Fitting Facelift LED Tail Lights on Pre facelift car.

[EmSixtyTwo]

Hi!

I just got a donor car from year 2003 with crystal clear LED tail lights and I wonder if I can fit them in my 97' 540? Since I've got the whole car I can take the ballasts etc, but how much modification do I have to do since I've read facelift tail lights are a little bit deeper? Could not find a thread on this only retrofit kits.

Thanks!

[dannyzabolotny]

You have to beat the tail light buckets in a bit on the body to fit them, as well as drilling an extra hole I think. That’s what I had to do when I facelifted my 2000 M5 with the official Hella retrofit kit.

As for wiring you’ll need a newer LCMIIIb or LCMIV to be able to code in the LED’s correctly. The new LCM will need to be programmed to match the mileage and VIN.

[Asbradley21]

I also retrofitted my prefacelift using the official hella kit, however, I did not have to hammer the tail light buckets. The tail lights I got from the retrofit kit were already modified from the original lights to fit the pre facelift buckets.

I have since successfully replicated this modification with a Dremel on 2 sets of junkyard celis lights. I'll never hammer a tail light bucket again. Perfect fit, no leaks. I can post pictures if anyone is interested.

Also you'll need to use the lcm from the donor car since it most likely does not use the retrofit ballasts.

[amancuso]

I also retrofitted my prefacelift using the official hella kit, however, I did not have to hammer the tail light buckets. The tail lights I got from the retrofit kit were already modified from the original lights to fit the pre facelift buckets.

I have since successfully replicated this modification with a Dremel on 2 sets of junkyard celis lights. I'll never hammer a tail light bucket again. Perfect fit, no leaks. I can post pictures if anyone is interested.

Also you'll need to use the lcm from the donor car since it most likely does not use the retrofit ballasts.

Can you show some photos of the changes that need to be made? I know you have to snap off two of the mounting studs since they don't line up with the factory ones. Any trunk leaks? You are right about the LCM vs. "ballast".

[atobe]

http://bmwdiy.info/celis-rear/index.html

[Perern]

These are the instructions from the retrofit kit: https://bmweba.com/eba-01-31-0-025-511/

[Asbradley21]

I'll try to take some pictures later today or tomorrow. I do not remove any mounting points. I do drill a hole in the buckets as per the bmwdiy.info article posted above by atobe. You'll need a spacer of some kind (a big nut works just fine) to mount the one point where the hole is drilled but that's negligible. Most of the modification is done to the tail light housing itself. There is a ridge on the tail light underneath the foam that goes all the way around the mounting face. You must Dremel the ridge off almost entirely around where the brake light is, and smoothly taper the ridge on the bottom to its original "height". I simply took measurements from the "retrofit kit" lights and sketched it out on the new lights and cut it with a Dremel. Makes a lot more sense with pics that I'll post later.

[philly98540]

^Very cool. Lets see what you did as smashing in the metal is a bit harsh!

Like I had to do... post #117 here: https://www.bimmerforums.com/forum/s...enon-etc/page5

Might be some useful stuff in my thread above for Em62, Programming LCM, etc...

[amancuso]

I'll try to take some pictures later today or tomorrow. I do not remove any mounting points. I do drill a hole in the buckets as per the bmwdiy.info article posted above by atobe. You'll need a spacer of some kind (a big nut works just fine) to mount the one point where the hole is drilled but that's negligible. Most of the modification is done to the tail light housing itself. There is a ridge on the tail light underneath the foam that goes all the way around the mounting face. You must Dremel the ridge off almost entirely around where the brake light is, and smoothly taper the ridge on the bottom to its original "height". I simply took measurements from the "retrofit kit" lights and sketched it out on the new lights and cut it with a Dremel. Makes a lot more sense with pics that I'll post later.

Nice, I'm in for more info.

[jon316i]

I'll try to take some pictures later today or tomorrow. I do not remove any mounting points. I do drill a hole in the buckets as per the bmwdiy.info article posted above by atobe. You'll need a spacer of some kind (a big nut works just fine) to mount the one point where the hole is drilled but that's negligible. Most of the modification is done to the tail light housing itself. There is a ridge on the tail light underneath the foam that goes all the way around the mounting face. You must Dremel the ridge off almost entirely around where the brake light is, and smoothly taper the ridge on the bottom to its original "height". I simply took measurements from the "retrofit kit" lights and sketched it out on the new lights and cut it with a Dremel. Makes a lot more sense with pics that I'll post later.

Any luck on the pics?
The hammer is itching to make an appearance

[amancuso]

Asbradley has disappeared.

[Asbradley21]

Hey guys sorry about the delay on the pics. I haven't gotten around too it with all of regular life's issues getting in the way. I also don't have a pair of un-modded lights to take comparison shots with, but I'll take some today, promise.

[Asbradley21]

Here's a few that explain it.


The Red and green line show the "ridge" I was talking about that goes around the mounting face of the tail light. The red section is the section that needs to be modified. You will also have to clip and remove the brake light socket wiring plate. The "retrofit lights" come with a new brake light socket that uses spade connectors to connect to the posts marked with the X's. I'm not sure where to get another one of these however.

P_20190524_104839_vHDR_Auto.jpg

This image shows the height of the ridge at its "flattest" section, by the brake light.

P_20190524_104956_vHDR_Auto.jpg

Here are some images that show the height of the ridge against a measuring tape. The first is at the area above the brake light.

P_20190524_105334_vHDR_Auto.jpg

Same area

P_20190524_105007_vHDR_Auto.jpg

This shows the start of the "taper" of the ridge along the bottom

P_20190524_105039_vHDR_Auto.jpg

Continued below, can't attach more than 5 images per post.

[Asbradley21]

Here's about half way between the start of the taper and the brake light.
P_20190524_105132_vHDR_Auto.jpg

same location
P_20190524_105148_vHDR_Auto.jpg



Here's right at the brake light

P_20190524_105350_vHDR_Auto.jpgP_20190524_105200_vHDR_Auto.jpg

I hope this helps. If you've got any questions I'm happy to answer. Fitment it spot on, but can take a couple tries with the Dremel to get it perfect.

[amancuso]

Here's about half way between the start of the taper and the brake light.
P_20190524_105132_vHDR_Auto.jpg

same location
P_20190524_105148_vHDR_Auto.jpg



Here's right at the brake light

P_20190524_105350_vHDR_Auto.jpgP_20190524_105200_vHDR_Auto.jpg

I hope this helps. If you've got any questions I'm happy to answer. Fitment it spot on, but can take a couple tries with the Dremel to get it perfect.

Thanks much for coming back to post the result. This is far better than bashing in the tail light buckets.