Mod bug strikes again....
 

Alright. Time for more. Looking to get gray gauge faces and chrome rings, quality leather steering wheel cover (bavauto? Want the sport wheel but too $$). Also possible back up camera if cost isn't prohibitive, roof rail delete, brighter fog lamps....any other suggestions welcome. Looking for suggestions in where to source parts for the above.

Thanks.

Angel eyes as DRL's to keep up with newer E70's? Recommendations and prices?

can you put pics of your car?.....

How difficult we're to install running boards?

Anyone used the silver ones of these ?
http://www.bimmian.com/White-&-Silve...for-BMW-E53-X5

Or these? Thinking black chrome would be awesome....
http://www.bimmian.com/Gauge-Rings-for-BMW-E53-X5

Had dealer do it...heard its very tough

Trying to find some in my old posts....know there's a bunch just on iPad now so can't find.... Hopefully these work.. Attachment 57932
Attachment 57933

ok ....tnx..for the Pics....IMO....black out is the way for me...Calipers Black,Grills Black....i see your rear flare is in process...although it is difficult to to them ,i managed to make holes and attached them with out not coming off again...lol....
Wheels would look good Gunmetal color i think as your car is black...silver does not goes with the color IMO.....maybe some interior mods....HIDS....but all in all your car is clean

Anyone?

I had silver bimmian gauge faces on my E46.

bimmian's are on backorder....

thoughts? 1996 2004 BMW E39 E38 E53 5 Series Instrument Cluster Grey Face Gauges | eBay

even though i have an 06 looks like the exact same cluster....

I'm not a fan of the white gauge faces with silver letterings, looks too out of place on an E53 IMO, I am a bigger fan of the gray/silver with white lettering faces that look more like 4.8is/m5 cluster.

go to whitegauges.net you can get many different colors there, just look up e39 gauge faces, they are cheaper than bimmian too! and for gauge rings they sell chrome or titan silver rings for 25 bucks all day on ebay, bimmian is way overpriced for those.

dont forget to sharpie the needles red!


Have you thought of Hoen Xenonmatch fog light bulbs? You could always go HID but I never was a fan of HID fogs.

is that the same site that has the ebay store i just posted?

once i get here, do i need to order the "Dark Grey Face" color to achieve what i see in the picture?

1996-2004 BMW 5 Series GREY Face Gauges - Whitegauges.net

also which watt do i need for the fogs?

Is it possible to get the Euro/RUssian Guages? like i dont want it to show MPH. (Flame suit on)

the watts dont matter for the fog light for example i got this works perfect but you have to turn of cold monitoring so they dont flicker

2 x Super White H11 18 SMD 5050 LED Driving Fog Lights | eBay

there is some that come with like error cancelers i never tried them so i dont know if it will cancel the flicker even if you dont have a scanner/gt1

any way to change fogs without having error codes?

You wont have error codes they will just flicker at the start and cause short bulb lifespan

You dont know anyone with a scanner or a gta1/inpa?

well thats worse haha, no cant say i do

Buy one from this Romanian guy at ebay for like $35 thats all you need if you want to read out codes from the car or program something test calibrate you name it. Useful from every angle

You Won't find any bulb swap for the angel eyes that will keep up to the newer style rings....its the limitation of the optics and current tech of the source.

Do the fogs right, get a set of projectors from the pre-facelift X5's and swap a set of HID's into those. You'll get the kind of light you're after with the proper cut-off. There's a DIY of it kicking around here somewhere. Dig it up an you'll see what I mean. :thumbup:

i know they wont be the exact same quality...just looking to be as close as possible....

as far as the projectors...seems a bit over my noobish head

ricky bobby? comment please?

This is the DIY I was referring to... The second page has a before and after.
http://www.xoutpost.com/bmw-sav-foru...tallation.html



No LED bulb currently available will match the output of the stock bulb. PnP kits are the other route you could go...but if you want the best output with the proper distribution, there's only one way to go.

One thing I will mention, (obviously) you need to remove the needles to swap the gauge faces... which can be a bit tricky putting them back on (it's possible to break or install them incorrectly). The needles may not react 100% accurately or even at all if not done right, kinda scary. Honestly, it's just one of those mods that I wouldn't recommend.

ive been told you do not need to remove the needles....

Maybe it's different than the E46.

You mean this to say that replacing the dull oem ae bulbs with an led would not look brighter? How could this be as i think there are many on here who have done just that and gotten good results?

I think you are getting my posts mixed up....

For angel eye LED upgrades, there is no bulb swap that will make them bright like the E70 rings. They will definitely be brighter, sure, but will still wash out in daylight like the OE bulb.

My last post was specifically to address the fog lights. Again, there is no LED equivalent (as far as output is concerned) to the factory H11 bulb....unless you move to an HID set up; which opens up other issues to address. Problems arise with regards to light distribution when you stick a HID bulb into a reflector housing designed for an incandescent. More specifically it produces copious amounts of what is know as glare, which is dangerous & annoying to oncoming traffic. This is a good read that explains why HID's in a reflector (whether its a headlamp or fog lamp) are wrong, and also shows the distribution patterns for such.

HID plug n play fails govt test

If you're after a proper upgrade, take the time to read and do the research. You'll benefit in the end with a lighting setup that offers the most light possible with the correct distribution.

X5SND thanks for all your input. I'm planning on having the X coded so I can run LED angel eye bulbs (inputs on best available?), LED fogs (do they exist or HID is best way to go without doing projectors as I can't find any currently for sale?), as well as LED back up lights etc. I saw you were able to crack your lights open and do a true AE install, but I am neither as brave nor as experienced and handy as yourself.

Anyone used stealth bulbs on side marker lights to possibly reduce amber-ness?

I definitely want to do a proper upgrade, but only if I can source the help and parts I need. Are you telling me the pre facelift x5's had projector fogs? Could it be as easy as grabbing them from a junkyard?

Instead of reducing while your getting your car coded just disable those as a DRL and just use them for side markers

Probably going to do this but worried about how the low beams will look without ambers.... It's not possible to have it both ways. Anyone have pics?

I really have no idea what guys use for LED angel eyes....Mtechs are the only ones that come to mind; If memory serves me correctly I think they're in the $150-$200 range.

LED fog lights (H11 bases with multiple LED's on them) are definitely a horrible idea if you plan to actually use your fogs in the real world....it goes back to that thread I posted previously, specifically the source point at which the light originates from. HID's in a projector fog are definitely the mack daddy of them all, and IMO the only way to upgrade from the Incandescent OEM H11 setup. Pre-face lift X5's did come stock with projector fog housings so it is a straight swap. All the info is in the DIY from earlier. You can usually find the fog projectors on ebay for a decent price or order new ones from any of the online retailers.

There's a recent thread about back-up LED's you'll see that although they "Appear" brighter, at the end of the day actually ended up being about half as bright.

I DO have LED corners from www.autolumination.com Tail Light Brake Light Turn Signal LED Bulbs. Just make sure they're the can-bus chipped ones to prevent the bulb out error. They're not as bright as the regular bulb, but still bright enough to see visibly during the day. They're both on in the pic below, but due to the PWM and fast shutter speed, the driver appears off/dim.

http://i598.photobucket.com/albums/t...ps19dc835b.jpg

Heres what they look like when off....no "egg yoke" effect whatsoever.

http://i598.photobucket.com/albums/t...ps69ff4402.jpg

I did open my housings....but (and I mean this respectfully) it's not something I would recommend for someone such as yourself to just conquer yet.

So you opened your housings but didn't clear out the ambers???? How could you!? AE's look great though. And by led corners you mean led turn signals? What's the point in doing this?

Found these on eBay and part numbers check out as what I need... Should I buy? Will I need anything else aside from bulbs of my choosing after I get my X coded? Or shout this be a plug and play?

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Depo-Driver-...4b5029&vxp=mtr

Short answer: you can't "clear out" the amber corners as its part of the lens. The only way to get the clear corners is to buy a set of Euro-spec housings....which will set you back bout $2500.00.....and to be completely honest, I like the amber corner reflectors. The clears look to aftermarket IMO.

The LED bulbs in the corners give it an updated appearance as well as an instant on/off.

Edit: yes those are the projector fog lamp housings I was referring to.

Gotcha.

Would I have to buy any further wiring or screws? The DIY posted is not too clear on this.

Sorry just feel like anything more than a plug and play is out of my range of ability....while HID fogs may be dangerous and ineffective, they do the job of looking cool for 30 bucks or so. The same for the angel eyes ( albeit a bit pricier)

:banghead:

Hahaah, sometimes just can't get through to some people!

You dont remember mrbmwx5 he took them out????????~!!!!

Thought he had done this...

he did he baked them then took the ambers out

So did you decide on anything yet?

Hence the "Short answer"....The amber reflector can easily be removed once the lens is off....but if you don't replace it with something it leaves the headlamp looking like something is seriously missing and incomplete.