Headlight Options?
 

Hi all,
Was trying to match up new bulbs in daughter's E53 while I replaced A/C compressor & the tab on turn signal socket (in housing) broke off. I refinished the lenses a while back & was uncomfortable with the condition of internal wiring (insulation crumbling), so figure time to replace.

Unfortunately the Hella replacements are no longer an option (backorder, no ETA), and BMW replacements are $600/ea. A quick look at ebay didn't seem to show much available for aftermarket options these days. Just too old now or what? What I need is facelift halogen, not xenon.

Is there something out there I'm not seeing?

TIA,
Chris

Your other option are the DEPO made aftermarket units, they are sold by many vendors in many different flavors. The do have some that look OEM but have slight differences which when installed on a car with an OEM housing the difference will be apparent.

:dunno: I expected to be finding those, and they were plentiful a few years ago...but not seeing them?

I have depot lights, had them for about 5 years. The LED angle eyes flicker on and off. The headlights never adjusted high enough, they run out of adjustment.


Bottom line, they are cheap units. Not sure who makes quality lighting.

Heard nothing good about depot.
I'm also looking for options.
Would love to get something cool, unconventional and functional.
Very nice headlights I saw for X5 were tinted angel lights with white turn signals.
So far the best looking I've seen are these
https://i.ibb.co/kgJdMMy/Screenshot-...2-You-Tube.jpg
I'm also looking where to buy a nice set which is ready to go. That means without the need to open them, buy the rings reparation, replace the rings, etc...

fcpeuro.com claims to have the Hella Halogens in stock for an '05.

https://www.fcpeuro.com/BMW-parts/X5...&b=11&d=589&v=

These anzo lights look nice

https://www.amazon.ca/dp/B008CLLYL8/...ERTSJ6VC?psc=1

I've had plenty of DEPO products across a number of platforms and they all have been very close to OEM quality. That said I've never had anything electronic from DEPO, it has always been just housings with all OEM lamps, drivers, etc.

The lights in the picture are modified "Euro clear" DEPOs or OEMs with the orange turn lenses cut out and red LEDs behind the projector. Awesome mod, always wanted to do this to my Z32.

I have never held this particular pair but every aftermarket (ebay/amazon) housing I've ever run into has leaked like a sieve and needed resealing before use. Also looking at the pictures of the back its pretty apparent that those are built with inferior materials. I'd recommend the OP to stay away from those.

I just went through the headlight search 6 months ago and landed on sourcing good condition used OEM because the Xenon replacements from Depo are $600 for a set and as you know OEMs are twice that. Everything else I found had terrible reviews or none at all and looked cheap. I was chasing the OEM look though.

My suggestion to the OP is to check out umnitza and unique style racing. They sell the Depos in different flavors and provide warranties.

:rolleyes: Yeah, that's incorrect. I had ordered them the day before & was contacted that they were not available. I did find one pair on eBay from Latvia...a good percentage less than OEM, but I believe better quality than chinesium.

With these, can identify the correct model/SKU, but haven't seen them for sale anywhere. A few years ago I saw them a lot, but...

halogen to xenon
 

Can someone explain why I can't upgrade to the xenons that became available in late '03 I think? They look great and seem to be available, but never come up as a match for my '02 4.4L.

I think at some point they went to self leveling for the X5, but wouldn't the lights still light up if you put them in an '02? Or did the physical shape change in some way from 02 to 03?

I'm sick of the crappy looking, hazed over lights in my 02 x5 and really don't want to engage in another polish job that won't last long.

All pre-facelift (2000-2003) models were available with Xenon headlamps. You can upgrade but its not a plug and play solution, it requires coding otherwise you'll have a warning on your cluster. The physical shape changed for the 2004 models. New OEM Xenon units are very expensive though.

Walk the dog for me please. So they will fit my 02 that has the factory halogens currently, but Bakeable?

Also, the ballast is needed for the bulbs you mention? What is the set-up?

I was explaining to my wife about all the parts I’ve ordered so far to refresh her old X5, how cool the two tone paint was going to look, the satellite radio set-up I was looking at, etc. and she just pointed at the crappy lights and said “what about those”.

I'm about to order everything for E53 2002 headlight rebuild...I don't see options better than evox r 2.0 at the moment.

The one thing kinda confused me.

What's the difference between these 2 headlights? They're both for pre facelift.

I have the ones on the top, but would prefer the ones on the bottom. Maybe I've got a gap of knowledge somewhere, but I didn't think the pre facelift headlights looked like the bottom picture?

https://i.ibb.co/FkQ5VXL/Screenshot-...538-Chrome.jpg

One on top has yellow turn signal in plastic and the bottom one is Euro spec with the clear markers.

Sent from Embassy network using Tapatalk

Despite what it says, the one on bottom is for late models. You can't have that unless you change the fenders, bumper, and hood.

perhaps I'm blind in one eye, and can't see out of the other
 

I had my '01 X5 for two years before I actually noticed that I had one of each. I'd even spent hours clearing and polishing each headlight (they were opaque, not even translucent, at first), and never noticed.

I never have driven the X5 at night (sorta weird, because before I retired, I drove mostly at night, it seemed...16-18 hour days and a 4 hour round-trip commute, you know), and the only time I actually saw them on at night was when I accidently dropped the windows, unlocked the doors, and set off the alarm (still don't know how I did it) from my home office, but didn't notice the difference even then.

It's not a big deal to me, but maybe I'll get the correct one, maybe.

workingonit would you happen to have a picture??
I'm under the impression that pre and post facelift headlights are not interchangeable, just like crystalworks said.

unsure if it's just a lens insert that's different or not
 

I didn't have a photo anywhere, except for two 3/4 views from different angles in the daytime. So, dodging T-storms just now, I went out and took a few photos and edited them at my PC.

I'm lousy taking pics, so don't make fun of mine. I have the X5 parked real close to the garage door, and I was straddling some ramps and concrete blocks (that I was setting up as a secondary outside work station), so that's why the photos have problems.

Attachment 84028

Attachment 84029

Is the left clear lens correct? or the right amber lens? both gave off the same color value and intensity when I flashed them, just now.

The complete headlight assemblies have the same fit as each other, so they must both be pre-facelift.

Does this help, or confuscate the subject?

This thread has diverged! :rolleyes:

Pre-facelift and facelift heads lights are NOT interchangeable.

Both headlight types were produced in DOT and Euro versions, where the Euro versions had less amber in the corners (turn signals).

Clear as mud... (or an old e53 headlight lens! :rofl:)

EURO or DOT?... as long as it works, it's OK by me
 

So, you're saying that if both headlights fit correctly, they're both pre-facelift, and mine has the EURO version on the left (clear turn signal lens), and the DOT version on the right (amber turn signal lens).
Attachment 84030

I guess that one of the two previous owners had to replace the left one with a EURO version. It doesn;t matter to me, as they both put out the same amount of light, and (to me) the same light temperature. It's not worth my money to make both identical; it's just a project car to play with, during my "golden years". BMW's have a reputation for needing extensive repairs over an extended period of time, so that's perfect for me, being an inveterate tinkerer.