Ml350 lighting

Hi there new to the forum. Been lurking here for a bit and just want to confirm what I think I've learned by running some questions past you guys.

my wife drives a 2008 Mercedes ml350 with the standard (halogen) lighting. I believe both hi and Lo beams are H7 bulbs, not sure of the light's projector or reflector configuration. After a bulb recently burned out,I just threw in an oem replacement, but at the same time realized I had never been happy with the lighting on this vehicle.

After lurking around here it seems like the consensus is upgrading to Osama rallye 65w is the best choice? Is this correct? Should I worry about the extra electrical draw? Is the Phillips xtreme vision the best bet at 55w? Is there that much of a difference between these two? Any other recommendations?Should I also upgrade the high beams while I'm at it?

finally, the fog lights on this vehicle are pretty worthless (which goes without saying around here I guess). I live in a suburban area with little lighting and lots of deer that like to hang out just off the road. Is there an upgrade to the existing fog lights that would be useful in giving me more vision off the sides, a wider throw? Can I replace them with something like the hella micro de? Would the low beam upgrade be enough of an improvement to mitigate this issue?

sorry for all the questions but there's a lot of info out there and not all of it is good. Just trying to do the right thing after spending $30 on a couple oem bulbs that give the same terrible lighting.
thanks!

Welcome to this board. The Osram or Flosser H9-with-H7-base bulb (however it's labelled as to wattage) is the highest-output bulb that can be used in your ML350's high and low beams, and they make a large difference for the better. The increase in wattage is small enough not to cause problems, and the bulb is completely optically compatible with your headlamps (which have extremely tight control of glare, so no concerns there, either). The Philips Xtreme Vision is the best 55-watt H7.

The fog lamps should almost never be switched on. Despite common misuse and what it feels like, they are not for "giving you more vision off the sides, a wider throw" in clear weather -- they are for creeping along at very low speeds in weather so bad you can't see the lane lines with the regular headlamps. There is no bulb you can swap into them that will make them beneficial in clear weather. Micro DEs would not be an improvement.

But with all that being said, even with standard bulbs the lights in your ML350 can't reasonably be called "terrible". Objectively they're good. It's very important to make sure they're aimed correctly, though, or you won't be able to see well.

Thanks for the quick reply and info. I suppose "terrible" might be a bit strong but in comparison to our other (older) car with HID's that turn where you steer, the contrast is quite noticeable.

So the fog lights are basically worthless then? Un-upgradeable? I guess upgrading the headlight bulbs and driving with the hi beams on whenever possible is the best solution. Just for comparisons sake, would anyone know the specs on the oem Mercedes bulbs In lumens and life expectancy? I believe they're osram-sylvania pieces but I could be wrong.
thanks again

Luckydog said:

Thanks for the quick reply and info. I suppose "terrible" might be a bit strong but in comparison to our other (older) car with HID's that turn where you steer, the contrast is quite noticeable.

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Yes, with that comparison it's reasonable to feel like the fixed headlamps aren't as good as the steerable ones.

So the fog lights are basically worthless then?

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Yes.

Un-upgradeable?

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There's nothing that will make them genuinely useful.

I guess upgrading the headlight bulbs and driving with the hi beams on whenever possible is the best solution.

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Yes.

Just for comparisons sake, would anyone know the specs on the oem Mercedes bulbs In lumens and life expectancy?

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A standard H7 bulb's rating at 12.8 volts is 1350 lumens, whereas the H9 (no matter which style of base it has) at the same 12.8 volts puts out 2000 lumens. Lifespan (Tc) for a standard H7 is about 550 hours, for an H9 is about 500 hours -- both figures at 13.2 volts.

Several times here lately, I've seen "fog lights" and "deer alongside the road" mentioned together. Wife wanted the Corolla today, so I drove the Crown Vic with StarrHID headlights and Cibie Booster Beam auxiliary low beams. Low + Booster Beams is almost as useful as high beam. I'm thinking a good auxiliary low beam might make a lot of sense in deer country. Also, that beam pattern can be useful in light to moderate fog, where you're not really ready for fog lights but there's too much reflected light for high beams.

It may be difficult to alter many of today's vehicles with their built-in fogs to auxiliary low beams, but I'm not entirely ruling it out.
Your thoughts?

Luckydog said:

Hi there new to the forum.

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Welcome to the CandlePowerForums!

my wife drives a 2008 Mercedes ml350 with the standard (halogen) lighting.

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An model year '08 vehicle could have been built in '07 -- I hope the vehicle is garage-kept and/or in a northern latitude, because the lenses of the lamps themselves may be a bit clouded/hazed/crazed. It might even be time for new ones.

sorry for all the questions

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One way learn is by asking. There's also a great forum "Google Search" in the upper-left-- chances are, someone's already asked, and the answer's here to find.

but there's a lot of info out there and not all of it is good.

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So very true. (Although to me, if it's not good information, it's not information.)

Luckily, much more of the good info is right here in our Automotive, Motorcycles Included forum. Most of the vehicle-specific forums (like for Toyota or Audi or Mercedes, or any number of other popular cars) can be overrun by very vocal people with very bad advice. -Virgil- does a great job of keeping that sort of thing curtailed, here.

Hamilton Felix said:

It may be difficult to alter many of today's vehicles with their built-in fogs to auxiliary low beams, but I'm not entirely ruling it out.

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Often, fog lamps are mounted much too low for an auxiliary low beam to be useful at that same height. The sportier cars tend to have their fog lamps mounted really low. And then there's finding an auxiliary low beam that actually fits in the same spot that the factory fog lamps fit in. Even then, high beams are probably more effective than lows + auxiliary lows. (I have the Hella XL auxiliary low beams on my Previa, but those are for access-controlled highways with moderate traffic. Once in the sticks, high beams are still usually more useful).

Oh, I forgot about the height thing. My aux lows are mounted on a handy piece of angle iron (bolted to the handy police push bars that remain on the car), with their centers about 19.5 to 20 inches above the road (headlight centers are about 27 to 27.5 height).

I hear you about about limited access roads and light traffic. I usually travel winding two lane blacktop in steep, forested country. And this time of year, I nearly have the highway to myself. When I can't quite use high, and no other cars are close, the aux lows do help. Naturally, they can't reach as far as high beams, but they help see the sides of the road.

I was once discussing spotlight options with an ambulance manufacturer. They prefer to avoid pillar mounted lights if possible, because they compromise the strength of the A-pillar. But they said there was no question with a customer in Alaska. SOP on calls was aiming the spotlights down the ditches to spot moose. We can't do that, but I have come to appreciate a little extra light alongside the road. I am coming to appreciate driving beams that have some width, where in the past I tended toward pencil beams.

I looked up that 2008 ML350 and see it's a nice small SUV. The factory fogs don't look extremely low, but they look small. I'm not sure what options might exist to fit that space. Obviously, the best possible bulbs in fresh clean factory headlights is the starting point. It looks like much beyond that would require some sort of "brush bar" (or maybe a Carr Light Wing) to hold the lights, and that would significantly alter appearance.