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Drivers side low beam brighter than passenger side

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    Drivers side low beam brighter than passenger side

    Hey so I recently went from sealed beams to euro smileys, and noticed one side was significantly brighter than the other. Initially I thought my bulbs were different, but I swapped them out for higher performance ones and it still has the same uneveness. What gives?

    #2
    Ground wire comes to mind... BMW is very sensitive to weak grounds.
    Do the smilies go off when you switch to high beams? That can be fixed, but the ground wire will see lots of current, should be checked at every connector.

    Sometimes a crimp of the female 'barrel' part will give it more grip, better conduction and less resistance at the plugin connectors. Also check the ground point to the chassis, I think it's near the left headlight on the fender? It must be 'Guten-Teit'.

    Good luck!
    Andy says "Be Seen, and Not Hurt!"
    Lighting Upgrades front and back for 2002, E3, E9, E10, E12, E21, E23, E24, E28, E30, E32, E36, E39, and more.
    Tail Light Improvements keep them off your tail.
    Headlight protection saves headlights from breakage.

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      #3
      Bumping my dead thread! I made sure grounds were good, and check voltages and I'm getting 13 ish volts to each headlight and low resistance on the grounds. I installed some 4300k HIDs to see if that would help but its the same. I'm guessing now it must be the housing itself. Has anyone had a problem like that before?

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        #4
        there may be corrosion somewhere in the housing... any sort of reflector bit... also maybe dirty inside


        --Mike
        (OO=[][]=OO) For Life

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          #5
          I have a similar problem but with taillights. My Drivers side is brighter. Does your drivers headlight seem too bright or is the passenger too dim? Check to see if any other wires are spliced into the headlight wiring from previous owners.


          ATTENTION:

          FOR THOSE WHO HAVE NOT DONE SO, PLEASE DO SO AT THIS TIME

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            #6
            So i took apart the headlight and suprise suprise the dim one had an ugly black burnt looking reflector. Got some high temp shiny foil tape to cover the black marks gonna see if that solves the problem.

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              #7
              Do the retrofit to mini H1 Bixenon projectors...http://squared-motorwerks.myshopify.com/They're soo much brighter than 20+ year old tech projectors its not even funny.

              Edit: this also solves the burnt mirror part.
              -Christian

              '02 ///M3 CarbonSchwartz 6MT daily beast
              08/91 Mtechnic II 325IC alpine/lotus
              318iS, slow build/garage queen...
              '37 Chevy pickup, the über project
              Originally posted by roguetoaster
              Be sure to remind them that the M42 is one of the best engines ever made, but be sure to not mention where it actually falls on that list.

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                #8
                uneven rear light output

                Originally posted by Sps View Post
                I have a similar problem but with taillights. My Drivers side is brighter...
                Hey- maybe I can help with rear lights, do you still have this problem?

                First question, early or late lights?

                Second question, is it ALL lights, or just certain ones?

                If early style:

                1, swap the bulb carriers L-R, to see if problem is with the carrier.
                2, if it stays on same side, is there a ton of dirt inside the lens?
                3, if it moves, check the lamps - are they 'smoked' or kind of dark inside?
                If so, replace in pairs (preferably with high output bulbs).
                4, try removing or replacing fuses, sometimes just removing / reinstalling will scrape crud off of the contacts and boost voltage.

                If late style:

                1, swap bulbs L-R and see if it's the lamps, or if it stays on the same side of the car.
                2, check the lamps as above - especially brake and tail bulbs, they get dark faster than the others.
                3, check fuses as above.

                BOTH styles:
                Pull out all lamps and look for blackening in the glass AND the contacts (bulbs and bulb carriers both) to see if they have overheated from weak spring force or corrosion. This only makes things worse, and will get much worse if it continues.

                Last step (the shameless self-promotion part), consider upgrading to dual tails and dual brakes with high output bulbs in at least tail and brake lights. You'll be glad you did, and your lights will be 'Mo Brighta, Mo Betta'

                Hope this helps, get in touch if you want more troubleshooting assistance. I don't mind helping... I really hate it when lights are dim, it's not safe.
                Andy says "Be Seen, and Not Hurt!"
                Lighting Upgrades front and back for 2002, E3, E9, E10, E12, E21, E23, E24, E28, E30, E32, E36, E39, and more.
                Tail Light Improvements keep them off your tail.
                Headlight protection saves headlights from breakage.

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                  #9
                  I would love to go Bi xenon, may do it in the future. Turns out it was the burnt reflector and the tape helped some, still not perfect though.

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                    #10
                    Euro smiley conversion - still needs help

                    Originally posted by JonnyOg View Post
                    I would love to go Bi xenon, may do it in the future. Turns out it was the burnt reflector and the tape helped some, still not perfect though.
                    Still have your US sealed beam buckets? If so, there are some very nice conversion lights that will blow your mind, if you decide against the Bi-Xenon conversions.

                    Let me know if you are interested, I have some experience witih the Hella BiFocal. It is a single purpose low beam that blows away most other halogen lows. It works the same as Euro lows - stays on with the highs, instead of going off in favor of the 'sealed beam high' that it shares the light with. Uses an H1 lamp, high output bulbs are best if you really want to see what's up ahead. Like the RangePower 50+ from Narva... stock watts, lots more light, and no blue tint.
                    Andy says "Be Seen, and Not Hurt!"
                    Lighting Upgrades front and back for 2002, E3, E9, E10, E12, E21, E23, E24, E28, E30, E32, E36, E39, and more.
                    Tail Light Improvements keep them off your tail.
                    Headlight protection saves headlights from breakage.

                    Comment

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