washoor

$350 with HID or just the lenses? and please send me the item link OR the seller link and how was the installation? ...Thanks

XenonBenz

Don't buy Depo's. They look great, but there is a design flaw in them that ruins the beam pattern of your headlights. Do a search for Depo headlights, and you will see what I am talking about. There has been much discussion about this. I bought Depo's, and ended up selling them 1 week later. There is no substitue for OEM Bi-Xenon.

The problem with Depo's is that the "bowl" that reflects the light is installed backwards in the manufacturing process. That is what causes the severe hotspots and lack of lighting to the sides of your car.

I also noticed the 2 projector beam's you linked above. They are $150 cheaper than Depo's. My guess is that they are "Depo knockoff's". If they are not Depo, the projector bowl might actually be installed right, and you could have an almost OEM quality beam. Be careful though, these headlights could fall apart on you. There is another style aftermarket projector beam headlight, and those have been known to have internal pieces fall loose inside the headlight.

Your BEST option to just have clear headlights is to get 05+ OEM headlights. You can install an aftermarket HID kit on them, and have the updated clear look. Steve at MBenlNL can take care of you on those. If you are patient, you can watch ebay and the classifieds on this forum to pick up a used set. I've seen used 05+ OEM headlights sell for $200-300 used. They sell brand new on ebay for about $500.

Check my pictures below. These were my Depo headlights and a 8000K Xenon HID kit.

Notice the hotspots in the beam pattern of the Depo headlight.


Look at the severe hotspots

kompressorc230

Yet again, you can never be too sure about ebay...

+1 ------ check MBENZNL.com

sanf

90% of the ppl on this forum will tell you to contact Steve and go OEM. the reason to that is because it's pretty much the BEST projectors you can get for your w203.

if you really want to try something different, just buy any ebay aftermarket projectors and try not to pay too much for them. the worse thing it will happen is pretty much just gonna melt and burn your car down. but that is pretty rare anyway.

MRK

pictures?

washoor

$350 with HID or just the lenses? and please send me the item link OR the seller link and how was the installation? and i also think Pix will be cool...Thanks

JonB C240

Here are a few pics.....

JonB C240

I bought them a while ago, I actually didnt buy them from ebay, I got em from autodynamic. I got my tails, grill and emblem from ebay. sry bout that.

XenonBenz

Here's some clarifications...

Depo's look great cosmetically. They look almost exactly like OEM Bi-Xenon's. That isn't the problem with the Depo's. The problem is a poor beam pattern. You can tell by my pictures above that there is a serious problem with the light distribution. Some people don't care, however I think it is a safety hazard driving with a poor beam pattern at night. You will have better lighting with OEM 05+ Clear headlights with an aftermarket HID kit.

Also, Depo's are just replacement halogen headlight assemblies. They use an H7 bulb just like OEM non-xenon headlights. Depo's do not come with a Xenon HID kit.

Whether you buy Depo's or OEM clear headlights, you will still need to buy an aftermarket HID kit that uses an H7 bulb.

Washoor, 90% of people are anti-Depo for good reason (you'll notice on this thread most people say don't buy Depo, and 1 or 2 people say Depo's are good). The other 10% who say Depo's are good are people who DON'T CARE about having good lighting. I was in your shoes 4 months ago. I asked about Depo's on this forum, and almost everyone said don't buy em. I listened to the 1 or 2 people who said they were good, and I wish I hadn't. I had the Depo's on my car for 1 week, took them off, and sold em right away (and lost $200 in the process). I hope you can learn from my mistake and don't waste money on Depo's. (unless of course you don't care about having a crappy beam pattern with your lights and just want the look of the Bi-Xenon's)

Doesn't something look very wrong with this Depo beam pattern?

speedsak

what is Steve's username up here? I would like to get a hold of him about the headlight upgrade for my coupe. thanks!

washoor

thanks for your responses ... did anyone try Ebay projectors , that are NOT DEPOT ?, what do they think of it?

XenonBenz

Most people have had pretty bad luck with all of the aftermarket projector's on ebay, whether it be Depo, Ace, Kayee, etc...

There have been problems with headlights melting, pieces falling apart inside the headlight, and the beam pattern problem in the Depo. This has been mentioned several times now.

I don't think anyone has tried the Ace or Kayee brand that looks like the Depo headlight. I'm talking about the ones you linked in your first post. If you want to be brave, buy one of those sets and let us know how it turns out.

My opinion is that you listen to the advice of all of the experienced knowledgable people on this site (you can be a dummy like me and learn the hard way if you want). 98% of MBWorld agrees that these are the only 2 good choices:

1. OEM 05+ clear headlights.

2. OEM Bi-Xenon headlights.


I'm going to quote myself so I don't have to keep typing the same thing over and over and over........

drexappeal

MBenzNL

speedsak

Thank you!

eddyg88

For what its worth...
After about 2 months of research and debate over what kind of headlights to upgrade my 04 C230 with I finally made a decision.
When I purchased this car I had the frosted halogen yellow lights on it and hated it. I knew I wanted to make the upgrade but I wast sure which way to go.
Now I know the best option out there is getting a set of MB BiXenon but the reality of it is that some people dont want to spend $1000 plus to upgrade headlights (that would be me).
I ended up getting a set of projector headlights from acemotors off ebay. My only bad experience through this was that the product they sent me was not the same style as shown on the web (different projector style). The quality of the product was right there with the MB OEM frosted lamps. The projectors are Eagle Eye.
For bulbs, I went with Phillips Diamond Vision H7s and PIAA Extreme Whites for the City Lights.
The install was extrememly smooth thanks to the DIY sticky. The total install time was about 1-1.5 hours. Again thanks to the DIY headlight sticky.
Now I am one of the few but I have to say I am very very happy with the aftermarket projectors and bulbs. The beam pattern is very good, with good cutoffs and no hotspots (halogen bulbs and projectors match well). The projectors are adjustable the same as OEM. The light output is identical to HID with excellent output and look. I am not blinding anyone on the road and gained more lateral light output and have them set with a little longer light throw than the frosted OEMs (live out in the sticks and need the light). The city lights are a perfect match as well and with this style light the blue bulb is not noticable at all with the lights off.
Overall this was a perfect light upgrade, bulbs and all it was still under $350 including shipping. I would highly recommend this to anyone looking for HID look and output without the cost.
Only time will tell how they hold up, but right now I couldnt be happier. Excellent choice with cost in mind.

drexappeal

Well, it's an HID look, but still not HID. Throw some an aftermarket HID kit in there. I'd like to see some pics of this.

Like I've stated many times, I would only go OEM for headlights, but that's just me and especially because I ordered my car with BI-X.

raymond g-

Eddie-
your experience seems to be positive....and one of the somewhat rare thumbs
up for Eagle Eye. usually, folks stick the thum in their own eye for having
purchased them.

their headlights are usually mediocre in assembly and parts sturdiness, and
sometimes they use smaller reflectors and even smaller bulbs than OEM. rarey have any Eagle Eye headlights approached OEM (not even close to 'right there') in terms of quality of light intensity and beam pattern. hope this is an indication
that their QC/ISO has improved....and that more good reports are forthcoming
from other buyers.

eddyg88

Again I understand BiX is the best but basic cost/ben showed this to be a good option for me. The reason I didnt throw a HID kit in there is because I wanted to give the projector the best chance it had it creating a good beam pattern. In any case, the light output of the H7 diamond vision create a very HID like appearance while maintaining a stong light output. I was very skeptical on getting aftermarket projectors but it was that or nothing because $1k+ was not going to happen.
I was not expecting Eagle Eye lights but they worked out. The casing and all was pretty much identical to the OEM halogen housings. I cant speak for BiX.
Just putting some more information out there...

coolli2

Projector Enclosure is design for HID, if you use halogen bulbs, their light output is not strong enough to go thru the lens, the result is poor visual on the road.

I had an Ebay Projector light and Mtec H7 super white bulb combo before, one time I drove pass the Golden Gate park at night, it was kinda foggy and wet, the visual was so bad, I almost ran into a wall, lucky I didn't drive fast. I swap them to HID with in a week after this happened.

My advise to you is spend the extra $200, get an aftermarket HID kit.

raymond g-

whoa...whoa...whoa....hold on there, c..

projectors are designed for whatever bulb it is designed to be paired with, be
it D1S, D2S HID.....or H7 halogen, et al bulbs. projector lens is designed
for the specific focal point and help project the beam...in conjunction with
the projector bowl.

the anecdotal experience (causal effect) may be accurate at some lower
level, but the conclusion is flawed at so many levels. stick with facts so
as not to mislead folks.

WhatTheHulk

got any pics of the headlamps (cut-off or outside pic)?

clotz4391

OK so after reading everything I can get my hands on in regards to headlights, I'm going to pony up the cash and get the MB OEM Bi Xenon's

Two reasons- One I just bought the car two weeks ago and plan to keep it 3 years and two my 06 Acura TL has the Xenon from the factory and after driving that for 6 months (everything else aside) I really like the light output.

Now....WHERE CAN I BUY THEM? Just call the MB dealer or what? I work at a Honda Dealership and have some well qualified friends that can install these for me (I'm a Finance/Computer Guy) but where can I get my hands on some?

coolli2

email Steve at s_krabbenborg@hotmail.com

he is in Netherlands. the website is www.MBenzNL.com, but the online store is closed.

coolli2

I know this from personal experience, if you put a H7 halogen bulb in the projectors, you am't gonna see ***t in front of you, your flog light may lit brighter than your headlight.

raymond g-

you're drawing a conclusion based on your own broad theory. it's similar to your
standing and watching a boat sail off into the distance and declaring that it fell
off the edge of the earth....because it got lower and then vanished.

in your one case, I have no doubt that you inserted one H7 into some
unidentified projector and the resulting beam pattern was crapola. it may
have been for a myriad of reasons....in which you've not supplied data points.

your statement that projectors cannot be made to work with halogens is
patently false, and overly simplistic. think about it....it's a physics and optics
issue.

boy, quite a few auto manufacturers are going to be surprised to learn that
you've just indicted their quality, halogen based projectors and labelled them
as unworkable. I guess they'll need to scrap their R&D and throw them into
the dumpster based on your empirical [sic] study, eh?