please help me understand this headlights/halo stuff
 

Ok, I have an 05 4.4i with lots of options. I have the auto leveling headlights but that's about all I know about them. I love the look of the new x5's that have these bright halo's during the day. in a nut shell I want that. My daytime running light looks like an old yellow light. In order for me to get any type of "halo" effect, i have to turn on my night time lights.

I guess my question is, if I purchase the Mtec 2.0 or 3.0's (assuming this replaces the daytime running light bulb) will this give me the double halo effect that i'm looking for that so many of you guys have or am i'm miss informed?

Bottom line, I want to have both rings on each headlight on during the day like the newer x5's! help me out

thanks!

Some extensive wiring/programming would have to be done. I'm guessing that you already have angel eyes, since you have a loaded 05. Just by upgrading the angel eye bulb, you'll get a cleaner, more LED look to your angels, but they will still just turn on when the headlights are on.

Oh ok. I just see all these pics of e53 with just halos on and no other lights but maybe that's just with the without the vehicle running.

Is it a mid-term or a final, Professor? :D
You might be able to have the AEs on as DRL with some coding to the LCM. As for me, I have pre-facelift E53. The AEs were wired to the ECU. They are on whenever the key is in position II.
Make sure you change the AE bulbs too. Those yellow OEMs are weak.

Finals are over for the year thank God!!
Are AE's short for angel eyes? Do they have ther own bulbs? Or are they them same as the yellow DRLs? I'm trying to figure out what exactly the mtec's will replace and do for me since they are $200.

I see lots of pics on the site with just the angel eyes lit up without any others on and I want to know how that is done.

Tmv, is your avatar pic with the key in pos II???

The yellow DRL's are actually the headlamp bulbs fed with a lower voltage. (At least in the earlier models.)
This was an option the $tealer could turn off and on for a fee.

Ok let's clear this up. On my 2005 4.4 (and yours) daytime running lights are
the two lamps closest to the grill. The outer Lamps are Zenon lamps with an
additional ring around each lamp. These rings are commonly called angle eyes.
They come on in all three positions with the exception of position two. In that
position they are on by themselves.

To have all four lamps with the rings I believe you would need to do a retrofit
removing the existing housings with new ones configured the way you like.

This is possible if you got the coins to make it happen. Someone else will
have to chime in on how it can be done and the cost.

Regards

Yes it is. Here is another.
http://i300.photobucket.com/albums/n...5/DSCF0212.jpg

But the OP has a facelift X5, not a pre-facelift X5.

The Facelift X5 has a bulb for the DRL's, which is the same bulb for the brights when you push the blinker stalk towards the rear of the car. There is one bulb for the angel eyes, so two bulbs for both sides. The reason why the upgrade LED kits are soo expensive is that they usually feature a high-powered LED and a resistor/circuitry so you will not get a bulb-out warning. As far as I know, there really isn't much in the way of wire modification to do this. I do remember someone soldering their angel eye wires to the LCM (Light control Module) but it toasted the LCM and they had to get a new one.

The best thing to do is to upgrade the AE bulbs and get some programming. It must be done with a GT1 computer, which is hard to come by, since it's a $10k machine. You can also just get your side lights (blinkers) turned off, so the 1st position of the light switch will just be angel eyes (basically Euro mode). This can also be done with GT1.

Here's the GT1 screenshot. What's circled must be unchecked to turn off the signal indicators (but they still work as blinkers)

http://img341.imageshack.us/img341/1...turningsid.png

good info! here is where i'm still fuzzy. the angel eyes is one bulb that lights up both rings per headlight? is the yellowish light bulb closet to my grill a different bulb then?

that crappy yellowish bulb looks easy to change out, however if this is not the bulb i need to change for the angel eyes than I have no idea what to change out.

Also, if i buy the Mtec's MTEC Ver. 3.0 LED ANGEL EYE BULB BMW E65 E66 E67 E53 X5 | eBay

do I than have to change that yellowish bulb so it doesn't look weird?

I attached some pics of my headlights. the first pic is no key in the ignition and the lights turn from 0 to 1 click to the right (so the markers come on). Next pic is the same light position but I turned the key till all the gauges came on. next pic is if i turned the light switch all the way on.

thanks for putting up with my need to understand how things that interest me completely work!

i really want to drive around with my headlights looking like the first pic!!! is that what Euro mode is or does that just turn off the corner marker lights....

angel eyes are different bulb than the halogen bulb closest to the grill. The 2nd photo you posted is of your DRL (daytime running light). You can go to the dealer and get this disable (or someone with a GT1). Once the DRLs are off, the 1st position right (1 click right) on the light switch will look like like the 1st photo. I think dealers charge ~$100 for this.

The euro mode just turns off the orange outer lights in all positions, unless the turn signal is activated.

Lastly, the MTEC bulb you posted will make just the Angel Eyes (Halo rings) bright white. But to get it like the first photo, you need to disable the DRLs.

Here's my 4.8is. The light switch is 1 notch right. I have no idea which angel eye bulbs I have... haha I bought them over 3 yrs ago. I think they are predator ICE's.....


http://img706.imageshack.us/img706/3407/img0139chy.jpg

I thought you were interested in turning off the orange lights in the corners....

excellent! are the angle eye bulbs located under that cap that pops off like in this post? http://www.xoutpost.com/bmw-sav-foru...ll-review.html

I wouldn't have to replace the DRL yellowish bulbs if I just went and got them turned off...

yes, that link is correct.

No need to change the DRL bulb. Just need to get programming done to diasble DRL. The DRL bulb also acts as brights when you move the turn-signal stalk towards you (when you push away, the shutter in the xenon projectors open and you have "bi" xenons).

thanks for making sense of all this!! thumbs up to all who helped esp. lemans4.8!!

no problem! Anytime!

BTW tmv is right and I do have 4 rings..... lol
I was in a hurry......

Purchase a AE wiring harness, and hook it up much like you would with the e46. the harness has everything you would need to function the lights. the only difference is that you will not be running the AE's on your factory power any more. If done correctly you will have fade on/off function and AE's as DRL.

DIY - Angel Eye as DRL wwiring for 04-06 models
 

I'm currently re-writing this DIY with pics so stay tuned. Right now its a mess. LOL!

Any questions, just let me know. Its really pretty simple and no error messages - at least using my specific parts.

http://www.xoutpost.com/bmw-sav-foru...tml#post592709

Is coding even possible to make pic #1 as a DRL? Ive been searching for few days now, and many say that it is possible but i cannot find combination of NCS expert lines to make this work.

Im very good with NCSexpert, 2005 X5 (LCM.C23) Please provide link?

https://xoutpost.com/bmw-sav-forums/...rl-coding.html