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The previous owner put HID on the big headlights. To me the big ones are the ones on the outer and the small headlight are the ones next to the grille. The HID big headlights are white, the small headlights are the original and give out a yellow color which I actually prefer. I don't like the disparity of colors between the big headlights and the small headlights. At the same time, my fog lights are not working and a mechanic has told me I need a set of ballasts for it.
My thought is to move the existing HID and the ballasts to the foglights and to put original regular bulbs on the big headlights.
Is this possible? What other parts will I need to achieve this?
you've not identified the headlight design for the low beam (the one with the HID) so it'll be premature for me
to make a recommendation. simply tossing it into the fog light assembly which is no doubt, a reflector based
design, would not be wise and the uncontrolled glare would be considerable. fog light, by design, usually have
a distinct, low, horizontal cutoff and in this case designed to utilize the focal point of the stock H1 bulb. replacing
it with a rebased H7 HID would, in theory, be ill advised and will likely present a safety concern for opposing
drivers and drivers just ahead of you (reflected from mirrors).
another consideration for you is to look for LED city light bulbs which have color temperature ºK much closer
to your HID color output. I'm using such a combination at the moment, though it's not an exact match it would be the bulb combination at the bottom (HID and LED cool)
The last person who worked on my car told me I need the ballast for the fog lights. Can someone please help me identify the part number needed for this.
it would be very unusual for an E320 to have fog lights requiring ballasts (ergo HID) unless it was a franken-hack
job (but not unheard of). you really need to have this verified by a third party. photos would be great
Last edited by raymond g-; 10-10-2018 at 09:44 PM.
B- the LED ones in above photo are sold by Aznoptics (spelling?) who advertises on this forum / MBWORLD. not rock bottom price but canbus compliant and hasnt been any problem past 3+ yrs. cooler temp than my 4000 K low beam but im okay with that because i dont want hight K in my lows (diminishing lumens)
coincidentally, I was exploring LED for tails last week but apprehensive until I was sure it
would not hyper-flash. so for now, LEDs on all interior lights (bought from local
discount place), and LED for CITY lights, and very white LEDs for license plate (
may have been AZNOptics, too.
I didn't feel the need to modify fog lights in front because I couldn't see them when
the HID low beam was on. In addition, using an LED may wreak havoc on performance
in the fog reflector assembly if the focal point is not spot on.
Low priority for the rear FOG which i rarely use so no action to-date.
p.s. a set of bulbs from AZNOptics, 4x, each placed in the door as bright white puddle
lights. love 'em! one more thing, the front headlight turn signals are silver coated filament
bulb and flashes amber, so when the blinkers are off, the front view of the headlight is all
silver and does not have the 'egg yolk' look had the std amber bulb been used.
Last edited by raymond g-; 11-03-2018 at 11:01 AM.
Ray - Could you post a picture of the puddle lights placed in the door? I'd like to see how you did that..
the installation of the bulb is easy. it's something like a 40mm festoon LED swapped into the OEM light
socket. the socket/lens housing is a fingertip pry out from beneath the door storage bin (pull out towards
the ground). whole process may take 30 seconds if your're slow.
even though my interior lights are LED warm, I liked the brilliant whites for puddle coverage and for
max brightness
In the video it looks like you get a good bit of light on the ground. You only changed the bulb? No mod to the light itself? Do the LED light give an error?
coincidentally, I was exploring LED for tails last week but apprehensive until I was sure it
would not hyper-flash. so for now, LEDs on all interior lights (bought from local
discount place), and LED for CITY lights, and very white LEDs for license plate (
may have been AZNOptics, too.....
I've tried numerous (supposely canbus compliant) LEDs for the tail lights and front end blinkers for the 97 e50 with no success. hyper flashing everytime.
I even resorted to trying resistors tapped in with no success. The resistors heated up as described by many and decided I did not want to create any heat issues if I got them working.
Surrendered on this idea and stayed with good old candescent oem bulbs. I dont travel in the evening much with the e50 so it wasnt an real issue.
If someone does find a suitable LED setup for the tails and front, I will certainly look at it.
In the video it looks like you get a good bit of light on the ground. You only changed the bulb? No mod to the light itself? Do the LED light give an error?
the lighting is nice...not harsh nor at a level which I would say ruins your night vision.
if it were brighter, possibly. but a useful brightness without being too bright. like said,
only the bulb was swapped. interopr bulbs do not trigger errors, only exterior, so no.
khomer2: all exterior lights are HID or LED save for blinkers. I will be sampling LEDs
for the REV and dual purpose running/brake light...and leave the rear fog alone
thought all the puddle filament bulbs were taken by the family but found one as I was
cleaning the garage just now. rear door/warm yellow = OEM bulb. front door/6000º = LED
10-05-2018, 03:40 PM
