Interior Light Upgrade Bulbs

[jon-m42]

dje30

I recently bought a cheap ebay kit after some great help of the zoners here. I bought 4300k which projects a bright ice white color on the road where as the 6000k projects somewhat of a blue/purplish tint.

At the end it all depends what you like and with which light out put you find comfortable driving with.

[dje30]

dje30

I recently bought a cheap ebay kit after some great help of the zoners here. I bought 4300k which projects a bright ice white color on the road where as the 6000k projects somewhat of a blue/purplish tint.

At the end it all depends what you like and with which light out put you find comfortable driving with.

do you have a link to the one your bought?
thanks

[BenHar]

I've fitted 4300 to every E30 I've owned (except my first touring) Great output and never really seen the need to use high beam as the light is so good in properly adjusted headlights.

Either your lights are badly adjusted or you are not looking far enough ahead when you drive. Or maybe you drive everywhere at twenty miles an hour in the dark?

Ben

[grantfk10]

I've fitted 4300 to every E30 I've owned (except my first touring) Great output and never really seen the need to use high beam as the light is so good in properly adjusted headlights.

Either your lights are badly adjusted or you are not looking far enough ahead when you drive. Or maybe you drive everywhere at twenty miles an hour in the dark?

Ben

My lights are properly adjusted as per MOT requirements, and I drive at speeds appropriate to the road and weather conditions.

[Rosc0PColtrane]

LED side lights with the fitment someone was looking for earlier in the thread:

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/BMW-501-Quad- ... 4607f6c311

[BenHar]

I've fitted 4300 to every E30 I've owned (except my first touring) Great output and never really seen the need to use high beam as the light is so good in properly adjusted headlights.

Either your lights are badly adjusted or you are not looking far enough ahead when you drive. Or maybe you drive everywhere at twenty miles an hour in the dark?

Ben

My lights are properly adjusted as per MOT requirements, and I drive at speeds appropriate to the road and weather conditions.

If your lights are set up correctly the dipped beam will light up the road to about 45 metres in front of you. If there is no other light you need to be able to stop in 45 metres. THis means you should not exceed 45mph when driving on dipped beam with no other light source.

http://www.direct.gov.uk/prod_consum_dg ... 188029.pdf

Why don't you use main beam anyway? It's not difficult.

Ben

[Brianmoooore]

Minimum dipping angle is 0.5%, which with E30 headlamps being about 600mm off the deck, gives a cut off point of 120m.
Maximum angle is 2% which equates to a cut off of 30m

[BenHar]

Minimum dipping angle is 0.5%, which with E30 headlamps being about 600mm off the deck, gives a cut off point of 120m.
Maximum angle is 2% which equates to a cut off of 30m

45 to 50 metres is about average in my experience. Maybe MOT setters tend to use closer to 2% than 0.5%.

Are you recommending that main beam should not be used?

Ben

[Brianmoooore]

45 to 50 metres is about average in my experience. Maybe MOT setters tend to use closer to 2% than 0.5%.

Maybe that's why there seems to be a general opinion on here that standard E30 lights are poor. Correctly adjusted, they are adequate.

Are you recommending that main beam should not be used?

Ben

No reason why main beam shouldn't be used if desired, but with HID dipped beams there isn't quite the urgency to get back onto full beams once oncoming traffic has passed. HIDs cannot be used in the main beam lights though, for the reasons I stated in my earlier post.
Note that it's only the portion of the beam to the right of straight, and slightly to the left of straight ahead ahead that has a cut off point at all. The maximum amount the 'kick' point can be to the left of straight ahead is just 2% (min. 0%), so at worst, the road ahead to the left of the centre of the car should have no cut off, and be lit to infinity by the HID burners.

[magpie]

the fluid type dip adjusters are easily replaced with manual ones .

[alexdejonghe]

Hi Guys,

Recently having upgraded my headlights to HID's. I must say its probably by far the best £20.00 upgrade i have done tot he old girl.

Switching the interior lights on seem a tad dim. I have the standard yellow light bulb installed from factory and they seem very dim even though if the car is switched on or off.

Has anybody here completed a change to these lights?

any upgrade bulbs that you all can recommend or is this something that nobody yet has done?

regards

Jon

I thought HID kits were an automatic MOT failure these days?

[Brianmoooore]

I thought HID kits were an automatic MOT failure these days?

No, the only relevant changes that have me made to the MOT test regulations are that self levelling systems and wash/wipe systems must work IF FITTED.

[alexdejonghe]

I thought HID kits were an automatic MOT failure these days?

No, the only relevant changes that have me made to the MOT test regulations are that self levelling systems and wash/wipe systems must work IF FITTED.

Taken from Directgiv.co.uk;

--------

3. High Intensity Discharge (HID) headlamps, washing and levelling system

Dazzle can also be caused if the lamps are dirty or aimed too high due to, for example, carrying rear seat passengers and/or heavy items in the boot. Vehicles with HID headlamps are therefore required to have a headlamp washing system (a wiper is not required) and be self levelling, which may be achieved either by the use of either headlamp or suspension levelling systems.

The presence and operation of these headlamp cleaning and levelling devices has been added to the test. Therefore, if a mandatory headlamp levelling or cleaning device is missing, inoperative or otherwise obviously defective this will be a reason for rejection.

This raises the question of whether these checks apply to vehicles fitted with after-market HID lighting kits. These kits convert conventional halogen headlamps to HID Xenon and they are widely sold and fitted to vehicles used on the road. The Department for Transport considers that after-market systems should be required to meet the same safety standards as that applied in respect of these lamps at vehicle Type Approval. Therefore, in order to pass the MOT test, vehicles fitted with after-market HID systems would also need to be fitted with headlamp cleaning and self-levelling systems otherwise this will be a reason for rejection.

-----------

Are you all passing MOTS without self levelling systems and washer jets?

[Brianmoooore]

See here: http://www.e30zone.net/modules.php?name ... c&t=210258

As I've posted before, the only comment I've ever had from an MOT tester is how good the beam patterns were.

[alexdejonghe]

See here: http://www.e30zone.net/modules.php?name ... c&t=210258

As I've posted before, the only comment I've ever had from an MOT tester is how good the beam patterns were.

Ha, must've missed that debate!

Thanks Brian,

[jon-m42]

I know a few with the same HID kit as mine. They have had it installed for a few years now and their MOT's pass with flying colors year in year out, so i presume it should not effect the testing. If anything its just an improvement, making sure your headlights are adjusted correctly as it should be then you have clearly nothing to worry about.

If you have not already and still are thinking about it ... go ahead i can assure you....that you will not regret it.

[DavieP]

Are you all passing MOTS without self levelling systems and washer jets?

Seems so. There was a lot of concern about this last year, but I've not heard of anyone being failed through lack of self levelling/headlamp wash. Mine flew through its last MOT without any reference to the HIDs. I did ask the examiner whether the lights were OK when I went in to pick the car up and he just replied "Yes they're fine, no problems with them at all"

[Brianmoooore]

IMHO, if the government wants to legislate on HIDs, they'd be better turning their attention to the new scrap sent out with factory HIDs, with beams pointing randomly wherever they happened to point after fitting. By far the most dazzle I get from HIDs is from cars under three years old, that have yet to see a MOT testers beam checker.

[dje30]

I ordered 4x of the feston tube updrade bulbs, they fired the interior but not my number plate lights, they are snaller, can anyone shed some light on what ones I need to buy?

[eko]

I ordered some of these LED bulbs before Christmas but they didnt turn up.
Gotsomereplacementssent out which came today.
Fitted earlier and the difference is impresive.
Shame maplight mirrors ones arent available though....unless anyone knows different?

Oh and ive got hids fitted in my main beam.
To be honest I rarely need/use them only fitted them as they were in a parts cars so were free and the front end does look better when they are all on

[DavieP]

There's a pair of led festoons from Aceparts that have been sitting under my monitor for well over a week. I must fit them - can't stand the dull yellow gloom from the existing bulbs. Every time I get into the car at night, I cuss because I've left the darned things on my desk

[Speedtouch]

The new Mercedes S-Class has done away with incandescent filament bulbs completely!

http://www.autoexpress.co.uk/mercedes/s ... newsletter

So, who's going to be first to go all LED in their E30?

[Cloggy Saint]

Is there a LED available for the check control panel light?