LED Tail lights

[Ricky Bobby]

Originally Posted by lay3r3

So far I've struck out getting clear/red tails in LED. Lots if options for smoked/red or clear/clear. Haven't found them on eBay and have messaged a handful of the folks selling other options and thus far all only have bulb options for the tail lights in the red/clear combo.

It may be something that comes and goes but unfortunately I'm due for an inspection so can't wait it out

These look like a red/clear set to me!

00 06 BMW E53 x5 Sport SUV 4pcs LED Red Clear Tail Light Lamp Pair w Trunk Piece | eBay

[magnum1]

Originally Posted by Ricky Bobby

it eliminates flickering while running from the adaptive brake lights.

if you want to stop the cold monitoring flicker upon startup, you need to have your cold monitoring turned off for the tail lights and brake lights via coding.

Ricky Bobby

Thank you, who can do the coding, a Dealer or ???

Thank you
Jim

[Ricky Bobby]

Originally Posted by magnum1

Ricky Bobby

Thank you, who can do the coding, a Dealer or ???

Thank you
Jim

probably both, although a dealer is probably going to charge you more for it. check out "bmw coding" on google and you might find a local guy like I did, also you can pm Okee "OK" he has done several members cars on this forum and can code you remotely (he sends you a cable and you both go online at the same time then you send his cable back)

[email protected]


good luck!

[pw44]

Flickering issue will be fixed with: http://www.xoutpost.com/bmw-sav-foru...nics-shop.html
Solved on my 4.8is 2006.

[Ricky Bobby]

Originally Posted by pw44

Flickering issue will be fixed with: http://www.xoutpost.com/bmw-sav-foru...nics-shop.html
Solved on my 4.8is 2006.

yes but cold monitoring is still active which means you have the "strobing" sequence at start up.

go outside, have someone turn your key to position 2 and watch to see what I mean. Cold/warm bulb checks will strobe the lights every time you start the car and this could be detrimental to the LED's in the tails, may make them fail prematurely.

That is what I refer to as far as coding, the capacitors I have also to fix the flickering from adaptive brakes (different flickering than cold monitoring)

[pw44]

Not the case in my 4.8 IS 2006. I do have the capacitors and the led lights do no flicker on cold monitoring.
When i installed the backup camera, i hooked the 12 V power from the reverse light, and also installed a capacitor due the pmw. I had incandescent bulbs for rear fog and reverse lights.
Last week, i replaced these four bulbs by led bulbs, and the cold monitoring make the three without capacitor flicker. The reverse with the capacitor does not flicker, the same with the brake and rear lights (led by sonar).
I will install the capacitors in these three bulbs to solve the cold monitoring flickering.
The capacitors i'm using are the 18.000 uF 50 V.

[Ricky Bobby]

Originally Posted by pw44

Not the case in my 4.8 IS 2006. I do have the capacitors and the led lights do no flicker on cold monitoring.
When i installed the backup camera, i hooked the 12 V power from the reverse light, and also installed a capacitor due the pmw. I had incandescent bulbs for rear fog and reverse lights.
Last week, i replaced these four bulbs by led bulbs, and the cold monitoring make the three without capacitor flicker. The reverse with the capacitor does not flicker, the same with the brake and rear lights (led by sonar). I will install the capacitors in these three bulbs.
The capacitors i'm using are the 18.000 uF 50 V.

I guess we have to determine it is on a case by case basis, as my 2003 with adaptive brake lights needed the capacitor fix referred in the post above, as well as the cold monitoring to be coded off.

It should be prudent that we note "flickering" as due to adaptive brake lights on 2003 and up models, and "strobing at startup" as the effect of having cold monitoring active, as I know some users get confused on the differences.

[pw44]

As you said, when turning the key to position 2, cold monitoring starts checking the lights (bulbs). In my case, the three led bulbs without the capacitors flickers (strobe effect) for some seconds. The other with the capacitor, does not. The same for the led tail lights, with adaptative brake, which flickered (no strobe effect) while the car was on, got it solved with the capacitor.

[wogboy_9000]

Where are people buying these from nowadays?
I'm looking for a set of LED smoked lights and I can't seem to find anything for under $300 delivered. I've read some posts where people have picked them up 2-3 years ago for under $200!

[Ricky Bobby]

You're right they have went up in place.

These were the ones that I have on my car, got them in January of 2012 for about $215 for the set.

E53 x5 1999 2006 LED Tail Rear Light Red Clear for BMW V1 | eBay

Just a quick check on ebay and the red/clear and red/smoke are $300 or so.

The black/clear ones which look so aftermarket still hover around $200, prob because they don't sell as well. These lighting distributors tend to test the market with higher prices if one style sells better than another (Depo E53 headlights comes to mind), as long as people pay the higher prices they will stay that way.