HID FAQ Guide

[Blckshdw]

anyone wanna throw up a pic of how your cap mod is hooked up? I got the capacitor on the way and i have a terminal connector but whats that little red deal in the picture?

This should help explain things a bit better

DRL Capacitor Mod

 

[DFWWIZ]

anyone wanna throw up a pic of how your cap mod is hooked up? I got the capacitor on the way and i have a terminal connector but whats that little red deal in the picture?

That's the scotch lock to splice into the wires. I use a T-tap because it allows for a quick disconnect if need be.

 

[hayes]

okay, so perfect timing... My drivers headlight went out last night. I can no longer procrastinate getting the HIDs... I am looking at DDMtuning and they have the dual in/dual out harness. Is that the relay everyone is recommending? I have looked at VVME, but they are considerably more expensive, so I would like the DDM. (I have friends who have had good experiences with them)

 

[SBUBandit]

okay, so perfect timing... My drivers headlight went out last night. I can no longer procrastinate getting the HIDs... I am looking at DDMtuning and they have the dual in/dual out harness. Is that the relay everyone is recommending? I have looked at VVME, but they are considerably more expensive, so I would like the DDM. (I have friends who have had good experiences with them)

Both make good parts, but in my experience, buying from DDM is the same as procrastinating. I can only assume their shipping is via rowboat from China. 7 weeks ago I ordered two sets of HIDs from VVME, and 2 harnesses from DDM, The HID got here in 10 days. The harnesses got here Saturday. Over the past 5 years I've bought and installed 4 sets of HID from VVME and have one more sitting on my counter for my Malibu this spring. Every set is still in the car I put them in and still running.

 

[hayes]

Both make good parts, but in my experience, buying from DDM is the same as procrastinating. I can only assume their shipping is via rowboat from China. 7 weeks ago I ordered two sets of HIDs from VVME, and 2 harnesses from DDM, The HID got here in 10 days. The harnesses got here Saturday. Over the past 5 years I've bought and installed 4 sets of HID from VVME and have one more sitting on my counter for my Malibu this spring. Every set is still in the car I put them in and still running.

I went to order from VVME... I want to order one set now, since I need them and hold of on my fogs for a little while, but shipping will be 20 bucks per order. That's insane. I did, however find the ebay seller recommended earlier. I am waiting for a response from him though, because I don't see a way to specify the bulb type. One I hear from him, I will be ordering them through ebay.

 

[dmanns67]

I went to order from VVME... I want to order one set now, since I need them and hold of on my fogs for a little while, but shipping will be 20 bucks per order. That's insane. I did, however find the ebay seller recommended earlier. I am waiting for a response from him though, because I don't see a way to specify the bulb type. One I hear from him, I will be ordering them through ebay.

Any warranty via EBay?

 

[hayes]

Any warranty via EBay?

According to this, 24 month warranty included.

 

[hayes]

Order placed. I'll post up when I get them installed.

 

[hayes]

I installed my HIDs yesterday. The shipping took 2 days, but I had to find the time to get them installed... Installation was extremely straight forward. I didn't take any pictures of the install, but the ballasts are mounted using the provided mounting brackets behind the fogs and headlight brackets. The thing that took the longest was the Capacitor Mod. The mod itself was easy, but I misplaced the capacitor and had to go buy another one.. Wasted a whole $1.69.

I didn't have time to get good pictures last night, but this will give you enough.

This is at a stoplight with the lights completely off.

Same light, headlights and fogs on.

A couple of pictures from the front of the car.

Holy crap are they bright. I didn't get a good picture of before I did the swap because one of my headlights was out anyways... These are 35W 6000k bulbs (9006 for the headlights and 880 for the fog lights).


I did have a question too. I did the Cap Mod, but I am nervous. I was driving home last night, after the install, and the headlights flickered. Now, it was dusk and I was partly under a bridge, so it could have just been the auto sensor getting confused, but is that something that would indicate the cap mod wasn't done right? How would I be able to tell? I also think the passenger HID failed to light once or twice. As soon as I click the headlights to on (instead of auto mode), it comes on and stays on. I haven't confirmed completely yet, but any ideas on what that could be?


Thanks for all the help I've gotten so far, and the help to come, as this is single handedly the greatest mod I have ever done.

 

[Blckshdw]

I did have a question too. I did the Cap Mod, but I am nervous. I was driving home last night, after the install, and the headlights flickered. Now, it was dusk and I was partly under a bridge, so it could have just been the auto sensor getting confused, but is that something that would indicate the cap mod wasn't done right? How would I be able to tell? I also think the passenger HID failed to light once or twice. As soon as I click the headlights to on (instead of auto mode), it comes on and stays on. I haven't confirmed completely yet, but any ideas on what that could be?

Can you describe the flicker? How long did it last, and how fast was it? The DRL PWM that the cap gets rid of is pretty fast and you usually know it's happening from a buzzing of the ballasts/relay harness as it tries to fire and turn off.

As for one side not firing on engine startup, this is a fairly common thing with the budget HID kits. It's happened to me, as well as a decent number of members here.

Thanks for all the help I've gotten so far, and the help to come, as this is single handedly the greatest mod I have ever done so far.

Fixed that for ya

 

[hayes]

Can you describe the flicker? How long did it last, and how fast was it? The DRL PWM that the cap gets rid of is pretty fast and you usually know it's happening from a buzzing of the ballasts/relay harness as it tries to fire and turn off.

It flickered on and off for about 2-3 seconds. No sound that I heard.

As for one side not firing on engine startup, this is a fairly common thing with the budget HID kits. It's happened to me, as well as a decent number of members here.

Good to know. I can honestly say, I was stopped at a light (during the day) and looking in the reflection from the car in front of me, so it could have been on and I just couldn't see it. I will keep an eye on it.

Fixed that for ya

Thanks! I may have changed my plans from capable off-roader to slick street ride. There is a guy around here who has a Crown Vic that is bagged, but has the police bull bar and kind of looks like a highly modded cop car. I like that idea.

 

[PapaBear229]

Well guys I got my relay harness in today. The lights won't work and there's a loud buzzing/humming coming from the relay. So much for plug and play, any ideas as to why this is happening?

 

[hayes]

Well guys I got my relay harness in today. The lights won't work and there's a loud buzzing/humming coming from the relay. So much for plug and play, any ideas as to why this is happening?

I don't know about the humming, but try rotating the plug at the ballast 180 degrees. We learned that mine wouldn't work when plugged one way, but when rotated they worked as designed. Like the + and - were wrong. On my ballasts though, you can see they were designed to be plugged either direction.

 

[Blckshdw]

Well guys I got my relay harness in today. The lights won't work and there's a loud buzzing/humming coming from the relay. So much for plug and play, any ideas as to why this is happening?

I don't know about the humming, but try rotating the plug at the ballast 180 degrees. We learned that mine wouldn't work when plugged one way, but when rotated they worked as designed. Like the + and - were wrong. On my ballasts though, you can see they were designed to be plugged either direction.

First recommendation when the ballasts don't fire is to flip the input plug around.

Usually the buzzing is caused by the DRL signal. Did you do the DRL killer, or capacitor mod?

 

[DFWWIZ]

I've got a bunch (200) of the Capacitors coming in the next couple days if anyone is wanting a few and seed me a couple bucks for shipping. I am making the cap mods with wire, washer and t-taps for $5 also if that is wanted instead for the DRLs to get 100% power instead of only getting the 70% pulsed power.

 

[PapaBear229]

Cap mod is in the mail found out it was a clip got it all sorted out now thanks guys!

 

[mcsteven]

A word of warning to those who are headed to HID:

I drove a friend's car last night. It's relatively new but has regular headlights. I asked him how to turn them on. He said they were on. I don't think I can ever go back to a vehicle without HIDs. Rental cars are going to be a bitch.

Just a word of warning - they get to be addictive.

 

[dmanns67]

HIDs are great compared to halogen, but they are even better when they are in a projector.

My wife said the same thing McSteven said about being addicting. She drove my TB and seen how much better she can see at night then asked me to install HIDs in her F-150. Stock lighting in the F-150 is about as bad as the TB/Voy, they made a huge difference especially after replacing her stock headlights that had a flute lens to ones with a clear lens.

 

[06TrailblazerLSS]

I originally wanted 6000k, now Im stuck on 5000k.

Should I go with an HID kit rated at 35 watts or 55 watts?

Reason I ask is because I saw a youtube video and the guy was saying NEVER buy the 55w kits, dont know why!

Companys called Xentech, any good? Ebay carries bunch of them.

Xentec*

 

[Sparky]

Nah, Xentec isn't so great.

55W HID is way too bright for stock housings, you'll blind the crap out of everyone.

 

[BlazingTrails]

Xentec is complete garbage!! Do not buy! I bought 3 different kits and not one of the ballast lasted more than 2 months.

 

[Darkrider_LS]

I sell hids but am currently waiting on new gen ballasts to be released. I can still get ahold of the older versions though. Both the old and new put out a true 35 watts vs most 35 watt kits putting out closer to 28 watts.

 

[06TrailblazerLSS]

Really?! Like an impatient idiot, I ordered the 35w xentec kit, forgetting to check back here for a response.

How much are the more reliable 35w ballasts?

 

[dmanns67]

Morimoto FTW. Unless you have a projector, 55w is was too bright. I would also avoid putting 55w in your fog light as it will melt it.

 

[djthumper]

CREEs FTW

 

[Blckshdw]

Crees in projectors. That's next!

 

[Darkrider_LS]

Really?! Like an impatient idiot, I ordered the 35w xentec kit, forgetting to check back here for a response.

How much are the more reliable 35w ballasts?

I was selling the last gen sets around $80...however I can flex a bit on price as well.

 

[bUAkronG]

Here's a question for you guys....

I have a set of DDM 55W ballasts in my basement from my previous Audi that I'm no longer using. I was planning on using these with the 5000K 9006 bulbs I ordered for my new TB. However after reading through a bit of the capacitor mod thread at TV, I am worried that the 55W ballasts will melt my headlight harness.

I also have a set of 35W DDM ballasts that I had in my fogs in the Audi, however they are still on the car(the car is sitting waiting to be rebuilt following being totaled last year).

My question is this:

Is it worth it to go yank the 35W ballasts out of the Audi to use in the Trailblazer or should the 55W ballasts I already have in possession work fine?

Thanks in advance.

 

[Sparky]

I will personally beat the ever living crap out of someone who puts 55W HID in halogen reflector housings

OK, well, not really

It isn't because of wiring or any of that, but it is because 55W HID bulbs are a fair bit brighter than halogen HIGH beams, and throwing those in your low beam buckets is a huge annoyance to everyone else on the road and a safety hazard.

Don't be "that" guy.

 

[Blckshdw]

What Jared said

Technically speaking, you should use a relay harness with your HID ballasts anyway, and that would protect your headlight wiring from any damage from the current surges on startup.

 

[bUAkronG]

I will personally beat the ever living crap out of someone who puts 55W HID in halogen reflector housings

OK, well, not really

It isn't because of wiring or any of that, but it is because 55W HID bulbs are a fair bit brighter than halogen HIGH beams, and throwing those in your low beam buckets is a huge annoyance to everyone else on the road and a safety hazard.

Don't be "that" guy.

You know it's funny that you say that, because coming from my Audi which came with projector housings to the Trailblazer, I debated on even putting HIDs in at all. But considering the truck is going to my wife, and we are driving it to Florida a week after getting it, I figured I'd give in and put in HIDs.

What Jared said

Technically speaking, you should use a relay harness with your HID ballasts anyway, and that would protect your headlight wiring from any damage from the current surges on startup.

I'll have to check my stock, as I'm pretty sure I have a relay harness from DDM from when I had them in my Audi low beams. I know I have a pair the "HID decoders" they sell in my basement.

I ran DDM's initially in the Audi but had nothing but problems of bulb out errors, even with the decoders and relay harness, so I finally gave up the ghost and bought a Sonic Tuning kit with much better results.

I'm hoping that since this is a different vehicle it won't get pissy with me for running DDM ballasts lol

 

[Blckshdw]

A lot of people run DDM kits in their trucks here and are happy with them, so you should be fine.

 

[bUAkronG]

A lot of people run DDM kits in their trucks here and are happy with them, so you should be fine.

FWIW I will be running DDM ballasts and VVME bulbs.

 

[bUAkronG]

got the truck yesterday, and love it. Before I did anything though, I went ahead and installed my LED fogs and high beams. I absolutely love them! They aren't quite as bright as I'd like but I'll be doing a 4 or 6 hi mod to make up for it.

However one of the bulbs I got from VVME was bad. I wrote them last night and they should be sending me out a replacement tomorrow.

I also ordered another set of bulbs just in case.

*edit*

I should also mention that I haven't done the capacitor mod yet. My truck is an EXT. What's the technique for getting to the harness? Do I need to remove the seat completely?

 

[CDJuda]

According to this, 24 month warranty included.

Go with House of HID, they have lifetimes warrenties. Great products.

So the capacitor mod on the old site is how to get your HID's running at the full 12 volts?

 

[Sparky]

During the daytime, yes.

I opted to disable the stock DRL setup entirely as I then later went with my own DRL setup (which I STILL need to install the upgraded parts in).

 

[hayes]

Go with House of HID, they have lifetimes warrenties. Great products.

So the capacitor mod on the old site is how to get your HID's running at the full 12 volts?

I did the capacitor mod. It seems to be working fine, but I can't tell if they are running full strength or not. I dunno how to test that...

I still get times where he headlamp doesn't light. I can resolve by turning the lights off and on again. It only happens during the day, which makes me lean towards and issue with the DRL sensor and strength. I believe that I am going to take out the sensor cover and paint it blackout black. I figure then the sensor will always think it's night and kick them onto full strength no matter what. It's the ghetto DRL mod. I just have to find the time to pull the dash completely apart.

 

[Blckshdw]

I did the capacitor mod. It seems to be working fine, but I can't tell if they are running full strength or not. I dunno how to test that...

You'll need a helper, or a highly reflective surface in front of the truck, like a mirror, or clear windows. Turn the truck on, and shift into gear. The DRLs should come on. While paying attention to the brightness of the headlights, manually turn on the low beams. The light intensity should not change. If they get brighter, your cap mod wasn't installed correctly.

I still get times where he headlamp doesn't light. I can resolve by turning the lights off and on again. It only happens during the day, which makes me lean towards and issue with the DRL sensor and strength. I believe that I am going to take out the sensor cover and paint it blackout black. I figure then the sensor will always think it's night and kick them onto full strength no matter what. It's the ghetto DRL mod. I just have to find the time to pull the dash completely apart.

The ballast misfire issue is not related to the DRLs or cap mod. Many of us have had that issue, it comes down to cranking the engine under a condition where the lights would come on immediately.

Also, to get the sensor out, I believe you can just pop that top trim piece up off the dash, and there's a wire harness the sensor is plugged into. You may also want to test your idea with a piece of electrical tape, rather than going all out with paint. Just in case the results are the same (meaning your cap mod is working properly)

 

[Paul Bell]

Hey folks, forgive me for getting to the party late, I'm a recent GMT370 owner.

I've seen Trailblazers and Envoys with HID lamps in the stock housings. They're blinding to other drivers. It's not the brightness, it's the lack of proper beam cutoff. Sure, they look great to the guy driving a truck with them.

It's this lack of cutoff and the resultant blinding of other drivers that makes using HID lamps (and the LED lamps) in housings not designed for them illegal as per federal law. The housings & reflectors are designed for the filament of the 9006 lamp-and the shaded tip of the bulb comes into play also. HID and LED lamps produce light in an entirely different pattern-that the stock reflector sends everywhere.

I've read through this entire thread and there's only a mention that actual projector housings would improve HID lamps over stock housings. Has anybody figured out how to get HID projector housings on these trucks?

 

[Blckshdw]

I've read through this entire thread and there's only a mention that actual projector housings would improve HID lamps over stock housings. Has anybody figured out how to get HID projector housings on these trucks?

This is probably the most active thread on projector retrofits. But yeah, there are a number of us who have projectors, or know of former members who can do retrofits for those who aren't up to the task yet.

Quad Bi-xenon retrofit? woot woot!!!