I have adjusted and replaced my low beams on my 05 cooper s 3 times with different HID bulbs and they all are horrible. It has HID self adjusting headlights. Anybody have any advice on a good set?

 

I am not sure why they would suck, but rain will reflect a bunch of light and make it hard to see.
Let us know why you feel they suck? Too low, too high, not bright enough, etc.
I have an 06 MCS and they work well, but when it rains, I always turn on my fogs for extra light.
I use 5 to 6K lights. (very white color)

 

Clean the HL and polish the plastic. That helps. Otherwise is they are really dull and yellowed then : https://www.northamericanmotoring.co...installed.html

 

They are not bright at all and I have tried 3 different types of bulbs. I have cleaned and polished the headlights I thought the same thing. I tried 8000k bulbs and thought the problem was they were too blue, got some 6000k and they werent any better. not sure what the originals were but 1 burnt out and they were not bright to begin with.

 

OEM is 4300K. Are the headlight lenses cloudy?

 

Are the projectors pointing down? The adjusters often pop loose from large bumps, pot holes, or slamming the hood too hard when closing. This causes the ball and socket to separate and make the projectors point down to the ground.

If you remove the back cover and look into the the housing you can see the joint that usually pops loose. Here's a pic of one that's popped out:

 

It's either ^^ This ^^ or the lens of the housing itself needing polishing.
The factory HID's are very good.

If the inside of the lens is dirty, check out the "HOW TO" on Joey Modding to find out how to take them apart.

 

I found a car once and the bulbs were not seated correctly. That made them crap.

After taking the bulbs out, reseating them (which is a chore) they worked perfectly. They do not suck, and it's not the bulb but the position within the focal point of the reflector (in her case).

 

+1 on not seated correctly.

I have personally corrected about 5 that I have seen from the local MINI club, I can tell by the way the light is being projected. When you see it it is very obvious.

Seating the bulb correctly is not difficult just a bit exacting.

Motor On!