1st car in my name

I bought my 99 A6 Avant last year. I need some advice with the front headlights.

First of all, they are not Xenon and as much as I would love to upgrade them to it I've read that without the auto leveling built into the car it's technically illegal and can blind people so I don't want to deal with that headache.

They are both slightly yellowed and that's the propblem I'm looking to remedy somehow. Is there a way to fix this or should I go to ebay and spend ~$350 for two new halogen housings? If I should buy them, how complicated is the installation?

One last note, I fell victim to the ridiculous low bumpers and the bumper now needs to be replaced (I've been told it can't be fixed by an Audi dealer but I'm definitely gonna confirm with my body shop before I buy a new one). Either way, should I wait until the bumper is fixed to replace the headlights or does it not really matter?

urs6_ma

It's not a big deal. I added euro xenons to my '02 and aimed them properly.

Lee

eh?6Q

Previously had upgraded to PIAA Xtreme White H1 bulbs in my halogen housings - a noted improvement with xenon-like coloring, but the real xenon system is fantastic. Unfortunetly, the PIAA's lasted 2 years only - although they were also on during the day - Canada has mandatory DRL laws.

With the bi-xenon you get extra xenon light output in addition to the high-beam halogen bulbs - there's a moveable shield that pops out-of-the-way. It looks like daylight then!

I also re-routed the DRL's to the fog lights via the switch.

I have a sedan - with an Avant, maybe you plan on loading the back with heavy camping or rear (7) passengers. So leveling the lights could be a bigger issue if travelling at night.

I played with the idea of energizing the motors inside the housing, but without the external controller, I would have to experiment on the voltage/amp to manually adjust them from within the cabin (like the european Audis).

I have spare halogen housings, and some left-over xenon components including one bi-xenon.

Check my sig for the detailed conversion steps.

Check my picture poster for different light outputs from Halogen, to xenon, to bi-xenon.

Ritz

Out here in the boondocks, you really need them on the windy country roads with no streetlights.

I have HIDs on my A4 also and I rarely get flashed in that. Even though the aim is properly adjusted on both cars, I suspect the stock xenons on the A6 are at the ragged edge of "nuissance" in terms of glare for incoming drivers.

Cheers,

A6sport

Me too!

slcbanker

Re Bumper: I've scraped the bottom of the front bumper/bumper cover more times than I can count. I finally caught the bottom on parking barrier and pulled it loose when I backed up. Cost to replace both (and according to the dealer that's what it needed) $1,300. The dealer couldn't do it, but got me the parts and I found a body shop that specialized in German cars. Great job, but I'm much more respectful of the low bumper.

BernieBenz

How do you know that they are properly adjusted? Any DIY check and adjust procedure?

Egil A64.2s - S6

I don't have any problems with people flashing me.

dt911

This is a very comprehensive refinishing kit that people have posted about here. I have had excellent results with this kit, but it will take you 2+ hours per headlight to do it right. I think some of the people who complain about the refinishing kits try to rush the job.
If you do decide to replace your housings, you really should wait until you have the bumper off. You'll never get the dreaded "3rd bolt" back in place without the bumper cover off.<ul><li><a href="https://www.micro-surface.com/default.cfm?page_id=175#50">https://www.micro-surface.com/default.cfm?page_id=175#50</a</li></ul>

muzzy996

I've done it on mine with the headlights in.

AND it doesn't take 2 hours per light. More like 45 minutes to an hour. If the restoration portion of the process is taking 2 hours you may have started with too fine of a grit, or didn't work a particular stage long enough OR are just being very cautious :-) .

The main issue in the process that has the potential for making it take longer is making sure that you've removed the marks made be the previous grit of paper before proceeding to the next. The concept of doing each grit in a particular direction (i.e. start with 220 for example in up/down, then go to 400 in left/right) greatly aides in this. If during a stage you see marks perpendicular to the direction you're going then those marks are from the prior stage. IF on the other hand you see marks parallel to what you're doing and they are from a coarser stage then you're going to have to put a heck of a lot of time during that current stage to get those out because they were done 2 stages ago (and the grit you're using now is not as capable of getting those out as the grit you used in between these two stages). Hope this makes sense.

For mine, I popped the hood, taped off the painted surfaces around the light and ran a hose over the top of the engine compartment to trickle water down the top of the headlight. When I felt each stage was done I stopped and removed the water, dried the lens well and inspected my work.

This $13 kit is WELL WORTH IT. It's a bit nerve racking to try it at first but you won't be disappointed with it once you're done. Just make sure to check to see if the lens you're doing has a protective film on it. If it does, see about removing that first before attempting to wet sand it.

Here's a link to my before/after photos.<ul><li><a href="http://www.pbase.com/muzzy996/audi">Link</a></li></ul>