BimmerFest BMW Forum banner

AE Side by Side Comparison... and finally found a good one!!

66K views 238 replies 50 participants last post by  gmcclintock 
#1 · (Edited)
Hello all,

With my small fleet... I can do a nice comparison between all the lights on the market, so this is the second part of the series. Please see the attached pictures, in the Z4 is the LUX AE LED light... which are the brightest on the market that I have been able to find. On the 3 series is the OEM AE LED lights.... and on the 7 series (the one on the right)... are the AlpineMSS HID light system.

I have to say I am extremely impressed with the AlpineMSS system (www.alpinemss.com). The kit is very high quality, they are just as bright and as white as the OEM AE LED lights on the 3, they blow away the LUX AE lights, are extremely easy to install. I am not that mechanically inclined and it took me about 20 min. Alex over at alpine was extremely responsive and is working on a bulb that is slightly lower wattage... however I am not sure if I will go with that. These simply look amazing. The inner halo is crisp and sharp... the photos do not do it justice. This system does not throw any codes and yes they do work on the 7.. just ask Alex.... They are so good I am ordering a set for my Z4 and my X....






 
See less See more
6
#39 · (Edited)
Ok....

Here is a step by step instructions... again very easy...

First you need to attach the wire that has a hook on it and not a square thing (you will see that in other pictures) to the battery hot lead. This is streamy simple, simply take a socket wrench and loosen the nut and put the ring over it and put the nut back on....



Ok.. next I removed the plastic side piece on the left side of the car (left side if you are looking at the engine.) The is really easy to do, basically the small plastic pin needs to be pulled out (needle nose pliers work very well). Once the pin is removed you have to remove the plastic housing too. There is about 8 of these and the plastic cover comes off.



Next you have to find a good ground, the one I choose in the picture below required me to make the ring a little bigger. This ring is connected to the small black box as seen in the pictures... that is how you can tell positive from the negative



next run the wires into the left light (actually the right light if you are in the drivers seat). You need to install the bulb at this point and drill a 1/2 inch hole in the plastic cover. I used a 1/2 flat wood drill bit.. took about 5 seconds. Ok.. it is important to know that the two bulbs are different... one bulb has a single wire coming out with the flat butt wire connector... and the other has two of these. One one that goes into the left light (right light if you are sitting in the car) is the one with the two wires...... and this will match up correctly with the wiring harness. I also mounted the ballast in there as well.. fits really nice



Run the wire in the void above the radiator... see picture below...



And again... do the same thing for the right light (actually the left lights if sitting in the drivers seat).




If you guys have any questions... feel free to PM me with your phone number.. .and I will give you a call...

Hope this helps...
 
#41 · (Edited)
Yes....... You have to drill a 1/2 inch hole in the plastic cap.... Takes about 5 sec. I am not aware of any other hid kit that you don't have to modify something...

Here is a picture of my Z4... as you can see a small 1/2 inch circular hole is cut in the plastic cap... when you pull through the wires in the Alpine kit... they have a really nice seal that pops into place.....



 
#45 ·
No.... sorry guys... my wife has been in the hospital.... I should have something by mid next week....
 
#47 ·
Great Angle Eyes!!!

Thanks for the great info FalconFlyer. Quite an impressive display of brand loyalty in your garage! I just took delivery of my F02 M-Sport and was also very disappointed in the anemic amber AE's. I tried the Weisslicht LED kit but had error codes galore, and they weren't very bright as is common with LED's. After talking to Alex, I ordered the Alpine Motorsports HID AE kit in 6K (close to OE headlights). The install was a mere 30 mins and can be accomplished with minimal effort if you are the least bit mechanically inclined. There is only one power hook up in the engine compartment (passenger side on US 7's) and everything tucks in neatly under the plastic fender trim and through the radiator brace across to the drivers headlight. The ballasts fit nicely directly behind the headlights. You do have to cut 1 inch holes in the headlight caps that access the bulbs to accommodate the extra wires.

This is similar to the X5/6 install;



A very clean installation that works fantastic. Very visible in day light as you can see from pics. And NO ERROR CODES!!!!



 
#49 ·
Thanks for the great info FalconFlyer. Quite an impressive display of brand loyalty in your garage! I just took delivery of my F02 M-Sport and was also very disappointed in the anemic amber AE's. I tried the Weisslicht LED kit but had error codes galore, and they weren't very bright as is common with LED's. After talking to Alex, I ordered the Alpine Motorsports HID AE kit in 6K (close to OE headlights). The install was a mere 30 mins and can be accomplished with minimal effort if you are the least bit mechanically inclined. There is only one power hook up in the engine compartment (passenger side on US 7's) and everything tucks in neatly under the plastic fender trim and through the radiator brace across to the drivers headlight. The ballasts fit nicely directly behind the headlights. You do have to cut 1 inch holes in the headlight caps that access the bulbs to accommodate the extra wires.

This is similar to the X5/6 install;



A very clean installation that works fantastic. Very visible in day light as you can see from pics. And NO ERROR CODES!!!!



It looks wow! Cant wait to receive my kit.
 
#48 ·
Update on install

Oh, BTW, the new kits from Alpine MS do not require a separate ground and this works through the existing wire harness.
 
#50 ·
Looks great... yea... regarding my brand loyalty... about 2 years ago I never had a BMW... my wife kept nagging me about how great they were/are... we purchased our first one... and needless to say I replaced everything in the garage with one :). As my wife says, it is cheaper than marriage counseling (she is on the sofa right now picking out her colors for her M6 she wants this summer..... )
 
#53 ·
6K vs 8K Lights

I've had 8K lights on other cars and they look too blue. 10K is deep blue and 12K is purple. 3K is yellow. The 6K is an almost exact match to the OE HID's! Alex would probably exchange if you ask. My original wire harness was defective and gave me "lamp out" codes when trying to turn on the daytime driving lights, but he was quick to replace it and that completely fixed problem.
 
#55 ·
I have 8k.... They are the same color as the new OEM LED AE lights...
 
#62 ·
8K vs 6K

Here are some more examples of the difference between 8K vs 6K HID's. I personally prefer the whiter look of 6K. Stock is around 4.2K (yellowish). My personal car (under signature) has the 6K's which I specified when ordering otherwise you will get 8K.
 

Attachments

#63 ·
Here are some more examples of the difference between 8K vs 6K HID's. I personally prefer the whiter look of 6K. Stock is around 4.2K (yellowish). My personal car (under signature) has the 6K's which I specified when ordering otherwise you will get 8K.
Thanks for showing the difference, I prefer the 8k, still find the 6k a little yellowish.
 
#64 ·
Hey Samlambo... I did too... plus the AE are so bright at night.. you hardly notice the headlights anymore :)
 
#65 · (Edited)
I just installed my 8000K Angel Eyes from Alpine MSS. A couple of observations:

1. On the 7 series bulb set that Alex sends, there is no negative/ground contact to hook up, only a positive which connects to the positive battery terminal.

2. The round light housing cap must have a ONE INCH hole drilled right through the center, not the 1/2" hole as indicated elsewhere on this board. The bulb assembly has a double flange soft silicon-rubber seal that must sandwich this hole you drill, so one lip is inside and one outside. It takes a little bit of effort to pull the exterior flange out, but it makes an obvious water-tight seal when you do it correctly. I used a 1 inch spade bit and braced the cap on a piece of wood. Easy to drill; took about 10 seconds.

3. The whole deal took me about 45 minutes, but only because I obsessed about how and where to run the wires so they were hidden best.

4. I would like to retract any criticisms I made earlier about Alex- he was most helpul and very responsive to my installation-related phone call, and he wants to see a satisfied customer!
 
#73 ·
I just installed my 8000K Angel Eyes from Alpine MSS. A couple of observations:

2. The round light housing cap must have a ONE INCH hole drilled right through the center, not the 1/2" hole as indicated elsewhere on this board. The bulb assembly has a double flange soft silicon-rubber seal that must sandwich this hole you drill, so one lip is inside and one outside. It takes a little bit of effort to pull the exterior flange out, but it makes an obvious water-tight seal when you do it correctly. I used a 1 inch spade bit and braced the cap on a piece of wood. Easy to drill; took about 10 seconds.
Ok.. so after more reading.. I when ahead and order Alex F01/f02 and E70 kit.. Hope to get them soon..

-Gassy.. on your#2.. do you find it easier to install the bulb assembly thru the light cover, then install the bulb into the socket. Or install the HID bulb into the socket, then run the bulb assembly thru the cover?.

-Falcon - how was the install on the E70? how was access the H8 bulbs compare to the F01? any tips.

:thumbup:

and yes.. Alex was very helpful and very quick to reply emails
 
#68 ·
When you go to turn in your car your dealer can replace the cap for about $13 a piece. Not a big deal. The installation is really easy if you're even marginally mechanically inclined, and either Alex or members of this board are happy to provide assistance.
 
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Top