shivi1345

Is that really for the License Plate light? I took it out, and its shorter and fatter than a normal (like the ones in the interior) bulb

maverik259

I just replaced my city lights with heat sink 194 LED's from autolumination.com...they tripped the code but i mean i dont really care that much that a code pops up every time i turn the lights on...all i have to do is change the menu and its not there anymore, not really a big deal right? or will this cause the LED's to short out...i just replaced them last weekend and havent driven at night yet...

shivi1345

I think people don't want the code to flash because it is annoying, not because it like shortens the life of the bulb or anything.....I think

andy_meng1024

I had the bulb out error when I replaced my bumper since there's no side marker on the new bumper. The codes were annoying but nothing bad would happen to the car I believe. I finally got the dealer disable them for me after a couple months tho.

andy_meng1024

I'll ask the seller and see if he can show the bulbs on a Mercedes w/o error. Hope it works.

Mu9enx

you basically need (2) Festoon LED's; i don't know the correct sizes, but last time i ordered 39mm and it worked fine. i had 41mm before, and as it stayed on, the bulb holder squeezed it too much and it broke. so i would go to Autolumination, order the $9.99 Festoon LED (forgot what it was called), and that's about it.

then you'll need (2) 25w 100ohm resistors. you can get these for less than 2 bucks at Fry's. and then the wire stripper. if you want to do this, i can help you find the DIY link; it's on the w204 forum of mbworld. got_thang? was the OP.

for the city's, all you have to do is get the newer SMD's from ebay. i bought these:
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/2-Blu...mZ160293082131

those are a little too big, but i sanded it down enough to get it to fit snugly. they should work fine, but they MIGHT trip the error codes; however, they do not flicker. i kinda messed one of them up and started getting an error, and that's because i kinda messed with one of the bulb's contacts. i'm thinking of getting another set in white, but i'm satisfied. they are bright, even in the daytime, and they don't trip codes unless you mess it up.

WaveyKat

i didnt know the side markers could be disable i gotta look into this! i have mines hanging inside the bumper with a bulb in it.

B189s

Yeah I can barely notice the difference between Hoen and stock

Should've tried the LED with resistors...

maverik259

ya mine dont flicker as far as i've noticed...just the trip codes went off...they dont bother me all that much to take to the dealer and pay 50 bucks to have them turn it off...btw where do you place the 100ohm resistor? just before the city light or just after? and what do you do just cut the wire and run it through the resistor or does the resitor just like clamp on or w/e?

Mu9enx

the resistor is needed for the license plate lights, not the city's. first you have to strip a little piece to expose the wire. there are two wires for one bulb. there is the ground and the electrical i think. just wrap one end of the resistor to one wire and the other to the other wire.

maverik259

o ok, ya well i dont plan on doing the license plate lights anytime soon...I'm getting the e63 bumper and when thats getting put on, im going to go ahead and switch to bixenon and HID fogs...so im puttin my focus into that right now

andy_meng1024

After that, we will have exactly the same front end minus the quad fogs if your car is also black.

Fitty

I bought those hoen city lights and one burned out within a week! didn't even touch the bulb's either, what a fail on their part

valexv

which ones would be the best to match 10k

shivi1345

hm...Mu9enx do youy have a pic of the back of your car with the lights on?

I want to see if its worth it lol....seems like a lot of work

maverik259

haha ya man not half bad if you ask me...lol except i have the clk grill...and i might go with blacked out HID's...but ya i want those halo fogs reiger has...how much did you pay for yours?

Mu9enx

****, i don't have really good pics of it, but if you can wait till tonight, when it's dark, i'll use my cousin's camera to snap a shot for you. don't even know if it'll look bright on a camera, but i know FrankW, along with some other members, can vouch for it's brightness. if you in SGV, come over and take a look, LOL.

it's not really that much of a hassle. this was probably my first time using wire splitters, and i didn't destroy my car, so that's saying something, LOL.

dacooley

Hmm... Being an electronic engineering major, this is completely incorrect...
watts = voltage * amps irregardless of what is pulling the current
a 65W halogen bulb draws 65/13.8 = 4.71 amps

35W HID draws 35/13.8 = 2.536 amps... BUT, they actually draw about 42 watts as there is 7W used by the ignitor module... so they really draw:
42/13.8 = 3.04 amps

HID, Halogen, LED, Fluorescent, Stereo, Television, the formula is all the same and it's all physics.

TemjinX2

As a electrical engineer then you should know ballasts during it initial start up take use up as many as 7.5-15amps depending on the model of the ballast. Going off your amp calculations thats basically double the amount of amps that a halogen is rated or more. It usually only last 10seconds but over time it can damage your oem harness.

After the startup then yes it does go down to the 35w or 55w rating depending on what type of ballasts your running.

Most halogen harnesses usually use 18ga wire, which is a lot of current for a wire that size.

This is why i recommend a harness, rather then using the oem harness. The inital start up ampage can fry your harness. I would rather risk frying a $25 harness then trying to find out how much a oem one costs.

You should learn a little bit more about ballasts, instead of just calculating a number based on a simple number rating.

Glyn M Ruck

Well said - real world knowhow vs textbook

lmandi89

Alright guys i received my license plate lights and they didn't fit.(Surprise) They were 39mm but it was like 1-2mm long and i tried to make it work but it didn't, so my brother tried it on his 07 GLI and it worked. I was pissed? The LED bulb was really blue i mean you could get pulled over for it, even if they worked i woludn't put them on.




This are pic. from my brothers car. LED vs. Stock



What do you think. Let's see if i have any luck with the other light's the city light's. They are coming from Australia and they'll be here this week.

WaveyKat

First Pic is 8000k D2S Low Beam with 21 LED City Light From Ebay no Error message on dash! you van find the led here : http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/2-HID...mZ370094099216



Second pic is with Philips Ultinon 6000k with 13 LED from ebay No Error on Dash! you can the led here http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/2-HID...mZ370104213514



The LED are REALLY BRIGHT WHITE but when you install them into the Headlight they look white/Blue kind of hard to Match


I also Tried these which do match Perfect with 6000K but they give Errors and dont stay on they keep blinking! see link below!
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/194-1...mZ250303434315

maverik259

ya thats the only thing wrong with using LED in such large visible areas...they just arent meant to fill an area with light, but more to shine bright with color...so you get like a point of bright light rather than filling the housing with its light...i've got a set of 4 LED from autolumination...they work perfect, but they tripped the code error...no flicker though...i've read on soem other forums that the phillips w5w blue vision (hyper white) wedge bulb works great for this...its not LED and it matches the best with the 6000k bulb, from what i've heard

WaveyKat

phillips w5w blue vision .. they like Coated with a blue tint and when the light is off you see the blue in the reflector which i am trying to stay away from!

itneg

[QUOTE=WaveyKat;3140789]First Pic is 8000k D2S Low Beam with 21 LED City Light From Ebay no Error message on dash! you van find the led here : http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/2-HID...mZ370094099216



If my don't work then defenitley i will buy these. They look preaty good with the 8000K HID's. Thanks for the pic. that helps