This thread is to answer most common HID questions and some that you may not have known about.

ALL HID KITS IN ALL 50 STATES ARE 100% ILLEGAL!!!

The principle behind an HID lighting system is voltage amplification. Your stock halogen bulb has a filament that is burned producing light and heat. An HID system takes your 12 volt headlight input and amplifies it through the ballast to approximately a 20,000 volts. This is an extremely low amp circuit which explains how the wires are of normal size. This is also why the light emitted is so bright, the light produced from HID is an arc of electricity in an inert gas chamber, versus burning a filament, so is it very efficient and in theory has a longer lifespan. One ballast can support one arc per one xenon filled bulb.

Bi-xenon is a very misunderstood feature that is available with some kits, which provides HID low and high beam patterns. There are essentially 3 types of bi-xenon kits available. Beware of the "fake" bi-xenon kits, however, many sellers have kits that have an HID low beam with an extremely small halogen bulb on the side of the HID for the high beam. These types of kits tend to have very poor high-beam illumination, especially because most use films on the bulbs to produce the same white light as the HID, this actually makes the bulb dimmer. Choose color wisely, 4300K is the brightest color with least reflection, blue/purple colors reflect in your eyes and are dimmer.

1. Moving bulb, these kits are a single beam kit with a motor that physically moves the bulb up or down to re-angle the arc to the location of the high beam filament in your old halogen lamp. Downsides are complexity, motor failure is a higher probably than bulb failure and that would render a functioning HID system useless, with your headlights stuck on either low or high beam (not cool to drive like that).

2. Quad ballast, these kits are essentially a bulb with two separate gas chambers, and 4 ballasts to control high and low beam function. The positive to this system is the ability to simultaneously operate low and high beams. The downside to this system is size and time, in an already cramped modern engine compartment finding suitable locations for mounting all 4 ballasts is a challenge. Also, HID systems take around 10 seconds to completely warm-up and produce the full amount of light, this could be potentially dangerous when switching your beam pattern to a cold system either low beam in the presence of other vehicles, or high beam in the absence of other vehicles.

3. Sliding Reflector, this is how most factory OEM systems function. Basically the arc of the HID bulb is in a fixed high beam position, with a small shield over the arc that is actuated by a small solenoid. This is a very simple system, a solenoid is basically a wire coil on shaft that is moved magnetically when a current is induced through the coil. Failure of the reflector is not very likely and if failure does occur it usually forces the bulb back to low beam by default.

Downsides to the HID system are minor, but annoying none the less. Due to the voltage amplification that occurs in the ballast it creates a radio frequency that can cause noise when using an AM or FM stereo. Here are some helpful tips to prevent or reduce this when you are doing your installation.

1. Do not mount the ballast to a metal surface, or insulate it using a foam double-sided tape.
2. Route the cables(s) from the battery to the relays and ballasts as far away as possible from other electrical components such as the fuse box and the firewall. Try to route it around the core support.
3. Use good chassis grounds.
4. Do not touch the glass part of the bulb with your hands, and if you do clean it well with an alcohol-based cleaner, such as rubbing alcohol. Oils, dirt, and dust will cause bulb failure, they operate at high temperatures and oils will cause the glass to fail. A word to the wise, cheap aftermarket housings often have water leaks, it is important to have a sealed headlight with this type of lighting system to prolong bulb life.

If you have persistent radio noise,
1. Try using ferrite filters on your hot wires at the battery connection.
2. Try routing your grounds directly back to the battery.
3. Try insulating your wires further with extra wire loom, and avoid contacting metal with all HID wires if possible.
4. Build a Faraday cage to insulate your ballast from any metal or RF interference, using an iron screen. This would be an extreme solution, but would almost guarantee no RF interference.

Bulb fitment guide for F-150
Headlights
97-03: 9007
04+: H13
Fog lights
97-98: 9006
99-03: 9145 (9005)
04: 9145 (9005) or H1
05: 9145 (9005)
06+: 9140

I'll update this post as I obtain more information, and post some pictures when I have the chance.

 

So do you have an HID kit on your truck? I would really like to get one for my FX4 but I've been reading that it causes a lot of problems for oncoming traffic, don't wanna get pulled over for it. Is there any way you could just adjust the beam angle to make it lower to avoid that problem or is there more to it than that? THanks

 

Yes, it a great investment for safety. Once you get one you'll realize how much better it is. Yes, traditional reflector style housings have a tendency to have excess glare, when aimed according to the owner's manual, but if you angle them down slightly, it will not be as much of problem. This why most factory HID kits are projectors BMW, Lexus, Audi.., but other's such as Nissan and Toyota for example have HID options for cars with reflector style housings, similar to our trucks.

 

I think some of the older cars (like older IS300, Acura TL) seem to have a reflector-style housing without the projectors. So you haven't had any problems with cops or anything like that?

 

It depends on what area you live in, I live in Socal and there are so many inconsiderate jerks that drive with high beams on, and so many ricers with conversion kits, cops don't tend to enforce those laws. Remember, these kits are 100% illegal in the U.S., and all it takes is the wrong cop on the wrong day, to make you remove it to have the ticket signed off.

 

Pictures




Sorry, I forgot about posting pics in here, you can see a small difference in illumination, it's much more obvious in your own car than through a camera. The headlights are not aimed properly in any of these pictures, and after adjusting them the light went much farter down the road.

 

i really need HIDs in my truck, especially with hunting season starting next week (lots of driving in the dark on backroads)

mine is a 2004 NBS. i want the hi/lo kit, 6000k. what is the best company to go with?

 

I have them in my heads and fogs and my drivers side fog is not working. I have tested the voltage all the way up to the bulb and have power up to the bulb. Do you know why this might be? I checked the fuses and everythign is ok. Is it possible the bulb burnt out so soon? (3 months)?? If so, how do I go about getting a new bulb?

 

I went with this seller on ebay, I'm very happy for the price.

 

You're right it could be a bulb or, what sounds like to me a ballast/ignitor.
Can't remember how to test a ballast, but that's something I'll add to the first post.

 

Thanks! I have been looking for information for a few weeks now. I just use my heads, which are bright enough, but I want the fogs for hunting season!

 

What is current draw from the bad bulb/ballast at startup and during steadystate operation?

 

I'll have to check it again. I'm not very specialized in electronics when it comes to current draw and such..I used a volt meter and had it on I believe DC power. What do I need to set it to in order to figure out current draw?

 

You'll need an ampmeter or mulitmeter to measure current draw, put the probes in the right spot on the meter, and measure, or read the instruction manual that came with it.

 

How difficult was the install?