str8ridin

So, when you turn you car on and lights on, is the "up/down" self leveling really apparent? My xenons just turn on really blue and then slowly just white out....but no initial leveling.

Warranty issue?

jangy

I can see mine move up. Also, I can see it go from side to side as I turn the wheel back and forth when going about 20mph.

Fr33kn63

yeah mine move all over the place...up and down..side to side and then come to a level spot. You might want to get it looked at....
Mine also turns into the corners when moving. If your car is not doing these things then probably time to bring it in....

psk145

mine does nothing side to side even when cornering, I see no difference.

Damn, I just picked it up today from service too.

str8ridin

Ok, so then just to make sure, do all the E55's that come with xenons have the active curve illumination or is that an added option?

And while were at it, what exactly does the "bi" in bi-xenons mean? They go both ways?

jangy

"-Xenon light systems use the Xenon bulb for both high and low beam operations. It's a common misconception that a Bi-Xenon system has two Xenon bulbs per housing, this is false. A Bi-Xenon light housing uses a single bulb with a mechanical movement to alter the amount of light outputted by the headlight."

jangy

Should've driven farther? You may just not be noticing it, too?

jangy

I could have sworn my high beams are halogens....

str8ridin

So are mine. They are like my old CLK....in the city lights.

zoink

Yes, high beams are halogens.

They're called bi-xenon because the low beams have shutters that drive the light beam even lower when you permanently (not just flashing) your high beams.

NSX2NV

03 E55 have self leveling HIDs but that is just up and down, they don't move side to side. When you first turn on your car and the lights are on they will move down then back up to test the leveling. High beams are halogen bulbs in the middle along with the driving lights.... but, the low beam HID lights move up when the high beams are turned on. That's why it almost looks like HID high beams. Because it is "kind of", since the low beam HID bulbs point higher along with the halogen highs. I THINK.... anyone correct me if I'm wrong.

zoink

I think the other way around (see my post above)... when the halogen high-beam is on, the xenon low-beam will point even lower to illuminate the area that halogen high-beam misses.

I think I read that somewhere.... just google it. I'm too lazy

jangy

Tis true. i saw the thing on MBUSA. I'm not a lights guy and didn't even know it did that.

MB Fanatic

2004+ E55's and 2007+ E63 have Active Cornering Lights, that swivel below 45 or 35mph. Anything faster than that and they don't swivel. Also, some cars seem to do a self check on startup and some dont. I still can't figure that one out.

J 2OOI

Turn your lights to "Auto" and try it. I think they only do the self check (down and back up) when the car is turned on while the toggle is turned to Auto. Can't be 100% sure though... let me know if that works...

jangy

Maybe it has to do with how level the ground is that they are sitting on?

Yacht Master

Do you have headlight washers? If not then you may have a car that has been refit with BiXenon or had a HID kit installed. All cars with headlight washers will have self leveling. As to the active cornering (side to side) that was never standard, it was a stand alone option, and many 55s don't have it.

Rafal

Get it looked at ,quick! Mine failed 5 days after the warranty expired and they wanted $4300 to replace one complete light. There is no repair to the little $2 electric motor inside, can you believe it?
In the end MB Australia gave me the light for free but I had to pay $450 in labour costs to replace it. On top of it, I had to go back three times because they did not re-fit the front bumper correctly or re-align the headlights.
Finally I gave up and had to adjust the lights in my own garage myself.

str8ridin

Just tried it this morning. It doesn't work.

str8ridin

That is the first thing I checked. And I did it in my garage after I just washed the car....sprayed my whole hood and windshield!

str8ridin

Ouch! Sorry about that man. Good thing MB Austraialia helped you out. I'm making an appointment on Monday!

I like having a warranty.....my hands are so much cleaner now.

AsianML

Bi-xenon means that the low beam HID has a flap or shutter that moves up to allow it become high beam as well.

MB Fanatic

Just for further clarification, Aactive Front illumination or (side to side movement below 45mph) was only added for 2004+ W211 models equipped with the Lighting Package or P2 package. This includes headlight washers, active curb illumination, self leveling, and the side to side movement of headlights.

2003 E55's and W211 models only had standard Xenons which moved up and down for leveling.

str8ridin

OK, just got back from the dealer. They said that the lights are working as intended. They said that they saw it self-level up and down and side to side. WTF am I missing?

When my car is parked in the garage, I turn on the lights and see the reflection against the wall. The cutoff line of the lights remains where it starts. It just gets brighter as the xenons warm up.

I also had the wife turn on the lights while I was looking directly at them. There was no movement whatsover. What the hell am I missing?

Rafal

Park the car at the entrance of your garage or 20' from the back wall.
With the ignition off, leave the light switch on "Auto" facing the dark garage. Now, turn on the ignition. The lights should bounce up and down before they settle in the correct position.
If they don't move, then your dealer is snowing you to save MB some big warranty dollars.