BrianScottBurns

I was hoping someone can advise me what to do about my xenon headlights on my 2000 E55. They are definitely 2 different colors. The drivers side seems to be a purple color, and is not nearly as bright as the blue color passenger side. Can these be fixed, or better yet replaced with matching colors? Any advice you guys have is always much appreciated. Being an AMG perfectionist, I must do something.

The Godfather

replace both bulbs. That happens when one bulb is replaced w/o the matching other.

VelocitE55

The car is about 6 years old now so it would be a good idea to replace them anyway. You can go with a higher Kelvin rating for a different color. 6000K is really blue and covers a really large swath of ground in front of you. 8000K is more Purple-Blue and will not cover quite as much ground but is still effective and they both look great. You will need D2R HID bulbs.

oblax4

While you're at it, replace the halogens with brilliant whites (PIAA, Sylvania, and others make decent ones) - I did it on my side markers, high beam halogens, front parking, and front fogs. Makes them look closer to xenon blue/white rather than that dull yellow.

BlownV8

Could be a bad igniter. These are known to fail on the E55's and produce exactly what you are saying.

BrianScottBurns

Thanks for the advice. I'm going to replace the xenon bulbs to make sure it is not an ignition issue. I am also going to replace the high beam halogen bulbs, fog light bulbs and driving light bulbs. I'll post some pics of my recent detail as well, but I left my camara at a friends' house so it will be a couple days. It's nice to see some W210 owners out there, as there are only 1200 or so for the 2000 model year.

BrianScottBurns

Hi guys, any idea where in Massachusetts I can have new xenon, halogen, fog lights installed? I would like to use the bulbs with the nice bluish tint spoken of in the above posts for all front bulbs.

slvrstar

Just Curious? Will other brands work? such as phillips Ultinon or only D2R's?
secondly, I didn't know my HID ballast and kit can handle a 8000K bulb.(it may sound silly-please educate), I'd always thought that you need a 8000 kit to handle a 8000K bulb? does it make a difference, or is a HID kit a HID kit? thanks.

oblax4

Buy the bulbs online and have them installed at your dealership the next time you have to bring the car in for service. Here's what you need:

High Beams H7
Fogs 9006/HB4
City W5W

I got a couple different kinds. For the W5W I have PIAA. For HB4 I have Philips Blue Vision. For the H7 I have Sylvania Silverstar. Wanted to try a couple different brands. Got them all online (two of the three I got on Amazon.com, so you might want to check there).

I got these bulb suggestioins from "Kev04C320" who happens to live in Boston. If that is anywhere near you, you may want to PM him - he might know where to have them installed, or he might be able to help you do it. I can get at the city and high beams on my W211, but the fogs will be impossible for me, so I'm having my service guys do it on 03 DEC.

tjcMBE55AMG

oblax - the city lights on the W210 are H6W, not H5W (assuming MY 2000 same as 2002). I have Phillips Blue Vision which are a little better (whiter) than stock.


TJC

Kev04C320

Hello Brian,

I cannot reply your PM so I'll post my reply here.

I assume that you already have Xenon standard on your W210, if not I would suggest you upgrade those first. For Xenon bulbs, if you want to go for the "bluer" look, I would suggest Philips Ultinon, but this will reduce your visbility at night. You can get these bulbs from http://www.autolamps-online.com/hidonline/

For the regular halogen bulbs, you have a couple of different choices. However, I would suggest you stick with PIAA or Philips Blue Vision. I did a comparison of the two types of bulbs lately and found that although Philips Blue Vision tends to be brighter, the PIAA Extreme White Plus is a closer match to the color of stock Xenon lights. I ordered my PIAA through Yahoo Shopping.

With regards to installation, I would suggest you let your dealer or someone that specializes in Euros to change your Xenon bulb. I usually just change the halogens myself (very simple task). The fogs I would leave that for the pros too.

Hope this helps.

Kevin

BrianScottBurns

Thanks Kev!, and everyone else. In the process of sorting the details. Will get some pics when the project is complete.

slvrstar

Does anyone know the answer to the above inquiry?

Fast55

Any brand will work. The bulb style is D2R and they are all 35 watts, so any D2R in any color temp will work with your car. The Ultinon is just a D2R at 6000K with a funny name. As suggested, the higher the color temp, the "bluer" it will be, the less light you get (or the less visible the light for those who will argue the point). There is no reason to go to the dealer to change them. It's very easy, just unscrew the cover and you'll see the retainer that holds the bulb in. Twist that out and there it is. Careful to not touch the new bulbs as skin oils (yes you have skin oil even if you just washed), can cause an early failure. Your "city lights" or parking lamps are not W5W, they are H6W. Your fogs are H3's, not 9006's, and the high beam is a H7.

oblax4

Sorry about giving you the wrong bulb #'s - I was thinking W211!!