[Former_Boosted_IS]

I recently installed LCI tail lights on my car and I was not happy when I realized they included standard bulbs for reverse. Honestly, why would you go with an LED tail light and not include LEDs through the entire tail light? I found out the LUX had LED reverse lights for the E9x LCI tail light and decided I wanted to order. I have to be honest, when I saw the price I was a little surprised that they were so pricey. After researching them more, I realized the entire base had to be replaced by LUX, so this is not just an LED that inserts in the original socket. I felt I just spent nearly $600 on the tail lights and it was LED or bust.

Shipping/Packaging

After ordering the LEDs from LUX, they informed me when they shipped and noted they were sent priority. They arrived with the 3 days USPS priority guarantees and they were well protected.



Notice the items are bubble wrapped to protect the key components during shipping.



After opening the bubble wrap, I saw the very nice metal bases, LEDs, and resistors.



Notice the unique orientation of the LEDS to maximize the effect outside of the car.





Here is the LUX LEDs versus the stock bulb on the LCI tail lights.

Install / DIY

I have to say the install of these is very easy. Accessing the tail lights is as simple as removing the rear tray on the passenger side or pulling the cover on the driver's side. Since there are so many DIYs for that, I will defer.

Once you have access to the tail lights, identify the reverse bulbs show below. Mine weren't installed yet, so it gave me a good opporunity to show you the location easily.



The stock bulbs are held by two T-20 screws that need to be removed and re-used on your LUX Reverse LEDs.



Install your LUX Reverse LEDs noting the angled part goes toward the center of the car. Insert the blades into the stock female plugs noting red goes to white and black goes to grey.





The install is really that easy. This is a 15 minute job total.

Results

The result is clearly the most important part of this review. Do the LUX LCI Reverse LEDs match the quality of the BMW LCI tail lights. I have to say I am very impressed. The LUX Reverse LEDs are true white with none of the nasty orange/yellow present on the stock bulbs. Most importantly the spread of the LEDs is wide and they are bright. Here is a look for yourself...













You can see the actual light color and spread on a wall I parked near. First with the reverse LEDs off.





Here is a look with the LUX Reverse LEDS on.





Finally, here is an HD video of the LUX LCI Reverse LEDs.

For me, the car started and ran with NO check engine lights, however they did strobe when I started the car. Since I am definitely not a fan of the strobles I coded them out by simply changing the RFS codes in my NFRM module to nicht_activ. Here is the original with strobe and after coding with the strobe effect coded out.

Conclusions

I would be lying if I didn't say the cost of the LUX LCI Reverse LEDs is not a consideration in this purchase. The cost is definitely more than normal LEDs, but this includes the resistor and most importantly the custom base that LUX had to create. LUX did a very good job making sure these fit perfectly with very little effort. They did not throw any codes on my car, but I did need to code out the strobe effect from the LEDs. For me, I had the cable and knew how to code so this was simple. The color is pure white and match my OSS angel eyes and other LEDs perfectly. The LUX LEDs are bright and the spread is perfect for a reverse light. This will simply come down to whether you think having a full LED tail light is necessary for your car and to me it was a no brainer.

LUX was very fast with their shipment and easy to deal with as a company. There is a reason they are a favored retailer in the BMW world. I wouldn't hestitate to buy from LUX ever again.

[just4kickz]

looks good to me

[LuxAngelEyes]

Thank you for the great review. Glad yuor happy with them and that they are that much brighter!

[Sean@PYSpeed.com]

Jeez, that's bright!

[GOTMH8N]

holy crap those are bright

wtf is with the strobing?

[Dark_Knight_335]

I personally own these as well and I can attest to the fact that they are freaking awesome!
the strobing is minor and doesn't really bother me very much- it's just a bulb check guys, get a grip!

[Dark_Knight_335]

Hey Marc! Any plans to make some nice bright LED bulbs for the rear fog light bulbs for 2011 and over E92/E93s?

[Former_Boosted_IS]

Originally Posted by GOTMH8N

holy crap those are bright

wtf is with the strobing?

Strobing is the DME checking to see if you normal bulbs are working. The DME sends voltage pulses to the bulb to see if they have burned out and when you have LEDs it appears as strobe flashes like you see in the video. It only does it at start-up that I could see, but I did code out a wark check, so it must do it when they are warm at some interval.

[GOTMH8N]

Originally Posted by Former_Boosted_IS

Strobing is the DME checking to see if you normal bulbs are working. The DME sends voltage pulses to the bulb to see if they have burned out and when you have LEDs it appears as strobe flashes like you see in the video. It only does it at start-up that I could see, but I did code out a wark check, so it must do it when they are warm at some interval.

ohhhh ok interesting, I thought maybe it did that every time it was put into reverse.

[onesuperboi]

Great review as always!

How bright are these compared to the stock bulbs?

[Former_Boosted_IS]

Originally Posted by onesuperboi

Great review as always!

How bright are these compared to the stock bulbs?

The stock bulbs are really a joke compared to a well this set up led like this.

[Game]

Confused as to why anyone would pay a good amount of money on reverse tail light bulbs. But as long as you're happy OP. They definitely look bright.

[Former_Boosted_IS]

Originally Posted by Game

Confused as to why anyone would pay a good amount of money on reverse tail light bulbs. But as long as you're happy OP. They definitely look bright.

I spent a good amount of money for LED tail lights, so I really felt the LED reverse is needed to complete the tail. Everything I have on the car is LED now other than the headlight and fogs. It looks great!

[AndyR83]

Originally Posted by Game

Confused as to why anyone would pay a good amount of money on reverse tail light bulbs. But as long as you're happy OP. They definitely look bright.

If nothing else, it probably makes backing into spots easier at night. Every time I back into a parking spot at night, I find myself thinking how dim and crappy my reverse lights are, and how hard it is to see where I'm going.

[Game]

Originally Posted by AndyR83

If nothing else, it probably makes backing into spots easier at night. Every time I back into a parking spot at night, I find myself thinking how dim and crappy my reverse lights are, and how hard it is to see where I'm going.

That's a good functional reason.

[nomis_nehc]

Originally Posted by Game

That's a good functional reason.

I think that should be the primary reason, the white color should be secondary.

[NocturnalEVO]

Pics aren't working..

[LuxAngelEyes]

Ya your right. This review was from over a year ago as well so i'm sure that doesn't help.