HID headlight problem???

[kennethp]

Hello All,

Previous owner had some hack install HID lights on my bike. They are wired so high beam is off and low beam is on. When I first turn on the bike only one light comes on left or right random selection. Very rare that both lights come on. I have to wait till I get behind a car at the light so i can rev the motor to get both lights to come on. I change the headlight fuse to 30 amp but no dice. Just wondering if anyone had this problem with their HID lights. I'm thinks poor wiring or possible short. Bulbs are also aimed to high. I would like to point them more to the road.

[KRAZYKAT]

i have a 2005. i look down the fairing , behind the head light. and i see a white dial lookn thing. if you turn it , it will adjust your lights one is for up/down. one is for left/right.
sorry about my ,"sorry" description of the white dial turny thing. but if you look ,youll see it really doesnt need a great description.
as for the other problem...sorry dont know about hids.

[rexazz2]

sounds like balast may not be getting enough voltage

my 04 at idle the headlight dims so my bet is not enough voltage

[Anoucka]

You need either to get direct power from the battery (use a relay) or a switch to switch the HID on/off or best option using direct power a timerrelay to retard switching the HID on.
If you are starting the bike the voltage drops to low for the ballast to be triggered.

How I know? I have a mechanic sitting next to me

best off regards, Anoucka

btw a warning, the ballast will be damaged and fail in the end if you do not use one off these options.

[yellow_kitty_kat]

Quick question:

Did the PO install a heavy duty wiring harness, or just plug and play into the stock light harness?

[kennethp]

Ok everyone, It looks as if the previous owner bought one of those $70 HID kits and spliced the wires with relays from the cheap kit into the stock harness. I have taken the bike apart to get the fairings painted, install frame sliders, and get to the bottom of this wiring issue with the lights. I'm also tempted to get a few parts chromed. Back to the lights; I currently have Lexus ballast, and Mercedes Bi-Xenon projectors with bezels. So my wiring mission is to retain as much of the stock control use as possible. I'm not sure how the stock lights work sense mine are a little hacked up. I know some bikes lights come on as soon as you turn the key. Then flick off as the motor is starting; then flick on once the motor is running. I know this is not ideal for HID lights. I would like to have a switch that powers up the Ballast and lights and use the factory Hi/Low switch to control the shutter solenoid in the projector.

The pics are of the cheap kits and harness, headlight cage, and bi-xenon projector.

All knowledge is truly appreciated.

Relays zip tied to the headlight brace. I thought the thing didn't have relays the way it was performing.


I would assume these are cheap relays.


Another pic of the relay.


The offending ballast.


No labels = No pride in work.


The wiring bundle that goes back to the battery. It's seams I will have to get direct powe from the batt; so I can use these as guide for wire running.


Another


Future home of the projectors. It seems they will fit with minor dremel operations.


Wires looking a bit ghetto rigged.


The light bule connector goes to the ballast power; and the two wires go to the bulbs.


The relay spliced into the stock wires and the connectors again.


The Bi-Xenon Projectors.








Thanks in advance for any advice or commentary.

[yellow_kitty_kat]

Hey man. I did an HID swap into my Kat last year, and did a big write up on it, so this is not virgin territory for me. I did it with "$70 eBay Special HID's" as well, and they were awesome and went in with zero problems. I have some pics in my garage

The first thing I would do is delete all of that PO stuff out, and return the bike to stock. This gives you a good basis to start doing mods the CORRECT way. If you don't do that, at least clean up that abortion of tape and butt-splices.

When you go to install your lights, get a heavy duty light harness, too. This is plug and play, comes with everything you need, and allows you to use your stock switch-gear as well.

Also, Potter & Brumfield have been making relays for just about forever.

[airforceranger49]

projectors in a kat?!?! god this will be sick!!! def keep us updated, and take LOTS of pics

[kennethp]

Yesterday was great. I got a good 3 hours of fab work in on mounting the projectors before the Super Bowl. I had to bake the headlights for about 2 minutes at 350. The kids were like "we're not eating that." After I got a good pry in with the screwdriver I was able to use the heat gun to spot heat the rest of the adhesive. I get the feeling Suzuki didn't want the headlight taken apart.

Stock housing


Projector in oringal form. Some metal trimming will be required. Tool - Dremel with metal cutting wheel.



This is the test fit.


Closer - They fit pretty decent with no mods so spacing is good.


The left is the is the trimmed projector and the right still has the extra metal. You want the butt of the projector to hang out of the back of the head light housing so that requires trimming the mounting brackets off the projector and do some fabbing on the reflector cup. You also want to preserve the reflector cup so you can still use the aiming bolts.








The lines are where the end of the reflector cup touches and where I will put my JB Weld.



In the cup you go Mr. Projector.



The lower incision is for the plug of the bi-xenon solenoid.





The first fab is always a bit funny looking. I'm sure you can tell I learned from my mistakes by the time I got to the one on the left.



They are still workable to the factory housing after the mods.



Ready to be JB welded.



Seeing as I refuse to pay $70 dollars for a wiring harness. This is rough wire harness idea I may go with. I'm just not sure if the Kat is positively switched. If anyone knows please chime in.

[Anoucka]

Give that man a banana


serious that is quite a nice mod

[scottynoface]

I LOVE projector retrofits, curious as to where you got the Mercedes projectors?

[kennethp]

I got these on ebay about 4 years ago to do a retro in another car. That car got wrecked before the retro so they were in a box in my garage. I wanted to do them on the bike; cause I can afford the downtime. So far so good. The projectors are mounted in the reflector cups and the silicone is fully cured. I will begin to refine wiring and the reconstruction of the housing tonight. I'm looking to be finished by Friday. I need to go get my tires mounted on Sat.

[kennethp]

More pictures. These bad boys are getting closer and closer to being on the bike.

A cup makes a great curing stand. I used zip ties to hold the position.




Not one; but two times.


Almost there!


The final face of my bike.


Getting the lights aimed is probably the hard part, because the added bulk of the projectors and the bezels changes the dynamics of the housing. A second person makes it easier; a special thanks to my wife for being my extra pair of eyes. More pics to follow as I get wiring and such finalized I hope to have these fully operational by tomorrow.

[guerreroa04]

Damn that looks nice, cant wait to see it done

[scottynoface]

HID's done right I cant wait to see it.