[N8N]

Hi all, one of my lights just went purple... going on a trip to Pittsburgh next weekend and don't know if I have time to order one (not buying from dealership!). if you have one to sell let me know, used is perfectly OK as long as price reflects age, just needs to get me by until new ones arrive. LMK what you have! thanks. I'm in Sterling but often am in Mt. Vernon as well.

[khanh1289]

I do have a pair of h8 hid laying around but I'm in sw va

[N8N]

Originally Posted by khanh1289

I do have a pair of h8 hid laying around but I'm in sw va

thanks but looking for D1R not a
conversion... should have specified

[Reckless335]

I think you mean D1S

[N8N]

yes you are right, that'll learn me to post from my phone at 1AM... anyway I ordered a pair of Philips Xtreme Vision from power bulbs... but am worried that they won't be here in time to install before I have to leave...

[N8N]

Well Powerbulbs came through like a champ, $10 for shipping and apparently I will have my shiny new Xtreme Vision bulbs TOMORROW. awesome sauce. So I am well set now.

As a backup, as I really didn't want to have to drive over the mountains on one headlight or cancel my plans, I'd also ordered a pair of standard Philips D1S from a US-based vendor. I think I'll keep one as a spare, since they are impossible to find economically or quickly locally, and if anyone wants the other one (100% same as factory fitted to E9x with xenon option) I'll sell it for $40 plus shipping (I paid $50 plus shipping)

thanks...

Dude....Amazon.com much?

[N8N]

based on a thread over on CPF it seems like buying from amazon 3rd party sellers or on EF lay is sketch and apparently Chinese imitation HIDs are all over the place... figured better safe than sorry. Powerbulbs and despite the name HIDbulbzrus were both specifically recommended as reliable vendors with good pricing. buying from local dealer was not an option as they were asking $342 a burner; about $100 more than 'BMW list' per Tischer's web site. I am not in THAT big a hurry...

[Reckless335]

How do the Xtreme Visions perform over stock bulbs?

[N8N]

according to Virgil @ CPF and Daniel Stern they are the best performing burners available today, although I've seen good reviews of the Night Breaker Unlimited as well. neither unfortunately is officially sold in the US. I will let you know how I like them but it'll be totally unscientific as I'm currently driving around on one 2008 vintage burner with lots of hours on it, so I'm guessing even two new standard ones would impress me.

[Reckless335]

Looking forward to the reviews. Try and take some pics on a dark road for reference purposes? Basically showing how far they shine when you install them.

[N8N]

warning: Powerbulbs ships FedEx indirect signature required, so don't ship to your house unless you work from home.

usually I don't have a problem dealing with Fed Ex but of course now that I really need this to work smoothly, it's not. and my package from hidbulbzrus looks like it's been delayed by USPS even though he shipped 2 day priority. I'm gonna be bitter if I have to drive my Jeep this weekend because of this...

[Reckless335]

Can't you have fedex hold the package at their facility and you go pick it up and sign for it at your leisure? That's what I do in all cases. Fedex. Ups, etc.

[N8N]

they theoretically can but they theoretically should have delivered the package this AM too. I'm running out of time here until I need to pack up car and leave. Fortunately I ordered a std. pair from another vendor (HIDbulbzrus, because I didn't want to be in this situation again) and those showed up USPS priority today so I already have the one wheel and inner fender off and if the package isn't here by the time I need to start putting it back together I can do it and be OK for the trip.

Between this car s**t and a girlfriend in the hospital I'm about ready to pull what little hair I have left out...

[N8N]

well my fedex guy swung back by with my bulbs... actually a really nice guy. just a bureaucratic snafu. *whew* safe. Only got one changed before it started to rain, but at least I was smart and started with the one that was actually out.

Now to see if I can get back to the hospital before shift change... vroom vroom

So...notice any difference between the OEM bulb and the Xtreme Vision?

[N8N]

Originally Posted by FCobra94

So...notice any difference between the OEM bulb and the Xtreme Vision?

YES. after burning in for half an hour or so the difference in both brightness (perceived by looking at the back of the car in front of me) and color temp (I think the XVs are advertised at 4800K, they look nice not ricey. was next to a new BMW w/ LEDs and the XVs were still white appearing unlike the LEDs) was noticeable. I think the RH light is aimed slightly high though... the cutoff always was higher than the left a little but now it may be a half degree or so higher. I'll have to re-level them after I get the other burner replaced and some new front tires.

Now keep in mind this is comparing to a std. Philips burner that has been in service since late 2008 not a brand new one...

[Reckless335]

Glad you got the bulbs. However, I realize you're in a crunch, but you should always replace both bulbs at the same time. Don't just replace one and not the other. Also, you should level your headlights every time you replace the bulbs.

[N8N]

yeah I know... just needed to be reasonably safe and authorities friendly for the coming weekend. If I have time tomorrow I'll finish the job properly otherwise it'll have to wait until I get back.

It doesn't help that I got the inner fender back in and looked in my parts tray and saw the back cover for the light assembly sitting there looking at me... whoops. that's what happens when you're in a hurry.

[Reckless335]

Haha, that sucks... I know all about the inner fender liners and how much of a PITA it is to change out a simple bulb... I swapped out my HIDs and installed HID fogs. Two seperate occasions. So I've been in each fender at least twice. Mind you, my car is lowered (some may say slammed) so I need to use 2 separate floor jacks just to get my car up in the air. I definitely feel your pain.

[walmark]

Gotta ask: did you usually operate your headlights manually or did you just keep them in "Auto"?
I must say I'm on a fence with this one.

Originally Posted by walmark

Gotta ask: did you usually operate your headlights manually or did you just keep them in "Auto"?
I must say I'm on a fence with this one.

Conundrum of the century.