low beam light

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#1
I just changed my low beam and high beam bulbs to those extreme white ones on an 04' 325i. I've noticed when I'm on low beam at night, it does not illuminate the road evenly in front of the car. There is a dark/poorly illuminated area. See below:

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++
++++++++++++++++++++++++++
+++++++ .................++++++++
++++ ++ .................+++++++
++++++++++++++++++++
+++++++++++++++++

Something like this. I was wondering if there's any problem in the installation or it is just the way it is. Thanks a lot.
 
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#2
sieben said:
I just changed my low beam and high beam bulbs to those extreme white ones on an 04' 325i. I've noticed when I'm on low beam at night, it does not illuminate the road evenly in front of the car. There is a dark/poorly illuminated area. See below:

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++
++++++++++++++++++++++++++
+++++++ .................++++++++
++++ ++ .................+++++++
++++++++++++++++++++
+++++++++++++++++

Something like this. I was wondering if there's any problem in the installation or it is just the way it is. Thanks a lot.
In addition, I was wondering if there is any way we can adjust the socket which holds the light bulb. Thanks.
 
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#3
It's probably due to cheap bulbs. Usually those white/blue aftermarket bulbs provide less light, unless you purchase a nice pair of aftermarket bulbs (rather than those $10 bulbs off of eBay).
Check out this web site:
http://www.powerbulbs.com/
Philips Blue Vision UltraBlue 4000K for the white/blue look.
Philips Vision Plus for the regular yellow-ish look, but the ultimate illumination.

Although on the other hand, you may have mouned the bulbs incorrectly, and that might result in the loss of illumination. Check the clips again and make sure that the bulb is tightly held in place....it should not be able to wiggle or move around at all...it should be completely "in place".
 
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#4
MrElussive said:
It's probably due to cheap bulbs. Usually those white/blue aftermarket bulbs provide less light, unless you purchase a nice pair of aftermarket bulbs (rather than those $10 bulbs off of eBay).
Check out this web site:
http://www.powerbulbs.com/
Philips Blue Vision UltraBlue 4000K for the white/blue look.
Philips Vision Plus for the regular yellow-ish look, but the ultimate illumination.

Although on the other hand, you may have mouned the bulbs incorrectly, and that might result in the loss of illumination. Check the clips again and make sure that the bulb is tightly held in place....it should not be able to wiggle or move around at all...it should be completely "in place".
Thanks for the reply. The bulbs are good ones (PIAA H7 Xtreme White 4000K). I asked the dealership to do that and I double-checked the sockets, which are tight. Puzzling. Nonetheless, I have to say that the overall illumination is better than before but just this poorly covered region bothers me.
 
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#5
Do you have a good camera that can take a picture of the spread of light your lamps put down? That might help. I can't grasp the design you drew, would be better to see. and a pic of the lamps head on maybe?
 
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#6
sieben, the PIAA bulbs should be great, but they will burn out fast. Since the bulbs were installed properly, it's probably just the way the bulbs illuminate that is causing the "dark spot" in the beam pattern.
 
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#7
MrElussive said:
sieben, the PIAA bulbs should be great, but they will burn out fast. Since the bulbs were installed properly, it's probably just the way the bulbs illuminate that is causing the "dark spot" in the beam pattern.
Thanks. I guess this might be the cause; however, I was wondering if there's any way to fine-adjust the setting to avoid this problem. Also, by the way, do you by any chance know the average life time of those PIAA bulbs. I was thinking about Hoen, but they run 50% higher than the specified 55W power. The Philips Blue Vision H7 you mentioned seems very nice, just wondering if it is £29.50 per bulb or per pair. Thanks!
 
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#8
Section_8 said:
Do you have a good camera that can take a picture of the spread of light your lamps put down? That might help. I can't grasp the design you drew, would be better to see. and a pic of the lamps head on maybe?
I will try to do that. Basically, there is some dark spots in the beam pattern.
 
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#9
Lights

I never heard of that. Cheap bulbs might be the problem. The only difference could be in the beam.

The European lights have different lightning angle than US. But most new BMW have EU spec lights.

Did you touch the bulb with your hand?
The avarage life for PIAA bulbs is 1 1/2 year.
 
Last edited:
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#10
Re: Lights

beemerworld said:
I never heard of that. Cheap bulbs might be the problem. The only difference could be in the beam.

The European lights have different lightning angle than US. But most new BMW have EU spec lights.

Did you touch the bulb with your hand?
The avarage life for PIAA bulbs is 1 1/2 year.
Thanks a lot. The might be some touching before the bulbs were installed; however, the bulbs were throughly cleaned using alcohol. Just out of curiosity, what is the life time of the OEM bulbs?
 
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#11
sieben said:
Thanks. I guess this might be the cause; however, I was wondering if there's any way to fine-adjust the setting to avoid this problem. Also, by the way, do you by any chance know the average life time of those PIAA bulbs. I was thinking about Hoen, but they run 50% higher than the specified 55W power. The Philips Blue Vision H7 you mentioned seems very nice, just wondering if it is £29.50 per bulb or per pair. Thanks!
The average life of the PIAA bulbs are roughly 2-3 months on average driving, and assuming you don't drive around with your lights on all day (I have people who do that), as they will just burn out much faster.
I am currently using the Philips Vision Plus bulbs for my fog lights and they are by far the brightest fog light bulbs I have ever used (and I tried several different kinds)...they just illuminate the road so well! The best part is, they run at stock wattage so you don't have to worry about it melting your wiring or any other over-heating issues like that. And I am sure that the Philips Blue Vision UltraBlue 4000K bulbs provide that white/blue Xenon look while still offering the superb lighting quality of the regular Philips Vision Plus bulbs. The £29.50 for the bulbs is for the PAIR (2 bulbs) and at Checkout, you can convert the price to USD. [:)]
 
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#12
philips and osram

Thanks guys. I found http://www.epimporters.com which sells those Philips BlueVision bulbs and Osram Coll Blue. It's a little cheaper than those from UK, given the current currency exchange rate, and they're in CA. Do you have experience with the Osram? By the way, I found out the BMW OEM bulb is from GE.
 

bmwrocks

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#14
You could try the Hoen Xenonmatch high/low/fogs......I have the fogs to match my xenons and they boast about their quality and warranty them for a year to boot.....and the price is comparable.....
 


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