im sorta double posting (i put pics in the members rides section), but i wanted to give anyone a headsup who might be doing this.

Ok so i have had my e36 headlights for 9 or so months and they werent flush mounted and i was sick of how they looked. So i studied awsm66 and craig brace and james92se's pictures of their installs. i bought some headlight covers and went to town.

things to keep in mind, you can still use some of the current plastic lens of the e36, but way less than i or my dad thought. we actually only used a small amount of the sides and very little of the top. you can choose to not use any if you want, but it made it easier for us to line up the covers with the lens and making them flush. we test fit about 4 times to make sure the light output was correct and that the covers sat flush on with the hood and corners. also mine are not sealed on the sides completely, but they are fine from getting wet inside and are fine. I went this route as i couldnt think of an easy way to join the sides because of the difference in the e36s and maxima contours. but like i said its not a problem.

it took my dad and i about 14 hours total, but over the course of 3 days as we had other things going on and just worked on them when we had time but made it a priority. it can probably be done in a day, but we didnt rush. so im not really sure how long it will take you.

as far as light output its great.

ive only got a few pics right now, but ill take some more either tomorrow or in a couple days.




and from the front you can see how much clearer the lights look.
thats my dads 03 altima SE.

you can click on the pics for a larger view and see what i really mean by flush mounted. i gotta thank michael, craig and james for doing it before me and having great pictures.

i think i covered most of it, but if you got questions feel free to ask.

 

what yr r the headlights that fit on a 92 max

 

there is a lot of info out there. they are from 92-98 beamers. basically if you get them from an e-36 then youve got the right ones.

http://gregg-henry.com/gallery/E36-H...version?page=1
these are pics of me installing them, but here is a writeup on how to install them
www.geocities.com/bmwconversion/

check the stickies too for more info.

 

Congratulations on finally getting that done. Were they the wade covers??

 

i bought gts brand. clear, but you could use wade brand.

i forgot to say that i had to cut the covers in half, because they come ready to wrap around the whole headlight and corner light.

 

looks very good, congratulations on being one of just a handful of e36 headlight guys that have lights that look like they belong there.

 

Ive always wanted to do that but dont have the time and have other priorities on my Max but I may be getting rid of the Max in a while. We have 4 cars and 3 drivers so we are getting rid of our Sentra but trading it for a K5 Blazer or a 70 Chevelle I have to offers so Ive decided that if I can get the Chevelle I will and then we will still have 4 cars so I may have to part with the Maxima in a few months. Might be able to keep it but take it off insurance. My parents like to save money for no reason that I can see.

 

how much did you spend on the lights and the covers?

 

the covers where 50 shipped from a place in Cleveland. I bought the lights on the org a long time ago for 70 shipped, the lenses on the e36s were all scratched and what not, but i didnt care since i was going this route. i have sylvania silverstar bulbs which are not cheap. i think at walmart they are 40 bucks for one pair. and you need a pair of 9005 and a pair of 9006. Im not sure but i think mtnbikeair is still selling his e36s in the classifieds.

thanks for the comments guys.

you can also go the projector route like Dmad, hes got angel eyes and projectors in his and you could cut the glass housing out and do this mod as well.

 

now put projectors and HIDs in


trust me, it will make you want to drive the car at night.

 

haha yeah i drove my dads altima with HID's and i loved it. my output isnt near HID, but its good.

id love to do that, but im not sure ill be doing much more of anything with the maxima...its pretty much just a cool cruiser. i want some smoked corners but i think thats where ill stop.

 

projectors are heaven

 

NICE work!!! Looks super clean, as if they were made for 3rd gens.
A few Q's, how do you secure the GTS covers to the e36 housing after cutting the e36 lense?? Did you use some type of glue or silicone?? And you you have pics of the job, like how much of the e36 cover you had to cut?? thnx

 

i have a question to those out there with the projectors in the e-36 housing what bulbs are total bliss to make the projected 9005 bulbs look like xenons just wondering cuz i got the projectors but want that blue looking light from a ways away like xenon thanks. also is there a poormans hid project??

 

Sweeet. Looks great Gregg!

 

Meh I still say your a drop & rim 'ore!

j/p looks great! get some BBKs and stop in style!

Is that the bumper cover you got off me? Id take some pics you have and photoshop them to see what it would look like all white, to replace the lower parts of the body that are black.

~Alex

 

Good work. Now that's how they should look!

 

Thanks Jason!

Alex, no i still have that bumper sitting in a garage. im trying to find a pearl white bumper to just replace mine. ps dont send those corners to me.

ill take pictures for anyone who asked. it might be a day or two though. i used silicon and jb weld to adhere the two together and painted over the top make them look somewhat decent when the hood is up.

thanks to everyone for your compliments.

 

Ok, here are pictures of the brackets and my seal job on top.


bottom bracket. secured to headlights frame and the original two bottom screw holes from the E36s


top bracket, and you can see my seal job on the top, i didnt sand it as you wont see it unless i lift the hood.


top bracket on pass. side


a close up shot of the bottom bracket and how i secured it.


also i dont need to take out the headlights ever, changing bulbs i can do without. they dont shake when i hit bumps and they are really secure.

ok i hope thats enough info for anyone wanting to tackle this.

 

Nice car triple.....One of the nicest one's on here....Except for one thing....It's not green...

 

very nice work, makes me wish I kept mine but I was in a bad situation and needed money. Maybe another set but with the projectors/hid.

 

Hey man whered you get those covers? Brand, store, name?

 

well hello old thread


brand: gts
store: online somewhere
name: gregg

 

Double Og Triple Og,

how much electrical work did you do? Is it fairly simple? Or am I going to have to upgrade a few things to handle 9005s and 9006s?

 

na not hard. just follow the writeup.....you take the 9004s ground and run it to both the new 9005 and 9006 grounds and the high goes to one light, drivnig light to the other.....if you read it, its straight forward.

been awhile since i heard OG...triple OG.... haha

 

how did you get the grille to fit in. today i did the lights and they were perfect but the grille didn;t fit so we had to put the lights at an angle.

 

well its a lot easier to do if you do the flush mount like this topic is about. If not you just have to play with the position of the lights.

 

i'm going to see if i get the grille sanded down on the corners

 

badabing.....but even before i did the flush mounting they fit..but they aimed all funky.....they are great now.