After reading a few posts about the lack of cornering ability on US spec models with the 319 package instead of the 339 package I have sincere doubts that my car will come with them.

I just check my order which I'll be picking up tomorrow and it says 319.
The reason I got the package was this feature.

So letme get this straight I waited 2 months for the 05 to lose:

- The illuminated entry system does not include entrance lamps beneath the side mirrors.
- The front center armrest storage compartment is not climate-controlled.
- The standard sedan audio system includes 9 speakers, no subwoofer.
- The standard upholstery on E320 models includes leather front seating inserts with M-B Tex trim, and full M-B Tex rear-seat upholstery.
- The front passenger seat does not include adjustable lumbar support.
- The windshield washers are heated only at the nozzles. The reservoir and hose are no longer heated. The rear window washer on wagon models is no longer heated.
- The windshield is tinted but does not include a shaded upper band.
- In addition, the finish appearance of the wheels, interior door trim and seat trim, and the configuration of the climate-control dashtop diffuser vent may have changed.
- The front brakes on E320 models use single-piston floating calipers.


- raised price on vehicle some $500
- no more scheduled maintenance
- and to top it all off I was mislead about the cornering ability of the lighting package

Did I missing anything?

Is MB evolving their cars or going backwards.

My car is at the dealer and I go in tomorrow to inspect and pick it up (or maybe just inspect it and cancel my order)

Sorry for the rant but a bit frustrated right now.

Does anyone have a definitive answer on the cornering lights?
I've read that the 339 package has them. Did my dealer mis-order?

Does anyone want me to include any items to my inspection list for tomorrow?

 

Not sure about the package number for 05 models but my pkg number was indeed #339.... Did you order the lighting pkg or bi-xenon lights??? If not, you maybe out of luck...
B.T.W... the e320 has always had a single puck braking system in the front... The 04 catalog had eroniously listed the car as having four puck system, but this was a mis-print....

 

I think you are okay. From the MBUSA website:

319 Lighting Package details $1,200.00

· Headlamp Washing System
· Bi-Xenon Active Light System
· Active Curve Illumination

 

Maybe I jumped the gun, guess my frustration got the best of me.
I'm hoping they finally got this straightened out.
Oh well, I'll find out soon enough.

Thanks for your input.


To test; I think I hafta "dance with them" or something. ...kidding

 

Thx for the feedback on the breaks.

319 Lighting Package details $1,200.00
· Headlamp Washing System
· Bi-Xenon Active Light System

The only other package that offers lighting upgrade is within appearance:

322 Appearance Package details $3,960.00

· Airmatic Dual Control Suspension
· Headlamp Washing System
· Bi-Xenon Active Light System
· 5 Spoke Wheel 17"

both appear to have the same lighting upgrade.

 

A few comments:

1) from some point in time earlier than today, if you get bixenon lights, they are curve sensing ...

2) even if you didn't, you could add them later ...

3) have you ever driven a car with them? i find the usefulness questionable, and the action is kind of annoying. i would rather have something like... a heated steering wheel.

-s-

 

I have not driven with them before, but I do some frequent driving in the less visible rural roads of ustate NY.

I may soon find that they are not all that they are cracked up to be, but if they do partially what they claim to do, it should be of some benefit.

Perhaps If I don't have them I wouldn't even miss them, but quite frankly, the main reason I ordered this lighting package was this feature and if they don't come with it I would feel a bit misled .


Guess I'll wait and see
Thank you.


Thank You

 

I find these active lights to be awesome and very useful. I live quite a ways out of "town" with very dark and twisty roads and find the cornering feature work very well... I agree that while driving in town you could live without them, but why..... By far the best lighting system I've ever had in any vehicle.

 

I'm still not sure whether my lights "corner" or not, but they ARE bi xenon, and you will find them to be the best damn headlights you have ever driven with! No matter what MB USA "deleted" from the prior year's model.. you will LOVE the car. It is still better than any of its so called competitors! Absolutely perfect? No. Awesome? Yup! ... You'll be converted!

 

I have them and my understanding is that, as Scorchie says, after some point in time, all bi-xenons are active or cornering. It's a feature that I could easily live without but I agree with Barry45rpm that they are "the best damn headlights" ever. When I put on the high beams, that combination of the xenons and halogens is like being in a ballpark when they turn the night lights on.

 

I guess the biXenon have a "high beam" position. So are you saying you get both the high beam xenons, and the halogen high beams, and the xenon low beams all at once? Is this standard, or did you modify something to light up the park?

 

The bi-xenons have a shutter which flips when changing from low-beam to high-beam. As I understand it, the lumens are constant; the shutter only changes the vertical cut-off. When switching to high-beam, in addition to the shutter raising the height of the xenon output, the halogen lamps on the inner pair of lights also come on. So, low beams or DRL are low position Xenon only, high beams are high position xenon and halogen. I believe that one of the reasons for the halogens is so you can instantly flash your high beams when wanting to pass. Halogens are instant-on whereas there is a delay for xenons to come on.

 

Just had my ol'lady do the highbeams for me and your correct about there funtion... The only thing different I noticed was the shutter on the xenons was just as fast to go to the highbeam as the halogens... When hitting the light stalk to "flash" for passing, both lights (zenon and halogen) flash at the exact same time....

 

That is because the xenon lamp is already illuminated and only the shutter is moving. If the lamp was off, it would take longer for the arc to light up the xenon than it would with the ordinary filiment in the halogen.

 

Question! Is all the lighting package come with a curve sensing? If so, how can I test the curve sensing feature?
Thanks

 

Agreed........

Tom T.... I believe all the xenon lighting packages have the curve sensing feature now.... to test them, just simply drive the car at night and turn the wheel left and right (quickly) and it should be quite obvious to see them track with your steering motions.

 

Not all Xenon packages come with Active.

I have Xenon lights without Active (curve) lights.

 

With or without curve sensing...they are "The Best Damn Headlights". Period.

 

My car that was built in late feb of 04 and has them..... So let me clarify.... Its probably safe to say all e class models with xenon lights built after feb of 04 has the curve sensing feature....

 

You are probably right.. Here in Canada the E500 comes with many options (that are not standard in the US) like the heated seats and 4 zone climate and Xenon lights that the E320 does not.. While the Active feature is a $500 CDN upgrade on TOP of the Xenon lights..

 

I don't know guys, I have the lighting package (319). The car was delivered in June 2004. I don't think the Bi-Xenon is active.

 

AJM0824:

Did you take delivery of your car yet? Are the lights active?

 

I'm sorry Tom.... But I find comments like this quite strange....... You just paid well over 50K for your car, you've had it a month and you don't know if the lights are active????
Take a drive on a twisty road at night and find out!!!.... The sales brochure says lighting pkgs with bi-xenon has the active feature....

B.T.W... I thought reading here ages ago that the bi-xenon order number 319 was replaced with 339... I know for sure my xenon order number was 339, but then again I KNOW what I purchased....

 

My '05 E320CDI was built last week. It is spec'd with option code 319, Active Bixenon headlight system.

 

Bixenons by themselves are GREAT...but wether the active cornering lights are so much better then the passive lights...I don't know...we retrofitted active cornering bi xenons in Scorchies 2003 E55 and I myself think the cornering feature is quite annoying...really makes me wonder how people are NOT able to tell wether they have them as the movement is obviously to see.
Maybe it is juts a matter of geting used to the active feature...I don't know but sofar I have found the cornering feature rather useless.

greetingz,