C class Xenon upgrade

[cian36n]

Hey guys,

I did some searching on upgrading to xenons and feel as though I am going in circles. I am trying to put together an OEM set of xenon lights for my 95 C36 and am confusing myself in the process.

When I first started researching this mod (quite a while ago), bekkers.com still had the non-DOT approved kit that included everything that you need for just a little more than a grand (correct me if I am wrong), but now they no longer have the kit.

Essentially, now it feels I am up the creek without a paddle. I know that I could go and get everything that I would need for this upgrade from the dealership, but they have prices I am not willing to pay. This brings me to the other option of after-market xenon upgrades. I know there is a lot of discussion on this forum on this topic, and have decided that for me, OEM is the way to go. Because of this, I have tracked down, and purchased a set of complete '99 C43 headlight housings, but now am at a standstill. I still need to find what I need to wire this new headlight assembly, as well as the proper ballasts. I would like to go with a reputable ballast manufacturer (such as osram, philips, or hella) but have been running into problems finding ones that would essentially plug and play. Does anyone have any ideas for how to remain as stock as possible with this mod? Has anyone else completed this upgrade, and if so, do you have a write-up for how to do it?

Any help is appreciated, and if I missed the perfect post on this forum, please provide me with a link to it.

Thanks,

Ian

[Kropf]

As noted elsewhere years ago, I replaced my Halogen Lenses with the OEM Xenon Lenses and it made a nice improvement in beam pattern with the aftermarket HID/Xenon conversions. Sulaco just asked me about the lenses I used, so here's my answer for the rest of the club:

The Xenon Lenses are not cheap, but they DO make a noticeable improvement over the Halogen lenses when using my VVME HID kits.

(I imagine that changing the housings would make a further improvement, but maybe only if the HID bulbs are the same shape.
The housings/reflectors appear to be only available as a complete assembly MSRP $1390, online $1084.20 each side!!!)

202 820 57 66 Headlight Lens for Xenon LH - MSRP $222, online $173.16
202 820 58 66 Headlight Lens for Xenon RH - MSRP $222, online $173.16
http://www.trademotion.com/parts/199...P%20COMPONENTS

My upper seals were deteriorating, so I replaced them at the same time:
202 826 11 80 Headlight upper seal LH - MSRP $52, online $40.56
202 826 12 80 Headlight upper seal RH - MSRP $52, online $40.56

My lower lenses were VERY pitted, so I replaced them before putting HIDs there also:
170 826 09 90 Lower Driving/Foglight glass lens LH - AutohausAZ $18.89
170 826 10 90 Lower Driving/Foglight glass lens LH - AutohausAZ $18.89

The 4300K HID/Xenon Low Beams and lower Driving lights are VERY nice... very White and very Bright!
The lower Driving lights are naturally aimed low, so the beam pattern isn't a problem with the original lenses. I have all the 'parking' bulbs as LEDs now, and I always turn on the LED bulbs and the lower HID driving lights, even in the day time. I even get a credit on my vehicle insurance for 'daytime driving lights'.