Goh34

Hi all, I am new to both Mercedes Benz and the forums. I have been a longtime owner of Lexus vehicles and with a second child on the way had to get ride of my 2014 is350 for an SUV. Decided on the GLE and have been very happy with the vehicle except for the headlights. I have been following the other lighting thread for a few months while trying to solve my issue. My last car had LEDs which were great. And the GLE has h7s I honestly feel blind driving with them. By the way have 20/20 vision. My issue was due to delivery delays and second baby comes Ng I could not build my GLE just took one they had on the lot. Even before getting delivery of the car expressed my concern to the dealer about the headlights and he assured me they would be ok. They suck long story short. Have have switched them out for 5000k Philips h7s to at least match the color of the led daytime lights. I have also tried installing Opt7 lead conversions but they do not fit on German cars due to the h7 clip that German cars have. My question after the long winded story is do I have any other options? Maybe an led conversion kit similar to opt7 that fits MBs? Thanks

jorgetav

I don't know if you can do this for the new GLE, but a few years ago I had an ML with halogen lights and I had a car audio/tinting type shop convert it to HID.

fabbrisd1

Yes - you can try a bulb change - check advise from Daniel Stern lighting.

HID "conversion" in real world is not practical - the MB electrical is quite sensitive and a effective kit hasn't shown up yet - although you get false hope every once awhile with a poster "shilling" some particular kit..

Goh34

Yes don't want to get involved with any HID kits mainly due to their unreliability with MB computers and also the car is leased, the general question was is there any LEDs that can basically plug and play with the h7 setup. I mean the headlights have a nice look to them with the projector. But light quality is horrible with a luxury SUV.

fabbrisd1

Not that I know of that "work" meaning give you more light than a H7/H7-upgraded bulb.. some one might have different experience... keep the beat !

skw

I was dead set on not getting another MB w/o the lighting pkg. And what did I end up with? Take a look at my avatar pic. I know which kit you're talking about. I decided to give him a shot and ordered one, will certainly post the results.

Not anyone in this thread (yet), but some seem to be bitter or angry that a $60k+ suv does not come w/ xenon lights as standard and that bugs me. Sorta like having your cake and eating it too. You can not reasonably expect all of the "pretty" things like xenon lights, leather, etc to be standard, also get MB's safety features such as collision prevention assist, attention assist, pre-safe, cross-wind, etc which are standard, and still hold the line on pricing as well. If you prefer the lights to be standard instead of the safety features, Acura, Infiniti, and Lexus make some fine suv's to fit that mold. And they are indeed good cars. The MDX can out handle a GLE and almost perform like an X5. For a family, the Infiniti JX lets you move the 2nd row captain chair, with a child seat still installed, to access the 3rd row. I personally have seen an ML take a hit. Attention assist indeed does work. I can tell you that collision assist is scary when it kicks in but it does it's job and kept me from being a part of an accident from someone else doing something stupid. So I'll deal w/ the halogen headlights for now until I find a work around or come upon another vehicle w/ the lighting pkg.

Goh34

I agree with you on everything you have said which is why I made the jump from Lexus to MB also the new RX does not look nice. That angular look is good on a coupe or sedan not on a suv. You are right though most other luxury SUVs have HID as standard headlights with the upgrade available to LEDs. I mean I only have to deal with this GLE for two years. I am notorious for getting rid of cars before their lease is up. This is my third new car in 3 years. Will make sure to get everything I want in the next one, since I won't be rushed. Also I think I found out how to do the LED headlights I was mentioning in my first post. There are extra clips that you can buy on Amazon that I guess you can adapt to the opt7 led headlights. I am debating about ordering them again with these adapters and trying them out. Will everyone know how they turn out

davezaristo

I was in the same boat so I went with a 400 instead since I was not able to locate a 350/300d that is reasonably optioned in my area..

jtorrebl

led kits are garbage. I've tried 8 pairs hoping one would work decent they never did. i tested them out on a ford f150 with reflector housing. i don't know if in a projector housing a precise focal point is as necessary to have good light output as in a reflector housing.

ilumo

So have you guys come up with any other solutions? I ordered some OSRAM nightbreakers, but then I found some other threads about LED "bulbs". I think the output and the color will tide me over with that solution, but it appears that there might be some fitment issues?

desired_speeds

I found these while looking up something completely unrelated: https://www.theretrofitsource.com/cl...l#.V08lpOcrJn4

thought I'd pass it along. Possibly a viable option... hopefully with some coding.

ilumo

Interesting. However I don't even see a cost. Can't add it to cart.

Badassml350

People ... Including myself love these. Check the thread...

https://mbworld.org/forums/new-m-cla...em-solved.html

jrcart

How did those Osram Nightbreakers work out for you? I am in the same boat as many of you guys, I just got my wife a new 2016 GLE, I assumed for the $62,000 MSRP it would have HID(her previous GL and even ML had them), but nope, not the GLE.... She is now complaining that she can't see as well at night. What are my options? Are the night breakers whiter light? Are they brighter? Any input would be appreciated, thanks!

AZN Optics

You'll probably want to do an HID conversion if you really want better light output. You have stock halogen projectors in there which isn't bad, but up to you if you'd want to go through the effort of swapping for HID projectors.

jrcart

Do you have a plug and play kit available? Price?

AZN Optics

Yeah, you'll want a set of our Morimoto canbus H7 HID conversion kits. Retail price $150/kit.

Offered in 4500K soft white (OEM HID color), 5000K pure white, 6000K white with a slight bluish hue.

M~Factor

Any comments on the below concerns?

AZN Optics

Hundreds of Morimoto kits successfully deployed on MBs.. I suspect those purchased non-canbus HID kits. MBs are canbus enabled so you need the right type.

Badass posted a thread link above that shows an example of our Morimoto kit and the aesthetic and performance boost.

baobay

So all I need to order is the Kit? what about the adapter for the bulb to fit in?

AZN Optics

Your OEM bulb holder should work, but many purchase an aftermarket H7 HID bulb holder because often the OEM bulb gets stuck on really tight on the OEM holder. The extra holder typically goes for like $4-8 on ebay. Most opt for the metal version rather than the plastic one.

baobay

Based on all the good advice on this forum, I ordered an HID kit for my GLS. I plan on taking the front wheels off when installing bc I cannot see anything with the wheel on. When I replaced the low beams with PIAA extreme white halogen bulbs I was going by feel and I dont want to risk damaging the HID bulbs while installing. I also ordered the H7 Euro adapters.
My only concern is stuffing the ballast and all the wiring in the headlight assembly. I also dont want to drill a hole in the cover just in case there is a problem and I have to take it back to dealer and I don't want there to be an evidence of me tampering with the lights.

AZN Optics

One thing to keep in mind for those looking to stuff the components into the headlight housing.... Heat might be an issue as you're closing it off to airflow. Although more so an issue for 55w kits rather than 35w kits. If you're concerned about the dust cap, many just purchase a spare cap for a few bucks.

baobay

I finally did the HID retro fit on the GLS. Had to take the tires off which made it easier to see. It is almost impossible to do on a GLS with tires on. I had a GLE loaner last week and I took a look at the low beam headlights from the wheel well. The GLE design allows for much easier access and visibility to the low beam lights with the tire on and turned all the way to the opposite side.

I am very happy with the kit but am disappointed with the aftermarket H7 bulb holders. Its not a perfect fit by any means. I ordered a different set from amazon and I will try them out. Hopefully they fit better.

I didn't feel comfortable stuffing all the components in the head light housing so I drilled holes in the dust caps and fed the wires through them. The holes are sealed perfectly with the grommet provided with the kit. I used industrial strength velcro to attach the ballast and other components outside the headlight assembly.
I ordered two extra caps just in case there are any issues and I have to take it back to the dealer. I don't want to be blamed for any electrical issues which may arise and may be completely unrelated to the kit.

baobay