[ssm12]

This DIY summarizes how one can swap out the OEM halogen headlights (WITHOUT angel eyes / "corona rings") on a pre-LCI E90 vehicle with a set of "Plug n' Play" OEM LCI halogen headlights (WITH angel eyes). In addition, this DIY shows how one can swap out the OEM angel eye bulbs on the LCI halogen headlights with a set of Racing Dash (RD) LED bulbs (aka "LED Ring Marker for BMW Angel Eyes"). This DIY assumes that you already know how to remove the E90 front bumper from the vehicle. (Removing the front bumper should only take about 15-20 min if you are already familiar with the process.)


Part I: Swapping out the OEM angel eye bulbs on the LCI halogen headlights with a set of Racing Dash (RD) LED bulbs

(Special thanks to forum member 808E90 for posting the original instructions for the RD LED mod at http://www.e90post.com/forums/showth...+eyes+headlamp)


1. OEM LCI Halogen headlight housing (I eventually replaced all the H7 bulbs with PIAA Extreme White bulbs):




2. Rear covers removed




3. Angel eye bulb is located at the bottom




4. After removing the OEM angel eye bulb and bracket assembly




5. Disassembling the OEM angel eye unit. There are three major components: 1) AE bulb (H10W) screwed into a reflector socket; 2) glass piece (heat shield?) held inside a metal bracket; 3) plastic support bracket.




6. Removed the (white) OEM connectors and crimped on two new female connectors (22-18 AWG) from Canadian Tire




7. Attached the RD LED bulb to the plastic support bracket by using two 1-inch long self-tapping screws. The metal frame containing the glass piece/heat shield was not reinstalled since the RD LED could only be secured in place by having the screws penetrate through the plastic support bracket to the other side. Moreover, I've heard somewhere that these types of LED bulbs "shouldn't generate that much heat..."




8. 3W (left) versus 6W (right) RD LED - View 1




9. 3W (left) versus 6W (right) RD LED - View 2




10. Comparison of 6W RD LED (passenger side) vs 3W RD LED (driver side), both 7000K color (Photo taken during a cloudy evening at about 7 PM)




11. 3W RD LED, 7000K




12. 6W RD LED, 7000K




13. More pics of the 6W RD LEDs

a. Parking lights off - daytime




b. Parking lights on - daytime. The AEs look blueish in the pic, but are actually whiter in real life.




c. Parking lights on - evening




d. Parking lights on - nighttime




Comments:

The 6W RD LEDs are barely noticeable in bright, direct sunlight.... However, they do seem to look pretty good during the evening/nighttime.


Part 2. Swapping out the halogen headlights (without angel eyes) on a pre-LCI E90 vehicle with a set of Plug n' Play LCI halogen headlights (with angel eyes)

(Special thanks to forum member EVO_S4 for posting the original instructions for removing the headlights at http://www.e90post.com/forums/showthread.php?t=16842) and to forum member xq_zhu for posting helpful comments on retrofitting the LCI halogens at http://www.e90post.com/forums/showth...ht=lci+halogen)


1. Remove the front bumper from the vehicle and unplug the passenger side and driver side headlamp power connectors.




2. Remove the two screws securing the top part of the halogen headlights to the front of the car.




3. Remove the screw located behind the amber reflector that serves to secure the back part of the headlight to a support bracket.




4. Remove the two screws that secure the headlight support bracket to the front part of the car.




5. Remove the screw that secures the bottom part of the headlight to the support bracket.




6. Overview photo of the car after removing the passenger side halogen headlight.




7. Place the LCI halogen headlight unit into the support bracket and proceed to reinstall all the screws that hold the headlight in place. Be careful not to accidentally scratch the clear surface of the headlight on anything!




8. Plug the power connector into the LCI halogen headlight unit and confirm that everything works properly without any computer errors. The photo below shows a comparison between the LCI halogen headlight (passenger side) and the OEM pre-LCI halogen headlight (driver side) after switching on the parking lights (while the engine is off). Note: The LCI Halogen angel eyes (AEs) do NOT turn on with the daytime running lights (DRLs). The AEs only turn on when the parking lights are on or when the low beams are on. Moreover, the DRLs on Canadian spec. vehicles can not be disabled by the driver (don't know if it's possible to have DRLs de-programmed by a dealership, though...) If you want the AEs to turn on with the DRLs, then you may want to try installing a DAEOS/Vista harness (see http://www.e90post.com/forums/showth...ight=vista+diy)




9. After installing and re-connecting both the passenger side and driver side headlight units, reinstall the front bumper back onto the vehicle.




10. Enjoy your new LCI halogens!








More pics are at http://www.e90post.com/forums/showthread.php?t=285598 ; http://www.e90post.com/forums/showth...ce+side+skirts and http://www.e90post.com/forums/showthread.php?t=364782

Hope this info is useful...!

[VTECaddict]

Excellent job!

[crazed792]

This is a great DIY! I'll be bookmarking it for when my LCIs arrive!

[archtheque]

Quick question here...both the RD LED connector pins wasn't clearly marked with positive and negative signs at all. So, how do you know which connector to plug in to the correct pin? Hope that won't blow up the electrical power in my car!

Btw, excellent DIY! Kudos!

[ssm12]

Originally Posted by archtheque

Quick question here...both the RD LED connector pins wasn't clearly marked with positive and negative signs at all. So, how do you know which connector to plug in to the correct pin? Hope that won't blow up the electrical power in my car!

Btw, excellent DIY! Kudos!

Thanks for the comments.

I seem to recall that on the box cover image for the RD LED packaging it says that the bulbs are "self-polarizing," so it shouldn't matter which way you attach them to the (+/-) connectors on the headlight unit.

In any case, I personally never kept track of which way I was installing the RD LED bulbs myself and did not encounter any issues. (NO onboard computer errors were generated after plugging in the RD LED bulbs, and the System Check function returned 'OK'.)

[JDLM]

Looks awesome

[ssm12]

Found the original packaging for the 6W RD LED AE bulbs...

[jaza45]

Isn't the bulb socket suppose to be the same size of the H8 like the ones on the e92?

[ssm12]

Originally Posted by ******

Isn't the bulb socket suppose to be the same size of the H8 like the ones on the e92?

The e90 LCI Halogen OEM angel eye bulb is not an H8. Please see http://www.e90post.com/forums/showth...+eyes+headlamp for an extended discussion on this topic.

[Jsquared7878]

Where can i purchase these OEM LCI halogen headlights (WITH angel eyes) and the set of Racing Dash (RD) LED bulbs? please someone fill me in.

Thanks
-J

[E90 noobie]

looks awesome, great DIY

you need some HID's for those LCI halogens and you'll be set!

[piggelin]

hmm, where can u get theese? they are oem right? are they avaible in europe?

and how much do they cost, and ill be ready to order!

[E92-Lighting]

great install guide

[E92-Lighting]

Originally Posted by ssm12

Found the original packaging for the 6W RD LED AE bulbs...

this is the correct product, stick with 6W only, 3W is subpar so we stopped carrying them

[piggelin]

just ordered a set of theese lights.

and i also bought this of ebay: http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eB...K%3AMEWNX%3AIT

will they fit? seem to be the same as the diy

[E92-Lighting]

Originally Posted by piggelin

just ordered a set of theese lights.

and i also bought this of ebay: http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eB...K%3AMEWNX%3AIT

will they fit? seem to be the same as the diy

it will fit

[xTaKeR]

Yes, Please I also need to know where to buy everything to install these headlights.

[Swangin818]

Hey buddy, i wanted to know if you can just turn on your angel eyes while driving and how to do it. Because i have a e90 lci 328i without xenons, and im not able to turn the angel eyes on only. If you can pm me the way how to do it ill be very happy. If theres anything to do with wiring or such just let me know plz

[robertico811]

Originally Posted by Swangin818

Hey buddy, i wanted to know if you can just turn on your angel eyes while driving and how to do it. Because i have a e90 lci 328i without xenons, and im not able to turn the angel eyes on only. If you can pm me the way how to do it ill be very happy. If theres anything to do with wiring or such just let me know plz

HEY! can you pm me too, i really want to know how to do that

[ssm12]

To have the AEs on all the time, I use the Daytime Angel Eye Operation System kit for the E90 3 Series (DAEOS) from http://www.jlevistreetwerks.com/

Unfortunately, since my car is a Canadian-spec vehicle, I can not turn off the daytime running lights. However, if your car is a US vehicle, I've heard that drivers can turn off the DRLs via iDrive or by accessing the onboard computer via the steering wheel column stalk.

Originally Posted by robertico811

HEY! can you pm me too, i really want to know how to do that

[YoungRansom]

could this be done with the depo projector lci lights??

[hlu004]

Hi, does anyone have any suggestions on the brand and color of the LCI halogen bulbs?
I have just installed my LED AE, but im still looking for a matching Low beam and fog halogen bulbs.

Thank you for the help.