••ü•• Upgrading from other Kits to Predator Chromium

We've seen an increase of the number of people dropping by our shop of late upgrading their older kits to the Chromium.

Andrew - one of the more patient guys out there let us do some photography work to attempt to capture his rationale for changing out.

There are a number of things that really need to be described so that you guys doing the work yourselves or asking shops to do them understand prior to undertaking this.

As I've always come across as a bit "harsh" in my critique of both other kits and other installation work by "professionals" - I'm hoping that Andrew will chime in with his assessment in his own words after this is posted.

Car:
Andrew's Car is a BMW Individual E46 M3 Silverstone with black interior and 6spd.

Previous Installation
Installer did very good clean wiring work. Very quality work in general with a couple of key improvements that would have made the install much cleaner and better.

The installer broke the backing of the CWP Washer that attaches to the lower trim piece. A point of note BE EXTRA CAREFUL with these. Do not exert pressure on the trim pieces directly, make sure to pop out the washer FIRST if you are doing an install on a CWP car.

The installer incorrectly (though I can see how it was done and do not hold him responsible as this car was particularly troublesome) pushed in the trim piece attachment clips (bending and almost breaking each on the respective sides so that the trim piece was not properly aligned with the headlight.

Installer did a very clean and quaity job of wiring the switch.

Installer should not have used tape (although given the kit's low quality mounting) to hold the clips in place. The problem he tried to solve for the kit that was used is the kit's clips move around and over time will degrade and fall apart - even if the install is done properly. Installer attempted to fix what was really unfixable. Not his fault.

The Old
eBay kit, made by a company called RaceDash (a company that we use for a variety of other products unrelated to BMW ones), very pervasive and our most changed out kit by far.

The kit in real life clearly displays that not all kits are created equally.

New Install
Click on this to get a large image for a real close up of the differences.


What the picture doesn't clearly show is:
The Chromiums are about 1.5X brighter than the eBay kit.
The Chromiums fit more cleanly around the headlights and are all similarly sized.
The Chromiums mount more securely.
The Chromiums are a stronger, whiter color.
The Chromiums look much better when off.
The Chromiums have a chrome backing which truly eliminates all the eyeball effect (especially when a side by side is taken - look at the middle image).

In Summary
We have done a breakdown of the Predator Chromium kit as it compares to each and every other kit on the market. It's not just marketing fluff - we really believe that our product is the best and we have pictures to prove it

In real life, these rings are vastly different than the photos make them out to be and while the components "appear" similar, the quality of materials both inside and out when held in your hands, the ease of installation, the features, and the overall experience is vastly different.

Take the time to look through and make your decisions wisely. We're not the cheapest by any stretch and we don't try to be.
This is possibly the last installment of the series of comparisons. If you need a link to others, please let us know.

Just a quick plug and a big to Umnitza for their Predator Chromiums.

I didn't switch from older Angel Eyes but just installed their Predator Chromiums and have been extremely happy.

Great quality, fast service and excellent support.

Predator Chromiums.....

no places around me install these. DA*MN i would buy theses if they did. Man they look Good.!!!

its a very easy install most of the time it takes only an hr maybe 2 at the max going very slowly. if a friend helps definately an hr or less.

Josh

What about a breakdown of the "C"raptors vs. Chromiums? I guess the thing is that you would have to get the other kit to work (cold or warm weather)

Originally Posted by jtkun

What about a breakdown of the "C"raptors vs. Chromiums? I guess the thing is that you would have to get the other kit to work (cold or warm weather)

you have to sign up and be a member but yes.
http://www.unitedbimmer.com/forums/l...p-edition.html

i think the other ones are alright, i got some from ebay and made my own cheap wiring kit w/o the remote activated lighting, i mean it was decent and i would have been ok with them. im not 100% sure but i think they were brighter too. but, it was kinda like thin-lines with a clear plastic cover, no OEM style grids or chrome backing. overall it was good but i upgraded to chromiums too! my cousin wants a 4300k pair, any way to cut him a deal?

We have 4500K in stock and ready to ship. Have him call.

Originally Posted by Bimm325i

no places around me install these. DA*MN i would buy theses if they did. Man they look Good.!!!

If this is near Bavarian HyperSport - he does a lot of work for us as well.
What about Plano? Is that close?

Bump for those that didn't see.

<=[ I'm installing RDash DDE's this Wednesday... you make me sad...

Originally Posted by umnitza

If this is near Bavarian HyperSport - he does a lot of work for us as well.
What about Plano? Is that close?

BHS is about 3 hours away from round rock. It's in north houston. But you will hear nothing but positives about their work!

Very nice Matt

Originally Posted by Bimm325i

no places around me install these. DA*MN i would buy theses if they did. Man they look Good.!!!

dude you're in round rock, i'm in austin, PM me, I can help you out. I'm not an advanced installer or anything by no means, but I have these Chromiums on my car and could HELP you through step by step. Key word is HELP, so you'd actually have to be willing to do the install, I would help and assist any way possible.

WoW...you're so nice...I wish someone would HELP me like that...I asked a local, but he didn't reply

I bought my kit about a year ago and my entire right side DDEs are lights out. How much is a replacement ballast or is it warrantied? Seems way to soon for it to be blown.

Thanks.

Originally Posted by Tennisboi25

WoW...you're so nice...I wish someone would HELP me like that...I asked a local, but he didn't reply

You have a light that needs baking. Most guys dont' want to take responsibility for that.

yah, I noticed
well...I'm counting on you Umnitza , see you in two days

see you today