Has anyone installed the intelligent light system activator by Vladimir? Does it work and is it worth it?
Thanks
just installed Vlads IHC+ module and it works great. Finally have all the functions of the intelligent light system. Also installed on my 2018 E300 W213 . 👍

 

I installed mine a while back, and I can tell you that it works in the right condition.

Now, to answer the question of is it worth it, I would say it depends.

If you travel on a well lit environment most of the time (city or roads with good street lights), it might not be worth it as the lights (I will call it Adaptive High Beam, AHB in short going forward) only works on low light environment. If you are in the city, or on streets with street light, AHB will most likely not kick in. Mine kick in most of the time when I am driving on highway at night.

The other point of consideration would be the price. It is relatively expensive (at least to me) to have the AHB activated, especially when compare to countries that already have that feature activated by Mercedes. Basically, you paid for the option, but with limited features due to US regulations (although not sure if it is true, but I heard from another thread that the option in other countries are more expensive than in US)

Another thing is, do you really need AHB enabled? If you are traveling mostly on a well maintained road, do you really need to have high beam on at night (especially on mostly straight highways with barrier on both side). The high beam is useful on country side roads where there is no barrier separating the road and surrounding so you can see a potential animals that is there. The regular low beam is very bright and should be (not always, but most of the time) enough for travelling on well maintained roads.

(highly unlikely) Maybe US regulation will change and allow AHB in US next year. If so, and Mercedes push out software update to enable it, then you just wasted your money.

But, at the end of the day, its your decision if you want to purchase that option and have AHB activated.

 

I just received it and installed it last night. The installation was very straightforward, he provides well written detailed instructions. I emailed Vlad to confirm that cornering lights are activated, he responded saying yes, but it's only visible in a very dark area and its very subtle so it will be difficult to see. The main feature of having the high beams on all the time and blocking out oncoming traffic is deactivated when it detects other light sources such as street lights. I live in a big city and most if not all streets are very well lit. I will probably have to wait until the summer when we go north on weekends to see how well it works. I haven't seen it engage so far driving around the city. I think it would be way more beneficial if you live in an area where the roads are not illuminated at night. It basically useless in the city.

 

I wouldn't count on Mercedes pushing out an update to turn these on, even if the US changes their laws about this. I'm in Canada, and I discovered that the Canadian government actually issued a bulletin regarding it (it's how we update some of those laws... some people think the bulletins are just notices of intent or something, but they're actually modifications to the laws - I can provide links if people actually care that much). In the bulletin, it also has wording that says that if an option is available on a vehicle, and it makes driving safer, then it's actually ILLEGAL to not have it turned on or available for the customer. So, I provided all of this documentation to my local dealership, they knew what I was talking about, they did updates, and re-downloaded the headlight software, etc. Still not turned on. The package we bought has multibeam LEDs listed on it in the options, and we don't have the full multibeam functionality. Still.

The dealership checked with mercedes Canada, and they outright said "they are illegal in Canada" and refused to respond to anything beyond that (at this point, maybe the dealership lied to me and they didn't actually check - who knows. They're not happy with me since I've got the mirror whistling problem, and I bug them about it VERY regularly). Even with proof that they are NOT illegal, and that it's likely law that they should be turned on if the vehicle is capable of it, especially if the customer bought the most expensive light package available. Unless someone initiates a lawsuit, I can't see this changing.

Just my experience, but if you want it in north america, don't hold your breath waiting for mercedes to do anything about it at all. Especially on vehicles already sold to a customer. If you don't have it currently, but want it on the vehicle you already own, Vlad is probably your best bet.

 

Are you saying that you can't notice if the lights illuminate the side of the vehicle when turning or signaling into a turn? I live in a rural area and it is very noticeable on my 2018 E300 which has the intelligent light package. I don't see any illumination when signaling to turn on my 2020 GLE. Was hoping this module would improve that function. Want to upgrade both my cars for the high beam features of the system.

 

You don't need the "activator" to have the corner light. Those should be active in US by default (as far as I can tell).
The reason why it is very noticeable in your 2018 is because the actual projector housing move in your car, so the entire light beam moves. There is always a bright spot on those light so when it move, you can see it.
For with the 2020 with Multibeam LED, the light itself doesn't move side to side (they still move up or down for level), but instead have individual LED that turn on/off for corner, it is much less noticeable as the main bright spot doesn't move.

 

Just out of curiosity, does fidgeting with the OBD settings like for the headlamps here have any consequences in the car's factory warranty? I cannot think of any reason it would, but then again I have not changed any settings with an OBD yet on my MBs.

 

That's always a good question. It might be good to ask your Service Manager, but that might depend on how good your relationship is with the Service Department.

 

Where does one reach Vladimir?

 

That makes two of us, Amazon price is a little nuts!

 

You can reach him at canfiltermb@gmail.com

Send him your VIN and he will reply with the options w/ costs that are available for your GLE.

 

I recently ordered and installed this update from Vlad. It works well, I cant wait for summer when we head north on weekends to use its full potential. Our city is very well lit at night so I can't really see it operating as I would in a very dark environment.
Here is the response I received when I sent him the VIN from my 2020 GLE450:

options possible are:
- LED multibeam unlock - usd449
- ECO start stop last mode memory - usd199
- SeatBelts chime off - extra 39
- "Do not Forget the Key" message OFF - extra usd89

when you are ready to order then let me know please:
- option list you need
- paypal email to send the invoice
- delivery method (usd15 priority takes 15-25 days) or DHL express for usd69 takes (5-8 days)
- name address and THE PHONE NUMBER to post the parcel

 

Those are some nifty features.
@chrislk55 Do you think he can eliminate the 3-5 second splash display when I change modes, such as Drive Mode, or other data entry? The display blocks all other information, just when I may need it the most!

 

I've asked about something similar ... I wanted to have the system remember my drive mode but he said it's not available. I don't think he has any further mods available beyond what he listed for my VIN. I also asked about turning on my dashcam and it's not available.

 

I just ordered the LED multibeam unlock for my 21E-Class. My reading of these posts indicates that Vladimir uses a OBD plug to access the computer but I'm not clear how he actually activates the multibeam system. Does anyone know what procedure/process is used? Can the activation be reversed?
Thanks
James

 

He provided me an OBD plug with micro-SD cards, how many depends on the different programming options you require. If all you want is the multi-beam unlock, you will receive two cards (I got 4 cards since I did 3 customizations + the backup). The first card you use to take a backup of the current programming of the car, so it allows you to revert to it if you run into issues or want to reset. Once you complete the backup (3-4 min process), you change the cards and repeat. This begins the actual customization.

The actual installation process is pretty simple. Turn the car on in accessory mode, plug in the OBD on the car port and it starts automatically. On my GLE (since I have MBUX), I was unable to monitor the programming process on the dash console. Instead, I had to watch the flashing LED light on the OBD plug, which blinked one every second or so. When the blinking finished, the process was completed. I removed the OBD, swapped micro-SDs (once I figured out how to open the OBD which took a bit of figuring out!) and then plug it in for each step in the process - again number of steps = number of options you want to customize = number of micro-sd cards.

Hope that helps!

 

Excellent response thanks so much!!
James

 

Agreed .... Very easy. Just one word of caution, when opening the OBD programming tool remember to replace the cover in the proper orientation and not cover the LED. I did that and had to just guess when it was finished since I could no longer see the flashing LED ! LOL

 

In the video that Vladimir send along with the instructions he shows plugging the SD card into his computer and accessing one of the files. But, as he begins to explain what he's doing and why, the video ends. Maybe when my unit arrives tomorrow I'll have better information.
Those that have this installed can you explain why I have to install/copy the files to my computer and which file, backup or update
Thanks
James

 

As I understand it, the only time you will need to do that is if you run into an issue with the installation and it fails. The symptom is that the OBD light will blink rapidly, instead of a 1 / second blink. If this should happen, log files get created on the SD card that needs to be sent to Vladimir for analysis and resolution. To get the log files to him, you will need to access them via your Computer and email them to him. That's the only time/reason.

 

You will not have to use your computer unless you have an error. If that happens, he asks that you copy the log files from the micro SD card and email them to him.

The process is very simple, the first step is to insert the OBD tool and make a backup of your default system on the micro SD card thats already installed in the unit. This allows you to easily put everything back to stock if needed. The next step is to remove your back up micro SD card from the tool and replace it with the one supplied with the headlight programming. Insert the OBD tool and wait until the flashing LED stops then you are done ! If you order additional mods then you will have to replace the micro SD card for each mod as each mod has its own micro SD card.

He does include very detailed easy to follow instructions... Have fun !