Nobody tried or knows this?

 

The insides of the headlights are basically the same. You can swap the lenses between certain headlights. What car is the headlight from? What car is the headlight going in to? What lens are you planning to use?

 

I've got a 2001 e46 pre-facelift coupe with halogen headlights. I've seen original e46 facelift xenon headlights that sometimes are cheaper than 2nd hand original pre-facelift xenon headlights.

So the idea is to use my pre-facelift lenses ('cover' glasses) on the facelift headlight units.

I understood that at least for the pre-facelift only the lenses differ between coupe and sedans. So I figured if lenses are exchangeable between pre-facelift and facelift headlights then it doesn't matter whether the other headlights come from a coupe or a sedan. Since I have my own lenses of the my existing headlights.

Does that make any sense?

 

I think you'll be ok because facelift sedans have tabs you can use to open the headlight. I once boughtpre facelift coupe lights for my prefacelift sedan and just had to change the inner shroud and the lense.

Edit: the facelight coupe headlights arent compatable being that they need to be baked to open up.
Sent from my LG-P509 using Bimmer App

 

Ok, so coupe and sedan headlight lenses are exchangeable. Did you exchange the shrouds because of the colour or because it wouldn't fit otherwise? (btw i assume the shroud is the inner 'liner' just behind the lens and before the reflector)

But how about fitting a facelift headlight on a pre-facelift car? By means of lens swap.

 

Yea they are just swap the inner shroud between the lense and bowl and out the prefacelight lense on and you should be good!

Sent from my LG-P509 using Bimmer App

 

Ok, thanks for your response. I guess nobody actual exchanged anything between pre-facelift and facelift headlight units.

 

I may try this. I just bought a 2004 ZHP sedan that has aftermarket headlight assemblies in it. The owner included the factory lights in the purchase.

My daughter hit a deer in January and although the lenses on her '99 323i sedan made it out alive, the tabs and mounts didn't. I picked up and installed a used pair of aftermarket lights, but they are hideous. I am now considering putting her pre-facelift lenses on the facelift assemblies and trying them out.

 

Yeah, sometimes I'm just wondering why they bother to make some of those aftermarket headlights. I just bought 'matching' headlights, but I'm still curious whether they at exchangeable. Please, let me know the results.