Ricracing

The Xenon lamp gives about dubble the lightning effect as an ordinary 60 W halogen,
and has a different, blueish day-light and much brighter light.

The BMW Xenons actually consists of only one Xenon light with a mechanical cover.
The cover gets off in hi-beam.

The other inner lamp is a regular halogen, helping the Xenon to a even better high-beam
The H7 halogen is also used for flashing, because it takes some time for the Xenon light to
"wake up".

Depending on the market and model, thay can be standard or optional, but everybody who ordres a new E60 should get them!

BMW uses a tech with greater reflectors which makes them even better compared to some
other auto brands who use small lenses.

But should they really be called Bi-Xenons?
In my meaning Bi-Xenons are with double Xenon bulps.

See tech details here.

Peter530i

I guess the >>Bi-xenon<< where BI means two is used here as in means that you have the regular light in xenon and the high-beam light in xenon too. Pure language terminology. No technology description

This is actually used in the whole automotive industry. It is to distinguish what cars have just xenon as a regular light but no xenon light for hi-beam...........as opposed to bi-xenon cars who have xenon light for all the lights used while driving regardless the number of xenon sources or technology use.
It is simply more about terminology here then exact technology

Merv the Derv

I think they should as you get xenon on both beams regardless of there only being a single xenon source. A friend of mine has an X5 and that has xenon low beams only.

Rudy

Bi-Xenon is appropriate for our cars. As the others have said, it's not about how many bulbs, it's about whether they are used for low- and high-beams. I actually prefer the single-bulb with shutter setup on our cars. It makes everything less complex and it allows for a more precise aim -- especially with the adaptive system...

rautila

Practically all "bi-xenon" systems currently on the market have only one shared bulb for high and low beams. Similar arrangement in Audi, Mercedes, Volkswagen, and Volvo bi-xenons as well. A couple of years ago many xenons were low beam only, and when the combined high/low beam units were introduced they were called "bi-xenons".

The inner reflectors, aka "flash-to-pass" are conventional halogen high beams and they are lit together with the xenons when you ativate the high beam. This way you get instantly some high beam, because it takes some time for the mechanical shade to move to switch the xenons from low to high. Actually, 1/3 of high beam light intensity comes from the halogen and 2/3 from the xenon bulbs. Usually in conventional halogen systems both the low beam bulb and high beam bulb are on when you switch to high beam. However, Audi has screwed up their bi-xenon system in A6. The other set of reflectors is weaker than normal low beams used as daytime running lights. So they do not have a proper flash-to-pass, and they have a high beam based on the xenon light bulb only, not assisted by a halogen bulb. I have seen a comparison test where the reach and intensity of Audi A6 xenon high beams was clearly inferior compared with conventional all-halogen system in Volvo V70.

OliverB

Technical description ultra correct !
Practicly, it's working fine : pretty far ray of light, ideal colour (white) temperature.
But ... With highbeams, my sight is quite often disturbed by objects lightened in the air (trees, roofs, bridges, ... I think it would be better if the global ray was lower in highbeam. And when there is a little mist, it's impossible to keep highbeam.
What's your point of view ?

Rudy

On my car, it's true that the inner bulbs are halogen but they don't come on when the high beams are on. Are you sure that's how your car works?

The shutter system works almost instantaneously -- there's no need for any supplemental lighting to come on due to any delays...

stream

On my car, it's true that the inner bulbs are halogen but they don't come on when the high beams are on. Are you sure that's how your car works?

The shutter system works almost instantaneously -- there's no need for any supplemental lighting to come on due to any delays...
[/quote]

Same with my car. The inner halogen bulbs only come on with flash to pass (or if you have DRLs enabled, which I don't).

rautila

Flash-to-pass is a high-beam halogen! Otherwise the vehicle in front would not notice it at all. At least in EU spec cars the DRLs use the main xenon bulbs in low-beam mode. There is no way you could use the flash-to-pass as DRL because they are high-beams.

Ricracing

I would say that the inner H7 halogens are on whem High-Beam is active, as EU spec.

By the way, I will now change my Angel Eyes, High-Beam H7's and fog lights to Philips
Blue Vision bulps.
This way all lamps will have the same Xenon-like, blueish-white shine!

Thank you Mixterk for the inspiration.