R170 - Xenon lamp HID kit advice please

[The Boss]

hello

On the SLK, I am thinking to upgrade the low beam normal head lamps to xenon

i am not changing the headlight housing, only the HID kit and i presume H7 fitment..

1. is this illegal as i do not have projector headlamps
2. i want a colour lower than usual Xenons, to be more fitting for the age.. is 4300k the way to go of 5000k?
3. do i go for 35w or 55w?
4. do i need a canbus slim ballast or is canbus not needed?
5. is it an H7 fitment?
6. any links to suggested options?

 

[GordonTarling]

Here's why not - http://www.mbclub.co.uk/forums/electronics/167834-why-you-shouldnt-fit-aftermarket-hid-kits.html

 

[Peter T]

hello

On the SLK, I am thinking to upgrade the low beam normal head lamps to xenon

i am not changing the headlight housing, only the HID kit and i presume H7 fitment..

Stand by for a roasting!

You'll be talking about left foot braking on an auto next!!

 

[Sp!ke]

This is an unusually chavtastic idea for you Boss - I thought you were a stickler for originality.

 

[The Boss]

This is an unusually chavtastic idea for you Boss - I thought you were a stickler for originality.

Halogen on the slk is too dim these days for me, and hence lower colour to keep it looking original

 

[DSM10000]

Halogen on the slk is too dim these days for me, and hence lower colour to keep it looking original

Do you need to polish the glass to remove any oxidation of the coating? Also, check the voltage at the lamps, it might be low due to poor earth conections, you may also have discoloured reflectors, all can give a low light output and affect the colour of the light.

After market HID's are not the way.

 

[Howard]

Did they do OEM xenons on the slk ?

That's the way forward in my opinion , don't forget the levelling sensors .

Naughty and irresponsible to fit xenon lamps into halogen units , and you will mark yourself out as a Barry by the light scatter they create.

 

[E55BOF]

On the SLK, I am thinking to upgrade the low beam normal head lamps to xenon

i am not changing the headlight housing, only the HID kit and i presume H7 fitment..

1. is this illegal as i do not have projector headlamps

Yes, it is. It will automatically fail an MoT test, if the tester is aware HID bulbs are fitted.

Whether the actual installation on your car would cause problems for other road users, which is the reasoning behind it being illegal, is another matter. You won't know till you try. If the beam pattern is OK (a big IF): the police are unlikely to pull you over for a word; an MoT tester MIGHT not dig too deeply; you could always return it to standard for the test.

If the beam pattern is not OK, how much of a selfish chav are you prepared to be? I suspect not much in view of what you drive.

 

[BEJ]

What's wrong with left foot braking? I do it all the time, that saved millisecond may save someones life.

 

[boxbrownie]

The fact the standard lights are pretty naff anyway even before yellowed plastic, means that after market HiD H7/H1 (whatever) bulbs are going to be very bright and extremely glaring with loads of scatter, your asking to be pulled IMO.

Had the vehicle had projector lamps I would have said fine try them they will most likely be excellent (but still illegal), but with standard reflectors your on a hiding to nothing but a fine I reckon.

 

[The Boss]

thanks

1.. i want a factory original headlamp look
2.. headlamps were recently replaced when i revamped the car..

just being so used to HIDs, the standard Halogens just look draby

I dont think it will look trashy, hence looking for a lower colour to look more like a halogen, just not a halogen if that makes sense

 

[Spinal]

thanks

1.. i want a factory original headlamp look
2.. headlamps were recently replaced when i revamped the car..

just being so used to HIDs, the standard Halogens just look draby

I dont think it will look trashy, hence looking for a lower colour to look more like a halogen, just not a halogen if that makes sense

Have you tried some better bulbs? I'm thinking some Osram nightbreakers?

As to the legality,

In the Department for Transport's (DfT) view it is not legal to sell or use after market HID lighting kits, for converting conventional Halogen headlamps to HID Xenon. If a customer wants to convert his vehicle to Xenon HID he must purchase completely new Xenon HID headlamps.

Original document: http://webarchive.nationalarchives....ormation-sheets/aftermarket-hid-headlamps.pdf
(it goes into some detail abound self-levelling and headlamp washers too)

M.

 

[Peter T]

What's wrong with left foot braking? I do it all the time, that saved millisecond may save someones life.

Absolutely nothing wrong with it. To me it's perfectly logical; 2 pedals, 2 feet!

But, I think you will find that the majority of drivers believe it's the work of Satan and the proponants should be burned at the stake.

 

[bpsorrel]

I put these (H4 Philips Xtreme Extreme Vision) on my CLS (which oddly didn't have Xenons even though my 211 did) and they did make a difference.

Something quick and easy to improve your night vision and give the car a brighter look.

 

[The Boss]

ok so i have listened and done some research..

bought a set of there

NIGHT BREAKER PLUS Limited Edition | OSRAM

lets see if there is an improvement eh

 

[Spinal]

ok so i have listened and done some research..

bought a set of there

NIGHT BREAKER PLUS Limited Edition | OSRAM

lets see if there is an improvement eh

I will admit to having never heard of the limited edition ones... but nightbreakers came in three flavours (or generations):
Night Breaker
Night Breaker Plus
Night Breaker Unlimited

The original NB were a bit pants - great light, but a 6month lifespan.

The Plus are great, and what I've had on most of my cars, they advertise 90% more light than OEM halogens (same wattage).

The Unlimited advertise an even longer life, and 110% light (vs 90% of the plus) - I've bought a pair, but haven't fitted these yet.

From Osram's site:

OSRAM Night Breaker Plus
Up to 90% more light*compared to a standard bulb
Up to 10% whiter light than a standard bulb
Up to 35m longer light beam compared to a standard bulb
Colour temperature: up to 3700K


OSRAM Night Breaker Unlimited
up to 110% more light compared to a standard bulb
Up to 20% whiter light than a standard bulb
Up to 40m*longer light beam compared to a standard bulb
Colour*temperature: up to 4000K

So the NB Plus will look different to halogens. No idea what the limited editions do in addition. They seem to be a blend between the plus and the unlimited - let me know though!

M.

 

[The Boss]

will update you as soon as i get around to fitting them

sometime next week.

 

[gunning]

How did you get on with these?

 

[The Boss]

so i fitted them today..

slightly brighter yes.. so i am happy..

pic on left is old bulb, on the right is the new one..

what do you think?

 

[Nthkentman]

Aftermarket HIDs

Did this on mine around 2 years back. The beam scatter was negligible, the increase in light output was amazing, the front "glass" was taken off the housings, cleaned, resealed with fish tank quality clear silicone adhesive and the lot was realigned on a standard beam checker at my local MOT station.
I also fitted some screen washer jets from a Vauxhall which sit up high enough to blast the crap off the front of the lenses. They're plumbed into the existing windscreen washers with a Tee pice and a non return valve on each jet.
Been through 2 MOT's so far and no questions asked nor failure/advisories.

Choose your MOT station right and they aren't that fussed about the problem unless the beam scatter is excessive.

Yes, technically it's an MOT failure as they don't self level and I too haven't got the projector headlights either.

I can't fit the HID to my Transit van though as they look like a bloody UFO landing and scatter more light sideways than forwards :-(

hello

On the SLK, I am thinking to upgrade the low beam normal head lamps to xenon

i am not changing the headlight housing, only the HID kit and i presume H7 fitment..

1. is this illegal as i do not have projector headlamps
2. i want a colour lower than usual Xenons, to be more fitting for the age.. is 4300k the way to go of 5000k?
3. do i go for 35w or 55w?
4. do i need a canbus slim ballast or is canbus not needed?
5. is it an H7 fitment?
6. any links to suggested options?