[NocturnalEVO]

Hey guys,

Getting a little frustrated here.. trying to figure out what I should do.


A few week ago I purchased a set of amber PY24W led bulbs for my e92 from high performance bulbs .com It seems that the bulb doesn't sit very well on the carrier/socketcap, it does not "lock" into the carrier/socketcap.. Every time i turn the cap into the headlight, the bulb just comes out of the carrier and nothing gets locked in.


Starting on the driver side... after trying to install it a few times (quite gently mind you), the prongs on the base of the bulb, that lock into the carrier/socketcap broke. Great!

So i figured perhaps I was a little too rough with them. My fault maybe.
So i put the stock bulb back in and decided to move onto the passenger side and try with the other bulb. Same issue this time, with the bulb not locking into the carrier/socketcap all the way.
Being even more careful and gentle this time. It would just not lock into place. While gently attempting to rotate/lock it into place, it also broke.

Got pissed, plug the stock bulb back in, went back inside, and ordered another 2 bulbs (same vendor).

A few days later the new bulbs arrived. Inspected the bulbs a little closer this time.. it appeared 1 of the 2 was built a little better as the soldered-metal connection points were not flimsy and weren't moving around as I had noticed on the previous 2 bulbs.

Got the fender liner pulled aside and started again. This time (using the better of the 2 bulbs) the driver side locked perfect fine into the carrier/socketcap and installed just as easily. Zero issues. Success!

Onto the passenger side now..
Ran into the same problem again..bulb would not lock properly into the carrier/socket cap. Despite super super careful, it broke yet again. Now I got really pissed.. because it's not freakin' rocket science, its a simple procedure and I know for a fact i'm being very delicate with the bulbs.. now I'm convinced the plastic part of the bulb is just of inferior quality.

Now I considered purchasing from another vendor, but then decided to stick with the same one because I didn't want to buy 1 additional bulb from another brand and risk both bulbs not lighting up exactly the same (i.e., one being brighter than the other). Being that I had received one GOOD bulb from them that worked great and fit perfect, I chalked it up to the fact that maybe I had just gotten bulbs from a bad batch. I figured I'd give them another shot, and just order one more.

(i thought of complaining to the vendor about the quality of the bulbs, but I believed it was going to be difficult to prove, and most likely would not get anywhere, especially over a pair of just bulbs)

So I ordered 1 more. Few days later, got it in the mail. Pulled the pass side fender liner apart and got to work. Inspected the bulb, and to my dismay.. it appeared to be just like one of the crappy ones I had gotten prior. The soldered metal-plug portion of it was flimsy and wiggling. Being super super super careful, again it would not lock into place.

So I started thinking perhaps it doesn't need to lock into place all the way, maybe as far as it goes is good enough. So i tried to seat it that way into the headlight numerous times, it just wasn't working.. and the bulb would keep coming out of the carrier/socket cap and nothing would stay in place.
I decided to go online and watch the video again that shows how to install the py24w bulb, and it clearly states the bulb needs to lock all the way into the carrier/socketcap. So I tried again.. and lo and behold.. breaks again.

Now i'm super pissed and cursing at everyone. This is like $90 in broken bulbs (having paid $30+ each time i ordered for one bulb).

So i'm at my wits end.. do I order another from them again? Do I order a new set all together from another vendor? Not trying to bash the vendor or anything, but I know its definitely the bulbs and not me.

Any suggestions?
Sorry for the long rant.. I'm just super annoyed.


Here are pics that will show what I'm referring to..

[onesuperboi]

My passenger side broke as well (same bulb). But, somehow I made it stick to the base. I don't remember the details since it was so long ago. But, I want you to know you weren't the only one.

[NocturnalEVO]

thank you

[nitehawk]

Dude, I feel your pain. I also had issues getting the the HPB PY24W's into my old e92 335i. The base felt much flimsier than the oem ones. First one kept coming out of the base but eventually I got it in after a few tries. Second bulb, the wire detached from the base of the bulb
I managed to solder it on again and install it, but my soldering lasted a few months before the wire detached again.

I removed them when I got rid of my old 335i. Contacted HPB and they were nice enough to send me a replacement. I did, however, have to mail them the defective bulb first. You should have contacted them right away, they will definitely take care of you.

I've got another e92 now and am not looking forward to installing them again

[gdgraham]

I have the same bulbs and had the same exact problems. I went through 2 pair. I finally ended up getting it after several days. Give yourself plenty of room to work with and peel the liner back as far as possible. I had to use two hands at the same time. I pressed on the base of the bulb at the top and bottom at the same time and then used my other hand to rotate the bulb. I found out if there isn't equal pressure over the base then it won't line up and you can try and turn it all day but it will just break again. I also used a little but of rubbing alcohol and rubbed it around the rubber seal to let it turn easier and it worked first try. Use something that will dry relatively quickly without leaving any residue to make sure you have a good seal.