High Beams on the M

[americanpolice]

I must say as the new owner of a CPO M35x I am disappointed to see the high beams are non-xenon. My less expensive Murano has a xenon high beam which really lights up the road. I think Infiniti went cheap thinking no one would notice.

Has anyone changed the high beam bulb to something more brighter/whiter? Any recommendations? and is it easy to do?

[M4T5]

I'm with you on that one!My 07' M45 needs a high beam enhancement as well.... I think the fog lights should even be upgraded as they hardly make the dark roads any more lighted.Have you noticed that when you hit your high beams that the really don't light up the road, but instead they light up the sky.....???? I can't see there being a separate adjustment for that without effecting the low beam HIDs at the same time.Anyone else to comment on this issue as well?

J

[lawman12]

/\ it sucks. You adjust the low beam up your high beams go up...no separate adjustment for high and low

[mcrews]

"I think the fog lights should even be upgraded as they hardly make the dark roads any more lighted."

They are fog lights, that's what they are suppose to do.Fog lamps are intended to delute the light when there is moisture (fog) so the light dosent bonce back at youwhen it hits the moisture drops.so you can see better in the fog.

Driving lights (not hi/lowprimary) are designed to shot the light as far and as thin as possible.

so you probably would be happier w/ an upgraded lamp/bulb.It may actually requirereplacing the lens and the bulb.I would go to maybe the PIAA web site to explore your options

[M4T5]

I understand that "fog" lights were intended for driving in "fog". Though I still do not see them helping in driving in foggy conditions due to their lack of intensity. Any light fixture can be classified as a fog type lamp if it's shined lower than your normal driving lamps.It still would have been better if they were brighter and somewhat matched the color of the HID lamps. When I mean brighter, I mean giving off a more intense peripheral view of the surrounding road and maybe a bit more out in front of the car.I think the normal driving lamps light up the road more than adequate enough. I would prefer not to change them out unless they burn out.The high beam lamps still shine too high either way. I'm not the only one to complain of this. High beams are designed to brighten the road ahead more than your normal driving lamps would do. They don't even come close. IMO.

J

[lawman12]

I have HID bulbs in an aftermarket fog light housing. It does what it is supposed to do. Lights up the ground better in front and to the sides, very nice and white... I used 5K H11 bulbs for the fogs to keep them similar to our OEM 4300-4500k rating

[mcrews]

"Any light fixture can be classified as a fog type lamp if it's shined lower than your normal driving lamps."

you didn't go over to the PIAA site did you???

http://www.piaa.com/media/docu...4.pdf

so just put a high beam bulb in and shine it straight down and call it a 'fog light"

WHat you dont 'see" is obvoius.really, how old are you?

Ok, next time it rains in Spring Texas, turn on your high beams and point them down, and tell me they work as well as the fogs.

Better yet, go to your local O'Riley auto parts store, and go over to the light display. look at the pictures on the boxes for the fog lights, then the driving lights. let me know what you find uot.

I agree w/ you on the problem with the auto aiming feature on the lights.But have you read the LIGHTS section in the FSM? only about 40 pages. Just on auto aiming. maybe you can fiqureuot how to hack it.http://www.nicoclub.com/FSM/M/2007_M45-M35/lt.pdf
Modified by mcrews at 10:00 PM 1/8/2009

[M4T5]

Mcrews,

Maybe you read this statement from PIAA's website a bit further in comparison to what our M45's fog lights do.

Fog/Foul Weather Lamps"ENHANCE"your vehicle's "LOW BEAMS" for improved visibility inrain, fog, or snow. "DISTANCE" of"ILLUMINATION" is "SIMILAR" to yourvehicle's "LOW BEAM". Fog/FoulWeather Lamps are availablein amber or clear beam color.90˚- 100˚100˚- 120˚10˚- 25˚20˚- 35˚5˚- 15˚

Our M45's fog lihgts do not shine at or even close to the same distance as the low beams. They do not light up the road conditions out further to the sides of our car. If you can't tell that they are turned off or on by visual sight at night, then they are not doing what they are supposed to do.Your right, I shouldn't have stated the comment about shining any lamp fixture lower than your low beams would be considered a fog lamp. This is really all directed at "improving" the night driving lamps on our M's. You could actually help this topic with ideas instead of constant criticism.Thanks for the articles either way.

J

[ghstudio]

The problem with fog lights in the US is that cars are now wired so you can only turn on the lights with the low beams. Unfortunately, in fog, those low beams create blinding white in front of you, completely negating the usefulness of the fog lights.

Well designed fog lights are designed to light up the road with lower pointing and more diffused light AND to be used alone.....so you aren't blinded. Your eyes quickly adjust to the slightly lower light, but you see much farther than when you have the low beams blinding you in front.

Current fog lights in US cars and the M's are decorative, at best.....If you actually want good fog lighting, rewire your car so you can turn on your fog lights with the parking lights......(so you can see the instruments and have rear lights for safety).....or....wire the fog lights on a separate switch independent of the other lights...and then turn on the parking lights and your fog lights together.

I fondly remember how well I saw using Cibie Fog lights on my Triumph TR4 (of course I also saw pretty darn well when there was no fog with my Cibie driving lights).

I hate the new lights....bring back the round/rectangular bulbs so I can actually get lights that light the road.

[M4T5]

I totally agree with you ghstudio. I know what you mean about the purpose of the actual fog lights on our cars being pretty much usless. I can see them being just for decorative purposes, because they do not actually help see the road any more clearly at night or rain. I havent really tested them in fog as of yet, and will probably never get to test them in snow due to living too far south.I remember how well my fog lights worked in my 93' Mustang GT. You could just turn them on without the addition of the norm driving lights. They would shine lower, but you could drive in heavy rain or fog better than just having your low beams on. Of course that car came with real fog lights. They were large like they are supposed to be. Mostly...they actually worked!I changed out all (low, high, & fog) my lights in my previous 05' Silverado SS to PIAA Extreme White plus units. Man, what a difference it made for night time driving! Even the fog lights on it worked very well. With or without bad weather.I'm all for PIAA's products as they have never dissapointed me. Though now that I own a car with HID's I just want to enhance the look around the factory HID's. I'm just not sure what kind or type to use for the high and fog lights.

J

[americanpolice]

I agree with all the comments about fog lights and the low angle of the low beams. but can someone answer my original question

has anyone changed their high beam bulb and to what brand / model would they recommend? looks like only Philips Vision Plus seems like an option.