Xoutpost.com - What did you do to / for your E53 today??

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- - What did you do to / for your E53 today?? (https://xoutpost.com/bmw-sav-forums/x5-e53-forum/78921-what-did-you-do-your-e53-today.html)

Took it to a local little league fundraiser car wash. They did a great job roasting in the heat and sun, getting all the brake dust off (which I totally hate doing myself).

Drove it home (about 1/4 mile away), and out of nowhere came the clouds and then promptly poured all over the newly washed and dried baby for a few hours. http://midpacsolutions.com/emoticons/brickwall.gif

Well, it was for a good cause!

Quote:

Originally Posted by TiAgX5 (Post 964040)

On topic, had cheap 2 element LEDs on the rear plate, one burned out so I ordered these.........

2pcs 18x White LED License Plate Lamp Light BMW E53 x5 1999 2003 Pre Facelift | eBay

Over $30 but should last longer then the 7 mos I got out of the last set.

Holy Blinded By The Light Batman! Those are crazy bright!!

My goal for my plate lights is usually - go as dark as legally possible, since I'm not always the most considerate driver on the road sometimes. I don't need peeps writing down my plates, and reporting me to the cops. :rofl:

Quote:

Originally Posted by tmv (Post 964131)

Swap the projectors for much better light output once you have them opened.
Good choice :thumbup:

Thanks. I wish I could tho, my Max came with halogens :(
Any projector at this point is going to be a heck of a lot better than what's on there now.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ricky Bobby (Post 964132)

Peregrin, nice choice of headlights for replacement. I'll be looking to do a set next year, I have my wife's retrofit to do first, as her car gets driven more than my X and I can't stand the halogens!

I'm assuming you have stock HID and will just be swapping your internals from your xenon lights? This projector will drop right in to the existing mounts if you want MUCH better light output, bolt it in and just aim it from there relative to the vehicle center line:

To open them up I used 230 for 20 mins in the oven, came open like butter. I didnt use extra butyl on the re-seal (although you can if you want to, not going to hurt), the key is to heat the housing up on the re-seal for another 230 at 20 mins to get the sealant really soft again, so it really closes well when you clamp it shut, make sure all cips engage, and leave some spring clamps around the top or bottom while it cools, you should have no problems.

However, I am not a fan of the 6000k HID, fact is it is significantly dimmer at night than our stock 4300k bulbs, add to the fact that most 6000k bulbs are aftermarket, and I'm afraid you will be suffering at night. Just my opinion, but I think eventually you will want 4300k back :)

EDIT: I just re-read your post and you are matching your fogs, which I understand, but just some food for thought, you can get probably 15% more light on the road if you go back to 4300k :)

I too have the sport headlights but w/halogens.(I have no idea why BMW even made the sport lights w/halogens...) and no I didn't want to put HIDs in my stock headlights as it would blind everyone and I didn't want to be one those idiots out there who think are all cool blinding everyone in their free form 10k-12k hid headlights. Thanks for the cooking tips as this will be the first time I do it haha
I had the 6k kit on both my bike and e34 and I thought it was awesome light output, sure technically the lumens given off from 4300k is better but visually I thought my eyes were at a better rest and I could see a lot with that kit. Plus I'm not trying to match stock color as I want my Max to be a little different.

Chrome Handle bars installed to match the running board
Winters boots installed
and a nice wash

thrust rod brushing repair soon since the 55pt check said I should..

Quote:

Originally Posted by haumana (Post 964296)

I liked how the 2 element LEDs lit up the rear bumper of the X more then stock bulbs, with 36 LEDs flush on the lenses the truck will be much more visible for drivers approaching from behind. I think these are the brightest available.

Quote:

Originally Posted by TiAgX5 (Post 964788)

I also have the LEDs for the license plate. Until you mentioned lighting up the rear I hadn't thought that we might also be drawing one our Dallas DUIs to the light.

Quote:

Originally Posted by bcredliner (Post 964905)

I have the LEDs for the license plate. We are assuming the driver is not one of our Dallas DUIs drawn to the light.

Didn't think about the DUI drivers. These may not be such a good idea.

Quote:

Originally Posted by haumana (Post 964296)

haha, one of my plate lights just recently broke, so only half the plate can be properly read. I don't plan on changing the light bulb any time soon though ;)

Just got them installed. The 2 element LEDs that were in there got HOT while on (resistor was almost the size of the bulb). These are REALLY bright but stay cool (no resistor visible). Good natural color temp, not blue.

These light up the ground within 8ft of the rear bumper like daytime. Unreal output.

Will post up a pic here.