dukester34

hi all i have been on here since the roll out of the redesigned E. during that time i have seen lots of talk about the headlamps not being the same as in Europe. what are the differences exactly? i have the P3, when i drive i have the headlamp switch set to auto and the stick on the steering column forward like it was on high beams. in this configuration i get two indicators on the dash one grey headlamp with an A in it, and a green headlamp indicator next to it. when i am on dark roads it goes to high beam on its own and back when cars approach. when it goes to high the green indicator turns blue, then when the car approaches it turns back to green. this is what i have in my American E400 P3.

rbrylaw

From what I've read, the big difference is we get two levels. Low beam and high beam. In the European models, the individual led's adjust depending on the driving situation to a much more precise level. What I've yet to understand is if our lights can be reprogrammed to do the same thing they've had in Europe for a couple years. The NHTSA had not approved this for US cars, but they recently did approve it and now it goes through the process for ratification, which I have confidence will pass. I guess it depends on whether we have the same lights, just programmed for US regulations?

superangrypenguin

This is something I noticed this morning for the 2018 E class at Mercedes Benz Canada.

This made me go.... ????!

https://www.mercedes-benz.ca/content...-SEDAN-085.jpg

Take a look of the supposed lighting for the oncoming car. Does it actually do that? I get that the Matrix LED (stealing a term from Audi) style selective turn off thing doesn't work in N. America, but this seems to indicate the ability to have partial high beam illumination?

rbrylaw

Yes, that's how it works in countries where highway safety is of higher importance than it is in the US. That this type of technology isn't even new now and yet we can't use it in the US is unacceptable.

superangrypenguin

I think we may be talking about two different things.

The way MB Canada has always set these lights is the same way that I think MBUSA does it, which is "high beam" or "low beam". There's a sensor near the roof as you know that detects ambient light and it'll switch on high/low beam automatically, but it doesn't have the ability to set partial high beam, at least that's my understanding of it.

What surprised me this morning was that the photo from MB Canada that I linked indicates it can do a partial high beam. I didn't think that functionality existed, even though it was just sort of approved a few months ago.

teksurv

I agree on the MB Canada photo. North American ILS systems have, at least til now been automatic gradient changes between low and high beams. We have the individual LEDs, but not the logic to enable/disable them at the individual level as they do in Europe.

rbrylaw

I think we're talking about the same thing. I honestly don't know what Canada permits or doesn't. But in the US, the ability to able or disable individual led lights in the US cars other than High or Low beam is not activated. In Europe, the lighting system is way more articulated (for lack of a better word).