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Thread: HID Conversion Help

  1. #1
    Canyon Racer phillies23's Avatar
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    HID Conversion Help

    So one of my headlights is busted and I believe it's a bad ballast exposed to the recent rain.

    I'm trying to get it set up correctly to fix a ticket I got from CHP about the faulty headlight.


    Does any one know a good reputable shop that installs lights??

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    It's really not that difficult to repair/replace something like a bad ballast. It should be almost as simple as a "drag n' drop" procedure. The only problem would be if the install was done poorly from the start or the connectors weren't properly secured.

    Did you buy a kit and install it yourself or did someone else do the work for you in the first place? Have you actually tried doing any troubleshooting to narrow down the issue? I am assuming you have, otherwise you wouldn't be saying it's a faulty ballast vs just a dead bulb.
    RRE Tuned (bolt ons, flex fuel), West End Alignment (KW v3 coils)

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    Canyon Racer phillies23's Avatar
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    Had someone install it and did a crap job guarding the Ballast


    It was exposed to moisture during the rain and corrosion build up


    Got it fixed thanks SCE !!!!





  4. #4
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    Macky's Avatar
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    what ballasts are they? most get wet with no issues.

    Sportback Evolution MR


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    is that a top 1 motorsports front splitter?

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    Canyon Racer phillies23's Avatar
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    Nope its a Ralliart Style CF Lip with ARC Style Splitter

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    Tofu Specialist LakaiorDie's Avatar
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    what kinda ballasts did you end up going with?

  8. #8
    Canyon Racer phillies23's Avatar
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    Not sure I'll find out soon to install brighter rear back up lights.. don't wanna back up in the dark and mess up the booty




  9. #9
    Tofu Specialist LakaiorDie's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by phillies23 View Post
    Not sure I'll find out soon to install brighter rear back up lights.. don't wanna back up in the dark and mess up the booty



    I've been wanting to retrofit my headlights but just kinda a waste of money.
    I was wondering if upgraded ballasts would be more cost effective.

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    Quote Originally Posted by LakaiorDie View Post
    I've been wanting to retrofit my headlights but just kinda a waste of money.
    I was wondering if upgraded ballasts would be more cost effective.
    I would imagine upgrading ballasts would be of little benefit. What are you running now? Factory or aftermarket HID?
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    Tofu Specialist LakaiorDie's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by nechronius View Post
    I would imagine upgrading ballasts would be of little benefit. What are you running now? Factory or aftermarket HID?

    Stock never had a problem with them

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    Quote Originally Posted by LakaiorDie View Post
    Stock never had a problem with them
    After 11+ years and 153k miles I got tired of the mediocre light output from my Mazdaspeed 6 so I got a bi-xenon HID kit. Last night I finally decided to take apart the stock HID headlamp casings. While I had them apart I decided to take some pictures of the stock stuff to show to a couple of car buddies of mine. Here's what I found.

    First pic isn't very dramatic. My headlamp covers had badly oxidized on the exterior so on December 2014 I polished them up and applied a clear vinyl. Not as good as factory new, but still vastly better than the dim yellow foggy lights they were. The headlamp cover on the right has been wiped inside and out with 99.5% isopropyl alcohol. The one on the left, just on the outside. The difference is not huge in the picture, but the actual amount of scum and film that was coating the inside of the lens was pretty nasty. It was so thick that I had to pour on the alcohol, let it soak for a bit, and then use my fingertips to gently scrub away the slime before wiping it all off.

    http://i.imgur.com/6GiupMG.jpg


    Now things get more interesting. The first picture is the driver's side lens, which I wiped front and back with the same alcohol.

    http://i.imgur.com/cFVozk3.jpg

    The next picture is the passenger's side lens which has not yet been cleaned.

    http://i.imgur.com/c4pv8VG.jpg

    I wish I could have taken a good picture of the two lenses side by side, but I had a tough time trying to hold them together and at an angle that clearly showed off the difference. I took two pictures of each, but the results were the same in any case. The glass lenses cleaned up easily, much easier than the plastic headlamp covers.

    Anyway, the takeaway from my post is this. Even if you keep the outside of the headlamp cover nice and clear, there is an inherent build-up that will eventually cloud the lights and the only way to restore the light output to factory new is to disassemble and thoroughly clean the inside cover, lens, and reflector. So if you're thinking that the light output might be poor, it's very possible the only way to restore it is a complete disassembly and cleaning. For the most part your ballast will either work or it won't, so I probably wouldn't replace it unless you are noticing an actual problem like flickering.

    In the Mazda's case the factory lights are known for their poor HID output anyway and the aftermarket ones can be both low and high, so that's the direction I went.
    RRE Tuned (bolt ons, flex fuel), West End Alignment (KW v3 coils)

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