Cracked NLA E36 headlight: WWGRMD?

Poop

Never heard what hit me, kinda surprised. These were Apexcone headlights and I can't find them anywhere. What would be the best thing to do to replace them? I know nothing about headlights/housings/etc.

I have a set of E36 M3 coupe headlights I can let you have for dirt cheap. They aren't fancy aftermarket, they are 20 year old factory plastic headlights. 

Do factory housings play well with HIDs? Would it be easier to backdate to halogens? I've been pretty happy with my HIDs but one of the ballasts is going out so I've had that expense hovering for a little while now. I'm not against spending a little money on this car. Not breaking the bank but good value parts.

buzzboy said:

Do factory housings play well with HIDs? Would it be easier to backdate to halogens? I've been pretty happy with my HIDs but one of the ballasts is going out so I've had that expense hovering for a little while now. I'm not against spending a little money on this car. Not breaking the bank but good value parts.

I never put HIDs into the factory housing. A lot of people (present company included) go with Depot Glass headlight replacements. Don't have to worry about the yellowing of the plastics. A lot of people also run HIDs in those housings as well with great results from the projectors and not break the bank. 

If you want new, I just checked RealOEM.com and it appears e36 headlight assemblies and headlight components are all still available from the factory.  I'm not familiar with Apexcone so I don't know what is different about the housing.

I’m surprised they don’t make those any more, I remember there were a bunch of apexcone and similar glass units being sold when I had my E36... but then, that was 13 years ago, yikes.

I bought used replacement OEM headlamps on Ebay for my M3 for under $50 each.

there does seem to be a dearth of them anymore. Have you tried ebay?

It looks like modbargains has them. I remember buying those for my E36. There were more vendors than you could shake a stick at back then.

Were they HID's or just glass EURO headlights?

I wouldn't mind looking into LED headlighs as well. Not sure too much on the way these things all work together. Which bulb types work with which housings and the wiring changes necessary. I'm very green to this subject matter.

ddavidv said:

I bought used replacement OEM headlamps on Ebay for my M3 for under $50 each.

Not a bad idea. I wonder how bad the wiring would be taking it back to stock. I haven't looked in years.

mad_machine said:

Have you tried ebay?

Those look sweet. I'll see if I can find any in the US. I don't know too much about e36 headlight fitment. I'd assume it's pretty universal but I hate assuming.

  TheGloriousW said:

Were they HID's or just glass EURO headlights?

Aftermarket projector housings with HIDs.

Depo headlights were going to be my choice but they're out of stock everywhere. Darn.

DirtyBird222 said:

I have a set of E36 M3 coupe headlights I can let you have for dirt cheap. They aren't fancy aftermarket, they are 20 year old factory plastic headlights. 

Do you have photos and price? I'm very interested. I've only got 1.5 months before this car goes into storage for the winter and I'd love to drive it as much as possible in that time.

The headlights are the same across Coupe', Sedan, hatchback, and wagon. The only E36 variant that had different headlights is the Z3. The thing that makes them look different is the side marker

The glad Depo ZKW knockoffs are all over ebay.  That's where I bought mine.  Very happy with the quality -- you can fit halogen, HID, or LED to the projector low-beams.  

Depo ZKW-style glass headlights on eBay.

The only thing to know about E36 headlight fitment is that it's a PITA to get them lined up perfectly and aimed perfectly, at least if you're a perfectionist.  That, and the side markers a different for the coupe vs sedan.  The side markers clip into the headlight assy, so they also stick out like a sore thumb if they're not lined up right.