This particular set was designed to replace a prefacelift halogen setup. So the ballasts came wired up. I think he sells another set to replace pre facelift cars with factory xenons.
I did have to take off the bumper but I was putting in a new heat exchanger anyway.
Not bad. I was expecting much worse. Report back after you wash the car a couple of times, I understand they tend to allow moisture to accumulate inside the housings.
Yea i have them too. I do want to change out the HIDs. I think they can be better. It was a pain aligning them. Still haven't been able to get it right. Was thinking of ordering some off the retrofit source.
+1
I've got them on my E also and they still look as good as the day I bought them. One ballast started shorting out intermittently within a few weeks of install, so I'd also agree to recommend an upgrade on the electronics.
Quote:
Originally Posted by BagMan
Just wanted to update this thread after a few months of use. Still very happy. No leaks. No condensation even in FL rainy season.
Yea i have them too. I do want to change out the HIDs. I think they can be better. It was a pain aligning them. Still haven't been able to get it right. Was thinking of ordering some off the retrofit source.
Highly recommend the retrofit source. Great product all the way through
The depo headlights are not bi-xenon. They also ha e streaking in the foreground light. Otherwise they are a nice upgrade for oxidizing headlights or a retrofit with some EVO-XR's.
The key to these is that they are adjustable. You can change the depth and/or rotation in the threaded retainer. After some time tweaking, I found a very acceptable setting.
As you can see from the pics (iphone sorry), the cutoff is decent. Throw is excellent. Output and vision on the road is equal to the HID bulbs. Color is perfect. Instant on/off is nice.
Here is Philips LED in DEPO housing:
These pictures really don't capture the output/throw compared to the pics of the HID bulbs in post#1. Probably an exposure issue - it was also not 100% dark when I took these. But they are as good as the HID bulbs to me. There are differences and here's my comparison between the two:
-HID has better/sharper cutoff. However, I found them too sharp. No light got above the cutoff line at all and I could not read street signs without high beams.
-LED has better color
-LED is instant on/off. I like this since I keep my lights on 'auto' and pull in and out of the garage a lot.
-LED install is a little tricky due to the large fans.
My wife was so impressed after driving my car, she had me put a set in her E320 - unfortunately, these bulbs don't work well in the halogen housings - there's just not enough throw due to the fresnel lense.
Anyway, I've been running these bulbs for 7 months so far with ZERO issues and definitely recommend them in the DEPO HID housings.
My wife was so impressed after driving my car, she had me put a set in her E320 - unfortunately, these bulbs don't work well in the halogen housings - there's just not enough throw due to the fresnel lense.
How many headlight configurations are there for the W211 and how do I tell which one I have?
This is something on which I've always been a bit ignorant and I'd like to fix that.
How many headlight configurations are there for the W211 and how do I tell which one I have?
This is something on which I've always been a bit ignorant and I'd like to fix that.
I might be wrong, but there's:
-OEM Halogen - Stock yellowish base headlights
-OEM Bi-xenon - Optional factory HIDs (some have motorized projectors that turn when cornering)
If you have headlight washers, it should have Bi-Xenon (this may have changed over the years)
You can also buy aftermarket headlights in a bunch of different configurations.
If you have OEM halogens, you can buy:
-straight replacement for what you have or
-facelift style lights that are plug and play for 2003-2006 cars with conversion to aftermarket HID
-various other styles of headlights (black housings, LED DRLs built in, etc)
If you have OEM Bi-Xenons, you can buy
-straight replacements with conversion to aftermarket HID
-facelift style lights that are plug and play for 2003-2006 cars with conversion to aftermarket HID
-various other styles of headlights (black housings, LED DRLs built in, etc)
The differences are in the factory wiring.
-OEM halogen and bi-xenon are not interchangeable (not plug and play anyway)
-OEM Pre-facelift and post-facelift are also not interchangeable
This whole post got away from me! There are a lot of options on Ebay. You just need to know what you're starting with.
For E55s, there are a few headlights configurations from factory.
Halogen H7 (03-06)
HID with auto leveling (03-06)
HID with auto leveling and cornering (04-06)
From the outside, you can tell if you have HID if you have headlight washers. Active cornering headlights have a different headlight bezel/ projector shrouds.
Slideshow: A one-of-one U.S.-spec Mercedes-Benz SLR McLaren Roadster became even rarer after a factory-backed transformation at McLaren's headquarters.
I would expect that though as they don't project light anything like a filament.
