LED lights PDLS+
01-19-2017, 04:27 AM
#1
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LED lights PDLS+
I'm four days into ownership of my Carrera S loaded with goodies. It is sensational. One option I ticked was LED lights PDLS+ in black. If I'm honest I did this as much for aesthetics as anything else because I think these lights look fantastic on the car (I know this is a moot point for some).
Having now driven a couple of hundred miles in the dark I think these lights have become one of my all time favourite options. I'm simply blown away by how good they are. The light is just so white and strong and the way they constantly adapt to traffic, speed and surroundings is just amazing. They haven't once done anything I wouldn't have asked for manually. Actually that's a small lie - I had to intervene to save a lone cyclist from being blinded but that's it. The way the lights continually adjust to oncoming/following traffic is exceptional and the breadth and reach of the beam is unlike anything I've experienced on a car before.
I never thought I could get excited about headlights but I am genuinely blown away here. I wouldn't hesitate prospective buyers to strongly consider this option if funds allow. They add a significant extra layer of safety and it's new technology at its best. Worth every penny.
Having now driven a couple of hundred miles in the dark I think these lights have become one of my all time favourite options. I'm simply blown away by how good they are. The light is just so white and strong and the way they constantly adapt to traffic, speed and surroundings is just amazing. They haven't once done anything I wouldn't have asked for manually. Actually that's a small lie - I had to intervene to save a lone cyclist from being blinded but that's it. The way the lights continually adjust to oncoming/following traffic is exceptional and the breadth and reach of the beam is unlike anything I've experienced on a car before.
I never thought I could get excited about headlights but I am genuinely blown away here. I wouldn't hesitate prospective buyers to strongly consider this option if funds allow. They add a significant extra layer of safety and it's new technology at its best. Worth every penny.
01-19-2017, 07:22 AM
#2
Rennlist Member
I concur...I really like these...amazing!
01-19-2017, 09:05 AM
#3
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Geez, I have these lights on my 16 and have not noticed them being anything better than the Xenon I had on my 2014, aesthetics aside. I do like the 4 point light.
01-19-2017, 09:24 AM
#4
I am concentrating all my spare time selecting the right options for my march allocation GTS Cabriolet,
and when I have just convinced myself that I can live without PDLS+, and that black basic PDLS is just as nice looking, I see this post. Such timing.
and when I have just convinced myself that I can live without PDLS+, and that black basic PDLS is just as nice looking, I see this post. Such timing.
01-19-2017, 09:49 AM
#5
Now that I am older, good lighting at night is a must. These are worth the price for sure.
01-19-2017, 10:31 AM
#6
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I'm sure not having them on the car is something you won't miss ultimately but I've got to stand by my original post and say again that they really are incredible and have turned out to be an option I would spec every time from now on.
01-19-2017, 10:52 AM
#7
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This was one of the things on my would-really-like-to-have list when I was shopping CPOs and I was lucky enough to find a car that had it along with my other must-haves. I think whether or not anyone else wants them depends on three things:
- If you drive almost completely in the city at night its not such a big deal I'd guess. At night in the countryside the evenly bright and strong light field, especially with high beams, really gives you great long distance visibility. I don't know how the 991 xenon's compare to the 997.2 ones, but these are markedly better than my 997.2 xenons.
- The automatic high beam behavior seems like fluff at first, but again, in the countryside at night it is really really good at doing its job and sensing other cars that could be affected with its in-windshield camera (either traveling in the same direction or away from you... it detects taillights as well as headlights). It also considers the field width of the beam when deciding when to dim. Overall, I think this increases nighttime safety since it is always on high beam (unless turned off) as soon as possible.
- I personally like the more distinctive DRL pattern...but I understand some prefer the more standard look of the normal headlight DRL eyebrows.
BTW, if you really want to dazzle your eyes sometime, force the high beams on at night and go stand a ways in front of the car. These high beams are bright so it is good to dim them for pedestrians and bicyclists by hand if you encounter them
- If you drive almost completely in the city at night its not such a big deal I'd guess. At night in the countryside the evenly bright and strong light field, especially with high beams, really gives you great long distance visibility. I don't know how the 991 xenon's compare to the 997.2 ones, but these are markedly better than my 997.2 xenons.
- The automatic high beam behavior seems like fluff at first, but again, in the countryside at night it is really really good at doing its job and sensing other cars that could be affected with its in-windshield camera (either traveling in the same direction or away from you... it detects taillights as well as headlights). It also considers the field width of the beam when deciding when to dim. Overall, I think this increases nighttime safety since it is always on high beam (unless turned off) as soon as possible.
- I personally like the more distinctive DRL pattern...but I understand some prefer the more standard look of the normal headlight DRL eyebrows.
BTW, if you really want to dazzle your eyes sometime, force the high beams on at night and go stand a ways in front of the car. These high beams are bright so it is good to dim them for pedestrians and bicyclists by hand if you encounter them
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01-19-2017, 12:13 PM
#8
+1 on the PDL+ package. Got to try it out on the ride home from picking up the car and was really impressed. I used to add halogen driving lights to all my cars and sort of gave that up when I got one with HID headlights. But these LEDs take nighttime lighting to another level and the automatic dimming really works quite well. As bright as the LEDs are auto-dimming makes more sense - I'm pretty convinced that I really don't want to night-blind a driver coming in the opposite direction!
01-19-2017, 02:52 PM
#9
Rennlist Member
This was one of the things on my would-really-like-to-have list when I was shopping CPOs and I was lucky enough to find a car that had it along with my other must-haves. I think whether or not anyone else wants them depends on three things:
- If you drive almost completely in the city at night its not such a big deal I'd guess. At night in the countryside the evenly bright and strong light field, especially with high beams, really gives you great long distance visibility. I don't know how the 991 xenon's compare to the 997.2 ones, but these are markedly better than my 997.2 xenons.
- The automatic high beam behavior seems like fluff at first, but again, in the countryside at night it is really really good at doing its job and sensing other cars that could be affected with its in-windshield camera (either traveling in the same direction or away from you... it detects taillights as well as headlights). It also considers the field width of the beam when deciding when to dim. Overall, I think this increases nighttime safety since it is always on high beam (unless turned off) as soon as possible.
- I personally like the more distinctive DRL pattern...but I understand some prefer the more standard look of the normal headlight DRL eyebrows.
BTW, if you really want to dazzle your eyes sometime, force the high beams on at night and go stand a ways in front of the car. These high beams are bright so it is good to dim them for pedestrians and bicyclists by hand if you encounter them
- If you drive almost completely in the city at night its not such a big deal I'd guess. At night in the countryside the evenly bright and strong light field, especially with high beams, really gives you great long distance visibility. I don't know how the 991 xenon's compare to the 997.2 ones, but these are markedly better than my 997.2 xenons.
- The automatic high beam behavior seems like fluff at first, but again, in the countryside at night it is really really good at doing its job and sensing other cars that could be affected with its in-windshield camera (either traveling in the same direction or away from you... it detects taillights as well as headlights). It also considers the field width of the beam when deciding when to dim. Overall, I think this increases nighttime safety since it is always on high beam (unless turned off) as soon as possible.
- I personally like the more distinctive DRL pattern...but I understand some prefer the more standard look of the normal headlight DRL eyebrows.
BTW, if you really want to dazzle your eyes sometime, force the high beams on at night and go stand a ways in front of the car. These high beams are bright so it is good to dim them for pedestrians and bicyclists by hand if you encounter them
01-19-2017, 03:03 PM
#10
Burning Brakes
I need to do some more driving at night to see if I can really tell a difference. But so far during my few months of ownership, I haven't been like, wow, this is game changing. I do love the exterior appearance though.
01-19-2017, 05:56 PM
#11
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I really like the PDLS Plus, once I figured out how to turn the "plus" on.
01-19-2017, 07:44 PM
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02-10-2017, 11:53 PM
#14
Got a question for you guys out there. I understand that the PDLS Plus lights for the US are different from the European version. The US gets high and low beams while the Euro version will actually change configurations and alignments based on the on-coming traffic. Check You Tube for BMW intelligent LED lights I believe. Does anybody know is this just a software change? Is this anything that we can program in or do we need new hardware? And if true - thank you Uncle Sam for hobbling superior technology!
02-11-2017, 08:55 AM
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I'm four days into ownership of my Carrera S loaded with goodies. It is sensational. One option I ticked was LED lights PDLS+ in black. If I'm honest I did this as much for aesthetics as anything else because I think these lights look fantastic on the car (I know this is a moot point for some).
Having now driven a couple of hundred miles in the dark I think these lights have become one of my all time favourite options. I'm simply blown away by how good they are. The light is just so white and strong and the way they constantly adapt to traffic, speed and surroundings is just amazing. They haven't once done anything I wouldn't have asked for manually. Actually that's a small lie - I had to intervene to save a lone cyclist from being blinded but that's it. The way the lights continually adjust to oncoming/following traffic is exceptional and the breadth and reach of the beam is unlike anything I've experienced on a car before.
I never thought I could get excited about headlights but I am genuinely blown away here. I wouldn't hesitate prospective buyers to strongly consider this option if funds allow. They add a significant extra layer of safety and it's new technology at its best. Worth every penny.
Having now driven a couple of hundred miles in the dark I think these lights have become one of my all time favourite options. I'm simply blown away by how good they are. The light is just so white and strong and the way they constantly adapt to traffic, speed and surroundings is just amazing. They haven't once done anything I wouldn't have asked for manually. Actually that's a small lie - I had to intervene to save a lone cyclist from being blinded but that's it. The way the lights continually adjust to oncoming/following traffic is exceptional and the breadth and reach of the beam is unlike anything I've experienced on a car before.
I never thought I could get excited about headlights but I am genuinely blown away here. I wouldn't hesitate prospective buyers to strongly consider this option if funds allow. They add a significant extra layer of safety and it's new technology at its best. Worth every penny.