[MrPerfect]

Long detailed story................

I had a local shop install the HID kit almost 2 years ago (Bada Bling! kit). I have 35w ballasts on both lows & fogs with relay harnesses on both (No issues at all until now). I recently decided to change my low beam bulbs to 5000k from 4300k just for color change about 2-3 months ago. After about two weeks I noticed the passenger side was having issues with not turning on maybe 1-2 times per month. I would just let it cool down for 10-30 minutes and then they would work fine. I assumed it was a bad bulb because I wasn't having issues until the bulb change. The shop asked me to swap the ballasts or bulbs to determine the issue. I chose to swap the ballasts as they were easier to swap. This is when I started to notice that the passenger side seemed to be slightly dimmer than the driver side. I swapped the ballasts again but the slightly dimmer side remained on the passenger side. I took the car to the shop and they went ahead and warranteed the bulbs but the issue stayed the same (slightly dim on passenger side). I decided to start learning about HID online so I could do the work myself. I purchased a set of higher quality bulbs online (great 5000k color & metal base) and installed myself but now the problem switched sides so the passenger side seems to be brighter than the driver side now. I swapped the ballasts again but no change. What could be the issue? Is there a ground, connection or fuse that I should look for that could be causing this? Could the ballasts being almost 2 years old be causing the slightly dim side to switch when bulbs are changed? Everything was fine until I started switching bulbs. I also double checked to make sure the bulbs are seated properly so that's not the issue.

 

[Txboy11SE]

Have you tried putting your original buldbs (4300K) back in to see if one side is still dim?

 

[MrPerfect]

Yes. I have tried changing out the bulbs twice with old sets that I had laying around. The driver side stays slightly dimmer than the passenger side even after swapping the ballasts back and forth.

 

[Utah 2.0]

Did the install the Relay harness with your HID's? I had this problem with my 8000k HID's as well. I installed a relay harness and now its much better

 

[MrPerfect]

Yes. I have relay harnesses on both the lows and my fogs. They also tried replacing the relay that was on the harness just before the bulb swap to see if that was the problem but still no change.

 

[Mike520]

If you don't mind me asking, what brand of HID kit do you have installed? Are you sure that the quality of the kit isn't causing this? Also, where did you buy the new bulbs from?

 

[MrPerfect]

If you don't mind me asking, what brand of HID kit do you have installed? Are you sure that the quality of the kit isn't causing this? Also, where did you buy the new bulbs from?

The kit is a Bada Bling! kit which looked to be a pretty good quality. They are not slim ballasts and have been on the car problem free for almost 2 years now. They're pretty heavy full sized metal 35w ballasts. They are not made with the cheaper D/C technology. The ballasts and bulbs are both A/C techology. The bulbs I currently have are from HID Auto Vision which are known for their perfect bulb colors which is why I chose to buy those. I did buy a set of really cheap ebay bulbs which flickered a bit and the color was way off. They looked like 3500k-3800k (similar to oem halogen) and ended up being D/C bulbs.

 

[Mike520]

With that info, I'm definitely starting to think that it is the quality of the kit and also the igniters through the harnesses and ballasts that are causing issues. I wonder if you try purchasing ballasts from DDM, Xenon Supply, HIDextra, or another reputable vendor it would solve your issue. You can definitely get the ballasts for cheap from those vendors unless your up to purchasing a new kit.

 

[littlefoot]

You have changed both ballasts and bulbs with no results.....leaves either the lens or the relay harness
if the lens is clean change the harness.....corroded wiring?

10 bucks on ebay

 

[AcuraKidd]

go with a Xenon Supply kit, you wont regret it

 

[MrPerfect]

Finally fixed!! I bought another set of bulbs from ebay and again had the same issue - I did get refunded though. Then I bought what seemed to be a higher quality bulb from HID Auto Vision which finally fixed the problem. The bulbs had a metal base vs plastic bases from every other bulb I've had. The price was great and the 5000k color is spot on also!