[sleeves007]

Had my head lights replaced under warranty due to condensation. Now there is a big dark area in the centre of the high beam. Contacted the dealer and they replied with this - images attached.

Seems to be the way they are now.

This morning myself and the master technician investigated BMW documents and technical data in regards to option 0552 - adaptive head lights and option 05AC High beam assist . The information did confirm images from the head light main beam showing with blocked area in centre of lights ( normal main beam operation and high beam assist operation )

We have gained access to one of our sales demos of same model and spec as your own car . Please see images attached - normal main beam pattern visible on tiled wall on MOT ramp within workshop , this does confirm the correct image pattern .

The headlight units delivered and fitted to your vehicle from BMW with the latest SW may be modified / upgraded and differ from your original lights . Unfortunately this is out with our control and will be unable to revert back to original lights operation .

[Nate48]

That's a wild change

[TJZ67201]

That’s weird. Mine (assuming the “older” style) is the opposite, it projects an almost square-like box of light at further distances, not an absense of light. Seems counterintuitive to have this dark zone?

Edit: so does this mean if we need to replace one headlight, we will actually need to replace both headlights? Hoping never to have to do that out of pocket….

[sleeves007]

Originally Posted by TJZ67201

That’s weird. Mine (assuming the “older” style) is the opposite, it projects an almost square-like box of light at further distances, not an absense of light. Seems counterintuitive to have this dark zone?

Edit: so does this mean if we need to replace one headlight, we will actually need to replace both headlights? Hoping never to have to do that out of pocket….

I would assume the firmware of the non replaced light would be updated to mirror the firmware of the new light.

These are the worst lights I have had on a car, pre replacement they were 7 out of 10, now they are 5, dark spots, shadows etc. Coming from non adaptive Audi A3 lights, these are terrible.

[Pentland]

Not sure I see the difference between your image and the dealers. There should be a black square in the middle

[sleeves007]

Originally Posted by Pentland

Not sure I see the difference between your image and the dealers. There should be a black square in the middle

Apologies, the point is it wasn't there pre replacement and is due to updated firmware, just to make people aware.

[MPR]

While the beam pattern looks odd, how does it light up the road at night?

[Pentland]

Originally Posted by MPR

While the beam pattern looks odd, how does it light up the road at night?

The black square is so your high beam doesn’t blind the guy in front. It’s part of the adaptive high beam system.

[JoeyJoeJo]

Based on this video (2:12-2:30), guessing the black square only there in the pics because something is detected in front and the beams would be full width on the open road?

The adaptive look good but I've seen demos of the audi matrix and they look crazy good.

[sleeves007]

Also, the black square should only be present when headlights of oncoming traffic or tail lights of receding traffic are detected due to these being adaptive units. No traffic present then even illumination of the road ahead should be present.

In the video of these replacent units I took, you can see all sorts of dark spots and shadows on high beam. Not what I expected of BMW led lights, and worse since being replaced.

[sleeves007]

You can see the stark difference here on what I assume are pre firmware updated replacement units. The black square was previously a bright area of focussed light.

[MPR]

Originally Posted by Pentland

The black square is so your high beam doesn’t blind the guy in front. It’s part of the adaptive high beam system.

What sleeves007 said. You should get full output if no oncoming cars are seen.

From what I recall, the hardware may support blacking out certain areas of the beam where it can draw a line to an oncoming car but this functionality isn't approved in the US so it's either high beam on or high beam off, not the cool matrix behavior that Audi has.

I recall this being seen on the window sticker where anti dazzle (or something) is coded out on US cars.

I found this but the G42 does not appear to be supported yet. It does list the G20 which temps me to try it...who wants to be the guini pig? Can anyone confirm if the G42 LEDs are 5AP?
https://www.bimmer-tech.net/products...adlights-cable

Mentioned here too https://www.codemybimmer.ca/g-chassis-coding/

[redcars]

Try blocking the camera. Makes sense to black out that area when following a car to avoid your lights reflecting in the rearview mirror of the car in front. That way, the rest of the coverage can be full intensity.

[MPR]

BimmerTech confirmed they can code anti dazzle on the G42