The idiot proof HID installation "HOW-TO"....with pics

[PappaSmurf]

-First open you door and pop the hood, then pop up the two retaining pins for the headlight and remove the headlight.

-Look where your headlight was and find the bolt (the bolt is upside down and you can only see the point of it) that is holding the header panel down.
http://i124.photobucket.com/albums/p29/PappaSmurf25/HID%20how%20to/BallastInstallation2.jpg

-This is where you want to mount the ballast instead of mounting in the engine bay. Thanks to Heineck (who was helpful enough to provide 15 freaking pics of the same thing, LOL) I found this.

-Once the ballast is mounted, take the headlight Housing assembly to a place where you can sit down for a second and take the HID bulb with you.

-Take the cover off of the back of the headlight that is 9006 Bulb. Cut out a small hole in the rubber.
http://i124.photobucket.com/albums/p29/PappaSmurf25/HID%20how%20to/Coverhole.jpg

-Unpug the original 9006 bulb and remove it from your headlight housing assembly and place it somewhere safe. Remember not to touch the bulb if you want to reconvert later. (for whatever reason)

- Take the HID bulb out of it's protective case by unscrewing the bottom piece. Push the bottom piece down onto the wires AWAY from the bulb, and break the bottom piece to get it off of the bulb. This is what the protective case looks like.
http://i124.photobucket.com/albums/p29/PappaSmurf25/HID%20how%20to/BulbProtector.jpg

-Place the HID bulb into the headlight housing and twist untill it wont turn no more, being careful not to break it. REMEMBERING to NOT touch the bulb or break the little "stick" on the side of the bulb.
http://i124.photobucket.com/albums/p29/PappaSmurf25/HID%20how%20to/HIDBulb.jpg

Once done, plug the HID bulb up using the factory wiring harness that was originally conected to your other bulb.
Notice that the orange wire on the factory harness is used for the positive.http://i124.photobucket.com/albums/p29/PappaSmurf25/HID%20how%20to/WiringHID.jpg

-Run the wires from the HID bulb through the hole you made in the headlight cover, and push the grommet throught the hole making a water tight seal.
http://i124.photobucket.com/albums/p29/PappaSmurf25/HID%20how%20to/Replacingcover.jpg

-Push the HID bulb harness into the bottom of the housing and replace the headlight cover.
http://i124.photobucket.com/albums/p29/PappaSmurf25/HID%20how%20to/Coverreplaced.jpg

-Rest the headlight housing on the header panel Backwards, (so that you can see the back of the headlight). And plug the wiring harness into the ballast.
http://i124.photobucket.com/albums/p29/PappaSmurf25/HID%20how%20to/Plugingintotheballast.jpg

-Now plug up the other two remaining connectors (coming from the ballast)and stuff them down behind the front bumper.
http://i124.photobucket.com/albums/p29/PappaSmurf25/HID%20how%20to/Fromtheballast.jpg

-Put the headlight housing back into place and Voila, you are done.
http://i124.photobucket.com/albums/p29/PappaSmurf25/HID%20how%20to/Alldone.jpg

-Turn on your headlights and look at them in amazement at how wonderful you are and now that you are a master HID installation tech. LOL
http://i124.photobucket.com/albums/p29/PappaSmurf25/HID%20how%20to/Pretty.jpg

[Nate's Alero]

Very nice!

[colonel6632]

*drool* i want

[PappaSmurf]

Colonel,
Ryan from Ohio has these kits, I got mine from him and he is very fast with shipping and it was also very secure shipping.
I paid him on a tuesday and received the kit on Saturday of that same week.
-Smurf-

[heineck]

first u got a quarter pic then u got 15 lulz

[cherrington17]

should be getting mine this week. can't wait!

so... where exactly is that first pic? from under the car? I can't seem to mentally locate myself in that picture.

[PappaSmurf]

LOL,
Naw first I got a 1/4 of the picture, then 3 of the full picture and then the rest. LOL
-Smurf-

[heineck]

yea my dads phone was trippin, that or i sent em drunk lol

[PappaSmurf]

Cherry,
What kit did you get? I got the 10K that is what it lloks like during the day. I am about to go outside and get some night shots. I know that Heineck was asking if I could see anything cause of them being so high. LOL. I will also get some drivers view shots.
-Smurf-

[cherrington17]

i got 5k from aftermath. I'll get pics after i install them. They should be super white.

[PappaSmurf]

How is your dad doing? Also, how was your bday drinking party? Did you wake up next to an air conditioner with no pants on AGAIN?
STILL rotflmao
-Smurf-

[PappaSmurf]

Cherry.
Cool
-Smurf-

[heineck]

How is your dad doing? Also, how was your bday drinking party? Did you wake up next to an air conditioner with no pants on AGAIN?
STILL rotflmao
-Smurf-

hes doin good thanks, nah no A/C cuddlin this time lol, put up some night pics of those HIDS

[dragon8807]

looks good, gotta get me some hids

[Ryan from Ohio]

Now I need to invest in my own set.

Here at first I thought I would have to hack up my factory wiring or splice stuff together. I had no idea it was simple plug and play... lol

You get that in Audio... people act like its simple plug and play and its not... Evidently this is.

Looks good Smurf. Seems to have a few dead pictures on photobucket, outside that stellar.

Now to figure out when and what color to get for myself.

[Atmosphere]

Nice guide.

Also, could I do HIDs in the headlights and fogs? I was thinking about having ~6000k in the low beams for visibility at night, and since the fogs don't do much anyways, hook them up with 8000k or 10000k for show.

White on top, blue on bottom. :)

[PappaSmurf]

Ryan,
this is your brain talking to you through smurfs screenname for some odd reason...................I think that you should get you some 12K as Smurfs looks good but we want to be different and I am pretty sure that Smurf wouldnt mind seeing what the 12K look like. I am also sure that if we don;t like the 12K, we could just switch with Smurf and it would all be good. HAHAHAHAHAHAHA *evil own brain laugh*


Ryan,
Dude, you should definitely get some. They are as simple as that, and yes they are STRAIGHT plug and play. It was as simple as taking the old bulbs out as if you were replacing burnt out bulbs. There is NO splicing, butt connecting, or wire tapping involved. TRUST ME! LOL
-Smurf-

[PappaSmurf]

Atmo,
You could do that. Just ask Ryan for the hook up. He is an awesome seller if I say so myself, LOL
-Smurf-

[PappaSmurf]

Here are some night shots of her pretty blue eyes. LOL
-Smurf-
http://i124.photobucket.com/albums/p29/PappaSmurf25/babys%20mods/Fromthefront.jpg

http://i124.photobucket.com/albums/p29/PappaSmurf25/babys%20mods/whatthedriversees.jpg

[mfuller]

Just as an FYI, some people may experience problems when using their factory wiring to charge the ballasts. You may find after using them a half-dozen times or so that only 1 headlight turns on, and you may be tempted to think you have a bad ballast. What you may need is this:

http://www.mobilehid.com/wires.jpg

It's a harness that allows the ballasts to get thier juice straight from the battery, and not through the inadequate factory wires. For $30, I'd highly recommend it.

[Ryan from Ohio]

Damn those are bright.

Heres very dumb question number 3...

Are they brighter than your brights- like will you get pulled over bright?

Most of the low beam bulbs have a sort of "paint" on the tips to keep the light somewhat under control. The high beams dont have this...

[Ryan from Ohio]

Just as an FYI, some people may experience problems when using their factory wiring to charge the ballasts. You may find after using them a half-dozen times or so that only 1 headlight turns on, and you may be tempted to think you have a bad ballast. What you may need is this:

http://www.mobilehid.com/wires.jpg

It's a harness that allows the ballasts to get thier juice straight from the battery, and not through the inadequate factory wires. For $30, I'd highly recommend it.

Well considering the draw from each light is only 35 watts... Whats the stock, like 60?

I cant understand the need for such a thing?

[mfuller]

Well considering the draw from each light is only 35 watts... Whats the stock, like 60?

I cant understand the need for such a thing?
Yes, but you are missing half of the equation. For the HID bulb to ignite, you must first "charge up" the ballast. The factory wiring is not designed to address the needs of charging a HID ballast (since these cars were never offered with HID lamps) and in some instances not be able to fully charge the ballast for igniting the HID bulb. I personally had this problem with my HID kit - I would experience bulb flickering, or sometimes only 1 bulb would light.
I'm just informing people what issues they might run into when installing a HID kit.
Maybe I'm just overdoing it, but I don't trust the factory harness to support the 20,000+ volts needed to fire the ignitor.

[cherrington17]

that harness just looks like it gives constant power to the ballast.. couldn't you just do that on your own w.o buying that?

[clinton_62]

Smurf----


http://i124.photobucket.com/albums/p29/PappaSmurf25/babys%20mods/whatthedriversees.jpg[/QUOTE]


^^^^ I have 10K as well, but can see a ridiculous amount more than you....why's that???

[Cliff8928]

Either that camera sucks for that kind of picture, or something's not ideal in that setup.

http://home.comcast.net/~cliff_scott/HID.jpg

[[ion] C2]

he needs to adjust his headlights so they're not pointing straight down lol

good stuff, i'll add this to aleromod upgrades

[mfuller]

that harness just looks like it gives constant power to the ballast.. couldn't you just do that on your own w.o buying that?
I suppose you could, but I'm lazy.
Look at this thread for a guy that did a DIY job:
http://forums.vwvortex.com/zerothread?id=2632686

[[ion] C2]

bam

Exterior > Headlights > How-To: Install HID System (http://sites.google.com/site/aleromodupgrades/exterior/headlights/how-to-install-hid-system)

[cherrington17]

also.. if your taking pics for these... make sure your camera is on "night mode" so it holds the shutter open longer, to pull in more light.

[PappaSmurf]

I was parked at worked and was on a slight incline. Yes I park backwards.
There is a shit more light that comes out, But I am not gonna move my car a few inches to get the full ligh output, when I was onloy getting night shots so that people could see what color they were from the drivers seat.
-Smurf-

[PappaSmurf]

SWEEEEET!!!!! I am on Ions page with only my second write-up. LOL

Ion,
Shouldn't I get paid or something??? You know amennities???? LMAO
-Smurf-

[undersc0re]

Well considering the draw from each light is only 35 watts... Whats the stock, like 60?

I cant understand the need for such a thing?


The Daytime running lamps during the day have less power and may cause your lights to flicker and may damage your balasts, should be careful how you hook these up.

[heineck]

just disable the DRLs

[PappaSmurf]

Ryan,
They are a HELL of a lot brighter than my brights, I have these in my low beams now and have halogen bulbs in my highs. I switch and it is DEFINITELY the difference between night and day. I did get pulled over this morning going home from work and then only reason he swung around and got me was to ask where I got them and what color they were cause he (the cop) wanted to put them in his ALERO. I told him about this site and he said he woould check it out and possibly join. LOL

SO, yes they are brighter than my brights. and NO, not enough to get pulled over and get ticketed, at least in my case they aren't.
-Smurf-

[Ryan from Ohio]

Well, that kind of scares me off then...

Might be a nice upgrade for my actual "brights" but I dont want to be pulled over/ticketed for driving with insanely bright LEDS.

I also have available just Xeon filled bulbs for direct replacement. I may put those in for my normal lights and HIDs for my brights.

[[ion] C2]

SWEEEEET!!!!! I am on Ions page with only my second write-up. LOL

Ion,
Shouldn't I get paid or something??? You know amennities???? LMAO
-Smurf-
haha royalties

my name's not even on the site, no credits to anyone, it's a community resource, . you do it because you want to help, nothing more. that's my view at least. :p

[DOHC_tuner]

So Ryan from Ohio is selling these? How much?

[[ion] C2]

110 shipped check his thread

i want some

[PappaSmurf]

DOHC,
Yes Ryan is the one selling these at a great price, he is just the middle man and isn't making that much profit (if any) of of us that buy them. He is just providing a great service and I can vouch for his customer service skills.


Ion,
GET SOME! 10K...LOL
-Smurf-

[cherrington17]

i'm constantly buying from ryan... excellent sales man/tech help.

[Ryan from Ohio]

Thanks guys I do what I can when I can :)

[Afugy]

Ryan you should be safe in Ohio to run those, its not about how bright they are its about how the lights beams are pointed, low beam/ high beam, as long as the low beams are not in the eyes of on coming traffic on a level road you will be fine.

http://codes.ohio.gov/orc/4513

[cherrington17]

to clarify the mounting point where smurf is suggesting, in the first few pics....

http://i178.photobucket.com/albums/w246/cherrington17/Car%20Pics/CIMG0809.jpg
http://i178.photobucket.com/albums/w246/cherrington17/Car%20Pics/CIMG0810.jpg

The little L bracket I made from scrap aluminum, to mount the ballast.
http://i178.photobucket.com/albums/w246/cherrington17/Car%20Pics/CIMG0811.jpg
L bracket mounted (w/o the screw)
http://i178.photobucket.com/albums/w246/cherrington17/Car%20Pics/CIMG0812.jpg

--------------------------------------
Comparison shots. HID vs Stock.
(just for color comparison, we all know the brightness comparison)
STOCK
http://i178.photobucket.com/albums/w246/cherrington17/Car%20Pics/CIMG0821.jpg
HID
http://i178.photobucket.com/albums/w246/cherrington17/Car%20Pics/CIMG0820.jpg

Another
http://i178.photobucket.com/albums/w246/cherrington17/Car%20Pics/CIMG0823.jpg
And Another
http://i178.photobucket.com/albums/w246/cherrington17/Car%20Pics/CIMG0824.jpg



absolutely love em.... fan-effing-tastic.

pure white.


I have the 5000k from Richie.

[Ryan from Ohio]

Now thats a nice comparison!

I need to get a set of these done in my car when I can afford a set! lol

[00WhiteAlero]

where can i get a set? link please?

[cherrington17]

search for HID.

aftermathalero sold me mine. (any color, lifetime warranty on everything for $165)
ryanfromohio also sells them (select color and size, lifetime on ballasts) $110

[XanderWiFi]

I have a kit from Ryan and plan to install it tonight or tomorrow. I am posting some pictures of the mounting kit it comes with and the way I think it is supposed to be set up. I would like further clarification or correction if needed though. Thanks all.

There is an L piece and a C piece. I am assuming the C-piece wraps the middle and screws into the L-piece. Then I screw the L piece onto something in my engine block. But if it is hanging...seems like it would be kind of loose this way.

[XanderWiFi]

how I think it latches together.

[PappaSmurf]

As far as I can tell from your pictures and me being on my phone, you are correct in how they attach. However DO NOT screw it into your engine block!!!!!!
Go back to the first page and look for the mounting location ( if you need further clarification, cherrington points at it with his finger in his pics on this page). That is the ONLY place it should be mounted in MY opinion.
-Smurf-

[XanderWiFi]

The mounting is a bit more obvious as I look back now. I will actually have to bend the L piece to dip it down. Did not consider that before.

[XanderWiFi]

Got one wired. Just have to mount it now. Looks freaking sweet and it's just in my garage. (I'm letting seafoam soak overnight so I can't start the engine until morning...so no night pics for now)

I can hear the dang thing humming....

[heineck]

nice, what temp did u get?


As far as I can tell from your pictures and me being on my phone, you are correct in how they attach. However DO NOT screw it into your engine block!!!!!!
Go back to the first page and look for the mounting location ( if you need further clarification, cherrington points at it with his finger in his pics on this page). That is the ONLY place it should be mounted in MY opinion.
-Smurf-

hmm wonder where he got the idea from :coolio:

[XanderWiFi]

nice, what temp did u get? :

says 10k on the box. All done and loving the look. Can't wait to drive it at night.

[XanderWiFi]

and they're in : D

Oops...tails one doesn't belong...

[cavaliers60]

Thinking about doing this sometime soon. Would look awesome on my car. Should I just do these as high beams, or just go with the low beam spot? I really don't want to get pulled over.... But I guess if I do, I can just switch them out and use them in the high beams...

[XanderWiFi]

Do I have to worry about the ballast overheating and melting plastic pieces?

Also, any ideas what to do about flickering light problems?

And does anyone have HIDs for their high beam? I just noticed my HIDs are only for low beam.

[PappaSmurf]

You don't have to worry about the ballast melting anything. And also the flickering patternss, I have never had any problems like that from my set.

[XanderWiFi]

I had to remove the daytime running lights (DRL). Relay number 22 as diagrammed on the lid of the engine fuse box. Just for future reference lol.

[Philbar71]

^ What year is your car? I believe if it's an 03 or later they use half powered low beams as DRLs and thats why they were flickering.

[cherrington17]

hmm wonder where he got the idea from :coolio:

I will absolutely admit I got it from this thread. (smurf specifically)

Also... mine didn't come with a mounting bracket, so I had to make my own.

[alerogls001]

Also, any ideas what to do about flickering light problems?



Did you ever find a solution to ur flickering lights. Mine do the same (even interior lights) and even though it was around the same time frame, I cannot say for certain that that is what is making mine flicker....

[XanderWiFi]

Yeah, I had to disable the daytime running lights. Relay 22 in the engine fuse box. There is a diagram on the lid of that box that will give you the location. Essentially, it is an issue of voltage for full lights compared to the daytime running lights.

[alerogls001]

Bahhh... and I almost did that one day. I'll put it on my list Thanks man.

[mlenn9]

how do you disable the DRLs? i found the found the place in the fuse relay center but how do you disable it?

[robalero]

I think you just take the fuse out but I dont know really I am sure someone with the knowledge of it will chime in

[mlenn9]

alright, cause i installed my HIDs and they arent even lighting up... i would like to try disabling the fuse before ordering a wiring harness to see if it works... if there are any other solutions, please someone let me know, thanks

[cherrington17]

alright, cause i installed my HIDs and they arent even lighting up... i would like to try disabling the fuse before ordering a wiring harness to see if it works... if there are any other solutions, please someone let me know, thanks

probably wired them backwards. its a common problem with some HID types.

having your DRL enabled, will cause them to be on all the time... it WILL NOT CAUSE THEM TO NOT TURN ON. (stress for importance, not yelling)

[robalero]

yea its very easy to install them backward, I had a HID set and one side had to be upside down ( the connectors ) for it to work on that side

[mlenn9]

i went to the local shop, bought a wiring harness for 20 bucks now the work perfect! but thanks for the help..... but i would like to know if there is away to disable/turn off the daytime running lights

[cavaliers60]

Installed my HID's today. I noticed a difference in your set, Smurf, compared to the one I bought from Ryan. Mine does not have an actual plug for the stock harness to plug into... Just a positive and negative wire with a metal piece on the end. So what I did was slide those into the plug and taped it tightly so they don't have a risk a falling out.

Also, putting the ballasts there is a PAIN when putting that screw back in. :lol: Everything works though, and my 8000k HID lights look soooo sexy on my midnight blue Alero. :D

[cavaliers60]

Drove around just a little bit ago. I love the fact that they stay on like my regular lights did when I shut the car off. :) I like how they come on and shut off. Really fast (like LED's are) and I love it! :yahoo:

While driving around, had a cop on the other lane coming towards me, and they didn't do anything... To be honest, I think these lights are a little easier on the eyes.

[Ryan from Ohio]

So the set you got wasnt simply plug and play?

I thought they all were?

Im not on the upside with the HIDs. So customer feedback is all I have to go by. If theres an issue let me know. I dont want to associate myself with bad products.

[cavaliers60]

So the set you got wasnt simply plug and play?

I thought they all were?

Im not on the upside with the HIDs. So customer feedback is all I have to go by. If theres an issue let me know. I dont want to associate myself with bad products.

It is. The only thing was the wires that plug into the factory harness. they have these metal ends that look like they would fit into an empty plug (like you would have to get your own or something...idk), but I put them in the harness plug and taped them up just to make sure they don't slide out (which I doubt they would have). I'm just a little cautious about things like that. If you'd like, I can take pictures of it tomorrow.

Other than that, I'm extremely happy with them. Very simple to do and definitely looks awesome! :D

[robalero]

i ordered mine from DDM tuning their on for $25 atm from them will see when they get it how it is.

[cavaliers60]

Quick note, hang your ballasts upside down..... i just ran into a problem with mine getting water in it somehow when it rained last night... Now I have one that has a LOT of water in it.... So make sure your plugs are pointed down...

[robalero]

will do

[cavaliers60]

lol I had a good 2" of water in that ballast! My shorts had a big wet spot from all the water I got out of it. LOL I was shocked at how much water got in there....

[Ryan from Ohio]

Thats just odd. I figured these things would be water tight considering that they are placed in an engine bay...

Maybe they forgot the water protection on the one ballast?

I dunno, its hard to understand how or why.

[cavaliers60]

Thats just odd. I figured these things would be water tight considering that they are placed in an engine bay...

Maybe they forgot the water protection on the one ballast?

I dunno, its hard to understand how or why.


I know... The other one was just fine... Oh well, no big deal... As long as I get a replacement and have no other issues. LOL

[robalero]

so I got my HID's in last night, we ordered a pair of 9006 and 9007 for my buddy's g5 however we had one slight issue his pair was hi-lo and for the first few times the high beams worked and then once we were putting the headlights back in place before we tied everything down we tried the highs again and one bulb the high beam part stopped working, good news is they are replacing it along with shipping for it etc.

now my 9006 bulbs came with stickers of "Apexcone" 3m double sided really really strong tape and a bunch of zip ties, I had 0 issues installing or using my HID kit no flicker, power issues and they turn on and off on their own at night still just like before

[Alerojester]

ok so Rob you didn't disable your autoheadlights? cause if you didn't and they work just fine then damn i might get really lucky and just have to order and install without having to change much but the rubber cover on the backs

[robalero]

nope I didn't disable my auto headlights and they work just fine. it took me 5 minutes to install the HID's hardest part was literally that rubber piece of cutting it ( which wasn't hard lol )

[jhubbz]

Just installed mine :) 35w 6k's from DDM. Gonna try em out later tonight

[jhubbz]

btw i have had zero issues with the drl's. everything works perfectly fine as they did before. And why didn't I get any double-sided tape... :( I've ordered some 880's for the fogs to match. Eventually I will get some highs.
I did get flashed last night bc someone thought they were by brights. I flashed my brights back at em and I felt dumb bc my HIDs were brighter lol

[cavaliers60]

lol I would have just kept driving. I don't have the HIDs in my car anymore. I strongly believe I had a bad kit. When I was waiting for one ballast to be shipped back, my other side went out. Not sure why, but my ballast had no power. I'm going to try reinstalling them sometime soon, but not right now. lol

[cherrington17]

cav, check your fuses

[cavaliers60]

cav, check your fuses

The thing is, I put my stock bulbs in and everything works.

[ndbalt07]

Does having HIDs in the stock housings blind oncoming drivers like it does on some other cars?

[cherrington17]

it all depends on the brightness and the headlight leveling.

if its aimed up in the air, yes. if its aimed at the bumper of the car ahead of you, no.

[frankie257]

-First open you door and pop the hood, then pop up the two retaining pins for the headlight and remove the headlight.

-Look where your headlight was and find the bolt (the bolt is upside down and you can only see the point of it) that is holding the header panel down.
http://i124.photobucket.com/albums/p29/PappaSmurf25/HID%20how%20to/BallastInstallation2.jpg

-This is where you want to mount the ballast instead of mounting in the engine bay. Thanks to Heineck (who was helpful enough to provide 15 freaking pics of the same thing, LOL) I found this.

-Once the ballast is mounted, take the headlight Housing assembly to a place where you can sit down for a second and take the HID bulb with you.

-Take the cover off of the back of the headlight that is 9006 Bulb. Cut out a small hole in the rubber.
http://i124.photobucket.com/albums/p29/PappaSmurf25/HID%20how%20to/Coverhole.jpg

-Unpug the original 9006 bulb and remove it from your headlight housing assembly and place it somewhere safe. Remember not to touch the bulb if you want to reconvert later. (for whatever reason)

- Take the HID bulb out of it's protective case by unscrewing the bottom piece. Push the bottom piece down onto the wires AWAY from the bulb, and break the bottom piece to get it off of the bulb. This is what the protective case looks like.
http://i124.photobucket.com/albums/p29/PappaSmurf25/HID%20how%20to/BulbProtector.jpg

-Place the HID bulb into the headlight housing and twist untill it wont turn no more, being careful not to break it. REMEMBERING to NOT touch the bulb or break the little "stick" on the side of the bulb.
http://i124.photobucket.com/albums/p29/PappaSmurf25/HID%20how%20to/HIDBulb.jpg

Once done, plug the HID bulb up using the factory wiring harness that was originally conected to your other bulb.
Notice that the orange wire on the factory harness is used for the positive.http://i124.photobucket.com/albums/p29/PappaSmurf25/HID%20how%20to/WiringHID.jpg

-Run the wires from the HID bulb through the hole you made in the headlight cover, and push the grommet throught the hole making a water tight seal.
http://i124.photobucket.com/albums/p29/PappaSmurf25/HID%20how%20to/Replacingcover.jpg

-Push the HID bulb harness into the bottom of the housing and replace the headlight cover.
http://i124.photobucket.com/albums/p29/PappaSmurf25/HID%20how%20to/Coverreplaced.jpg

-Rest the headlight housing on the header panel Backwards, (so that you can see the back of the headlight). And plug the wiring harness into the ballast.
http://i124.photobucket.com/albums/p29/PappaSmurf25/HID%20how%20to/Plugingintotheballast.jpg

-Now plug up the other two remaining connectors (coming from the ballast)and stuff them down behind the front bumper.
http://i124.photobucket.com/albums/p29/PappaSmurf25/HID%20how%20to/Fromtheballast.jpg

-Put the headlight housing back into place and Voila, you are done.
http://i124.photobucket.com/albums/p29/PappaSmurf25/HID%20how%20to/Alldone.jpg

-Turn on your headlights and look at them in amazement at how wonderful you are and now that you are a master HID installation tech. LOL
http://i124.photobucket.com/albums/p29/PappaSmurf25/HID%20how%20to/Pretty.jpg
how do i mount the ballast if i dont have that metal thing? crap i think i replied the wrong way. my bad

[heineck]

ur balasts didnt come with brakets

[frankie257]

no I ordered mine from DDM Tuning and I didnt even get a manual or anything except 2 ballasts and the 2 6k hid bulbs and their wires

[Philbar71]

You could just make a bracket.

[frankie257]

how? im sorry but i dont know too much im only 17 lol

[Philbar71]

Out of a piece of metal that's about an inch wide and like four inches long and that you can bend to a 90 degree angle. Then drill 2 holes in it, one at each end.

[cherrington17]

I went to a parts store (sears, home depot, etc)
bought a piece of 1/8" aluminum.
cut it to size (dremel)
bent it into an L.
drilled two holes (lined up with the ones on the ballast)
put bolts through (with a nut on the back side)
mounted and connected wires.

booya. enjoy a root beer. (can't endorse illegal activity)

[robalero]

I grabbed zip ties and tied mine up to the front bumper part, much easier and just as secure

[heineck]

hahaha root beer,

here man. credit goes to cherry

to clarify the mounting point where smurf is suggesting, in the first few pics....

http://i178.photobucket.com/albums/w246/cherrington17/Car%20Pics/CIMG0809.jpg
http://i178.photobucket.com/albums/w246/cherrington17/Car%20Pics/CIMG0810.jpg

The little L bracket I made from scrap aluminum, to mount the ballast.
http://i178.photobucket.com/albums/w246/cherrington17/Car%20Pics/CIMG0811.jpg
L bracket mounted (w/o the screw)
http://i178.photobucket.com/albums/w246/cherrington17/Car%20Pics/CIMG0812.jpg

[falloutboy]

http://i178.photobucket.com/albums/w246/cherrington17/Car%20Pics/CIMG0809.jpg

what the heck did u do to your battery??

[Philbar71]

^ Uhh, I dont think he did anything to his battery... Its a Optima Red Top. lol

[cherrington17]

http://i178.photobucket.com/albums/w246/cherrington17/Car%20Pics/CIMG0809.jpg

what the heck did u do to your battery??

Thats the optima redtop, that melted. (terminal completely melted while driving) Its now a yellow top.... after 3 bad reds, I moved on.

[hok666]

melted :O how? to many LEDs?? :D

[cherrington17]

melted :O how? to many LEDs?? :D

cause is still definitively unknown. I think I had a short somewhere, but it was really minor. No idea. I was driving fine for about an hour, then the car died. No power at all. I pop the hood and look, and the front terminal is gone, and there is dried lead (or zinc?) dripped down from where the + terminal used to be.


Leds cannot be the problem, it was around 1pm, no leds on at all. (nice and sunny)

[falloutboy]

I know its a Optima. I meant what he did with the cables.
Why use both port (US - screw and Euro 'pin')? And what the heck of a kind are these cables?? - additional sleeves?

Oh sorry for thread jacking.

Would be a good idea to splice it up, beginning where I started talking about batteries.

By the way, the Optima problem is a 'common' problem with batteries. If their getting old or had many deep cycles. I had it 'kinda' happen to a red top, too.

The alternator is loading the battery with its around 105 amp, but the battery is to 'rotten' to put that energy somewhere so it begins to dissolve. Mine began to bulge, started boiling (the plastic around it) and if I where driving an additional hour it probably would've blown up.

(Did I get the grammatical tense right???)

[cherrington17]

I know its a Optima. I meant what he did with the cables.
Why use both port (US - screw and Euro 'pin')? And what the heck of a kind are these cables?? - additional sleeves?

Oh sorry for thread jacking.

Would be a good idea to splice it up, beginning where I started talking about batteries.

By the way, the Optima problem is a 'common' problem with batteries. If their getting old or had many deep cycles. I had it 'kinda' happen to a red top, too.

The alternator is loading the battery with its around 105 amp, but the battery is to 'rotten' to put that energy somewhere so it begins to dissolve. Mine began to bulge, started boiling (the plastic around it) and if I where driving an additional hour it probably would've blown up.

(Did I get the grammatical tense right???)


I find it alot easier to work with top posts, and leave the car running off the fronts. My alt has an accessory power cable going to the top on the other side, and both my amps are powered from the top. So I don't have to mess with the front over and over.
(I have an aftermarket, high output alt..hence the extra alt power cable)

The extra cables, shown, are upgraded ground cables for the Big 3.

[robalero]

alright so im having issues with my HID kit. my new high beam 55 watt kit just came in and I went to install it my passenger side is working fine but my driver side won't work properly and by that I mean it just plain won't turn on.

[jhubbz]

Did you plug it in upside down? Half the people here do it... I did it.. lol

[hok666]

check + and - Connections

[cherrington17]

also check your fuses

[hok666]

that too, of course cant forget that as well...

[robalero]

well I figured it out, I guess I broke one of the connections ( the one that goes to the reg harness of the car ) so ill replace it tomorrow while im at work

[XanderWiFi]

Quick note, hang your ballasts upside down..... i just ran into a problem with mine getting water in it somehow when it rained last night... Now I have one that has a LOT of water in it.... So make sure your plugs are pointed down...

Dammit!!! I have been running stocks since mine went dark on me after a car wash. I'd getting DDMs...

[robalero]

that sucks terribly

[XanderWiFi]

Especially since the ones from Ryan are like double-triple the cost...

[robalero]

no offence to him or anything that is priced higher, just because it cost me doesn't mean its always better

[XanderWiFi]

I just got done with a little PM exchange with Ryan who is pretty disgruntled with them as well. I think I will just go with DDM and save us both the headache.

I would love it if you all sent me a pic with how the lighting looked with what wattage you used. Probably going to go with the 35 wat.

[robalero]

I own both 35 watts and 55 watt, now I can't say how well the lighting works now because my headlight aiming on my driver side decided to crap out so its pointed hard at the ground

[Ryan from Ohio]

no offence to him or anything that is priced higher, just because it cost me doesn't mean its always better

Problem was my distributor was advertising and selling these at a certain price point and while the price never changed they were changing suppliers and not letting anyone know. Of all the HIDs I sold only a few were the same kit/manufacturer/box. The last two were bunk sets to with issues. I really ripped into the general manager when they told me the ballast was good and they wouldnt replace it... They ended up replacing it... Since then I havent been back there. I stopped selling there stuff because of that issue severely pissed me off and my real job needed me.

FWIW the DDM's look EXACTLY like the last two kits I sold. Only difference is the stickers.

[cavaliers60]

and I very well could have just lucked out on getting a bad set.... I'm not to concerned with getting HID's for the Alero right now as I don't drive the Alero all that much anymore. My fiance drives the car and I ride my bike. Thinking about getting HID projectors for the bike though

[robalero]

the good thing with ddm's kits is their lifetime warrenty and those style of HID kits is the better kind the ones with just a single in are terrible I owned a set before and I had flickering issues

[Ryan from Ohio]

and I very well could have just lucked out on getting a bad set.... I'm not to concerned with getting HID's for the Alero right now as I don't drive the Alero all that much anymore. My fiance drives the car and I ride my bike. Thinking about getting HID projectors for the bike though

Unfortunately the set you got and the set Xander got were the same set.

Theres to much coincidence for me to believe you got the 1% bad kit... When two kits develop basically the same issues.

[cavaliers60]

Unfortunately the set you got and the set Xander got were the same set.

Theres to much coincidence for me to believe you got the 1% bad kit... When two kits develop basically the same issues.

That's true... Oh well. I still consider it a good investment. I was able to see the difference in person, and drive a car with them in, and I really liked it.

[XanderWiFi]

Indeed. A learning experience all around.

[spc2125]

ordered my 55W 8000k hids last night.
should be here tuesday. this thread should help A LOT

[jhubbz]

has anyone done a full swap? hi's/lo's/fogs?

[robalero]

i dont have fogs but i did low/highs

[spc2125]

i dont have fogs but i did low/highs

pic?

[robalero]

took my high's out and put them in my low beams. I wasn't using high beams enough to warrent that I bought them so I sold the 35 watt kit and kept the 55 watt kit

[PappaSmurf]

Ryan,
YOu got anymore kits left? I need a 9007 35watt kit if you can get your hands on it, if not then I might have to go with a 55watt. I WILL NOT buy from anyone else!

[cherrington17]

Ryan doesn't sell these anymore. The company kept changing kits and varying quality.

Aftermath's kits are really good, but a bit more expensive.

[hok666]

aftermath? link?

[cherrington17]

http://www.retrosolutionsllc.com/servlet/the-55W-DIGITAL-HID-kits/Categories

The store that he gets them from. Aftermathd.i.c.k (no periods, obviously) His name is Richie. He used to own the blue decked out alero on the site. Not sure how to get a hold of him these days. I usually find him via facebook.

He's sold a bunch on here over the years. I know me and oldnuts have a kit from him. Full warranty bulbs and ballasts. (i had a ballast die, it was very painless to get a replacement)

http://www.aleromod.com/forums/member.php?u=91

[Cliff8928]

+1 for Richie! I have 2 of those sets and no issues at all... One 9006 and one 9008 Bi-Xenon.

[widbyj]

Dittos - Retro Solutions is not the cheapest but their quality is very good. I'm using a Variable Power H1 set in my projectors and LOVE it. Good directions and a very complete setup/install package. Highly recommended! Enjoy!

[Blackthunder99]

We're you mount the hid ballast for the fog lights at

[jawa]

vintage thread come back

[Blackthunder99]

So anyone going to help

[happyisthealero]

Any where you want be creative and careful, and that is the best advice anyone can give you, lol

[MiLo]

Did anyone have a problem plugging in the hid bulb into the headlight? I can't seem to turn the bulb that quarter turn to the locking position. I don't want to breakthe bulb or the color stick. Idk wtf is going on lol.. Any suggestions?

[Truth]

Did anyone have a problem plugging in the hid bulb into the headlight? I can't seem to turn the bulb that quarter turn to the locking position. I don't want to breakthe bulb or the color stick. Idk wtf is going on lol.. Any suggestions?

you just have to fiddle with it until it locks in place, i was worried about the same problem, but it won't harm it.

[MiLo]

what happens if the color stick does break? will the color not show?

[jawa]

then it will go nucluar

[Nas Escobar]

One thing I've never seen on here.... how bad is the glare with the HID lights?

[sleepyalero]

not bad if aimed well.

[falloutboy]

check the Euro-spec headlight thread, I asked one member to post a pic of his HID - Euro-spec Light combo.
and there is a destintive beam going off liek this \ which is not good.
If someone posts a pic of a DOT-spec headlight and the HID under the same conditions u can tell how much glare they produce

(white wall, one headlight covered)

[Valley olds]

I realize this thread is pretty dead already, but I have a question. My ballasts are different from the ones in the pictures. My ballasts have no brackets (just small mounting holes), and are smaller. Where would you suggest mounting them. Right now, I have them under my headlights, but the headlights don't seem to lock in place and seem to be pointing up.

[sleepyalero]

Tuck em behind somewhere mount with double sided tape.

[Nas Escobar]

I would recommend taping them to the headlight support panel (or header panel). It's the plastic thing that the headlights mount on to.

[tw0123]

I zip tied mine to the front fender bracket... up out of the way of aby moisture

[sleepyalero]

If you have ddm tuning they are water/shock proof. ;)

[tw0123]

I do, I just didn't want to take any chances... it would be just my luck!!

[sleepyalero]

Yeah fair enough. :)

[Valley olds]

Thank you for the suggestions. I will have to try some over the weekend. Hopefully the wiring will reach the fender bracket. Otherwise, I may use the header panel.

[tw0123]

The wiring fits... just requires a bit of wiggling to get it tucked under the headlight "pkug" that locka the light to the header panel... hope that makes sense!!

[WIALERO]

would the 04 have problems that requires this harnest?

[WIALERO]

im just wondering becouse im about to order the 10,000k lights

[03glgold]

35 watt should be fine 55watt may require harness at least that is what everything i have ever read says

[sleepyalero]

Why 10k? You wont be able to see sht

[WIALERO]

Why 10k? You wont be able to see sht

well i liked the color but i was thinking between 8k and 10k i had 10k on my civic and they were nice so thats why i was thinking 10k in the first place

[RalphP]

10000K is too blue for good visibility.

If you think THEY did well, just think how well 6000K will do, which is much closer to the sensitivity peak of the human eye!

(Actually 4300K to 5000K is even better, but a bit harder to find.)

(Might as well go 18000K as 10000K ... you're paying to look good, not see good!)

RwP

[Nas Escobar]

I personally would recommend 6000K for the lights. I have them and visibility is great at night. It's night and day compared to the old Halogens.

If you're hell bent on 10K, you should get them for the fogs. 890 isn't commonly available so just use 880. Same bulb.

[xXManwhoreXx]

All this thread does is make me miss poppa smurf :-(

[WIALERO]

10000K is too blue for good visibility.

If you think THEY did well, just think how well 6000K will do, which is much closer to the sensitivity peak of the human eye!

(Actually 4300K to 5000K is even better, but a bit harder to find.)

(Might as well go 18000K as 10000K ... you're paying to look good, not see good!)

RwP


hmm i might just do the 6000k then if its better :)

[WIALERO]

I personally would recommend 6000K for the lights. I have them and visibility is great at night. It's night and day compared to the old Halogens.

If you're hell bent on 10K, you should get them for the fogs. 890 isn't commonly available so just use 880. Same bulb.


il look into them it would be nice!

[sleepyalero]

I run 8000k thats my limit. Good visibility imo and just the right hint of blue I wanted.

[cavedewler]

Ok... so I bought some installed them and they dont work??? should they have been 55w's??

[sleepyalero]

Did you reverse the plug on the ballasts?

What brand?

[Nas Escobar]

Ok... so I bought some installed them and they dont work??? should they have been 55w's??

55 watts are too much for the stock wiring. You would need to upgrade. Where did you get them from and did you try switching the connections? The lights are polarized just how LEDS are.

[sleepyalero]

Also do you still have your daytime running lights active? If so you need to delete that.