K9ff

i just installed a set of euro bixenons yesterday and noticed when i turned the lights on for 15 sec prior to starting the car, the xenons would suddenly turn off and begin to flicker like a camera flash every few seconds. i am in the process of having the 'xenon present' setting changed today but was wondering if anyone has had any problems with the lights 'after' the computer setting change. does everything work 'after' starting the car, and does it periodically flicker on and off, and if the xenon portion of the hi beam works after starting.
the reason why i ask is i read the xenons would work if u turn them on 15 seconds prior to starting the car if xenon was not set to present; since it didnt work for me, it makes me worry if the lights will work or if any problems will come forth 'after' i have the setting change.

thanks again!

also, does the upper part of the beam spread have a yellowish line on top? it may be associated with the projector itself....in all, the bixenons rock!, from greenish/bluish at fire up to white afterwords! too bad they arent fully functional yet!

MB200K

I installed the bi-xenons in my car about a month ago and had the same problem.

You must take your car to the dealer and ask them to set the computer to use the xenon option.

K9ff

thanks for your quick reply...my question is then if u have experienced 'any' problems after the setting change? does everything function properly? thanks again!

Class C

Everything should function properly. The procedure should only take about 5min providing the tech knows what he's doing.

Search this forum in regards to setting your xenon settings to present, print it out and give it to your service advisor. That would be your best bet.

For those of you who are thinkin' of getting Bi-xenon headlamps in the future, you can ask your dealer to change your settings already. Everything will still function ok.

Verb04

When I first turn my bi-xenons on, they are an incredible perfect blue for about the first 30 seconds. Then they start fadeing to a normal xenon color. I wish there was a way to keep them at the same warm up brightness at all times. Does anyone know a secret??

Class C

yep! 6000k

vadim

They are not brighter at the beginning, but merely bluer. They actually get brighter as they warm up. As for recommendations to switch to the higher color temperature bulbs - those with lower values (measured in K - e.g. 5200K-6000K-7500K) are the brightest, and vice versa. Follow the link below to see yourself:

http://www.misterjung.com/

MBenzNL

It is not a "problem", it is the way the car is build by mercedes. The lightsystem in the W203 is controlled by a computer in the leftside of your trunk...it isn't just a power lead anylonger...it is a self thinking system that will compensate blown bulbs by using other available bulbs instead. Changing from halogen to xenon without changing the settings provides the control unit with fals data which results in the flickering lights.
It is a wonder that some people even get their xenons lit without while the car is running before they have their xenon setting changed.

greetingz,

nyca

this may be only somewhat related, but how do the xenons work with the auto headlight control? I've heard that turning the xenons on for short durations, like entering a dark parking garage and having the auto headlight function turn them on, can shorten the life of the xenons, because they don't come up to temperature. Does anyone know about this?

vadim

Xenon bulbs are very durable, as they have no filament inside - nothing to burn. Instead they have two closely positioned electrodes. When in action, an electric arc occurs between them - that's how light is generated. Therefore it is not harmful to turn Xenon bulbs for any duration, however short is might be - unlike incandescent bulbs, which usually die on startup as a result of a current spike caused by low resistance of the cold filament.

mikoko

Hello Class C: so, you had the dealer programmed "xenon present" before installing the headlamps? If this will work with halogen light, then I would try to find a dealer to change the setting before performing the xenon installation, to avoid the "flickering" problem.

Anyone know any dealer in SF/San Jose area that would do the programming? I asked several dealers, and they all said no. Are the dealers in southern Cal easier to deal with? (any leads will be greatly appreciated)

thx!

Class C

Just take this info that TimmyC230boy provided to any dealer over there and they should be able to follow it.

Jay

mikoko

Thanks Class C!

otong

i just installed mine today and bring it to the MB dealer. Is there any problem after i installed it. Because other dealer said that it could burn the instrument cluster, is it true?

I also having service B coming two days from now, will it change the computer settings?

Please help me, thank you.........

Harris

What does bi-xenon have to do with the instrument cluster?? Wow...this is something new!! I think if they're willing to change your settings to "xenon present", then you shouldnt have any problem.

otong

is the dealer just BS-ing me???

nevide

most likely.

MBenzNL

hehehe, did they mention that the bi xenons might cause a flat spare wheel as well?

greetingz,

TimmyC230boy

I guess the dealer failed to mention that a xenon bulbs takes less power, and also burns cooler than a halogen too didn't he?

.elijah.

Well mine is even better.

"A woman had that done to her car without asking me first if it was possible, and she ended up paying almost $50,000 in damages to repair the entire front end from a meltdown!"

I'm not joking either about the numbers. I wish that i could have seen that invoice if he wasn't pulling my chain!


impossible!!!

SLK Boy

Damn, dealers are getting creative...hehe..

haven't had a problem with my bi-levels yet...and I've had them for quite a while (got one of the first sets from MBenz).

nevide

just show them the trunk trick and they jaw will drop to the ground. Salesmonkeys.

otong

thank you for the reply guys. hehehe i am happy that it's not true.

my bi-xenon headlight is brighter in the driver side than the one in passenger, is that normal?

Silver_Lana

Its not brighter, just aimed differently. You can adjust the aim using a philips or flat head screwdriver. Up or down to match either side.

Matt230K

She must have gotten the nuclear ones. If you leave them on too long, they get hot and cause a meltdown.