Mercedes earns IIHS poor rating for headlight performance
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2013 C250 Sport
Mercedes earns IIHS poor rating for headlight performance
It seems Mercedes has earned poor ratings for headlight performance from the IIHS. I think many of us already knew that.
http://www.msn.com/en-us/autos/news/...=ansmsnautos11
It seems Mercedes and BMW are scraping the bottom of the barrel on this category! I wonder if that was for the W204 or W205 mentioned in the article. The newer model is a little better.
I do miss my Volkswagen headlights (which made the top end of the list).
http://www.msn.com/en-us/autos/news/...=ansmsnautos11
It seems Mercedes and BMW are scraping the bottom of the barrel on this category! I wonder if that was for the W204 or W205 mentioned in the article. The newer model is a little better.
I do miss my Volkswagen headlights (which made the top end of the list).
Last edited by michail71; Mar 30, 2016 at 10:01 PM.
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From: London ON Canada
2012 C300 4Matic Sport Sedan
Seems hard to believe I saw this article earlier it seems they were talking about W205. BUT I can only comment on W204 these are the best headlights I've personally ever had.... My father has a S60 Volvo and mine are far more superior than his.
I drive highway 403 every weekend at around 2-3 am,Its a highway with basically no lights pitch black for miles at a time. I can't stress the amount of times I've seen deers/ animals on the road and been able to stop/slow down because of these headlights. I have 0 complaints about them.
http://www.iihs.org/iihs/ratings/veh...s-4-door-sedan heres a link to most the C class ratings
still hard to believe there poor i mean High beam assist, they move as you turn the car.....
I drive highway 403 every weekend at around 2-3 am,Its a highway with basically no lights pitch black for miles at a time. I can't stress the amount of times I've seen deers/ animals on the road and been able to stop/slow down because of these headlights. I have 0 complaints about them.
http://www.iihs.org/iihs/ratings/veh...s-4-door-sedan heres a link to most the C class ratings
still hard to believe there poor i mean High beam assist, they move as you turn the car.....
Last edited by MB Marko; Mar 30, 2016 at 10:19 PM.
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2014 W204 C250
The Headlights on my wife's C250 with adaptive control and HID config are pretty darn good. Better than my Lexus RX400h which has a similar system to the ES they gave good marks to. My sister has a 2015 Prius V with LED lights and she even commented on how good The C250 Lights are when she drove it ...Hmmmmm
Senior Member
Joined: Jan 2009
Posts: 290
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From: Weaverville, Ca
1992 MB 190E, 2016 MB C300
Am I missing something or is this an evaluation of halogens? I didn't see any mention of HID/Xenon. My C350's HIDs are awesome. I have aftermarket BiXenons in my 190E and they are great also.
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2013 C250 Sport
I can say my halogens low beams are really poor. In the country the probably get me 25-30 MPH stopping distance. I should see if they can be adjusted next time I bring the car in.
They said "best configuration" was tested and made mention to the halogens being worse. I would have to assume the review was for the ILS system, which I would be thrilled to have.
I'd like to do the aftermarket projector retrofit some time.
They said "best configuration" was tested and made mention to the halogens being worse. I would have to assume the review was for the ILS system, which I would be thrilled to have.
I'd like to do the aftermarket projector retrofit some time.
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Member
Joined: Aug 2015
Posts: 100
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From: Santa Rosa, CA
2012 Mercedes C250
For those like michail71, aiming the lights UP about 10% or so makes a huge difference.I did that in my '12 C250 (base halogens) and it made the low beams conservatively about 200% more effective. As noted, before the adjustment, I wasn't comfortable driving more than about 25, even with streetlights- I noticed I could only see pedestrians' feet! And that's if I noticed them at all. Street signs were completely dark. Now, I see everything- signs, pedestrians, whatever. Plus, I can safely drive the car at highway speeds at night. The lights aren't so far up that they blind anyone else, either, as I haven't had one driver flash their brights at me.
Look it up in the manual- it only took about 5 minutes to adjust 'em, and it's free!
Look it up in the manual- it only took about 5 minutes to adjust 'em, and it's free!
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Junior Member
Joined: Aug 2013
Posts: 58
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2008 C-300
My halogen lights are crap as well, but since I got it lowered it's even worse. I think I'll upgrade the lights to bright whites and aim them just a little higher.
Ever since I saw that report, I didn't realize how bad my lights were.
Ever since I saw that report, I didn't realize how bad my lights were.
Member
Joined: Aug 2015
Posts: 100
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From: Santa Rosa, CA
2012 Mercedes C250
In my experience, this issue certainly isn't exclusive to MB. My last car, a 2011 Mustang GT, had a similar issue- the lights just didn't light up the road safely. A 2009 Suzuki Bandit motorcycle I bought in '08 was similar. Both of those, along with my C, were transformed by simply aiming the lights, as I've said, about 10-15% higher than stock.
My belief is because these modern lights are so bright (especially for those of us who have been driving since the sealed beam days), they are aimed low to avoid complaints from other drivers. Combined with the sharp upper cutoff of the pattern, the result is lights that are amazing out to about 50 feet in front of the car, while the world is totally black beyond that point. Raising the aim places the upper cutoff much farther down the road, allowing for massively better driving safety. With the three vehicles I've 'modified' this way, I have yet to be 'flashed' by another driver, as well, so I can only guess they're not getting blinded. Another plus is the high beams are amazing out in the country.
Go ahead and spend money if you must, but I would give the adjustment a try first. Personally, I love it when a solution is free!
My belief is because these modern lights are so bright (especially for those of us who have been driving since the sealed beam days), they are aimed low to avoid complaints from other drivers. Combined with the sharp upper cutoff of the pattern, the result is lights that are amazing out to about 50 feet in front of the car, while the world is totally black beyond that point. Raising the aim places the upper cutoff much farther down the road, allowing for massively better driving safety. With the three vehicles I've 'modified' this way, I have yet to be 'flashed' by another driver, as well, so I can only guess they're not getting blinded. Another plus is the high beams are amazing out in the country.
Go ahead and spend money if you must, but I would give the adjustment a try first. Personally, I love it when a solution is free!
Member
Joined: Feb 2015
Posts: 143
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From: Central Kentucky
2014 CLS550-4M, 2013 C350-4M Coupe
- Curve-Adaptive LED Projectors
- Non-Adaptive LED Projectors
- Halogen Reflectors
They were all rated as "Poor". The full test results are in the attached PDF.
Last edited by Antique-Ace; Apr 3, 2016 at 10:23 AM.
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From: Fredonia, WI
2012 E550 v8-Biturbo
From the article,
"Many headlight problems could be fixed with better aim," said Matthew Brumbelow, senior research engineer at IIHS. "This is simple enough to adjust on many vehicles, but the burden shouldn't fall on the consumer to figure out what the best aim is. Manufacturers need to pay attention to this issue to make sure headlights are aimed consistently and correctly at the factory."
Last edited by ghlkal; Apr 3, 2016 at 08:22 PM. Reason: added article quote
Senior Member
Joined: Jan 2015
Posts: 282
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From: Bellingham WA
Audi R8
I honestly can't figure out why any vehicle has halogens from the factory. I have the lighting package and these work great.
Some of the damn Toyota appliances they sell come factory with LED's can't believe any of the euro luxury brands still offer halogens as standard.
Some of the damn Toyota appliances they sell come factory with LED's can't believe any of the euro luxury brands still offer halogens as standard.
Thread Starter
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Joined: Nov 2015
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2013 C250 Sport
It's an opportunity for a money grab. If they could pass hand window cranks on us they probably would.
If Hyundai starts cutting in on the margins enough they may. Their cars manage to look like both a Mercedes and Honda and the same time. There is one Hyundai model that has a strong front lighting resemblance to a C-Class. But I can spot the Hyundai easily by the fact it has HIDs.
Mercedes know they have value in their name. They just need to be careful not to get it tarnished.
If Hyundai starts cutting in on the margins enough they may. Their cars manage to look like both a Mercedes and Honda and the same time. There is one Hyundai model that has a strong front lighting resemblance to a C-Class. But I can spot the Hyundai easily by the fact it has HIDs.
Mercedes know they have value in their name. They just need to be careful not to get it tarnished.
