HID problems again

IAFF78

Original poster
Member
Dec 29, 2011
205
These HID lights have been nothing but headaches since day one. I had issues a few months ago and after some lenghty trouble shooting, the issue was finally resolved. Thanks again to all that helped me out the last time.


New month and new problems. Shortly after i fixed the last problem, a new one popped up. After about 2-5 minutes of driving, the passenger HL would cut out. To get the light to come back on I had to turn the lights off then back on. That solved the problem for another 2-5 minutes, then the light cut out again. The driver side HL never had this issue. So i figured that the problem was the ballast and could have been a result from my first HID problem. So i called DDM tuning and they said to ship back the ballast and a new set would be on the way. I got the new ballasts in today. I mounted them, plugged in all the wires and double checked everything. I drove around and BAM!! the passenger side HL went out after 2-5 minutes. Same deal, turn light off then on and repeat.

Now I'm wondering if it was the ballast this whole time. I have the kit hooked up properly. The HID killer works fine and I even have the heavy duty wire harness added. When I drive with my high beams on, I DO NOT experience the passenger light turninng off, Its only with the HID's.

Any suggestions??

Thanks,
Kevin
 

Boricua SS

Member
Nov 20, 2011
3,080
Ohio
hey Kev... glad to see all worked out the first time.. i remember that thread.. that was some heavy heavy troubleshooting....

something simple and probably just flat out way in left field.. but i didnt read if you swapped bulbs to see if the problem followed the specefic bulb or if the original problem just stays on the passanger side...

IIRC my brother ran into a similar issue with his VVME kit on his Mazda, that and i think the bulb turned a different color.. my friend (GHenny440 on here) along with myself advised to swap bulbs.. and that was that.. determined it was the bulb, and didnt have a problem once he got a new bulb..

again, i know its simple.. but wouldnt hurt to try.. and if you've tried that already.. then this was a waste of reading for everyones eyes :crackup:

hope you get it figured out and get to actually enjoy your mod...
 

Voymom

Member
Feb 3, 2012
2,523
I had the same exact issue until I did the DRL kill...once that was done we haven't had a single issue with ours, and I got a cheapo brand too off ebay.

Could be your ballasts too....or it could be the bulb. A lot of times it's trial and error with these sort of things.

I was calling the truck "The Pirate" there for a little bit because I'd be driving around with one headlight, kind of like the truck had a patch over it's eye...if it had an eye lol
 

IAFF78

Original poster
Member
Dec 29, 2011
205
I'll have to try swapping the lights tomorrow.

I almost fainted when the light went out earlier this evening. I figured with the new ballast all was gonna be right...not.

Thanks for the tip

kevin
 

MAY03LT

Member
Nov 18, 2011
3,412
Delmarva
Whaddup Kevin...it's been a while since the last thread so refresh my memory - did you do any kind of a drl killer?
 

IAFF78

Original poster
Member
Dec 29, 2011
205
whats going on MAY?

Yes, I do have the drl killer.

I have the DDM 35w HID 4500 kit, drl killer and heavy duty wire harness. Once we fixed the last issue i was having, the issue with the passenger light cutting out started. So i figured that adding the heavy duty wire haness would slove the issue but it didnt. So then i figured it was the ballast and had those replaced but that didnt help either. I'm going to take the bulbs out and switch sides. I want to see if the passenger bulb has issues on the drivers side.

Time to start diagnosing again. FML

Thanks,
Kevin
 

MAY03LT

Member
Nov 18, 2011
3,412
Delmarva
IAFF78 said:
Time to start diagnosing again.

I think you're on the right track, bulb swap and if the problem is still present, time for some DMM testing.:wootwoot:

The relay harness that I used started giving me a similar issue (after 4 years of use), just riding down the road the drivers low beam would turn off. I was able to duplicate the problem in the driveway, and found 0v at the harness connector for the d/s ballast. In my case, it was the 12v wire from the relay to the d/s connector that had a problem.
 

IAFF78

Original poster
Member
Dec 29, 2011
205
More testing YAY!!

If my memory serves me right, I believe i had this issue before i added the harness.
 

IAFF78

Original poster
Member
Dec 29, 2011
205
Okay, finally got the little one down for a nap and switched the bulbs.

Here is what i found AFTER i switch the bulbs around. When i did these tests I turned the lights of then back on and the lights came back on. This test was done in a garage with the truck running.

Test#1- driver side bulb went out in 30 secs
Test#2- pass side bulb went out
Test#3- both bulbs were flickering and pass side went out
Test#4- same as #3
Test#5- i unplugged and replugged all the connections and the rdriver side went out
Test#6- driver side went out. All the tests after this one yielded the same result, the driver side went out. So far the pass side is holding up

I tested all the connections and i got 12V everytime. I tested the fuses and got 12V. I tested the driver side fuse and held it there til the bulb went off and there was NO drop in voltage. The driver side bulbs flickers for about 10-15 secs before it totally goes out.

Let me know what you guys think.

Thanks,
Kevin
 

IAFF78

Original poster
Member
Dec 29, 2011
205
I did a few more tests and the driver side always went out. Sometimes it was 15secs and sometimes it took 5+ minutes. I did notice while the truck was running and both lights were on, I would get a quick 3-4sec flicker coming from both lights. the lights would go back to normal and it would happen again a few minutes later.

So it seems like even though i switched sides, the same bulb keeps going out. I hope its just a bulb problem. Any suggestions?

Thanks,
Kevin
 

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