NHTSA Complaint #10442869 — 2004 BMW 330I

I PURCHASED MY 2004 BMW 330I IN SEPT 2010, AT LEAST IN PART BECAUSE IT WAS ADVERTISED AS HAVING FACTORY INSTALLED XENON LIGHTS AND I HAVE ALWAYS WANTED BRIGHTER HEADLIGHTS THAN OTHER CARS I HAVE OWNED. WITHIN 3 MONTHS I WAS SO DISGUSTED WITH THE DIMNESS OF THOSE XENON'S THAT I PURCHASED 2 NEW D2S BULBS AND HAD THEM INSTALLED AT THE COST OF ABOUT $400. (I WAS TOLD THAT EVEN XENON'S "WEAR OUT" OVER TIME SO I FIGURED I WOULD BITE THE BULLET THIS ONE TIME) I FOUND RIGHT AWAY THAT THESE NEW BULBS WERE NO BETTER THAN I HAD BEFORE. AS A MATTER OF FACT, THE RIGHT SIDE LIGHTS SHINED AGAINST A WALL WERE ACTUALLY DIMMER THAN A D CELL FLASHLIGHT. I SUFFERED THOUGH TRYING TO DRIVE WITH MY PASSING LIGHTS ON AT NIGHT (YOU ACTUALLY HAVE TO HOLD THE HIGH BEAM STICK IN TO GET THESE LIGHTS TO STAY ON ) FOR A YEAR BEFORE I DECIDED TO REPLACE THE WHOLE HEADLIGHT ASSEMBLY BUT NO-ONE SELLS A REPLACEMENT FOR THE XENON EQUIPPED CARS. I THEN REMOVED THE ASSEMBLIES MYSELF AND WAS SHOCKED TO SEE CLEAR SIGNS OF BURNING OR CORROSION ON THE INSIDE OF THE REFLECTOR BOWLS. NO WONDER THE LIGHTS WOULD NOT SHINE ON THE HIGHWAY. IT IS SO BAD THAT EVERY TIME I AM PASSED ON THE HIGHWAY AT NIGHT I ACTUALLY SEE MY CAR'S SHADOW DIRECTLY IN FRONT OF ME FROM THE HEADLIGHTS OF THE CAR 50-100 FEET BEHIND ME. I NOW UNDERSTAND FROM FURTHER INVESTIGATION THIS IS AN ONGOING PROBLEM WITH ZKW HEADLIGHTS ON E46 BMW'S. I DO NOT HAVE THE TECHNICAL EXPERTISE OR EXTRA CASH TO FIX THESE DEFECTS. CAN YOU HELP?? NO ACCIDENTS OR INJURIES HAVE OCCURRED YET BUT I HAVE SEEN MANY PEDESTRIANS OR BIKERS AS I PASS THEM AT NIGHT ON THE SIDE OF THE ROAD THAT I NEVER SAW UNTIL I WAS NEXT TO THEM. *TR