E90/91 Angel Eye Bulbs

[T5SOR]

My bulb has gone for the Angel Eyes and I can't find a direct Halogen replacement. On top of that It is a bit of a pig to change so was wondering if anyone had changed to LED replacements? Anyone got any recommendations for LED or Halogen bulbs?

I was looking at these https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/aw/d/B01ANEA3OU/ref=pd...


Mike

[ladderino]

I swapped mine out on my pre-LCI E91 for a pair of CREE ones from here - http://www.horizonleds.co.uk

Really liked the improvement - I also changed the coding so that DRLs would be just the outer angel eye (i.e. xenon off), and the whiter look suits the car much better.

Massive PITA to fit - wheel off, and around a dozen bolts to remove in order to get the full wheel liner off. You also need to order some replacement push rivets (part no 51161881149), as they tend to break whilst removing the liner.

[roofer]

Wheel arch panel, piece o piss.

[T5SOR]

Thanks for the info.

I was going to get these and they look the same as the Ines in the link above http://www.hids-direct.co.uk/20w-cree-bmw-e90-e91-...

Arch liner out doesn't look too bad a job. Just depends how cold it is!

[graham22]

It is just possible to change these without taking the wheel off. Full lock & remove the flap at the front of the arch. The retaining bolts for the bulbs are quite long & find their way back again quite easy by feel.

LED replacements will flash when the ignition is first turned on unless you leave auto lights on and they will turn on normally when unlocking & not inclined to flash after.

I did 'repair' the standard bulb which blew, it's an unusual wattage (can't remember) but bulbs are available on-line, with a little care with a Dremmel you can remove the plastic on the bulb holder & simply change the bulb, just re-melt the plastic sides after to stop the bulb coming out.

[T5SOR]

I took the wheel arch liners out as I couldn't do anything through the inspection panel. First one took about 2 hours and the second about 1 hour. The hardest part was getting that bleeding cap off the back of the light housing. A close second was getting the arch liner back in place.

I must say though, they are well worth doing. They look much better in white.

[Mr Tidy]

Belated thread resurrection, but I got the b*gger out from above - albeit after removing the air box!

I'd love to know who designed that - then I could fire-bomb their house!

And it's a removable bulb, except it won't come out of the fitting once you've finally managed to release it from the bayonet fitting.

Rip-off p*ss-take springs to mind - maybe I should have kept my E46!

Edited by Mr Tidy on Thursday 4th April 22:18

[Mr Tidy]

So an update from Monday!

I managed to get the bulb out of the bayonet fitting, then got the pliers on it to get it out of the captive fitting.

Obviously the glass pulled off the metal bayonet cap, but with some extra force I managed to pull that out too!

But you do need to keep your fingers out of the way to avoid this! (I may have said a few rude words).



Anyway I then got out some mini-files and filed a couple of slots into the fitting to align with where the bayonet "prongs" needed to go, stuck a suitable bulb in, checked it worked and then refitted it with the light covers and put the airbox back in.

No way cost effective as I spent hours on it, but as I'm retired time is an asset I have plenty of - whereas paying nearly £30 for the sake of a 50p bulb really goes against the grain.

Plus I have the added satisfaction of managing to do it, and maybe save the world from more plastic rubbish. Might even get a scar to remind me of my success!

[MichealGeorge]

It’s been long time I am sure you must have got that? I am looking for the same product for my car LED replacements but got confused, someone suggested me to get this one https://www.xenonplanet.com/bmw-3-series-e90-e91-f... Need recommendation should I buy this or not?

[HazzaT97]

Hi Micheal, Not sure if you are still looking to upgrade your Angel Eye bulbs. I recently done mine and used the Lumro branded upgrade bulbs as per the link on your post. It depends what type of headlights your BMW has to which bulb will be the correct fit. You can find this out by lifting the bonnet of your car. Next to the headlight there will be a sticker which will either say 'ZKW' or 'Valeo' this determines which bulb type you require. (See photo attached) I own a 3 Series, 320i E91 2010 with the 'Valeo' type headlight. Fitting of the bulbs was abit of a faff, as the wheel had to come off and the wheel / arch liner to gain full access. As trying to install new bulbs through the access panel on the wheel arch is very hard. I took mine to my local garage to be fitted, as I knew it was slightly too advanced for my novice mechanical skills! I have attached photos of the before and after to show what a massive difference they make! I am very pleased and would thoroughly recommend the Lumro bulbs to anyone considering upgrading the stock halogen Angel Eye bulbs to a much more modern crisp white. whilst I was doing the halo rings I decided to buy some new H7 dipped and main beam light bulbs. The ones I purchased have a blue coating but produce a much whiter light rated at 5000k compared to the standard Halogen bulbs to complete the look of the headlights. Making the car look much more modern. Also to mention these bulbs are completely 'plug and play' as they say and no error codes showed after installing them. Hope this helps.

The website I brought my lights of if is:
https://xenons4u.co.uk

Here are the exact bulbs I purchased:
https://xenons4u.co.uk/bmw-e90-e91-lci-facelift-h1...

https://xenons4u.co.uk/h7-55w-super-white-xenon-ef...

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|https://thumbsnap.com/rJndUrP2[/url]

Edited by HazzaT97 on Tuesday 3rd March 21:05

[campionissimo]

I replaced mine [09 plate LCI 325d touring] last year, got a pair of replacement bulbs online, for about £6.

The bulbholder is designed so that you can't get the bayonet bulb out the front of the holder. And the rear of the holder is melted when fitted so it's sealed. So I cut the plastic seal at the back of the holder and pulled the bayonet fitting out the back, popped a new bulb in and then re-inserted it. Held it in place with a small ring of silicone sealant.

No need to remove the wheel or arch liner, access from above just like all the other bulbs.

[beambeam1]

So glad I found this. Just gone through the hassle of switching out the xenons and other bulbs today only to find out it was these daft angel eye bulbs that were throwing up codes on my dashboard! Wasn't sure what or where to get replacements from but have bagged myself some of the Lumro LED's from Xenons4U linked above, £44 delivered.

[MartinFC]

I'm really interested in swapping out my Angel Eye bulbs for these CREE LED replacements, then coding them as the DRLs... BUT are they bright enough? Most of the standard DRL replacement bulbs seem to be around 21W, these ones are only 12W.

What's the view of someone who's got them fitted? Do they show up well enough as DRLs in normal daylight? Or is there a better alternative?

Thanks
Martin

Edited by MartinFC on Wednesday 3rd March 15:49

[RocknRollOutlaw]

Some of these cheaper LED bulbs are not properly shielded and can interfere with car radio signals. It sounds daft but when I got my E91 it had cheapo angel eye LEDs in it and when I turned the ignition on the radio signal dropped to next to nothing. Some manufacturers claim they don't interfere (lux is one of them).

[james_TW]

I've recently got an E90 320D and the Halo bulb has gone - I've had a nightmare trying to find the right bulb, Halfords has a 21w or 6w bulb which aren't right. Any advice as to where I can get a standard one from - I don't want to go LED or anything that might throw up an error... Any help or advice appreciated

[graham22]

james_TW said:

I've recently got an E90 320D and the Halo bulb has gone - I've had a nightmare trying to find the right bulb, Halfords has a 21w or 6w bulb which aren't right. Any advice as to where I can get a standard one from - I don't want to go LED or anything that might throw up an error... Any help or advice appreciated

Try your local BMW Indy. Mine carries the correct little halogen bulbs in stock.

[james_TW]

graham22 said:

james_TW said:

I've recently got an E90 320D and the Halo bulb has gone - I've had a nightmare trying to find the right bulb, Halfords has a 21w or 6w bulb which aren't right. Any advice as to where I can get a standard one from - I don't want to go LED or anything that might throw up an error... Any help or advice appreciated

Try your local BMW Indy. Mine carries the correct little halogen bulbs in stock.

Hadn't thought of them, I'll give them a shout on Monday

[E30M3SE]

The bulb you need is a 433a.

http://www.consumabulbs.com/files/bdet.php?id=242

[james_TW]

E30M3SE said:

The bulb you need is a 433a.

http://www.consumabulbs.com/files/bdet.php?id=242

That's brilliant, thanks

ETA. It says it's a 5W bulb? Is that right. The one I took out was 10W

Edited by james_TW on Sunday 30th January 10:00