Angel Eye Headlights

[The Aardvark]

Evening All

Have owned a 2001 530D since April with the Angel Eye headlights. However, since the clocks went back I've almost been struggling to see on unlit country roads (I'm sure its not my eyes), and have just upgraded the bulbs to the Halfords Extreme Brilliance ones that suggest they are 90% brighter than standard bulbs.
However they dont really seem to have much difference, which begs the question - has anyone else had issues with the Angel Eye headlights in terms of visibility? Does the reflector inside the light unit deteriorate over time, as to be honest I was expecting quite a lot more light!!

Any help / ideas appreciated.

[sparks_E39]

Have genuine OEM Hellas and at night visibility is not great, I need to make them brighter, but damn they look fantastic. :-)

[stone-islandV8]

the non-xenon AEs are crap....almost dangerous to drive by. Either pop a HID upgrade kit on which should be in the region of £60, or adjust the beam aim higher which helps but only slightly.

[The Aardvark]

Thanks for the responses.
Any links for a decent HID upgrade kit - or does it need to be from BMW?

Cheers

[stone-islandV8]

OMG no...try ebay, IIRC HIDS Direct are meant to be ok and pretty much plug and play.

[dave_s13]

Bear in mind the generic (read cheaper) kits will need a H7 bulb adpater to physically hold the lamp in the back of the unit. Or you'll need to buther your existing bulb holders to suit.

If you search Ebay for "e39 H7 bulb adaptor" that should do it. You can then buy any of the multitude of HID kits availaible.

[Fox-]

The problem is that over time the lenses get pitted and stonechipped as they are not glass but polycarbonate plastic. This reduces light output. Better bulbs will help but not as much as just replacing both the headlights. This is about £300.

[stone-islandV8]

Fox- said:

The problem is that over time the lenses get pitted and stonechipped as they are not glass but polycarbonate plastic. This reduces light output. Better bulbs will help but not as much as just replacing both the headlights. This is about £300.

Mine are 6 months old from Hella and even with uprated halogen bulbs are poor at the very best.