High Performance Headlights

TwinTurboWagon

Corporal
Nov 7, 2016
223
241
0
San Diego
Greetings Spool Street,

I am a headlight enthusiast and wanted to share a recent project with you guys. Many headlights from the factory offer underwhelming output and some are downright dangerous due to their poor performance. In the automotive lighting world most BMWs produced from 2000 and onward offer roughly C+ performance from the factory this includes even the "fancy" LED lights which simply are underperformers contrary to the hyper LED headlights generate.

All cars can benefit from better lighting as it means better visibility which equates to safety for the driver and his/her occupants as well as other cars on the road as light output is controlled and glare is minimized. Performance cars are great candidates for such upgrades as the added light intensity, width, and throw (distance) compliment the increased capability of the vehicle. Fast cars need good lights!

The car in question is a PTE 6466 335xi, tuned to 26psi and is somewhere in the 600awhp range. The previous headlights were "custom" with black paint and some LED Angel Eyes. Unfortunately this aesthetic-only upgrade is the common recipe for BMW owners and the HID projectors + components are rarely upgraded which is such a missed opportunity in my opinion.

Headlight Specs
- Murano Bi-Xenon Projectors (from 03-07 Nissan Murano)
- STI-R Clear Lens + Tuning for sharpness and color
- White "Demon Eye"
- Apollo Shrouds
- Morimoto xb 5,500k Bulbs
- D1S-D2S Igniters
- Morimoto xb LED Fog corner light
- Custom molded inner shrouds
- Low Gloss Black Bezel Paint
- Angel Eye Delete
- New OEM Lenses

Due to the unique configuration of the BMW "Dynamic" system was ditched but Auto-Leveling was retained, no worries though as the Muranos offer a wider output than the stock projectors even with the dynamic feature active.

I thoroughly photo documented the build of these headlights and I may create a separate thread to share that process but I know everyone wants the glamourous "after" photos so here you go!

Evan

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TwinTurboWagon

Corporal
Nov 7, 2016
223
241
0
San Diego
Badass! I love the clean look!
Thanks. Me too, big fan of the sharp/clean lines with the angel eye "circles" out of there.
Great work Larry bird
*Says he is going to wait on headlights until performance mods are done*
*Buys LCI tail lights before any performance mods are done*
Good write up now what's the price on something like this
These came in at $1,800 due to the large and "exotic" projectors used, same projectors as a 997 GT3. Also the inner shroud was custom molded. I will post a build thread of the headlights and it should be easier to understand the work that went into these. That being said, a similar look and similar output can be achieved for about ~$1,200.
Goals for my AW e90!! I would like to see the cost and DIY for these.
I will whip up a thread of the build in a bit. These lights had $1,050 in components/paint and $750 in labor.

Looks great! Where di you source the new lenses at?
Prague via eBay

Evan
 
Nov 8, 2016
20
4
0
NY
Thanks. Me too, big fan of the sharp/clean lines with the angel eye "circles" out of there.

*Says he is going to wait on headlights until performance mods are done*
*Buys LCI tail lights before any performance mods are done*

These came in at $1,800 due to the large and "exotic" projectors used, same projectors as a 997 GT3. Also the inner shroud was custom molded. I will post a build thread of the headlights and it should be easier to understand the work that went into these. That being said, a similar look and similar output can be achieved for about ~$1,200.

I will whip up a thread of the build in a bit. These lights had $1,050 in components/paint and $750 in labor.


Prague via eBay

Evan

Wow. I knew this wasn't going to be a cheap build after seeing the spec's list, but damn those Murano projectors must be $$$..

It just adds up quickly. Retrofitting quality bi-xenon projectors, (2x) "OEM/OEM+ Quality" Xenon Ballasts, pair of xenon bulbs, wiring harnesses, material, paint, sealant, etc...

Im doing a budget retrofit on my DD (Mazda) right now, with Mini H1 bi-xenon projectors into my stock reflector housings. Set of cheapy 55w hid kit. Morimoto 5k hid bulbs.

Still need a relay kit for my car. Its H4 now. I want to find a PnP H4/3 harness to a relay to tge hid vallastd and a small relaybfor the bi-xenon, high beam flapper.

TheRetrofitSource . Com

OP: Great job! Always wanted to see someone do this on this platform!!
Was also just curious to see how good the OEM AL Xenon projectors are.. Lol
Was told by a few places that a 2.5" Clear Lense would make a pretty big difference if sticking with stock projectors and that they "werent too bad."
Did you see a dramatic improvement in light output?
Worth doing you think, even if not using such high output oem projectors?

Look forward to a DIY!! Looks clean!!

Any chance of adding an LED ring to mimic the LCI without getting in the way of the projector? Or did you like the cleaber look of no Halo rings?
 

TwinTurboWagon

Corporal
Nov 7, 2016
223
241
0
San Diego
Wow. I knew this wasn't going to be a cheap build after seeing the spec's list, but damn those Murano projectors must be $$$..

Was also just curious to see how good the OEM AL Xenon projectors are.. Lol
Was told by a few places that a 2.5" Clear Lense would make a pretty big difference if sticking with stock projectors and that they "werent too bad."
Did you see a dramatic improvement in light output?
Worth doing you think, even if not using such high output oem projectors?

Any chance of adding an LED ring to mimic the LCI without getting in the way of the projector? Or did you like the cleaber look of no Halo rings?

Murano projectors were $200 + STI-R Clear Lens $40 + Labor for trimming and tuning. Yes, there was a dramatic improvement in light output, you can see some photos in the "Walk Through" thread of this build I recently published.

No chance of adding an LED, the angel eyes were intentionally deleted for simplicity, reliability, and a cleaner look. :)

The LCI E90 headlights have ZKW projectors, output is similar but slightly worse than the Bosch/AL projectors which are found in the E92s. The Bosch output can be improved with a clear lens but it is best to replace them all together if you have the means to.

Evan
 

Kervio

Private
Jan 7, 2017
43
15
0
Wow! Nice work man. I just ordered some lens's for my pre-lci lights and will be doing a similar build