but they did a bad job. As I drove home, I noticed one bulb was yellower than the other and they just stuffed the ballast and all of the wiring in the housing...for $100. One bulb was a different color because it had finger oils on it which I noticed when I removed everything and installed the HID kit myself, the PROPER way. The installation really wasn't that easy (I'm not a handy person), but let me describe how I did it. I really broke it down since no one has really done so on this forum yet. 1) I ordered my kit from retrofitsource.com. I ordered the H7 Morimoto Elite HID system in 5000K with Standalone Can-Bus rather than the Heavy Duty Relay. You need to order the Standalone Can-Bus to avoid error messages in the instrument cluster. The kit came with a few extra wires, but it's easy to figure out what you need. Just take the ballast, plug the bulb into the ballast, and connect the standalone CanBus (Which looks like a wire with a small box in the middle) to the ballast and to the male leads which are on the other side of the rubber grommet (the same side as the bulb). Try not to get above 5-6000K because then your light output will be reduced. 4300K is the optimum temperature because it gives the most light and white light with a tint of yellow. However, I chose 5000K (white with a slight tint of blue) because 5000K is the color temperature of the xenon bulbs that come from the factory. My 5000K lights make my S class's 4300K lights look yellow! 2) I decided to install the HID on the driver's side first. I've never removed the liner before, so I did so by first removing the wheel (I used the lug nut remover found in the spare tire kit). I used the floor hand crank jack found in the spare tire kit as well since I didn't have a jack either after I removed the jack cover on the side sill. In order to remove the wheel well, you need to remove the push pins holding the liner down as well as a few metal bolts. The pushpins have two parts. An outer part that goes into the wheel liner and a middle part, which fills in the hole of the bigger part so that the liner doesn't come loose. To remove the push pins, remove the middle part first with a flat headed screwdriver (the MB dealer has a special tool they use if you want to buy that too) and then remove the outer part. These cost approximately $2.50 each so don't lose them! I used a 10mm and 8mm socket wrench to remove the bolts. Note: There are a couple of bolts under the front bumper as well that hold the liner in. These will be easy to access once you have jacked the car up, even if you jacked it up just enough to get the wheel off the ground (like I did). After all the bolts were removed, it was difficult to remove the liner. The front part of the liner (the half closest to the headlight) is tucked under the rear part of the liner (the half closest to the driver's side door). Therefore, I had to remove some bolts from the rear half of the liner as well so I could give the rear liner some wiggle room. I was able to pull the rear part of the liner down just enough to slip the front part of the liner off the bolt on the uppermost part of the wheel well. To give some perspective since I don't have pictures, there is one 10 mm bolt at the top of the liner. The bolt goes through in this order: the rear part of the liner, the front part of the liner, and then the wheel well. So, to remove the front part of the liner, you need to pull the rear part down so the front one can be pulled over the bolt screw. NOTE: The liner does come into contact with the exterior paint near the wheel arch. If you don't want hairline scratches from the liner on your paint, tape the painted surfaces near the wheel arch. I didn't tape mine, but I've seen people who do. Luckily, I didn't get any major scratches, although when I did remove the wheel, it fell on the ground, leaving some nasty scratches on the face of the wheel! oops 3) Once I removed the liner, I removed the headlight cover cap. I bought an electric drill with a 1.25" cone drill attachment to drill the 1" hole necessary for the bulb and its wires to pass through to the housing. I drilled until I measured a 1" hole. It's not that hard and although I was initially worried about cracking the cover, the cover really is hard, hard plastic, so the cap didn't even bend when I drilled the hole through. Note: it's okay if the hole is slightly bigger or smaller than 1". The rubber grommet on the wires has two flanges that cover the hole on both sides of the cap, with a middle rubber part that fills the hole you made. So, even if you drilled a 1.1" hole, it is OK because the rubber flanges on the grommet have a bigger diameter than 1" and will cover the hole completely. 4) Now, it's time to secure the bulb. First, remove the stock bulb. In order to do this, grab the black base of the bulb and turn counterclockwise. The metal extensions on the bulb holder are locked behind two open metal flaps built onto the headlight housing, so in order to remove the bulb, these metal extensions need to be removed from behind the metal flaps. Once the bulb has been removed, remove the bulb first, and then the metal retaining clip off of the black connector box. To remove the metal clip, use a small flathead screwdriver (i couldn't get it off with my finger at first). Then, place the bulb aside. 5) It's time to secure the HID bulb. the H7 bulb plugs into the retaining clip and into the female connectors. The original H7's retaining clip sits behind the H7 bulb and the clip's two metal extensions are secured onto the housing's two metal flaps. However, since the female connectors (the black connector box) is removed from the retaining clip and the bulb, you need to secure the HID bulb with JUST the retaining clip, not the black connector box. This is somewhat obvious because unlike the stock H7 bulb which has two plug prongs on the bottom of it, the HID bulb is attached to wires. Since the HID bulb was wires that come out of it and the retaining clip needs to attach to the metal base of the HID bulb, the only way to easily secure the retaining clip would be to cut a slit on the side of the retaining clip to let the wires easily pass through to the open center of the retaining clip. You could then push the retaining clip up over the wires to the bulb. Since the car is leased and will be going back in about a year and a half, I DID NOT WANT TO MODIFY THE ORIGINAL BULB RETAINING CLIP (the clip with the two metal extensions that get caught behind the housing's metal flaps), so I decided to buy another set of aftermarket clips: http://store.ijdmtoy.com/Audi-BMW-Me...s-p/aa1047.htm I don't want to take chances and assume the modified stock bulb holder will be able to hold the stock H7 halogen when it's time for me return the lease... JUST AS A WARNING, YOU CANNOT BUY OEM BULB RETAINING CLIPS UNLESS YOU BUY A NEW HEADLIGHT HOUSING! These aftermarket clips have a little different shape, but have a slit already so you don't have to modify the stock ones. NOTE: MTEC (steve@onspire.com) ALSO SELLS AFTERMARKET CLIPS (as seen on some other threads), BUT THE NEW ONES THEY HAVE IN STOCK DO NOT HAVE THE SLIT ANYMORE! They also didn't fit over the plastic HID bulb base... If you want to buy these for the MTEC kit, email him and then send a Paypal payment from your account ($20). In order for these aftermarket clips to attach to the housing, the metal extensions on these clips need to be bent like the original clip's so the extensions can be held down by the metal flaps. Just use pliers, this part is really easy even for a person like me who never does anything with tools. Just bend the metal extensions until they fit into the housing. Place the clip behind the bulb after slipping the wires through and secure the bulb. Take the other two male connectors on the other wires that feed through the rubber grommet on the same side that the bulb is on and plug these wires into the female connector box. (Recap: The other end of the male connectors should be plugged into the Can-Bus, the wire with the small black cube/the error canceler, and the other end of the Canbus should be plugged into the ballast; The other wires coming out of the ballast go straight to the HID bulb). 6) String the rubber grommet through the headlamp cover's hole and DON'T SECURE THE CAP JUST YET. Since the female connector box doesn't specify which male leads match up, test the lights first. Make sure the bulb is connected to the ballast and the ballast is connected to the two male leads. Once the lights work, secure the cap. Once the HID bulb is secured (make sure you use the alcohol prep pad that came with the kit to remove finger oils off of the bulb) and the male leads are successfully plugged into the black connector box in the headlight housing, it's time to mount the ballast. I mounted the ballast underneath the headlight housing and zip tied the wires that connect the HID bulb and ballast to other wires in the engine bay. There is a metal bar underneath the headlight that is out of the way of the wheel well liner. Using Scotch Heavy Duty double sided tape, I stuck the ballast there, and zip tied it down. I then hid the HID wires by zip tying them to to other wires in the engine bay to make for a clean install. 7) Test the lights again just to be safe and leave the car on with the lights on to test for flickering issues. The MORIMOTO kit had no problems. Once everything is tested and the ballast is for sure mounted, I closed up the wheel well. Screw everything back on and put the wheel back on. If the wheel is off, you might as well take the time, clean the wheel barrels and detail the brake calipers, etc. 8) PASSENGER SIDE: The passenger side is much more accessible, so I was able to do everything from the top. Make sure that you modify the clip just like you did to the driver's side bulb retaining clip before attaching everything on the passenger side. I mounted the ballast on the same wavy metal bar under the headlight housing. It's a little harder to mount it than the driver's side given that the wheel well compressed my hand against the bar, but I was able to do it in about a minute. Zip tie everything again. 9) ENJOY YOUR NEW LIGHTS!!!! I also changed the parking (inner lamp) bulbs to match the HID's. I bought the AZNOptics W5W LED ones in 5000K. Installation for these is waaayyy easier than the headlights! Just check your owner's manual to replace these

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[amaycg]

Pic of the ballast under the driver's side headlight housing:


Another pic of the ballast:


Pic of the wiring, the ballast



Lights!

[BenzV12]

Great job, I like to read such useful topics
Mods should do sticky threads for such useful topics

[BM2BZ]

wow ! that must be the longest post i've read in this forum so far and i got dizzy after reading the whole thing . but amaycg, we all really appreciate your long writeup and pics . you really have guts to do all these by yourself if you are not a handy as you said. congrats on your "new" ride and find more excuses to drive at night .

[alan111]

Thanks for the write-up!

I'll definitely need to use this as reference soon.

[fcienfuegos]

Great job, very detailed instructions...

[aeggroup]

Originally Posted by amaycg

I also changed the parking (inner lamp) bulbs to match the HID's. I bought the AZNOptics W5W LED ones in 5000K. Installation for these is waaayyy easier than the headlights! Just check your owner's manual to replace these

Would you mind to post the link where you got parking LED? I need them also.

[amaycg]

Originally Posted by aeggroup

Would you mind to post the link where you got parking LED? I need them also.

Here ya go!
http://aznoptics.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&products_id=8

[aeggroup]

Originally Posted by amaycg

Here ya go!
http://aznoptics.com/index.php?main_...&products_id=8

Thank you.

[iEBenz]

last week my can bus kit ballast burned out after 3 months of use (so disappointed). was thinking getting the expensive kit from Philips about $300. but in the mean time i was playing with the ballast and try to plug my ballast without can bus from my 92 honda prelude and it just work fine exactly same brightness and color as the other one without any error one dashboard whatsoever . it was funny. thinking about all the can bus error free that i was worried about but a old *** 92 ballast do the same jobs. well will see what happen to my car.
so my question is anyone out there try to install a non can bus HID kit for the car without having any error? cus i just did experiment with my car and it is working fine for now.

[hofb99]

In a word, OUTSTANDING!!! amaycg, this has got to be one of the most thorough/helpful posts I've seen in all the forums I've been a member of. Truly impressive... And let me add that your lights came out pretty much as close to perfect as can be (arguably better than OEM in these pics). So funny, the timing of your post, as I recently popped my hood to see how difficult it would be to install HIDs on my own as well... I believe the passenger side was clear enough to do w/ little challenge, but the driver's side was cluttered w/ too many engine peripherals, wiring, conduits, etc., to get to the light housing from the back side. Your pictures reveal the trick...just take the wheel off and "voila!", easy access baby! Again, outstanding job!!! This is what forums are for!

[minho80]

Thanks for the detail write up will help me get the light and install my self thanks

[johnc510]

amaycg,

Thanks for the DIY write-up! It helped me get familiar with the procedure prior to taking on the project. And with a printout of your write-up next to me as I was installing, it helped me gain confidence.

[rufmb]

Originally Posted by amaycg

This is a very clean profile - great job! And thanks for the detailed instructions, it takes a lot of effort to share good information like this.

[rufmb]

Originally Posted by amaycg

....
The installation really wasn't that easy (I'm not a handy person)....

I may have to disagree, you sound pretty handy to me, now I am what one would call 'not a handy person', so I'm looking for a mechanic who will install for me

[amaycg]

Thanks for all the replies! I'm glad I was able to help

[mbtim]

I am about to buy a 2010 E350 tomorrow with P1. I was hesitant to buy one without P2 because of the halogen headlights but I could not find one with P2 in my area. As a result I want to do what you did to your car. I really don't think I could install these on my own though. Is 5000k the type you would recommend? Does it look stock? It looks very good in the pictures to me. Do the LED parking lights match the color of the headlights? Would this cause me to fail a vehicle inspection in NC? Or are there any possible issues with doing this install? I'm completely new to changing a cars stock headlights so I'm pretty clueless. Any help would be appreciated.

[PHML]

Originally Posted by mbtim

I am about to buy a 2010 E350 tomorrow with P1. I was hesitant to buy one without P2 because of the halogen headlights but I could not find one with P2 in my area. As a result I want to do what you did to your car. I really don't think I could install these on my own though. Is 5000k the type you would recommend? Does it look stock? It looks very good in the pictures to me. Do the LED parking lights match the color of the headlights? Would this cause me to fail a vehicle inspection in NC? Or are there any possible issues with doing this install? I'm completely new to changing a cars stock headlights so I'm pretty clueless. Any help would be appreciated.

Congrats on the w212 purchase.

HID upgrade is simple...you just need to have some guts to try it. You just need some basic tools. I did over a dozen installs on Lexus' and MBs. I installed it on my wifey's 2011 GLK, and a buddy's 2010 E550 last year.

Jack up the car, remove your wheel, remove the inner fender liner, and install the plug-n-play canbus HID kit. Drill small hole in rear cap or rear opening lip (i did the latter) to run the wires outside of the housing. Secure wires with zip tie and re-install fender liner and wheels...DONE!!

Pete

[mbtim]

I'm a little hesitant after some of the forum posts I've been reading. This is a certified used car I'm buying and I am worried it will void my warranty. I am also worried about my car not passing NC Inspection. If someone has any knowledge on those two things that would be great. If I were to change the lights I'd be changing the low beams, parking lights and the fogs/drls. The bulbs I was considering for the fogs/drls are these - http://store.ijdmtoy.com/Mercedes-W2...led-drl-4j.htm

My car does not have the hockey stick drls, it has the 2 round lights on each side - Is one of those lights the fog light and the other a DRL?

If I were to get those lights, what kind of low beam and parking light would match best, 4300k or 5000k?

Sorry for all the questions, I just don't want to make a mistake.

[BenzV12]

Congrats , yup one of the lights are for fog lights and the other should be DRL,and, it's an Elegance / Luxury model because Avantgarde came with hockey stick like lights
Sorry, I can't help you on HIDs because this is not my territory lol

[mbtim]

Well I saw the original sticker for the car and it was a Sport Model. I believe back in 2010 the hockey sticks came with P2 package but in 2011 they started putting the hockey sticks on all models except luxury models. That was my understanding.

[PHML]

contact BM2BZ...he bought LEDs for the DRL and fogs...so he knows the type/size. As for the parking lights, you need canbus 194 size. HIDs need to be canbus as well. I prefer 6000k temp...they are white with a bit of blue.

[BM2BZ]

Originally Posted by mbtim

I'm a little hesitant after some of the forum posts I've been reading. This is a certified used car I'm buying and I am worried it will void my warranty. I am also worried about my car not passing NC Inspection. If someone has any knowledge on those two things that would be great. If I were to change the lights I'd be changing the low beams, parking lights and the fogs/drls. The bulbs I was considering for the fogs/drls are these - http://store.ijdmtoy.com/Mercedes-W2...led-drl-4j.htm

My car does not have the hockey stick drls, it has the 2 round lights on each side - Is one of those lights the fog light and the other a DRL?

If I were to get those lights, what kind of low beam and parking light would match best, 4300k or 5000k?

Sorry for all the questions, I just don't want to make a mistake.

your dealer will tell you any aftermarket stuff will void your warranty. so it's really your choice to take this risk or not. as far as inspection, as long as your beams aren't shooting too high, should be ok. i didn't have any problem to pass last year.

the drl and fogs are different animals. i bought my drl bulbs from ebay for much less and don't have any problem at all as long as you buy the error free/canbus ones. but i bought couple ballasts for the fogs (inner two round ones). don't recall the size for the fogs but the link you provided is correct for drl.

btw, phml is always right about these kind of bulb questions !

[kpma28]

I finally did mine too. This is what i installed http://www.theretrofitsource.com/pro...oducts_id=3893 6000K 35W. Everything fit inside the headlight so no need to drill.

[Nuru]

Originally Posted by BM2BZ

your dealer will tell you any aftermarket stuff will void your warranty. so it's really your choice to take this risk or not. as far as inspection, as long as your beams aren't shooting too high, should be ok. i didn't have any problem to pass last year.

the drl and fogs are different animals. i bought my drl bulbs from ebay for much less and don't have any problem at all as long as you buy the error free/canbus ones. but i bought couple ballasts for the fogs (inner two round ones). don't recall the size for the fogs but the link you provided is correct for drl.

btw, phml is always right about these kind of bulb questions !

Did a dealer tell you that the install of the lights would void your entire car's warranty or just for the headlamps and associated systems?