Facelift Xenon Headlight Options?

[vmorel1]

Hey guys! I've been lurking for quite a while and will soon be joining the e53 owners club which I'm very excited about. And I know this topic has been beaten to death apparently, but just wanted to make sure I wasn't missing something.

Anyway, the X5 (2004) I'm planning on buying has the stock xenon headlamps and since it's a facelift, I'm assuming the headlights are of the permsealed variety. So, my question is, if the lenses are hazy/yellowing - what are my options? I would love to break them apart and upgrade the components and replace the lenses (I've done it on previous vehicles), however it sounds to be a major PITA and unfortunately I work more than any person should at the moment so free time is few and far between. All of the aftermarket solutions look far too cheesy to be on this vehicle/any vehicle in my eyes. If I wanted to replace the entire housing, is my only option the euro versions I've read about? If that's the case, where on earth can they be purchased for a reasonable price?

Thanks! And I look forward to learning many things from xoutpost!

[killcrap]

https://www.ecstuning.com/b-genuine-...3117166815816/

[vmorel1]

Dear Lord. That's more than a third of the cost of the entire vehicle.

But thanks!

[YazX5]

I was looking around the other day lol. Really want them to be crystal clear like new.

Seen this on eBay
https://www.ebay.com/itm/131896009444
I don't know if it's genuine or not but it looks like an exact copy, and for $295 a sir you can't beat that. They're even euros with have the clear marker which IMHO looks better than the amber ones.

Also seen these a while back
https://www.ebay.com/itm/142236234517
They're just the lenses, the outer plastic cover, but I heard these were a PITA to take off cuz apparently you have to bake them because of the silicone or something. I don't think anyone's pryed them apart (other than this one guy I seen on the forums to retrofit some led angel eyes) but yeah. For now I just had them wet sanded, buffed, polished, and added a clear coat on it. Looks better than before, not exactly new but best bang for the buck at the moment. Good luck, and let us know if you go with the lenses route lol.


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[Ricky Bobby]

Do a complete wetsand and polish of the lens and then add new coating to make them new - some use the Mineral spirits / urethane mixture, there is Optimum Lens Coating, there are others-

Get yourself some quality D2S bulbs and enjoy - unless you want to spend the money on Euro facelift lights and swap everything over - ($1k+)

[Plattus1000]

+1 tho.

If you still want ae's (angel eyes)
Avoid "Spyder" they look cool but are so cheaply made. Very disappointed.

Perhaps "Depot"

[Ricky Bobby]

^^That is only for the pre-facelift -

And for what its worth I have Spyder's and they look excellent and were 1/3 the price of Depo's - I swapped over all my stock parts, added new projectors and angel eyes and have no issues whatsoever for over a year now