Does anyone here have experience with the Euro Projector Headlight kit that's available on eBay (see item #8052738085 for example)?

I have a 99 Wagon with cloudy headlights and I'm considering these as a replacement, possibly along with the Projector Fog Lights (item #8053246587), since I assume the bumper cover has to come off to do the headlights.

Yea or Nay?

Thanks

-- Jeff

 

I understand these are offshore, Eagle Eye manf...and uses the smaller 2.5" lens and H3 bulb (vs the usual 3" and H7). If you have hopes of ever retrofitting and upgrading to HID using this housing, it'll be most difficult. Compare this to, say, the Depo unit which is larger overall, and uses the 3"/H7 combo. Dropping in an E55 HID projector is laughably easy compared to other retrofits.

 

Raymond --

Thanks. I also just talked to Automod Atlanta...they can get a set manufactured by "TJ" in Germany...supposedly the Bosch supplier. Automod said they might even come in the Bosch box. Other than that, they didn't have any info related to light output/performance.

They are pricey ($750/pr), so I didn't order them yet...anyone have any experience with these?

Thanks.

-- Jeff

 

no, i've not had hands on with the TJ one. but very decent unit
in the Depo ones, sold by Autodynamic. It ook about 20 mins
of dremeling and a half dozen washers and the E55 HID projector
dropped right in as if it was made for that unit. So I'm using the
Depo/E55 bixenon on my 1999 E320 right now. I'll probably sell
that as soon as I finish the RS6 bixenon into a new Depo housing
in a month or so. The beam is much wider than the E55 - also
bixenon.

There have been reports of condensation is nearly all MB headlight
...even factory. I suspect the venting is the root cause...plus the
fact that you see condensation easier with a clear lens. If you
get Depo, be sure to invest in tube of RTV clear silicone and draw
a thick bead around the perimeter of the lens/housing seam. That
should solve any direct ingress of water. The issue of condensation
is still outstanding.....after referencing the MB-Technical Service
Bulletins.

I've only experienced 2x light condensation in a year. First time, i
just ignored it and it evaporated. Second time, i pulled the turn
signal bulb and aimed a hair dryer into the socket for about 10 mins
where the dry air helped accelerated evaporation. If this reoccures
(which it will someday ....usually after heavy rain or car wash) I'll
reroute the vent hose from the headlight back further where the air
from engine is warmer to see how this works.

nearly all halogen projectors for the E320 suck in terms of performance.
they look fancier but the light output is pathetic. if you go with clear
lens, be clear that the light output will go down......that is, unless you
retrofit in HID projector, ballast, and HID D2S bulbs for total cost of
$800~.

What year /model is your car? MB HID from the factory can be had,
used, in the $800 range. but they are D2R, fluted outer lens, and is
HID reflector.....not projector....not clear lens.

 

I have a '99 210 Wagon with an 8/98 build date.

Are the parts that you need to retrofit into the DEPO units readily available? I don't think I've seen ordering info on those items in the forums.

I have a good MB junkyard nearby...I guess I can price the factory HID units from there and see if that makes sense, but I really like the clear lens/projector look.

Do you already have a buyer for your first generation lights?

 

E55 projectors are easily found on Ebay or HIDPlanet dot com. Avg price
is $155-200 shipped/pair. Be sure they've not modified them, tried to
bend the shield (modders do this to induce wild color shifts). The high
beam on the E55 is great in HID mode, plus the H7 high beam.
Haven't entertained buyers for the first pair because I didn't want to r
ush anything. Would probably go for 1/2 price or so. No ballast or bulbs.

Ballasts are approx $200/pair

Bulbs are upwards of $80/pair shipped.

Depo headlamp is $400/pair shipped.

i had rough instructions typed somewhere.... okay here...


Posted 10/7/2005 3:58 PM (#1621985 - in reply to #1464339)

{from memory, here is decent sequence of events..}


Ingrediants:

(2) E55 projectors

(2) Hella ballast

(2) D2S 85122

20 lock washers

1 tube RTV silicone, clear

1 tube Windshield silicone, clear (little more viscous than above)

4 crimp on, in-line connectors, female bullet socket

4 bullet, male connectors

Depo/Taiwan clear lens headlight units


Helpful:

VOM, hemostats


Procedure (from memory):

Open back of Depo and remove all bulbs, hose. Sort/label parts carefully.
Take photos to help with reassembly

Heat convection oven to 200ÂşF. Turn off.

Place Depo on cardboard, on cookie sheet and slide into oven for 10 mins

Remove and use wide, flatblade screwdriver to pry off clear, front lens.

Remove Depo projector, separating from bezel.

Position E55 projector inside rear of Depo unit and note mounting points.
Determine if Dremeling of projector opening is needed to clear bixeon solenoid.
Relieve plastic if needed. Aesthetics not compromised as chromed plastic reflector
shields the cut-away area. Shroud further hides any Dremel work. Be careful
not to bend bix pivoting shield. Doing so may alter cutoff and/or color unpredictably.

Use lock washers to expand mounting points and to secure E55 projector to
existing Depo mounting posts. If desired or needed, Dremel notch in post to
aid in positioning E55 flange on reflector.

With E55 secured, apply 12vdc to bix leads to test and verify shield operation.

Reuse Depo shroud. Projector lens on E55 same as Depo, ie 90mm, so should
fit perfectly. Apply dabs of hitemp silicone on shroud tabs if needed before
assembling to projector.

Reheat headlight housing and clear, outter lens in oven to soften gray adhesive.
Carefully fit clear lens to headlight and hold together firmly for a couple of
minutes. (I placed the whole unit lens down on mattress and put some body
weight on it which I thought would be more even pressured.

Cognizant of condensation reports, I then proceeded to apply bead of windshield silicone
sealant to perimeter of outer lens….at juncture of lens-meets-housing. The windshield
sealent is more viscous and seeps deeper into the crevices.

After bead dries, follow up and reapply using RTV silicone sealant.

Reattach hoses, wiring, bulbs.

Crimp on solderless, in-line connector to high beam lead. (When high beam activated,
Tapped power will be used to trigger bix shield solenoid.)

Dremel circular hole along edge of rear opening of headlight assembly. Ballast high
tension lead will exit housing here. Surround with rubber donut/gasket. I used
½” OD, 3/8” ID. Run solenoid leads through grommet next to high tension
lead. Carefully close rear hatch.

Identify secure mounting point on headlight assembly for Hella ballast.

Carefully fit headlight unit to vehicle. Reconnect LOW and HIGH beam
connectors. Test before reconnecting body hardware, ensuring proper
light activation as well as bixenon shield function.

Adjust for HORZ and VERT aim.

---------------

stole these pics off ebay:



--------------
E55 buckets are damn near drop-ins into the Depo shell
which is why I used them (and Zam's recommendation).
There are brighter, sharper cutoff, and wider beams
out there. But even now, the E55 is just fine for me
as they are superior to any halogens. The HIGH part
of the LOW beam is very sweet...and is complimented by
the anemic-by-comparison, H7 Phillips Blue Vision bulb
in the adjacent headlight shell.

The brigher, sharper, wider projectors, as glamorous
as they are, will not fit as nice into the Depo shell
w/o more fabricating and modifications. E55 will do
just fine.

I used the serrated lock washers to pinch the E55
mounting flange and to secure it to the Depo post.
I also rebated half of the Depo mounting post 1/16"
to give the E55 a shelf to sit on. There has been
no detectable shift in position and this may prove
to do just fine.

some quick shots...




Q: why the heck did I not take photos during this
project?
A: i dunno, lazy...learning, and not knowing what was
worth taking photos. If I do another, I'll definitely
take photos.

It's been a month or so since most recent HID conver-
sion. Both with Depo clear lens units. No condensa-
tion. Slight yellowish flare right at the cutoff...
in the center of the beam when shown on wall. Slight
lavendar/purple at cutoff. Not one person has flashed
their lights at me. Have had friend drive car and I
drove another car in front...as well as opposing. No
noticeable glare.

Not a perfect job, but very satisfying results. Light
improvement was astounding vs H7s, hands down.

If I had to do this again, my estimate of time would
be 2 days...to allow for silicone drying, etc. First
time, it took me couple of weeks, while I proceeded
waay slow and carefully.

 

YIKES!!! That sounds like a big project!

Please let me know if you want to let the old ones go...if not, I'll study your instructions some more and see if I want to tackle a retrofit.

Thanks for the info.

-- Jeff

 

if you've ever tinkered, this one is really a no no brainer. i have 2 left
thumbs and a byproduct of the Seattle Public School system, yet I was
able to do this mod with relative ease. you hold the projector in one hand.
you open the headlight and have that sitting on the project bench. you
look at the space available and you figure out how best to attach the
bixenon in place of the nearly-identically-sized H7 projector. this has
got to be one of the easiest and quickest HID retrofits of all the cars in
automobile land. I kid you not. I could make a few dollers profit on
each headlight .... and the E320 user base is large. It's not connect-the-dots
easy, but more like painting a room. It seemed to took more brain power
to type the instructions than it took to drop in the bix projector. i'll try
to take photos this time around.

 

Sorry to keep beating this horse, but....

Are the new modified lights then plug & play with existing wiring and plugs, or do you need to add relays, or change plugs, etc?

Thanks for all the info...as soon as I piece together where to start ordering parts, I may try to tackle this.

-- Jeff

 

FYI, we have DEPO projector headlamps for W210 if you need them.