How to Bimmercode VLD and Anti-Dazzle (GFHB) with your adaptive LED headlights

[rockyfeller]

Nice! Great to hear. You're welcome. Yeah, so many things about this car make me say "wow" on a regular basis. Best car I've owned.

[A3ch]

Easily the coolest part of the car for me. Haven't touched the light switch since I coded this. Thanks for the info.

[rockyfeller]

Nice! You're welcome. Yeah, it's totally 100% automatic headlight control. Even with cornering lights. Makes the car still feel as fresh as any current year car and maybe even better.

[Saunders17283]

Originally Posted by rockyfeller

Nice! You're welcome. Yeah, it's totally 100% automatic headlight control. Even with cornering lights. Makes the car still feel as fresh as any current year car and maybe even better.

Any chance this works on a G series?

[rockyfeller]

No idea. But somewhere on a google search I could have sworn I saw a discussion on it. Google and see if you can find it.

[PaulM4]

Originally Posted by rockyfeller

If you research the threads on the forum, the general consensus seems to be that you just can't code in VLD (Variable Light Distribution) or anti-dazzle (GFHB - Glare Free High Beam) on our US market cars. Or that you have to pay someone to code it for you. I think most people don't realize the real answer is YES!! You can code it in! So I think it warranted a new thread that can be searched and found more clearly from now on.

As many of you know, these features are activated on BMWs in many parts of the world. Here in the US, it's been intentionally coded out due to weird government regulations. There are so many threads on this subject, so it took a lot of time to find the answer. It was buried deep in the pages of our forums. I tried out the coding a year ago and come to find out it works like a charm! (yes I know, I should have posted this thread a LONG time ago. Just didn't get to it, don't kill me!) So over the last year, I've tested it quite a bit under all kinds of conditions. It's pure genius. Headlights work so seamlessly and everything is automatic; I never even think about it. I've never been flashed by oncoming traffic even once. Visibility, can't ask for more.

So first of all, you'll need Bimmercode, of course! Next, you will require an FLA/KAFAS camera on your car by the rearview mirror. If you have regular HID Xenon lights ONLY the VLD function will work for you. VLD will also work if you have adaptive LED headlights. It only works on your LOW BEAMS to move your headlights and position the beams on the road depending on steering angle and vehicle speed. Variable Light Distribution has several different modes of operation (this text is copied from another car platform, so not every detail mentioned will apply to the M5):

1 - City Light: Shallow and Very Wide Beam Pattern active from 0 - 50kph (30MPH) (Both Headlamps are Panned outwards 12 horizontal from center and 0.7 lowered vertically)

2 - Standard Light: Same Basic Beam Pattern as if the Headlamp Switch Set to Auto. Active from 50 - 110kph (30MPH - 68MPH)

3 - Guiding Fog Light - Shallow and Wider Beam Pattern Enabled with the Front Fog Lamps On and Headlamp Switch in Auto and Speed 0 - 110kph (Both headlamps are panned outwards 8 horizontal from center and lowered 0.7 vertically)

4 - Highway Light - Long Throw Pattern illuminating approx. 25% further than Standard Light. Active from 110 to 250kph (68MPH- 155MPH). (Driver's Side Headlamp is panned 3.5 outwards Horizontal from center and lowered 0.25 vertically, while the passenger side headlamp is raised 0.2 vertical)
(thank you to shawnsheridan!)

But if you have an LCI M5 (2014-2016), with the LED adaptive headlights, well now that means you can take full advantage of what you paid for and code in the anti-dazzle, GFHB. This will actively swivel the lights in different axis to avoid oncoming traffic while actually keeping the HIGH BEAMS on! GFHB will ONLY work with adaptive LED headlights, it will NOT work if you have HID Xenon lights.

Not only will this work on the M5 but it should work on any F10, F12, F13, F06, etc. This method may also work for other BMWs as well, but I can't confirm which models, please do your research. I've posted 2 different methods so that you can figure out which method works for you. Please READ CAREFULLY. This procedure does require you to use Bimmercode on Expert Mode. So proceed at your own risk!



Method 1:
Coding for 8S4 (VLD - works for both HID Xenons and LED adaptive lights):

Footwell Module > Expert Mode >

3073 LaMaster1 > LUT_FLC_FORWARDLIGHTING_Y > F025_mit_AFS > 0x9C,0x9C,0x9C (check this box)

3073 LaMaster1 > C_FLC_ENA > F025_enable > 0x01 (check this box)


Coding for 5AP (GFHB - works for LED adaptive lights ONLY):

Footwell Module > Expert Mode >

3073 LaMaster1 > C_HBA_ENA > F025_enable > 0x01 (check this box)

3073 LaMaster1 > C_HBA_GRHB_ENA > F025_ Highway_Standby_AFS > 0x01 (check this box)

3073 LaMaster1 > C_HBA_ADAPT_SHUT_ENA > F025_enable > 0x01 (check this box)

(thanks to drs4life@comcast!)



Method 2:
If for some reason you don't see these parameters on expert mode for your car then try the following alternative method for coding :


Coding for 8S4 (VLD - works for both HID Xenons and LED adaptive lights):

Front Electronic Module > Expert Mode >

3073 LaMaster1 > LUT_FLC_FORWARDLIGHTING_Y > 9C,9C,9C (Both)

3073 LaMaster1 > C_AFS_ENA > Enable (Both)


Coding for 5AP (GFHB - works for LED adaptive lights ONLY):

Front Electronic Module > Expert Mode >

3073 LaMaster1 > C_HBA_ENA > Enable (Both)

3073 LaMaster1 > C_HBA_GRHB_ENA > Highway_Standby_AFS

3073 LaMaster1 > C_HBA_ADAPT_SHUT_ENA > Enable

(Thanks to the members RobRed and AndrewC1989 from the M2 forum)



Note: You'll see two blue check marks next to some of these. Press the top one. It will uncheck the one below it. Now you can enable one of the two 'enable' options (if there are two). Back out. Go back in. Both correct selections should have the blue checkmark next to them.

Remember to keep your headlights dial in the "Auto" position. HBA (High Beam Assistant) is a feature that our US cars already have. With HBA, the high beams turn off in the presence of oncoming headlights or following taillights of other cars and automatically turns the high beams on if no other cars are present. For some reason, BMW has opted to make HBA operate with manual activation using a button on the turn signal stalk. The next time the car is restarted it resets to off position again. There is a coding parameter on Bimmercode that allows HBA to automatically activate every time you restart the car. Manual operation is still possible in order to turn HBA off for some reason if you'd want. I'd highly recommend coding this in as well.

There has been controversy with some members in the past about whether you should or shouldn't do this so it's up to you. But I don't see why not! You'll wish you did it sooner! Enjoy your car as BMW intended.

Good luck guys, enjoy!

are these work with F82 ? I have FLA camera . Thank you

[rockyfeller]

I don't know, I haven't personally tried it. Perhaps someone else who has from the F8X community can chime in.

I'd imagine if you took a look and tried to find the same parameters you would. Or something that looks close. If it's drastically different or certain parameters are totally missing, I wouldn't even try.

But if it seems like it's fairly close to what is described here, you could give it a try and see what happens. Most of us have learned things by calculated trial and error. As with all "expert" coding, make SURE you make a BACKUP in case it does screw up and it should restore right back to how it was before. Try at your own risk though, if you don't feel comfortable about that maybe it's not worth it.

[rockyfeller]

BTW guys, if this has worked on any other platforms, besides the ones described on this thread, pay it forward; just reply on this thread so we know. It will be helpful to other forum members who come across this thread.

[genny852]

I just did it with bimmercode but it seemed not working at all. I just drove around our town village but the high beam went off as usual when oncoming cars showup. I will try tomorrow morning but didn't notice any difference so far. Mine is f33 2018 430i with adaptive led lights.

Edited
It works good early in the morning on highway. Checked nobody get bothered. It was moving quickly to repositioning. Thanks a lot.

[Doctor_X]

Basically - when driving in town, your new features are overwhelmed by the multiple outside light interference and have no option but to turn brights off.

You won’t really appreciate the change until you get outside of town to a more consistent lighting environment.

Take a country drive tonight. You’ll love it!

[CrippledLucifer]

Would anyone happen to know if this will work on a 2016 535i as well? My car has adaptive LED headlights and I recently successfully coded in VLD which works staggeringly well. I can't believe BMW actually coded this feature out by default!

I have been doing a lot of research into enabling GFHB over the last couple of months since I purchased my vehicle but I've only found conflicting reports. The general consensus appeared to be that European spec adaptive LED headlights used a completely different headlight part number with different shutters and LED emitters to successfully use GFHB. Apparently the US/Canadian spec cars shipped with the "inferior" adaptive LED headlights. If this really works on my 535i, I'll be over the moon. I've been lusting after this feature ever since I saw the video posted earlier.

[rockyfeller]

Yea it should work on your 535i as well being that it's an F10. But as long as you have the LED Headlights package.

Yes I've read the threads you're talking about. Hence why I said in the 1st post that some people debate this coding and whether you should even do it. The rationale makes no sense. I've even heard people imply the headlights won't work right because they're meant for Euro spec and we drive on the opposite side of the road. Ummm no. Last I checked Germans drive on the same side. Lol. Don't confuse UK with the rest of Europe.

GFHB actually works, perhaps the naysayers should try it out first hand and see. Admittedly reality doesn't look as perfect as you see in the video. Namely the "tunneling" effect you get when following a car. Although the lights do move in the right directions and do tunnel, there isn't a hard cutoff as you see in the video. Still in my book it works to a fairly high degree.

Its hard to tell if that video has some digital enhancement in order to accentuate the GHFB effect for demonstration purposes or indeed that is raw video showing real LED lights in action. Also I haven't been in any heavy fog yet that would clearly show the light beams and what they're doing and how well it cuts off.

Are these "inferior" US spec lights? Could be. But I don't know how/why BMW would try to save a few cents on an option that they charge over $1k for. It's not as if these headlights are standard. I'd say it would make sense to them to make all LHD and RHD headlights the same from the money standpoint. I know someone said that they opened them up personally and know for sure. I won't argue with that because I haven't. So maybe. If so, I'm just saying it doesn't make much sense if they did that. If these were designed specifically for the US market then they shouldn't be codable at all.

The main reason GHFB is coded out intentionally is because of DOT regulations. Audi has had killer active headlights for years now. It's even more accurate in beam cutoff than BMW. Almost like a dot matrix. However we here in the US can't enjoy those either. Some of these archaic laws have to change for the new tech out there. As if the laws are there for safety. These smart headlights are actually safer! Laser lights and headlights that even project safety information on the road surface or highlight obstacles are the wave of the future. https://www.wired.com/2017/01/bad-au...nt-allowed-us/ I guess there isn't enough pressure and incentive to make a change. Car manufacturers are still making money upcharging them as an option. Yet they have to decode them. Lol. They know 98% of people don't know the difference or care that much. Except us.

I've done quite a bit of miles with this coding. Even if it's true that it doesn't work 100%, I'm happy. As you can see, everyone else who has coded these are. I haven't been high beamed even once by oncoming traffic. Yet that right side high beam stays on and let's me see far down the road. It tunnels when following cars adequately without bothering the car in front. In both modes it allows me to see street signs/possible obstacles on the right side of the road. In many ways it's a huge difference from being decided and in all a win-win situation.

[CrippledLucifer]

Originally Posted by rockyfeller

Yea it should work on your 535i as well being that it's an F10. But as long as you have the LED Headlights package.

Yes I've read the threads you're talking about. Hence why I said in the 1st post that some people debate this coding and whether you should even do it. The rationale makes no sense. I've even heard people imply the headlights won't work right because they're meant for Euro spec and we drive on the opposite side of the road. Ummm no. Last I checked Germans drive on the same side. Lol. Don't confuse UK with the rest of Europe.

GFHB actually works, perhaps the naysayers should try it out first hand and see. Admittedly reality doesn't look as perfect as you see in the video. Namely the "tunneling" effect you get when following a car. Although the lights do move in the right directions and do tunnel, there isn't a hard cutoff as you see in the video. Still in my book it works to a fairly high degree.

Its hard to tell if that video has some digital enhancement in order to accentuate the GHFB effect for demonstration purposes or indeed that is raw video showing real LED lights in action. Also I haven't been in any heavy fog yet that would clearly show the light beams and what they're doing and how well it cuts off.

Are these "inferior" US spec lights? Could be. But I don't know how/why BMW would try to save a few cents on an option that they charge over $1k for. It's not as if these headlights are standard. I'd say it would make sense to them to make all LHD and RHD headlights the same from the money standpoint. I know someone said that they opened them up personally and know for sure. I won't argue with that because I haven't. So maybe. If so, I'm just saying it doesn't make much sense if they did that. Main reason GHFB is coded out intentionally is because of DOT regulations. Audi has had killer active headlights for years now. It's even more accurate in beam cutoff than BMW. Almost like a dot matrix. However we here in the US can't enjoy those either. Some of these archaic laws have to change for the new tech out there. As if they're there for safety. These smart headlights are safer! Laser lights and headlights that even project safety information on the road surface or highlight obstacles are the wave of the future. I guess there isn't enough pressure and incentive to make a change. Car manufacturers are still making money upcharging them as an option. Yet they decode them. Lol. They know 98% of people don't know the difference or care that much. Except us.

I've done quite a bit of miles with this coding. Even if it's true that it doesn't work 100%, I'm happy. As you can see, everyone else who has coded these are. I haven't been high beamed even once by oncoming traffic. Yet that right side high beam stays on and let's me see far down the road. It tunnels when following cars adequately without bothering the car in front. In both modes it allows me to see street signs/possible obstacles on the right side of the road. In many ways it's a huge difference from being decided and in all a win-win situation.

Thank you so much for this write up, it's really reassuring.

My car indeed has the Adaptive LED headlight package along with the KAFAS camera. It also has the auto high beams so I think it's well worth a try. I will go ahead and try this coding out in a few days. I can always restore from a backup in case anything goes wrong so no real loss.

[Barry_S]

This is an excellent and thorough write up. Thanks for all of the detail.

I live out in the country and the additional visibility is appreciated. I've seen more deer since doing this mod then I knew existed on these roads.

It's amazing to observe how the adaptive lights respond to other traffic. Excellent technology!

Thanks.

[maron]

My 6series GFHB LED adaptive headlights

[kipawariver]

Originally Posted by Barry_S

This is an excellent and thorough write up. Thanks for all of the detail.

I live out in the country and the additional visibility is appreciated. I've seen more deer since doing this mod then I knew existed on these roads.

It's amazing to observe how the adaptive lights respond to other traffic. Excellent technology!

Thanks.

Did you also code your F15? If so was the coding the same?

[Barry_S]

Originally Posted by kipawariver

Did you also code your F15? If so was the coding the same?

I'm not able to code the F15. I don't have the same options on it. It doesn't have the auto highbeam or front camera.

[kipawariver]

Thanks, appreciated. I'm going to try my first coding with Bimmercode on the F15 today.

[A3ch]

Yeah my highbeams turn off if I'm behind someone or on a well lit road. When I'm on back roads or basically anywhere in Raleigh not ritzy or expensive to live (aka no street lights) its works exactly how the video touting the feature advertises. When I drive my wife's car I forget to turn her brights off (not to mention the lights on my car are way brighter).

[rockyfeller]

Are you sure you aren't referring to regular ol' HBA? Active cornering headlights that swivel on the curves is also old news. What we're talking about is GFHB on this thread, which really is a different animal. It's easy to misunderstand all these technologies and mix them up. Reread the OP.

If you're saying that your headlights operate GFHB as default stock on a US car, I doubt it. Unless a previous owner has coded it in, it's normally deactivated by BMW.

[maron]

Originally Posted by A3ch

Yeah my highbeams turn off if I'm behind someone or on a well lit road. When I'm on back roads or basically anywhere in Raleigh not ritzy or expensive to live (aka no street lights) its works exactly how the video touting the feature advertises. When I drive my wife's car I forget to turn her brights off (not to mention the lights on my car are way brighter).

If you have GFHB, adjusting the sensitivity will work even in bright streets

[rockyfeller]

^^yea, I'd have to say that the cutoff on my car definitely isn't as sharp as it is in that video. I'm sure that it's just the nature of it being a US spec car.

This was discussed earlier, but the notion that there may be some kind of better baffles/shutters inside on the non-US lights may indeed be correct. How else can the cutoff be that sharp?

At least we do have the same swivel action and correct positioning of the headlights in those same varied conditions. But there's undoubtedly a lot of difference in the way the beam cuts off.

So this seems to be a hardware issue and not a software issue. Congrats BMW. You saved $5 per headlight while we paid $1k+ for the privilege. Lol. As if we expected anything else. I guess there isn't anything we can do except change to euro headlights. Not worth it to me but it may be to some.

I'm happy with at least the reactivity that the software provides. It's still "anti-dazzle" which is the whole point point. Worth the minor effort to code in if you ask me.

It's all good. The future is laserlight anyways. MB is on that projector light technology and Audi on Matrix tech. I look forward to a major leap on my next car. (BMW, you taking notes?)