Multi-beam in Canada?
#101
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#102
Super Member
#103
Super Member
I got out for an hour into true dark roads, and even 10 meter fog last night with my 2017 E300 "Multibeam:" LED Intelligent Light System equipped with Vladimir's US/Canada 640->EU 642 firmware modification. This loads via the ODBII port in about 5 minutes including a backup step.
As I have already pointed out, owners who never travel at night outside their well lit city roads probably will not benefit from this modification much less the actual factory EU Multibeam option. What is does do on semi-dark road stretches and in unlit rural roads is, however, a revelation. Anyone who does travel outside built-up, well lit areas should modify the US and Canada Multibeam LED units to their full function with Vladimir's firmware mod.
Driving in the city there are subtile differences, the principle one is the European high right hand cutoff that illuminates the right hand verge. This 'low beam' pattern feature has been a world wide standard since the 1960's and gives a better sense of space, and makes signs and such easier to read. The MB intersection, turning beam and cornering features already work, but I felt the EU 642 settings were a bit brighter than our 640 setup. That about covers it for city streets.
Once above ~30mph/50kph the automatic high beam we have is changed to a variable beam intensity and coverage that is noticeably better as the street lighting becomes lower. This is the new part. As it road becomes dark the full beam power turns on in a wide full beam. As advertised by EU Mercedes Multibeam Youtube illustrations, I was driving with the full beam manually set (headlight switch full clockwise, dimming lever forward) and not a single oncoming car flashed their headlight to complain of blinding light. However, proceeding cars ahead of me are not blocked until the road becomes darker. They get blasted with light because the system does not have enough light contrast to know to block out the car ahead of you. So it worked just as a test, but would I would leave the headlight switch in Auto so it can function properly.
The fog lamp pattern is slightly dipped and again brighter and a little higher on the right hand side with 642 (EU) vs; 640 (US/Canada), Unexpectedly, last night I drove into 10m fog at about 1000 meters elevation and appreciated this improved pattern. So again, if you find yourself in fog a few times a month, changing the firmware is recommended.
Now, when driving on an un-lit street or road, the 642 EU firmware really comes into its own. The beam rises slightly and light intensity increases. Oncoming cars, highly reflective parked car tail lights, road signs are attenuated and sometimes blocked completely. The beam intensity varies with vehicle speed, throwing a brighter and brighter lite forward. In the presence of oncoming traffic it tones down slightly and starts masking oncoming traffic. It is interesting that this masking out of oncoming traffic is rarely noticeable, for the simple fact you are looking into their bright headlights (duh!). This fact explains why the MB Multibeam is not actual video, but illustrations that demonstrate the concept and its various features.
Below are the relevant EU manual instructions for EU Multibeam:
••••••••••••
“Adaptive Highbeam Assist turns on in AUTO switch position by pushing combination turn signal lever forward to Main Beam or Hi beam position. In the case that Multibeam dazzles preceding traffic or oncoming traffic, the lever should be pulled toward you to lower beam angle.
[img]blob:https://mbworld.org/6590d12f-4468-43e5-a251-5213404f9272[/img] To activate: activate the Adaptive Highbeam Assist function using the onboard computer.
[img]blob:https://mbworld.org/6590d12f-4468-43e5-a251-5213404f9272[/img] Turn the light switch to
[img]blob:https://mbworld.org/6798628e-492c-4bbc-8958-773bbca3666b[/img] or [img]blob:https://mbworld.org/c229fa81-dd48-4b37-9f12-500b1098990d[/img]
.[img]blob:https://mbworld.org/6590d12f-4468-43e5-a251-5213404f9272[/img] Press the combination switch beyond the pressure point in the direction of arrow 1. If it is dark and the light sensor activates the low-beam headlamps, the [img]blob:https://mbworld.org/8203848e-f1f7-491f-927e-8a3e7b26e704[/img] indicator lamp in the instrument cluster lights up. If you drive faster than approximately 28 mph (45 km/h): the headlamp range is set automatically depending on the distance between the vehicle and other road users.
If you drive faster than approximately 35 mph (55 km/h) and no other road users are identified: the high-beam headlamps are switched on automatically. The [img]blob:https://mbworld.org/d25d56ca-79e3-46d3-95d1-3c625ae2de36[/img] indicator lamp in the instrument cluster also lights up. When you drive slower than approximately 30 mph (45 km/h) or if other road users are identified or if the roads are sufficiently illuminated: the high-beam headlamps are switched off automatically. The [img]blob:https://mbworld.org/d25d56ca-79e3-46d3-95d1-3c625ae2de36[/img] indicator lamp in the instrument cluster goes out. The [img]blob:https://mbworld.org/8203848e-f1f7-491f-927e-8a3e7b26e704[/img] indicator lamp in the instrument cluster stays on.
[img]blob:https://mbworld.org/6590d12f-4468-43e5-a251-5213404f9272[/img] To deactivate: move the combination switch back to its normal position. The [img]blob:https://mbworld.org/8203848e-f1f7-491f-927e-8a3e7b26e704[/img] indicator lamp in the instrument cluster goes out.
Adaptive Highbeam Assist Plus switches automatically between:
At speeds above 19 mph (30 km/h):
***********
NOTE: There is an additional menu feature for changing beam pattern from LH to RH traffic in adjacent countries to UK, and legacy British Empire areas that has not been implemented for US/Canada. It is not in RHD Japanese cars either.
My experience with the EU 642 firmware ODBII modification is very positive and I recommend it for those who frequently drive at night in outlaying areas or routinely make inter-city trips. Vladimir has been doing firmware recoding for several years now and has a solid reputation.
As I have already pointed out, owners who never travel at night outside their well lit city roads probably will not benefit from this modification much less the actual factory EU Multibeam option. What is does do on semi-dark road stretches and in unlit rural roads is, however, a revelation. Anyone who does travel outside built-up, well lit areas should modify the US and Canada Multibeam LED units to their full function with Vladimir's firmware mod.
Driving in the city there are subtile differences, the principle one is the European high right hand cutoff that illuminates the right hand verge. This 'low beam' pattern feature has been a world wide standard since the 1960's and gives a better sense of space, and makes signs and such easier to read. The MB intersection, turning beam and cornering features already work, but I felt the EU 642 settings were a bit brighter than our 640 setup. That about covers it for city streets.
Once above ~30mph/50kph the automatic high beam we have is changed to a variable beam intensity and coverage that is noticeably better as the street lighting becomes lower. This is the new part. As it road becomes dark the full beam power turns on in a wide full beam. As advertised by EU Mercedes Multibeam Youtube illustrations, I was driving with the full beam manually set (headlight switch full clockwise, dimming lever forward) and not a single oncoming car flashed their headlight to complain of blinding light. However, proceeding cars ahead of me are not blocked until the road becomes darker. They get blasted with light because the system does not have enough light contrast to know to block out the car ahead of you. So it worked just as a test, but would I would leave the headlight switch in Auto so it can function properly.
The fog lamp pattern is slightly dipped and again brighter and a little higher on the right hand side with 642 (EU) vs; 640 (US/Canada), Unexpectedly, last night I drove into 10m fog at about 1000 meters elevation and appreciated this improved pattern. So again, if you find yourself in fog a few times a month, changing the firmware is recommended.
Now, when driving on an un-lit street or road, the 642 EU firmware really comes into its own. The beam rises slightly and light intensity increases. Oncoming cars, highly reflective parked car tail lights, road signs are attenuated and sometimes blocked completely. The beam intensity varies with vehicle speed, throwing a brighter and brighter lite forward. In the presence of oncoming traffic it tones down slightly and starts masking oncoming traffic. It is interesting that this masking out of oncoming traffic is rarely noticeable, for the simple fact you are looking into their bright headlights (duh!). This fact explains why the MB Multibeam is not actual video, but illustrations that demonstrate the concept and its various features.
Below are the relevant EU manual instructions for EU Multibeam:
••••••••••••
“Adaptive Highbeam Assist turns on in AUTO switch position by pushing combination turn signal lever forward to Main Beam or Hi beam position. In the case that Multibeam dazzles preceding traffic or oncoming traffic, the lever should be pulled toward you to lower beam angle.
[img]blob:https://mbworld.org/6590d12f-4468-43e5-a251-5213404f9272[/img] To activate: activate the Adaptive Highbeam Assist function using the onboard computer.
[img]blob:https://mbworld.org/6590d12f-4468-43e5-a251-5213404f9272[/img] Turn the light switch to
[img]blob:https://mbworld.org/6798628e-492c-4bbc-8958-773bbca3666b[/img] or [img]blob:https://mbworld.org/c229fa81-dd48-4b37-9f12-500b1098990d[/img]
.[img]blob:https://mbworld.org/6590d12f-4468-43e5-a251-5213404f9272[/img] Press the combination switch beyond the pressure point in the direction of arrow 1. If it is dark and the light sensor activates the low-beam headlamps, the [img]blob:https://mbworld.org/8203848e-f1f7-491f-927e-8a3e7b26e704[/img] indicator lamp in the instrument cluster lights up. If you drive faster than approximately 28 mph (45 km/h): the headlamp range is set automatically depending on the distance between the vehicle and other road users.
If you drive faster than approximately 35 mph (55 km/h) and no other road users are identified: the high-beam headlamps are switched on automatically. The [img]blob:https://mbworld.org/d25d56ca-79e3-46d3-95d1-3c625ae2de36[/img] indicator lamp in the instrument cluster also lights up. When you drive slower than approximately 30 mph (45 km/h) or if other road users are identified or if the roads are sufficiently illuminated: the high-beam headlamps are switched off automatically. The [img]blob:https://mbworld.org/d25d56ca-79e3-46d3-95d1-3c625ae2de36[/img] indicator lamp in the instrument cluster goes out. The [img]blob:https://mbworld.org/8203848e-f1f7-491f-927e-8a3e7b26e704[/img] indicator lamp in the instrument cluster stays on.
[img]blob:https://mbworld.org/6590d12f-4468-43e5-a251-5213404f9272[/img] To deactivate: move the combination switch back to its normal position. The [img]blob:https://mbworld.org/8203848e-f1f7-491f-927e-8a3e7b26e704[/img] indicator lamp in the instrument cluster goes out.
Adaptive Highbeam Assist Plus switches automatically between:
- Dipped beam
- Partial main beam
- Main beam
At speeds above 19 mph (30 km/h):
- If no other road users are detected, the main beam is automatically switched on.
- If other road users are detected, the partial main beam is automatically switched on.
- The partial main beam switches off automatically.
- The main beam switches off automatically.
- The headlamp range of the dipped beam is regulated automatically based on the distance to other road users.
***********
NOTE: There is an additional menu feature for changing beam pattern from LH to RH traffic in adjacent countries to UK, and legacy British Empire areas that has not been implemented for US/Canada. It is not in RHD Japanese cars either.
My experience with the EU 642 firmware ODBII modification is very positive and I recommend it for those who frequently drive at night in outlaying areas or routinely make inter-city trips. Vladimir has been doing firmware recoding for several years now and has a solid reputation.
Installed the software today and went for a drive tonight. First, none of your images you posted show up. They all say "oops" when you click on them.
I drove for a half hour around my neighborhood and other semi-main roads. I didn't have ONE SINGLE person in front of me to test being behind someone. Oh brother. But I did notice the selective reduction on the main beams on oncoming. One of the best things is, there are no streetlights anywhere in our neighborhood and the surrounding neighborhoods. One of the most annoying things (before tonight) was the car would turn off the auto-high beams every time it though it saw a car's headlights. In reality, they were almost always twin lights that 1/3 of the people have on either side of their driveway. So I would drive through one of the darkest areas of the neighborhood and I never got to use the high-beams because the computer was always fooled. Not tonight. Same area, only thing I saw now was it would selectively dim around the fake cars.
I did notice on major roads it just plain turned off the high beams altogether. Does it just see too many headlight or taillights and just give up?
I couldn't really see the headlight bending feature.
#104
Member
#105
Member
@wagonsrock I just received an OBD2 plug from Vladimir, but I can't figure out how it works. It came with a MicroSD card reader and two cards (one for each feature I paid for). Are you saying I have to pull the plug apart, and there's a spot for the MicroSD card inside there? If so, how do I open the plug? And why did he send a card reader if that's all I need to do? Sorry for being so clueless here!
#106
Super Member
@wagonsrock I just received an OBD2 plug from Vladimir, but I can't figure out how it works. It came with a MicroSD card reader and two cards (one for each feature I paid for). Are you saying I have to pull the plug apart, and there's a spot for the MicroSD card inside there? If so, how do I open the plug? And why did he send a card reader if that's all I need to do? Sorry for being so clueless here!
And yes these things are essentially usb drives. I vote that somebody makes these darn things with a microSD slot on the OUTSIDE so you can just slide the darn card in and out. We had some coding trouble or something on mine. Vladimir was very very responsive and helped out immediately until the problem was fixed. But I think I must have opened that darn thing 10 times.
#107
Super Member
Vladimir was great! I'm not exactly sure what the problem was but he sent me new files a few times which I had to keep cracking that gadget open like a walnut to get to the MicroSD card. It appears to be working great now.
#108
Member
@wagonsrock Thanks for responding so quickly! Right after I wrote you I figured out I had to open the dang plug, so I did that. Now I don't know how to tell if my system updated properly. I got the ILS lighting upgrade, and even in my dark garage I'm not sure what to look for. I sent the LOG file to Vladimir so he can tell me.
And yeah, they should make it easier to pull apart or put the card reader on the outside like you said!
Thanks again!
And yeah, they should make it easier to pull apart or put the card reader on the outside like you said!
Thanks again!
#109
Member
Hi Mike.....
Installed the software today and went for a drive tonight. First, none of your images you posted show up. They all say "oops" when you click on them.
I did notice on major roads it just plain turned off the high beams altogether. Does it just see too many headlight or taillights and just give up?
I couldn't really see the headlight bending feature.
Installed the software today and went for a drive tonight. First, none of your images you posted show up. They all say "oops" when you click on them.
I did notice on major roads it just plain turned off the high beams altogether. Does it just see too many headlight or taillights and just give up?
I couldn't really see the headlight bending feature.
2====>"Multibeam only works when it is dark." It operates using a light sensor segment in windshield and the camera(s). If enough light to see it dims. (The other factor is Multibeam software can track up to seven objects, then it dims)
3====>Bending feature is the wider set LED's amping up. The universal design standard for automated control systems is a 200 foot radius curve. Local roads frequently have less radius. Same reason Distronic/DriverAssit will lose track.
Last edited by Mike__S; 06-15-2020 at 12:24 AM.
#110
Member
@wagonsrock Thanks for responding so quickly! Right after I wrote you I figured out I had to open the dang plug, so I did that. Now I don't know how to tell if my system updated properly. I got the ILS lighting upgrade, and even in my dark garage I'm not sure what to look for. I sent the LOG file to Vladimir so he can tell me.
And yeah, they should make it easier to pull apart or put the card reader on the outside like you said!
Thanks again!
And yeah, they should make it easier to pull apart or put the card reader on the outside like you said!
Thanks again!
Foremost is that "Multibeam only works on dark roads.". When driving on lit roadways, well, it stays off. One of those, 'it is what it is', things.
Last edited by Mike__S; 06-15-2020 at 12:25 AM.
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chillysyrup (06-21-2020)
#114
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#116
Member
The effect with the W213 system is more subtle from the drivers perspective, as you'd expect due to the higher resolution of the system. I've not shot video while driving, but still see the black box around vehicles in front. It's especially obvious when you drive through a high radius turn. Bottom line, there are multiple posts from US/CA owners validating the MB promo video, and if you want full functionality for the 168 LED lighting in your car, this upgrade/aka unlock is the only way to achieve this,
Last edited by wagonsrock; 06-26-2020 at 07:43 PM.
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bellavance (06-26-2020)
#117
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Join Date: Apr 2011
Location: Longueuil, QC Canada
Posts: 217
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2018 E300 4Matic.
Too expensive when converted to CDN Dollars.
I wanted to purchase it, but it seems too expensive for this functionality, when purchase price is converted to CDN Dollars.
The effect with the W213 system is more subtle from the drivers perspective, as you'd expect due to the higher resolution of the system. I've not shot video while driving, but still see the black box around vehicles in front. It's especially obvious when you drive through a high radius turn. Bottom line, there are multiple posts from US/CA owners validating the MD promo video, and if you want full functionality for the 168 LED lighting in your car, this upgrade/aka unlock is the only way to achieve this,
#118
MBWorld Fanatic!
Once you have it, you will never want to go back to a car with regular headlights again - even ones that are adaptive cornering and auto high beams. This is just a different level altogether.
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bellavance (06-27-2020)
#120
Junior Member
With the W213 system, I must agree. I can't speak for older systems. At least for rural areas, the system flawlessly lights your way whether meeting or following other vehicles. Completely hands free lighting system.
#121
Member
Sure, six hundred bucks is six hundred bucks, and I would never tell you what’s cheap or expensive for your wallet. But what did you spend on your car? What I paid in the US for mine would be roughly $95k CAD. Another $600 CAD for a safety feature didn’t bother me in the slightest. The safety aspect was what sold me - this isn’t just a ‘neat feature to have’ kind of thing.
I’m happy with my Multibeams. Worth every penny to me.
I’m happy with my Multibeams. Worth every penny to me.
Last edited by Tim_P; 06-27-2020 at 11:54 AM.
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bellavance (06-27-2020)
#122
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2018 E300 4Matic.
Comparison with stock W213 E-Class system
How does it compare with the stock North American W213 auto High-Low Beam system, that I would sometimes like to stay longer on High Beam ?
#123
Member
Multibeam changes everything. Your brights can stay on even in the presence of cars near you moving in either direction. It selectively turns off the portion of your high beams that are aimed at oncoming cars, cars you're following, and reflective street signs. It also detects wet road conditions and changes the intensity of the lights pointed at the street to reduce glare.
I can't explain all of it. Just watch this video:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0OJj...ature=youtu.be
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bellavance (06-27-2020)
#124
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2018 E300 4Matic.
Does Vladimir adaptation do all this?
Does Vladimir adaptation do all this?
It's vastly different. Auto High/Low beams simply turns the high beams on when it doesn't see any cars (or bright street lamps), and turns it off when it does. It's...fine, I guess.
Multibeam changes everything. Your brights can stay on even in the presence of cars near you moving in either direction. It selectively turns off the portion of your high beams that are aimed at oncoming cars, cars you're following, and reflective street signs. It also detects wet road conditions and changes the intensity of the lights pointed at the street to reduce glare.
I can't explain all of it. Just watch this video:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0OJj...ature=youtu.be
Multibeam changes everything. Your brights can stay on even in the presence of cars near you moving in either direction. It selectively turns off the portion of your high beams that are aimed at oncoming cars, cars you're following, and reflective street signs. It also detects wet road conditions and changes the intensity of the lights pointed at the street to reduce glare.
I can't explain all of it. Just watch this video:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0OJj...ature=youtu.be
Spoiler
#125
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bellavance (06-27-2020)