Alpine | HID Angel Eyes 1 Series Group Buy *NEW*

[Alex@Alpine]

Originally Posted by Bdh821

So today was the first day one of my AE's didnt fire up when starting the car. Whats the solution to the problem now? It almost seems like these kits have too many problems and im getting aggrivated

Very sorry for the the issue, but I am confused here, this is the first time I have heard of any problems from you? What else are you aggravated about?

Here is the YouTube fix guys...

You can also bump up your fuse from a 20amp to a 30amp for more power, I can send you over a 30amp fuse at no charge, just PM me your address.

Trust I do not get off, or get happy with seeing people having these grounding issues, but with China cutting copper almost all the way out of all wiring, it causes for less power to flow through wires, kits from the last group buy are almost flawless.

[enigma135]

Alex, finally got my kit installed, I was part of the first GB. They look great and thanks for all the help

[Alex@Alpine]

No problem guys, let me know if there is anything else I could do for you guys!

Thank you

[BMW_x5_Msport]

Alex thanks for helping me with the install.

[///M1]

Finally got to installing mine. Here is my quick review:

1. For people doing it for the first time, and as anal as me that want a clean factory-like install and tucked wires/hidden harnesses, this is def more than 45min-1 hr as Alex suggested. I can see myself doing it again with the benefit of what I know on another car for say 90mins, that is to be as thorough as on my install.
2. I found putting back the plastic caps to be probably the trickiest part believe it or not, as one of the securing metal brackets popped out on each side, so securing it back into place was tough considering how crammed the engine bay is.
3. I found opening the wheel well trim window (the one you take out when you want to replace your blinker/corner lights) extremely helpful, as you can see better and align the plastic caps in the 2 bottom holes. Also, that is the only way you can secure the metal bracket (if fallen out of place) that I referred to above.
4. I am already having issues with the driver side light coming on and off. Twice in the span of 1 drive did it come off. Switching off the ignition and starting it again cures it, but a PITA and not something you would expect to endure with an otherwise good product.


Alex, is this the grounding issue most people here were complaining about or is there another problem?

[onefastman]

I was about to order a few kits but after reading this I am not so sure...


Are there pre-drilled backings available?

[///M1]

Alex: My driver side AE lights keep on switching off as they please. It happens on a daily basis now, and needless to say is frustrating. Can you let me know what the resolution is? Product is otherwise nice, but it is not something I can live with if it continues...

Will re-grounding the driver's side separately be the solution or is there something else amiss? Don't want to cut and re-direct wires just for the heck of it. Please let me know. Thx

[Simon_135i]

Alex I pm u, let me know. Btw I notice that the aE performs best if one starts by hitting the switch first and then starting the engine. When I directly start the engine sometimes the driver side ae doesn't come on but by doing the two step process it works flawlessly.

[onefastman]

Wow so I guess these things are quirky


I will not buy until there is a solution

[instag8tr]

i was looking at doing this also until i read this

[onefastman]

Also no word from alex either..

[Alex@Alpine]

Originally Posted by onefastman

Also no word from alex either..

Sorry guys, it is always better to email me with questions, I am always more then happy to help.

The problem with this group buy was the harness that was made in China, the company cut down in copper material used in the wiring, I have already put a solution on YouTube for current customers and have updated my new harness.

The problem is 2 things, some people have comfort access unlock the car jump in and push start right away...

This is what happens, when you unlock the door the ballast started charging and the lights start powering up, then when you hit the start button they turn off and on really fast and there isn't enough ground to push the old power out of the capacitors in the ballast causing the one that has a longer distance from the ground not to power up.

Hope that helps, please guys always email me at alex@alpinemss.com, or call me so I can fix your problems right away. I know Angel Eyes are important look to have on a BMW.

If it wasn't for my buddy I would have never known you guys where still answering back to this thread.

[onefastman]

So then the new harness fixes the problem? If so I am ready to.order a couple sets (price pending). Also is this a non issue if you don't have comfort access?

[///M1]

Originally Posted by onefastman

So then the new harness fixes the problem? If so I am ready to.order a couple sets (price pending). Also is this a non issue if you don't have comfort access?

I don't have comfort access, yet my driver's side light fails to power up 1/3 of the time. I suppose the re-grounding fix would work, but I would prefer to get a new harness altogether, awaiting to hear from Alex.

[wbg tom]

i'd like a more permanent fix. finally got around to try the fix.... i ran the ground wire as instructed from the video, even soldered it to a terminal and mounted on the same grounding screw, still having the same issues. pending PM reply from alex. i hope there is a real solution....

[Alex@Alpine]

Okay guys, here is what I have broken it down to...

The reason the ballast on the passenger side is having a hard time turning on is because of lack of power,

The main reason is because China has become cheaper and cheaper cutting copper out of everything, I can take pictures of ballast from 2 years ago, it was all copper (gold color) wiring. Now its all silver, aluminum which does not conduct electricity like copper. But we will skip that...

A few reasons why the passenger side is not getting enough power is because, the car is unlocked which turns the pathway lights on (Angel Eyes) and in this time the ballast start powering up (ballast convert 12v to 1200v, the way it does this is with capacitors and other types of charging electronics, once those capacitors inside the ballast are fully powered, they run on a very low amount of power, lower then a regular bulb, but it does need a large amount of power at start up to start up) and if the ballast do not charge up, with most cases, people hit unlock (or with comfort access, they just walk up open the door, which turns the angel eyes on) jump into their cars and turn the car on right away, right when you hit start, this turns off the power to the ballasts, and turns it back on really fast, within that few seconds of on and off, when it turns off the old low voltage power which did not reach full charge is still stored at under 9v in the ballast, which does not allow the new higher voltage power to come in, so with not enough power, the ballast does not get the high amp power it needs to start up.

This mostly happens to people like me who are always in a rush, unlock and boom jump in hit start and go.

For the people who take their time to start the car after they hit unlock, their passenger side does not have this problem.

So since the passenger side ballast is the longest distance between the power source, it gets less power do to the length of travel.

Over the weekend I am going to make a power booster for the passenger side, it will be fully plug and play. You simply unplug your driver side ballast, and plug this unit in between. Inside this unit will be a 4700uf 35v Capacitor.

Capacitors are like fast acting batteries, if and when the voltage drops, it will give a small boost to keep the voltage up.

So for now, this will fix your guys problem, I am currently in search of a good relay, the current relays that come from China which claim to be "40amps" I have been testing them and they can only put out 15-20amps, which just sucks!

So if you guys are having this problem, send a e-mail to warranty@alpinemss.com and title it "Booster" with your First and Last name including the shipping address you want it mailed to.

Hope that helps guys!

[Simon_135i]

Originally Posted by Alex@Alpine

Okay guys, here is what I have broken it down to...

The reason the ballast on the passenger side is having a hard time turning on is because of lack of power,

The main reason is because China has become cheaper and cheaper cutting copper out of everything, I can take pictures of ballast from 2 years ago, it was all copper (gold color) wiring. Now its all silver, aluminum which does not conduct electricity like copper. But we will skip that...

A few reasons why the passenger side is not getting enough power is because, the car is unlocked which turns the pathway lights on (Angel Eyes) and in this time the ballast start powering up (ballast convert 12v to 1200v, the way it does this is with capacitors and other types of charging electronics, once those capacitors inside the ballast are fully powered, they run on a very low amount of power, lower then a regular bulb, but it does need a large amount of power at start up to start up) and if the ballast do not charge up, with most cases, people hit unlock (or with comfort access, they just walk up open the door, which turns the angel eyes on) jump into their cars and turn the car on right away, right when you hit start, this turns off the power to the ballasts, and turns it back on really fast, within that few seconds of on and off, when it turns off the old low voltage power which did not reach full charge is still stored at under 9v in the ballast, which does not allow the new higher voltage power to come in, so with not enough power, the ballast does not get the high amp power it needs to start up.

This mostly happens to people like me who are always in a rush, unlock and boom jump in hit start and go.

For the people who take their time to start the car after they hit unlock, their passenger side does not have this problem.

So since the passenger side ballast is the longest distance between the power source, it gets less power do to the length of travel.

Over the weekend I am going to make a power booster for the passenger side, it will be fully plug and play. You simply unplug your driver side ballast, and plug this unit in between. Inside this unit will be a 4700uf 35v Capacitor.

Capacitors are like fast acting batteries, if and when the voltage drops, it will give a small boost to keep the voltage up.

So for now, this will fix your guys problem, I am currently in search of a good relay, the current relays that come from China which claim to be "40amps" I have been testing them and they can only put out 15-20amps, which just sucks!

So if you guys are having this problem, send a e-mail to warranty@alpinemss.com and title it "Booster" with your First and Last name including the shipping address you want it mailed to.

Hope that helps guys!

Sounds good! BTW, Alex can you PM me your address?

[mosx]

Damn! Now that's customer service. For those of that haven't ordered yet is there going to be an "updated" kit that includes all of this stuff?

[Alex@Alpine]

Originally Posted by mosx

Damn! Now that's customer service. For those of that haven't ordered yet is there going to be an "updated" kit that includes all of this stuff?

Thank you, yes it will include all updates!

[HappyNDing]

Originally Posted by Alex@Alpine

Thank you, yes it will include all updates!

Hey Alex, I have the kit on my car now and it looks great. Fortunately, my halos have always came on (all 4 of them) every time I started the car.

However, I am getting the light icon on my dash (albeit it goes away after a couple of seconds) once I start the car - is it due to something I did when installing?

[///M1]

Did the 'fix' last night. Hated cutting, re-routing, re-grounding, electric taping (the other end of the ground wire), etc. What should have been a clean and near factory-like product has become anything but that. Let's just hope this fix cures the issue once and for all...

[///M1]

How are you guys doing with your kits? At this stage, I am having one of the AEs come off (or not at all) on a daily basis (either side of the car, with no discernable pattern). Pretty frustrating to the point that I am thinking of taking them off entirely.

The need to re-start the car several times (including at intersections) to get the halos powered defeats any of the cosmetic beneifts of having this kit... Maybe the wires used in the kit are really really cheap, dunno really, but from a reliability standpoint, it is nothing what was marketed...