I have an E39 540i that had Xenon headlights retrofitted before I bought it and the high cluster complained with an error message. The coding process is actually extremely easy using either Progman or ISTA/P. In fact, if you use either of those programs it's basically "dummy proof" in the sense that you can't brick anything that way. The hardest part is finding the software and installing it... Once you get to that point, you go to the retrofit menu, set it to Xenon and it will take care of the rest.
I was fortunate and my 98 540i already had the Xenons mounted also with an M5 bumper. I didn't see anything additional as far as an adapter plug or (load) resistor pack for the headlights other than the ballast.
Aron Bell Thank you as always! I am not sure if the process is the same for the E60. Hopefully someone will comment on that, but I am really not sure. Thanks for the support, Aron, cheers! -Kennan
Can you post what the bulb brand is or send a link. I bought a 525i just like yours but in grey and the adjusters were broken too. Got the adjusters from EBay and changed it myself but I feel like my headlights are not bright enough. They look just like in 7:20 but looking straight. I feel these are so damn unsafe. Please help me get that 8:45 look. Thank you.
Jose.A. Diaz Hello! If you have Xenons, they should look almost identical in light output. Perhaps they need to be re-aimed after having replaced the adjusters, but it sounds to me like your car does not have Xenons and instead has Halogens. Aside from light output, the easiest way to tell is to open the hood and on top of the front frame that helps hold the headlight in place, there will be a sticker warning about electrocution saying "Licht Aus!"; there should be one on each side above each headlight. If you have this sticker, then you have Xenons, if you do not, then you have Halogens. If you have Xenons, it could be a ballast related issue. Also, if the lights glow a pinkish color, it is time to replace the Xenon bulbs, part number: 63-21-7-160-806. If you don't have Xenons, the simple answer to this is to replace the headlights, which is what I did and was the reason I made this video. You could go aftermarket, but I would recommend going with the Hella units for the car. Here is a link to RealOEM to help give some part numbers for various headlights: realoem.com/bmw/showparts.do?model=DT33&mospid=47584&btnr=63_0300&hg=63&fg=05 The lights on my car specifically are the Hella Euro-spec Xenon lights, part numbers 63-12-6-912-435 and 63-12-6-912-436. I know this is a lot to take in, but do some research on the forums and I am sure you will find the solution you are looking for. I hope this helps and thanks for the comment! -Kennan
Mahmoud Abu Gazala Hello! I should have mentioned that I am only discussing OE/OEM solutions to this issue. I did not even consider aftermarket parts because I try to use only BMW manufactured or approved parts on my car. Thank you for the comment though, it is something people to consider. Cheers! -Kennan
Yes you can, this video series is what you want to be watching in detail. You'll have to manually adjust the leveling feature, and also code out bulb warnings for the low beams, but facelift xenons will work on your car.
You'll need the xenon lights and the xenon ballasts. Then you will follow our DIYs to splice together the wires to allow the halos and signals to work independently (as they do in the halo-style lights. The older lights had a single bulb with two filaments and one of those filaments acted as the halo's power source.)
You are doing a facelift and a xenon retrofit at the same time. Watch our video about how to facelift the lights, and then just do both of the jobs at the same time.
My dad his 1998 e39 528i, could use a headlight upgrade from the halogen. I found a pair of pre face lift xenon headlights. Would they be direct plug n play? Any wire splicing? Any additional things to delete error codes?
The lights will bolt right in. You'll plug the gray plug that is currently in your low beam bulb into the xenon ballast, then the rest should be the same. You will need to code your LCM (light control module) to tell it that you have put xenons in it to avoid bulb warnings on the dashboard.
You need to have BMW-specific software to edit the settings inside of the LCM. There are check boxes to tell the module if you have halogens or xenons, so it knows what to expect electrically from those plugs in terms of resistance/voltage etc. That just needs to be edited. Find somebody familiar with BMW coding, or a BMW dealer to handle that for you.
My 97 540i had that procedure - the previous owner bought bulbs and ballasts and just hacked them in from behind. It made them susceptible to water intrusion and cooked the plastic... Don't do it that way. I found a pair of facelift fixtures and retro fit them with some splicing and patience...
icefreeze117 Hello! Well, there are really only two places I know of that carry these lights on a regular basis. They are Umnitza.com and Schmiedmann.com. Umnitza offers these for $1,269 without ballasts and $1,419 with the ballasts + tax and shipping of course. Schmiedmann.com offers the lights only without the ballasts for $1,039 (if you use PayPal); VAT and shipping are included from them, but import tax is an additional fee. But, you'd have to buy ballasts on top of that and those run about $230 a piece from Hella in new condition, so keep that in mind. You can find the ballasts cheaper elsewhere if you look around; the ballast part number is 63-12-8-387-114. I hope that helps, cheers! -Kennan
Try PASoft; works wonders for $30. You are basically turning off the "cold check" error. Perhaps I should post a video... www.xcar360.com/bmw-scanner-1-4-0-car-diagnostic-interface-tool-code-reader.html
I have an E39 540i that had Xenon headlights retrofitted before I bought it and the high cluster complained with an error message. The coding process is actually extremely easy using either Progman or ISTA/P. In fact, if you use either of those programs it's basically "dummy proof" in the sense that you can't brick anything that way.
The hardest part is finding the software and installing it... Once you get to that point, you go to the retrofit menu, set it to Xenon and it will take care of the rest.
Yeah, I prefer NCS though. Progman uses a lot of disk space.
--
Bobby
OMG, all that snow! I don't miss it at all...
You can get h7 resistors on ebay for about $40, the set i have are 8 months old no error code
I wouldn't trust ebay in automotive parts.
***** they are basically unbranded hella resistors, high quality and work great.
I was fortunate and my 98 540i already had the Xenons mounted also with an M5 bumper. I didn't see anything additional as far as an adapter plug or (load) resistor pack for the headlights other than the ballast.
Great video as always Kennan!! Do you know if this is the same for the E60?
Aron Bell Thank you as always! I am not sure if the process is the same for the E60. Hopefully someone will comment on that, but I am really not sure. Thanks for the support, Aron, cheers!
-Kennan
Can you post what the bulb brand is or send a link. I bought a 525i just like yours but in grey and the adjusters were broken too. Got the adjusters from EBay and changed it myself but I feel like my headlights are not bright enough. They look just like in 7:20 but looking straight. I feel these are so damn unsafe. Please help me get that 8:45 look. Thank you.
Jose.A. Diaz Hello! If you have Xenons, they should look almost identical in light output. Perhaps they need to be re-aimed after having replaced the adjusters, but it sounds to me like your car does not have Xenons and instead has Halogens.
Aside from light output, the easiest way to tell is to open the hood and on top of the front frame that helps hold the headlight in place, there will be a sticker warning about electrocution saying "Licht Aus!"; there should be one on each side above each headlight. If you have this sticker, then you have Xenons, if you do not, then you have Halogens.
If you have Xenons, it could be a ballast related issue. Also, if the lights glow a pinkish color, it is time to replace the Xenon bulbs, part number: 63-21-7-160-806.
If you don't have Xenons, the simple answer to this is to replace the headlights, which is what I did and was the reason I made this video. You could go aftermarket, but I would recommend going with the Hella units for the car. Here is a link to RealOEM to help give some part numbers for various headlights: realoem.com/bmw/showparts.do?model=DT33&mospid=47584&btnr=63_0300&hg=63&fg=05
The lights on my car specifically are the Hella Euro-spec Xenon lights, part numbers 63-12-6-912-435 and 63-12-6-912-436.
I know this is a lot to take in, but do some research on the forums and I am sure you will find the solution you are looking for. I hope this helps and thanks for the comment!
-Kennan
Great video. Do you have looked into the MTEC kit for the E39 which is supposed to be plug&play with no errors??
Mahmoud Abu Gazala Hello! I should have mentioned that I am only discussing OE/OEM solutions to this issue. I did not even consider aftermarket parts because I try to use only BMW manufactured or approved parts on my car. Thank you for the comment though, it is something people to consider. Cheers!
-Kennan
I have a 1996 e39 540i. Doesn't have xenon, doesn't have angel eyes. Can I upgrade to angel xenon headlights ?
Yes you can, this video series is what you want to be watching in detail. You'll have to manually adjust the leveling feature, and also code out bulb warnings for the low beams, but facelift xenons will work on your car.
And all I need to BUY is facelift xenon headlights, correct ? No need these apparatus accessories ?
You'll need the xenon lights and the xenon ballasts. Then you will follow our DIYs to splice together the wires to allow the halos and signals to work independently (as they do in the halo-style lights. The older lights had a single bulb with two filaments and one of those filaments acted as the halo's power source.)
Thanks a lot, liked and subscribe ! Have to watch carefully in hope to do it by myself !
E39Source can you post a link to such video plz? Mine is prefacelft halogen and I've just purchased facelift xenon headlights.
Will I have to do this same process on my 99 528i pre face lift. My head lights look different, I have the older halogen bulbs.
You are doing a facelift and a xenon retrofit at the same time. Watch our video about how to facelift the lights, and then just do both of the jobs at the same time.
Are you using Indianapolis BMW dealers
What lamps do you use? D2S 4300/5000/5500K?
+5StillFree Hi! I use the OEM Xenon bulbs, so D2S 4300k is the temperature, cheers!
-Kennan
Can you please send on my email: myemail1825@inbox.lv photo from the front then lights is on?
My dad his 1998 e39 528i, could use a headlight upgrade from the halogen. I found a pair of pre face lift xenon headlights. Would they be direct plug n play? Any wire splicing? Any additional things to delete error codes?
The lights will bolt right in. You'll plug the gray plug that is currently in your low beam bulb into the xenon ballast, then the rest should be the same. You will need to code your LCM (light control module) to tell it that you have put xenons in it to avoid bulb warnings on the dashboard.
E39Source any tutorials on the coding part? I know the e36 there's something to delete the Light Bulb failure.
You need to have BMW-specific software to edit the settings inside of the LCM. There are check boxes to tell the module if you have halogens or xenons, so it knows what to expect electrically from those plugs in terms of resistance/voltage etc. That just needs to be edited. Find somebody familiar with BMW coding, or a BMW dealer to handle that for you.
I am trying to transfer xenon ballasts/xenon bulbs from a 2000 528i to a 1997 540i. Will it need any modifications or will it be plug and play?
That should be directly plug and play.
@@E39Source to have legal xenons you need automatic adjusters and washers for the headlights.
@@makgstefan Legally, yes.
My 97 540i had that procedure - the previous owner bought bulbs and ballasts and just hacked them in from behind. It made them susceptible to water intrusion and cooked the plastic... Don't do it that way. I found a pair of facelift fixtures and retro fit them with some splicing and patience...
How you convert
Please watch this video...
Wait so where did you purchase those lights? And how much?
icefreeze117 Hello! Well, there are really only two places I know of that carry these lights on a regular basis. They are Umnitza.com and Schmiedmann.com.
Umnitza offers these for $1,269 without ballasts and $1,419 with the ballasts + tax and shipping of course. Schmiedmann.com offers the lights only without the ballasts for $1,039 (if you use PayPal); VAT and shipping are included from them, but import tax is an additional fee. But, you'd have to buy ballasts on top of that and those run about $230 a piece from Hella in new condition, so keep that in mind. You can find the ballasts cheaper elsewhere if you look around; the ballast part number is 63-12-8-387-114.
I hope that helps, cheers!
-Kennan
Thank you so much for the information. You guys are very helpful with your channel. Keep up the good work!
Hey what wheels are those on your 5 series?
ogkillla These are style 5s
ogkillla only the best wheels for an e39!
I'm so jealous, my halogens are just as bad as this
Try PASoft; works wonders for $30. You are basically turning off the "cold check" error. Perhaps I should post a video... www.xcar360.com/bmw-scanner-1-4-0-car-diagnostic-interface-tool-code-reader.html