Nightlyfe07

I hope some one may know where to go to get replacment projection headlights for a 2012 c300. I just bought mine and it come with the ugly factory non projection lights and I have HID but i was projection housings. I have looked all over and can find nothing for the 2012.

Thanks

Knightmare69

That's because no one makes it. You can try Depo/TYC to see if they make a cheaper aftermarket OEM spec one or do a retrofit. There's a thread floating around of someone who did a retrofit, looks just like OEM but out performs it by loads.

MDMercedesGuy

I'm dubious that there is a 3rd party vendor has produced a projector that outperforms the Mercedes Benz ILS that had millions of dollars put into its design...

I'd be curious to see these results.

Knightmare69

I don't think you know what a retrofit is. http://www.hidplanet.com/forums/forum.php, read up and learn something new.

pgasparro

BUMP Where's the thread?

MDMercedesGuy

I'm quite aware of what a retrofit is. How are you quantifying "out performing the OEM setup by loads"? A fixed beam projector assembly is not going to offer the same experience as stock. You can make it brighter and blind everyone else on the road, you can adjust or reshape the cutoff all you want - but it is still going to be inferior to what can be ordered on the vehicle.

Point being, unless you take the car apart to add the appropriate sensors, recode the vehicle for the lights, add the headlamp washing system and such as well as the stock lamp assemblies a retrofit is going to be inferior in overall design and experience.

Knightmare69

For someone who states they know what a retrofit is, you clearly don't come off as sounding like it. A proper retrofit will out perform his OEM halogen reflector headlights any day, and without blinding anyone I might add. Not to mention the OP clearly did not (for whatever reasons) order the OEM bi-xenon set up and only has the reflector halogen set up.

I don't know where you get your facts about needing all those parts for a retrofit but it's wrong in this case. Given that he has the reflector halogen set up, a retrofit is similar along the lines of him installing a can-bus compatible pnp hid EXCEPT he would be utilizing (in most cases) an OEM projector from either Mercedes or another manufacturer.

And yes, even the OEM Mercedes projector halogen or HID can be improved upon usually by swapping out the lens of the projector resulting in a sharper more focused beam/cut-off.

pgasparro- Here's the thread on HID Planet of a retrofit on a facelift model.
http://www.hidplanet.com/forums/show...t-HID-retrofit

And another
http://www.hidplanet.com/forums/show...w-beam-Upgrade

Here's one pre-facelift
https://mbworld.org/forums/c-class-w...onversion.html

MDMercedesGuy

I'm not arguing that it won't outperform his OEM halogens... we're talking about retrofitting a projector (presumably with a HID bulb in it given that he already has them in the reflector lamps he has now).
Having it not automatically level is also going to contribute in blinding others on the road when the vehicle is loaded. Obviously you're not going to be able to add automatic leveling to a retrofit assembly.
Retrofitting a projector to the car is going to be leaps and bounds above sticking a HID bulb into a reflector bowl lamp in terms of light output, focus and improved cutoff, but it is not going to outperform the available OEM solution on the car.

I don't know how to be any more clear

Knightmare69

It's not that you're not clear, I just don't think you have a clear concise idea of what a proper retrofit is. Based on your comment of blinding drivers, the OP is already possibly doing that given he has a pnp kit in his reflector housing but that is a whole different discussion for another thread.

For my pre-facelift model with projector halogens, I have an adjuster by the steering wheel that can lower or raise the headlights. I'm not sure if that's isolated to our HK and euro models or pre-facelift models etc. Assuming the OP has that function, he can easily adjust the beam to avoid blinding drivers. Even if he doesn't, properly aimed retrofits still hold less chances of blinding other drivers compared to pnp kits in reflector housings. Given that the retrofit is built onto the reflector housing, he will be able to aim the lights in OEM function.

I understand your point quite clearly but I think your position has no merit because it's essentially the same lines of badly aimed halogen housings with or without pnp hid kits. He can still just as easily blind other drivers probably in worse fashion now than before. If you're argument is based on the auto leveling function, there are many OEM HID lights that do not carry that function and still meet DOT regulations.

Also, just to be clear, when you talk about not being able to outperform the available OEM solution, you're speaking of going with OEM bi-xenons? If so, I think the OP doesn't want to spend that kind of money.

MDMercedesGuy

I think we are on the same page now... internet post translation fail

Here in the US, there are a handful of cars that have the ability to adjust their beams manually - sadly any Mercedes product besides the Sprinter is not one of them. I looked at retrofitting HIDs and the Euro spec leveling assemblies to my smart . I ended up sticking with the (albeit very good) stock projector halogens - that car has a tendency to seesaw because of the short wheelbase and a retrofit would have been well over $1,000 in parts.

You are correct - I am referring to the OEM solution. In my mind a true retrofit = retrofitting the stock parts. Sadly, as you noted, the DOT in the US has no regulations for leveling or washing systems requirements, and as a result Xenons have gotten a bad rap here for blinding people. Every time I come up on an Acura product with Xenons I want to run it off of the road - they are the worst offenders by far, followed closely by the Altima/Maxima.

One thing is for sure - anything will be an improvement over a HID kit in a reflector bowl housing for both Nightlyfe07 and everyone else on the road.

Knightmare69

Tomato/Tomato lol.