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BMW 3-Series and 4-Series Forum (F30 / F32) | F30POST > Technical Forums > Cosmetic and Lighting Modifications (exterior & interior) > Myth of the Adaptive LED headlights
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      12-04-2013, 07:38 PM   #1
HeHa44
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Hi all, my 435i MSE comes with the Adaptive LED headlights with high beam assistance function. I followed the instructions to activate the function from the owner's manual, but it seems no different at all. The high beam never turn on-off automatically as the manual said. If I turn on the high beam manually, the system will deactivate the function by itself. Did I do something wrong?
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      12-04-2013, 07:43 PM   #2
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Maybe BMW deactivates a portion of the system just like they do here in the US.
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      12-04-2013, 08:24 PM   #3
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high beam assistant has never worked for me either so you're not the only one...i couldn't care less about HBA, though, i'm far more interested and waiting for someone to discover the magic recipe for enabling all the cool features our friends in Europe get with the adaptive LEDs...i would imagine we have all the hardware required and it is just a matter or recoding what the factory decoded for the US market

for now, though, i'd be happy if someone can figure out how to disable the 3 amber LEDs! i've tried everything and they won't turn off without throwing errors and/or making the turn signals flash erratically
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      12-04-2013, 09:05 PM   #4
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WHAT? The auto high beams work just fine
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      12-04-2013, 09:23 PM   #5
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Quote:
Originally Posted by sleeeper View Post
WHAT? The auto high beams work just fine
There is certain attributes of the system that are deactivated in the USA. They aren't active on any North American cars.
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      12-04-2013, 10:40 PM   #6
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I'm sure he's talking about the high beam assist that just automatically turns them on and off. That's supposed to work for the US. For me they don't but I just don't really care. When I take the car in for its oil change I'll tell them about it but it's just not that big of a deal for me to make that special trip.

What's disabled for the US is the new variable light distribution/anti-glaring technology. That's where the true value of the $1900 adaptive LED light options lies (besides just looking cool).

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      12-05-2013, 12:23 AM   #7
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Rasengan
I'm sure he's talking about the high beam assist that just automatically turns them on and off. That's supposed to work for the US. For me they don't but I just don't really care. When I take the car in for its oil change I'll tell them about it but it's just not that big of a deal for me to make that special trip.

What's disabled for the US is the new variable light distribution/anti-glaring technology. That's where the true value of the $1900 adaptive LED light options lies (besides just looking cool).

Thank you for sharing. After watching the video, I think I may make a mistake. The caption said it works with the Connected Drive camera that I don't have. Is that the reason why there is no such function in my car?
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      12-05-2013, 06:03 AM   #8
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Isn't that planned for the i8?
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      12-05-2013, 06:16 AM   #9
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Quote:
Originally Posted by sleeeper
Isn't that planned for the i8?
i8 will come with the Laser Adaptive Headlights, search on any engine for details.
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      12-05-2013, 06:40 AM   #10
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Rasengan View Post
I'm sure he's talking about the high beam assist that just automatically turns them on and off. That's supposed to work for the US. For me they don't but I just don't really care. When I take the car in for its oil change I'll tell them about it but it's just not that big of a deal for me to make that special trip.

What's disabled for the US is the new variable light distribution/anti-glaring technology. That's where the true value of the $1900 adaptive LED light options lies (besides just looking cool).
This is nothing new and exclusive to the LED lights, it was available for the F30 from scratch with the xenons.
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      12-05-2013, 10:17 AM   #11
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Quote:
Originally Posted by HeHa44 View Post
Thank you for sharing. After watching the video, I think I may make a mistake. The caption said it works with the Connected Drive camera that I don't have. Is that the reason why there is no such function in my car?
i just realized you are in Hong Kong (i was responding from the iOS app and couldn't see where you are from) and i have no idea what the regulations are there...why not check your VIN and see if you're supposed to already have all this stuff?

http://www.bmwarchiv.de/vin/bmw-vin-decoder.html

S5ACA Fernlichtassistent High-beam assistant

and i believe for us unfortunate US Spec guys, they simply decode it to meet US regulations (i could be wrong and there's more to it than simply re-coding it to turn the features on but i'm holding on to hope):

S5APA Decodierung blendfr. Fernlicht Assistent Decode antiglare High-beam Assistant
S8S4A Decodierung variable Lichtverteilung Decoding variable light distribution

i would assume that you need that camera behind the rearview to monitor the road ahead and determine whether it's safe to turn on the high beams or not...if you do not have that camera then i don't think it should work for you...i have the camera and adaptive LED and have driven down dark alleys and pitch black garages and my high beams do not automatically turn on when i activate it by pressing the button at the end of the left stalk...someone said they are very sensitive to light but i can't see how much darker i can drive in for them to activate other than a black hole...unfortunately, i have yet to see a black hole on the streets of Chicago or i'd try driving into one
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      12-05-2013, 12:40 PM   #12
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Rasengan
Quote:
Originally Posted by HeHa44 View Post
Thank you for sharing. After watching the video, I think I may make a mistake. The caption said it works with the Connected Drive camera that I don't have. Is that the reason why there is no such function in my car?
i just realized you are in Hong Kong (i was responding from the iOS app and couldn't see where you are from) and i have no idea what the regulations are there...why not check your VIN and see if you're supposed to already have all this stuff?

http://www.bmwarchiv.de/vin/bmw-vin-decoder.html

S5ACA Fernlichtassistent High-beam assistant

and i believe for us unfortunate US Spec guys, they simply decode it to meet US regulations (i could be wrong and there's more to it than simply re-coding it to turn the features on but i'm holding on to hope):

S5APA Decodierung blendfr. Fernlicht Assistent Decode antiglare High-beam Assistant
S8S4A Decodierung variable Lichtverteilung Decoding variable light distribution

i would assume that you need that camera behind the rearview to monitor the road ahead and determine whether it's safe to turn on the high beams or not...if you do not have that camera then i don't think it should work for you...i have the camera and adaptive LED and have driven down dark alleys and pitch black garages and my high beams do not automatically turn on when i activate it by pressing the button at the end of the left stalk...someone said they are very sensitive to light but i can't see how much darker i can drive in for them to activate other than a black hole...unfortunately, i have yet to see a black hole on the streets of Chicago or i'd try driving into one
Is your camera like the one in the post?
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      12-05-2013, 12:41 PM   #13
HeHa44
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Must work with this camera?
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      12-05-2013, 01:23 PM   #14
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This guy explained it pretty clearly:

"Starting with MY 2008 BMW 5-series Xenon equipped cars (maybe all of them, I don't know) came with a new headlamp design that supports not just turning with steering input but beam pattern reshaping with speed. In other words the headlamp supports changing the bulb's position with respect to the focal point and projector lens within the headlamp assembly. This has the effect of altering the beam shape as it illuminates the road ahead. Slower speeds yield a broader, shorter distance pattern and higher speeds yield a narrower, longer distance pattern.

Unfortunately this variable beam business is not DOT approved, so not for us in the U.S.A. and hence BMW applies 8S4 (not S84) Variable Light Decoding in order to inhibit this functionality. I would love to have my dealer undo that but I'm sure they won't. In fact BMW's dealer car software programming system probably won't let it happen. "

Please note that the S84 that you will find in the manual is Variable Light Distribution (not decoding). 8S4 is identical to S84 in terms of hardware on the vehicle. The difference is in the coding.
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