Help with HID kit fitting please :D

ElegantSpoon · 01-31-2009, 06:10 PM

Hello all!

Has anyone fitted a HID kit to their Z4? I'm planning on ordering a kit but wanted to hear peoples experiances before I take the plunge!

The only thing that puts me off is the fact the headlights and right up against the wheel arches and not into the engine bay.

Anyhelp on this would be great!

Thanx
Spoony

SystemR · 01-31-2009, 07:48 PM

its actually pretty easy, once you take off the bumper its all plug and play except for drilling the hole for the rubber grommets

I put in the DDM 35W slimline kit, BimmerZealot helped me with htis.

pungo · 01-31-2009, 11:34 PM

Wouldn't you just access the back of the headlight from the wheel well access panel? I assume you you are just adding HID bulb/ballast and not the entire headlight assembly?

ATX750i · 02-01-2009, 01:19 AM

I swap'd the whole assembly over to my Z. I can see where the drilling may come into play with the ballast cause the OEM ballast is mounted on the bottem of the headlamp assembly. The OEM ballast has two holes cut in the assembly to allow the power wires to be fed to the ballast. Where as, the aftermarket assembly needs holes cut for the wiring harnesss. Not really much help but my $.02

SystemR · 02-01-2009, 02:21 AM

i suppose you could do it w/o taking off the bumper but i think its be hard to route all the wires and mount the ballasts.

most people mount the ballasts in the lower bumper area where the fog lights are. i imagine it would be difficult to do all that through the wheel access panel.

here's how mine ended up:
http://www.zpost.com/forums/showthread.php?t=152375

ElegantSpoon · 02-01-2009, 05:57 AM

Thanx for the replies!! I have just had a look through the two access panels and I think I should be able to wire and fit everything through there but it is a bit tight with the wheel on.

So I thought I could take it off but I'm guessing theres no car jack in the boot?

Am I able to use other car jacks or they specific to each car?

Thanx again!

ElegantSpoon · 02-02-2009, 01:20 PM

Wheres a good place to put the boxes in the bumper?

nickpapa · 02-02-2009, 01:37 PM

when i did mine i took the front bumper off. pretty simple to do and didnt take long at all. you might be able to swing it without taking the bumper off but as everyone else said, it would be a big pain. i contemplated it becauase i was worried about aligning the bumper correctly when putting it back on but i realized it would be pretty tough to do the job with it on. the bumper gave me no issues with realigning by the way.

as far as mounting, ive seen some posts where people used adhesive and glued them on to the left of the wheel well. what i ended up doing (and some may think its a bit rigged) i zip tied the pieces to a metal bar right behind the wheel well. used a few to make it tight and nothing budges. been like that for about 3 months now and not one issue. quick and easy.

you will have to drill a hole big enough on the plastic cover that covers the rear side of the headlight housing. then you place the rubber grommet in that space which will make it water tight (and so you can pass through the wiring).

the only other issue i ran into was moutning the bulb. you'll notice that there is a special metal clip ring that is used with the halogen bulb to secure the bulb in the housing. i dont know how anyone else has mounted their bulbs (or maybe they used the same method as me), but i ended up cutting the clip ring on one side, bending it outward, pulled all the wiring through and then i was able to use that clip ring just like the halogens and i had no issues with fitment.

BlackSapphireZ · 02-03-2009, 07:28 AM

its definitely doable without taking the bumper off and you can fit regular HID kit in there.

I went from Halogen to Bi-Xenons

ElegantSpoon · 02-03-2009, 12:53 PM

Hey nickpapa thanx for the detailed info! Theres is nothing wrong with cable tying it in place they are strong. I considered this myself but will decide forsure on friday when I fit them

With the light bulb clip do you mean the cable cannot be routed through without cutting the clip? I've never swapped the bulb so haven't looked.

Blacksapphire were the BMW or a retro fit kit?

Thanx

nickpapa · 02-03-2009, 02:08 PM

No problem!

Quote:

Originally Posted by ElegantSpoon

With the light bulb clip do you mean the cable cannot be routed through without cutting the clip? I've never swapped the bulb so haven't looked.

exactly. the ends of the wiring on the hid kit were too large to fit through the clip ring without cutting and bending it a little bit outwards.

ElegantSpoon · 02-03-2009, 02:47 PM

Thanx again nickpapa! I think thats everything covered for now. Just gotta wait until friday when I should hopefully fit them

Looking forward to getting it all done! The xenons on my TT were brilliant!

01-31-2009, 06:10 PM	#1
ElegantSpoon There I was balls deep in a... 29 Rep 1,470 Posts Drives: BMW E90 320D Join Date: Oct 2008 Location: Devon, UK iTrader: (0)	Help with HID kit fitting please :D Hello all! Has anyone fitted a HID kit to their Z4? I'm planning on ordering a kit but wanted to hear peoples experiances before I take the plunge! The only thing that puts me off is the fact the headlights and right up against the wheel arches and not into the engine bay. Anyhelp on this would be great! Thanx Spoony
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01-31-2009, 07:48 PM	#2
SystemR Private 2 Rep 78 Posts Drives: 08 Boxster, formerly 05 Z4 Join Date: Jul 2006 Location: SF, CA iTrader: (1)	its actually pretty easy, once you take off the bumper its all plug and play except for drilling the hole for the rubber grommets I put in the DDM 35W slimline kit, BimmerZealot helped me with htis.
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01-31-2009, 11:34 PM	#3
pungo Colonel 880 Rep 2,547 Posts Drives: Z4MC-X3-35i-525i, Corrado G60 Join Date: Nov 2007 Location: MD iTrader: (5) Garage List 2011 BMW X3 x35i [0.00] 2001 BMW 525i [0.00] 2007 BMW Z4 M Coupe [8.76]	Wouldn't you just access the back of the headlight from the wheel well access panel? I assume you you are just adding HID bulb/ballast and not the entire headlight assembly?
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02-01-2009, 01:19 AM	#4
ATX750i Captain 32 Rep 746 Posts Drives: 2009 Honda Civic Si Join Date: Jan 2008 Location: Bay Minette, AL iTrader: (0) Garage List 2003 Z4 2.5i [0.00]	I swap'd the whole assembly over to my Z. I can see where the drilling may come into play with the ballast cause the OEM ballast is mounted on the bottem of the headlamp assembly. The OEM ballast has two holes cut in the assembly to allow the power wires to be fed to the ballast. Where as, the aftermarket assembly needs holes cut for the wiring harnesss. Not really much help but my $.02 __________________ Johnathan 03' 2.5i Maldives Blue Roadster - SOLD 09' 2.0 Polished Metal Metallic Honda Civic Si - Current
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02-01-2009, 02:21 AM	#5
SystemR Private 2 Rep 78 Posts Drives: 08 Boxster, formerly 05 Z4 Join Date: Jul 2006 Location: SF, CA iTrader: (1)	i suppose you could do it w/o taking off the bumper but i think its be hard to route all the wires and mount the ballasts. most people mount the ballasts in the lower bumper area where the fog lights are. i imagine it would be difficult to do all that through the wheel access panel. here's how mine ended up: http://www.zpost.com/forums/showthread.php?t=152375
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02-01-2009, 05:57 AM	#6
ElegantSpoon There I was balls deep in a... 29 Rep 1,470 Posts Drives: BMW E90 320D Join Date: Oct 2008 Location: Devon, UK iTrader: (0)	Thanx for the replies!! I have just had a look through the two access panels and I think I should be able to wire and fit everything through there but it is a bit tight with the wheel on. So I thought I could take it off but I'm guessing theres no car jack in the boot? Am I able to use other car jacks or they specific to each car? Thanx again!
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02-02-2009, 01:20 PM	#7
ElegantSpoon There I was balls deep in a... 29 Rep 1,470 Posts Drives: BMW E90 320D Join Date: Oct 2008 Location: Devon, UK iTrader: (0)	Wheres a good place to put the boxes in the bumper?
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02-02-2009, 01:37 PM	#8
nickpapa First Lieutenant 23 Rep 374 Posts Drives: Z4 3.0 Join Date: Oct 2008 Location: North Jersey iTrader: (3)	when i did mine i took the front bumper off. pretty simple to do and didnt take long at all. you might be able to swing it without taking the bumper off but as everyone else said, it would be a big pain. i contemplated it becauase i was worried about aligning the bumper correctly when putting it back on but i realized it would be pretty tough to do the job with it on. the bumper gave me no issues with realigning by the way. as far as mounting, ive seen some posts where people used adhesive and glued them on to the left of the wheel well. what i ended up doing (and some may think its a bit rigged) i zip tied the pieces to a metal bar right behind the wheel well. used a few to make it tight and nothing budges. been like that for about 3 months now and not one issue. quick and easy. you will have to drill a hole big enough on the plastic cover that covers the rear side of the headlight housing. then you place the rubber grommet in that space which will make it water tight (and so you can pass through the wiring). the only other issue i ran into was moutning the bulb. you'll notice that there is a special metal clip ring that is used with the halogen bulb to secure the bulb in the housing. i dont know how anyone else has mounted their bulbs (or maybe they used the same method as me), but i ended up cutting the clip ring on one side, bending it outward, pulled all the wiring through and then i was able to use that clip ring just like the halogens and i had no issues with fitment. Last edited by nickpapa; 02-02-2009 at 02:01 PM..
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02-03-2009, 07:28 AM	#9
BlackSapphireZ Major 99 Rep 1,191 Posts Drives: 22 GLE 53 Coupe Join Date: Aug 2007 Location: Ladson, SC iTrader: (0)	its definitely doable without taking the bumper off and you can fit regular HID kit in there. I went from Halogen to Bi-Xenons __________________ 2022 GLE 53 Coupe
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02-03-2009, 12:53 PM	#10
ElegantSpoon There I was balls deep in a... 29 Rep 1,470 Posts Drives: BMW E90 320D Join Date: Oct 2008 Location: Devon, UK iTrader: (0)	Hey nickpapa thanx for the detailed info! Theres is nothing wrong with cable tying it in place they are strong. I considered this myself but will decide forsure on friday when I fit them With the light bulb clip do you mean the cable cannot be routed through without cutting the clip? I've never swapped the bulb so haven't looked. Blacksapphire were the BMW or a retro fit kit? Thanx
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02-03-2009, 02:47 PM	#12
ElegantSpoon There I was balls deep in a... 29 Rep 1,470 Posts Drives: BMW E90 320D Join Date: Oct 2008 Location: Devon, UK iTrader: (0)	Thanx again nickpapa! I think thats everything covered for now. Just gotta wait until friday when I should hopefully fit them Looking forward to getting it all done! The xenons on my TT were brilliant!
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