[uhaulball]

so today in the rain i realized i had a lot of moisture on the inside of my left xenon headlights. its a foggy blob that cant be wiped off from the outside.

I was wondering if i could get these xenons replaced, are they covered by warranty?

the only mod that ive done are the pmbs. any help?

[KL2DC]

I have a similar problem...it afflicts both headlights and fog lights at different times and in different conditions. This problem is exasperated when I leave the angel eyes on for extended period of time during a steamy summer rain shower.

The SA says that as long as the condensation disspates within 5-10secs of switching on the main headlights, it is within BMW specs. There is a vent at the back of the housing to deal with the high temps generated by the xenons.

However, I am not entirely pleased with the explanation and will badger the dealership for replacements. Some members here have successfully campaigned for full replacements in the light of similar issues.

You might want to check your seals. I too have fiddled around with PMBs and Luxs and various fog light bulbs and may have disturbed the seal allowing even more moisture.

[uhaulball]

my moisture is there even when the Xenon is on. in fact.. i noticed the moisture with the xenon on when i went to open my garage door (dont have a garage door control)

[KL2DC]

Originally Posted by uhaulball

my moisture is there even when the Xenon is on. in fact.. i noticed the moisture with the xenon on when i went to open my garage door (dont have a garage door control)

Then you are definitely a candidate for warrant replacement...take some pictures to support your claim.

Oh and be sure to remove your PMBs before taking your car in, the last thing you want is for them to deny your claim on the basis of the mod.

[uhaulball]

hmmmm the problem is... i dont remember where my stock len's are... F*CK
i really doubt its the pmbs tho.

u think they will notice? i have white pmb... not hyperwhite as stated in sig

[Bimmer325]

better replace the stock lens b4 sending in your car! by hook or by crook you must!

[cdheaven]

this is another very talked about subject. from what i have learned, xenons are suppose to get a bit of moisture to work properply. i guess the gasses that the xenons use need a bit of air so there has to be ventalation. i think kl2 pretty much summed it up. im not sure if the vent is to release air, or to let air in, but either way, without a 100% sealed enclosure, moisture will occur. dont worry.

[uhaulball]

why would xenons need moisture? arent they bulbs anyways? (unlike oil lamps which i would understand need some air)

[cdheaven]

i dunno. its a gas. its gotta burn. it needs air to burn... im no rocket science. here is some info from wikeipedia
The xenon gas allows the lamps to produce minimally adequate amounts of light upon startup and speed the warmup time. If argon were used instead, as is commonly done in street and other stationary HID lamps, it would take several minutes for the lamps to reach their full output. HID headlamps use a small, purpose-designed metal halide lamp and produce more light than ordinary incandescent light bulbs (including quartz halogen lamps). The light from HID headlamps has a distinct bluish tint when compared with normal headlamps. The high intensity of the arc comes from metallic salts that are vaporized within the arc chamber.

HID headlamp bulbs produce between 2,800 and 3,000 lumens from 42 watts of electrical power, while halogen filament headlamp bulbs produce between 700 and 2,100 lumens from between 40 and 65 watts. Because of the increased amounts of light available from HID bulbs, HID headlamps producing a given beam pattern can be made smaller than halogen headlamps producing a comparable beam pattern. Alternatively, the larger size can be retained, in which case the Xenon headlamp can produce a more robust beam pattern.

An HID headlamp requires a ballast. The ballast converts the 12 volts used in automotive electrical systems to the several thousand volts required to strike and maintain the arc.

Despite marketing claims to the contrary, HID headlamps' light output is not similar to daylight. The spectral power distribution (SPD) of an automotive HID headlamp is discontinuous, while the SPD of a filament lamp, like that of the sun, is a continuous curve.

The arc within an HID headlamp bulb generates considerable short-wave ultraviolet (UV) light, but none of it escapes the bulb. A UV-absorbing hard glass shield is incorporated around the bulb's arc tube. This is important to prevent degradation of UV-sensitive components and materials in headlamps, such as polycarbonate lenses and reflector hardcoats. The lamps do emit considerable near-UV light).

Vehicles equipped with HID headlamps are required by ECE regulation 48 also to be equipped with headlamp lens cleaning systems and automatic beam levelling control. Both of these measures are intended to reduce the tendency for high-output headlamps to cause high levels of glare to other road users.

The arc light source in an HID headlamp is fundamentally different from the filament light source used in tungsten/halogen headlamps. For that reason, HID-specific optics are used to collect and distribute the light. Installing HID bulbs in headlamps designed to take filament bulbs results in improperly-focused beam patterns and excessive glare, and is therefore illegal in almost all countries.