Solution for Dim Headlights

F

floody762

Member
Hi all,

Apologies if this has previously been covered but I have searched and got a few different answers so just wanted to check.

I very recently purchased my Z4 which is a 2006 2.5SI Sport in midnight blue with the champagne leather (not that the colours relevant I guess).

I have found the lights to be really quite dim and wondered how I could rectify this, I believe that they are Xenons as they self level when I turn the ignition on but could be wrong.

Could someone please advise which replacement bulbs I should buy as they seem very orange for Xenons and any other advice would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks in advance!

Steve
 
That's the way they are I'm afraid.... The headlights are very low .. Are the headlights lens clear if gone misty as they are prone to the plastic de lamantaing I have not tried replacement bulbs as they don't seem to help
 
They all auto level. Have you got headlight adjustment on the headlight switch?

If so then they are halogen, if not then xenon.

Best way to make them better is to adjust them up be two turns of the adjuster under the bonnet. Brighter bulbs alone won't help.
 
Try powerbulbs.co.uk lots of quality bulbs, including H.I.D. (xenons). You could also get cheapo ones on eBay of varying quality.

If yours seem quite yellow they are probably standard 4300k, I changed mine to philips 6000k which is a more brilliant white light. Not cheap but I would recommend them highly.

If your car doesn't have xenons you can get an aftermarket H.I.D. kit which I did to most my old BMW's and makes a lot of difference.
 
Sounds odd - I thought all xenons were bright white, as mentioned perhaps the headlight lenses are clouded?
 
Hi.. I have a 2003 z4... it doesnt have xenon, and has the standard yellow bulbs.
I too feel that the headlights are very dim - what's the best (and relatively cheap) way to change them out?

i called the BMW dealer - they suggested to not spend a lot of $$ on xenons - they say could cost in thousands of pounds! instead recommended getting a white bulb (h7 0r h8)?

appreciate any inputs.

THanks
 
harleyrider said:
Hi.. I have a 2003 z4... it doesnt have xenon, and has the standard yellow bulbs.
I too feel that the headlights are very dim - what's the best (and relatively cheap) way to change them out?

i called the BMW dealer - they suggested to not spend a lot of $$ on xenons - they say could cost in thousands of pounds! instead recommended getting a white bulb (h7 0r h8)?

appreciate any inputs.

THanks
Click to expand...

Buy a pair of Osram Nightbreakers they will be a definite improvement on the standard headlights :thumbsup:

http://www.amazon.co.uk/OSRAM-BREAKER-UNLIMITED-halogen-headlamp-64210NBU-HCB/dp/B00EPLCPRG/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1459377163&sr=8-1&keywords=osram+nightbreakers

For those who don't have Xenons and are fed up with the woefully inadequate standard candles.
 
Or an HID kit. Ive done all three methods of making them better and HIDs work the best. First I raised the light with the adjusters under the bonnet = slight improvement. Next I bought Osram Nightbraker bulbs = slightly better but still woeful in my eyes also the bulb only lasted about 6 months before blowing (they are brighter due to burning harder). Last and certainly the best improvement was to fit the HID kit. Cost me about £60 for the kit and if your fairly confident with working on your car they are pretty straight forward to fit.

As previous post mentioned, if you can manually adjust the headlights with the little dial next to the switch then you have halogen. If no dial then xenon. If xenon then please ignore all the above! :thumbsup:
 
I fitted Philips Xtreme (sp?) bulbs, which improved the headlights considerably. They've lasted a year OK.

There are also LED replacements, which might be easier to fit than HIDs. In both cases there's a question mark over replacing the light source without changing the reflector - see previous threads about headlights.
 
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