Numba20

iTrader: (1)

okay ive seen alot of info on How HID's are bad to flash, but nobody ever really explains the underlying reason. i know they take a second to warm up... but i installed High/Low/Fog's in my 99 trans am all 35w, and was wondering, how short the on-to-off flash must be for it to have damaging effects? or could you flash them fast once they have warmed up? (basically specificly what type of flashing is bad? and how to get around this problem and keep all functionality?)

for the fogs, i know they flash when the car is locked, but i like that alot, and dont really want to disable it, so how damaging is that to the bulb if i lock my car say 5 times a day about 4 days a week? i will look up the thread to disable them on the alarm if im pursuaded to do so.

also i tend to run my fogs, alot. i just installed all the HID's. i know most guys with the 35w's say they dont have any issues with melting the housings, but how much do you use yours? mine are on basically half the time i drive, and always on if i have my lights on.

Breathing Fire

I had a set of lights a while back that melted the harness itself. I don't know if on/off will cause damage, but my lights were in the purple spectrum. High on the Kelvin scale. Never had the issue with white yellow or blue. Purples were the only ones that caused me any issue. Don't know what you are running but feel the heat they produce. Maybe that's the problem? That's what killed a harness for me bulbs just burned to hot.

Breathing Fire

No kidding after I post I get a HID advertisement. The ones I had were advertised at 12000K.

Stippy17

iTrader: (5)

Where are you guys buying the HID kits for your fog lights? In the spring when I take my TA out of storage I plan on buying the BLS High/Low kit for my headlights, but Im not sure what to do with my fogs to make them HID's

Numba20

iTrader: (1)

they sell universal kits on ebay. Xentec ive heard are awesome. they are supposed to be able to operate completely submerged in water. thats what i bought. havent had them in but a day yet, so i cant testify for em. but they look and feel quality. and i got a 2 year warranty. the fogs are just plug and play, you need 880 type bulbs. head lights take 9006 or 9005 type i think? but you have to buy the housings with the metal backs if yours are glass.... unless your a pro at drilling glass, i tried with som diamond bit tips and busted it all to ****. lol i bought H7 style bulbs for the headlights, bc of the wider base. (1") to keep the sealant i used further from the heat. but thats just me. had to custom fab the housings for it to work. you can also but the kit and housing all ready assembled.

the harness.... as in the plug and wiring it came with? or the chrome coated backside of the fog light housing? im 99% sure that flashing the bulbs will shorten the life of them. but dont know if there are certain rules.... you run your lights for long periods at a time? i bought the 10000k sets. i know most everyone runs 8000k and no complaints. i purchased an extra set of HID's just incase. i had two sets of 880 bulbs and i noticed that one set the bulb was actually longer. so i stuck the shorter ones in thinking that would help to keep from melting somewhat?

Stippy17

iTrader: (5)

So for the fog lights do we only replace the bulbs and use our stock housings on Trans Ams, or do we replace the whole bulb/housing assembly?

I have heard of Xentec, but do you have a quick link to an ebay listing?

blackls1ta00

iTrader: (27)

hey man just do what i did get the ddm tuning hid kit for fogs i have 6k 35w its plug and play real easy and cheap too can use your stock housing.for low beams i used lmc truck housings with ddm tuning hid kit once again,its been working great since i installed them last year.any questions text me.

strokerrace

iTrader: (8)

Dont get xentec, ive had nothing but problems out of their ballasts. On my friends jeep and in my fogs on my t/a. Ive used many different kinds of hid kits and these are the only ones that havent worked right since new. Installed about 30 kits since 08 in multiple vehicles. My friend even emailed them with his problem and they said he needed a relay harness to fix it. He bought it and still had the problem...

DDM Tuning ive never had a problem with, Smartforcars is the cheapest kit there used to be and it seems to be the best one ive used as far as longevity and no problems but havnt been able to find them for a couple years..

TruBloodTransAm

iTrader: (24)

I bought the HID Raptor kit from DDM Tuning for my fog lights.

Numba20

iTrader: (1)

you can replace only the bulbs. but its better safe than sorry when you melt your housing and have to get new ones. im probably going to chance it, bc if it does start to melt i have stock watt bulbs to go back in that are blue and will match the headlights.

their kit is 32.98 on ebay. just type in xentec, and set the the price high and low to 32.98 and it should pop right up.

well i think i may chance, you can see in the quote i replied to above, i have a plan B if anything goes nasty. how much did your fog housings run you? i wanted the LMCtruck housings but i been running low on cash and decided to do budget all the way. everything included i hi/low/fog 35w 10000k xentec kits, 2 new metal back H4701 housings, and 1 new H4703. (stocks were sealed glass units), white/red flashbacks, and zero load 'keep it clean flshers' all for just $200. it helps that's im rather krafty. lol

say, you couldnt tell me if the LMC housings make that much difference on illumination? are they brighter? well you probably dont know, i know i wouldnt retrofit a bulb and run it in the old stock housing if i had some LMCtruck's. lol but maybe you switched over? hopeful thinking.

whaaa? well the seller included a 3 year warranty, and talked them up like they were the big cheese, from what ive seen of my kits, they look top the line.

strokerrace

iTrader: (8)

I tried the slim ballasts purchased from them around 5 months ago and my friends were bought about 2 years ago and both flashed since new. Mine were in my fogs so I never worried about it as I had 2 spare ballasts I could throw in that worked great. My buddy thought it was his car but we swapped one of my spares in and it stopped. Maybe it was just a coincidence but they wont be getting any more purchases from me...

strokerrace

iTrader: (8)

And if this info helps any:

Melted the stock fog housings and bought some Hella Metal/Glass ones for super cheap. Output is much better (cleaner, longer distance, and an actual beam pattern made for fogs) and the different bulb sizing is nice. Also came with halos but Im not into that so I didnt hook them up.

blackls1ta00

iTrader: (27)

i paid around $100 total for new lmc truck housings,ddm hid low beam kit,and ddm hid fog kit i used my stock fog housing and they flash all the time and have had no problems.its pretty simple and cheap if you ask me.all you need is the lmc housings,then the ddm hid low beam kit,then the ddm hid kit for fogs then your done for less than $100.

Numba20

iTrader: (1)

i have 2 of their slim kits, and one regular. they flashed since new as in like FLICKERED? i have yet to drive the car since install, but i have had them on, and they all look awesome! i wonder how they will handle being jar'd around? im running drop springs and 30 and 35 wall height on my tires, so you feel just about everything.

where did u buy the housings from? also, what wattage and color temp were you running?

$100?! well id be buying 4 housings, 3 HID kits, and the fog housings. i am doing brights too. and the kit i got isnt the hi/lo kit, which is my reason for making the thread.... wanted to see if any1 had info on their behavior and acceptance to being flashed, and also the melting issue. but i have that answered.

strokerrace

iTrader: (8)

Yea they were flashing very quickly like a strobe light and flickered at first.

I was running 6000k at first and switched to 8000k (thats when i got the xentec kit). My fog housings slowly melted in about 6 months. So bad the bulb was melted into the socket on the back.

I got the Hellas from susquehanna motorsports (?sp) just google rally lights .com. Theyre under hellas optilux brand.

I also switched to some hella projectors with a little fabrication work from Tram (look up his thread for the how to).

Hope that helps

Numba20

iTrader: (1)

hmm... you mustve gotten a bad kit? mine flash about 3 times really fast at first when turned on, but i assumed that was to warm up, they dont got on/off just pinkish to blue, like twice then light up really nice. if you were running 8000k, and im running 10000k then i am sure i will run into the same problem... bc i run my fogs alot. i will probably get those housings. and later on switch to some LMCtruck housings for the head lights.

and yeah, im in that thread. i think those projectors he fabricated up look bad as hell. he just needs to switch the black to white to match his paint. im also the one who told him about the switchback LED turns.

VIP1

Why are you guys running blue & purple lights?

Do you realize that the higher up the scale you go the dimmer the output and also the color is less useful due to physics and biology (the light scatters more and our eyes are less sensitive to that color at night).

The K # is the color not the brightness. Higher K # is bluer/purpler but also dimmer due to coatings on the capsule and the salt make-up in the arc chamber.

Stick with 4300K for the best output. The stock HID color in pretty much all OEM vehicles is in the 4100K - 4500K range.


Back on topic....

The reason its bad to flash HID is because its high voltage. Its literally a bolt of lightning in that arc chamber. The components are under enough stress without being cycled quickly. The bulb's life will be shortened (and can break) and you might blow a ballast. Its the same concept with flashing on/off a CRT TV too quickly.



Also, putting HID in Halogen reflector housings is bad because those Halogen Reflector housings can't properly control the light output from a HID capsule. There will be glare and often the beam pattern gets distorted.

Maybe I missed it above, but which housings did you use anyway?

Numba20

iTrader: (1)

yeah i know that. ill probably get 5k or 8k if i end up having to replace things. but never the less it seems to be an upgrade from factory lighting.

ok, sort of had a grasp on the concept, but you explained it the best that i have heard. still wondering tho... how long of an interval do i need to wait before it becomes not bad to turn on/off? say i turn my brights on and 15 seconds later a car comes around the curve and i switch them off.... then 10 seconds after switching off, i intiate them once more. would that be considered harmful to the bulb? or is it set up like, you have X amount of times to turn on this bulb before you start seeing it fall apart?

i am running the H4701 for bright and H4703 for dim. all stock housings. they are the sealed units but have metal backing instead of the glass. i fabricated a hole in the back to fit H7 style bulbs, and siliconed everything back air tight. i did put about a 2mm breather hole at the bottom incase they decided to collect water or moisture for any reason. and i will be adjusting them to minimize glare best i can. not trying to be a jerk to anyone.

VIP1

That should be fine. Just don't do "flash-to-pass" (that's when you flash the high beams to signal someone).

Unfortunately, those usually don't come out well. I've been there. Earlier on, I modified the stock low beam to fit a H7 bulb (I stuck with Halogen at the time). Its very difficult to get the focal point right in that scenario and you will end up with a bad beam pattern. In my case, the beam pattern didn't quite come out right and eventually water ruined things. If you insist on using a Halogen Reflector housing, at least use one of the better ones that was intended to use a removable bulb. People seem to like the LMC housings. Take a look at those.

Numba20

iTrader: (1)

10-4 on the flashing.

im very happy to say mine cam out really nice, i used a hole saw and a dremel, so it wasnt that bad. only thing that bugs me now, is the shop only had one H4701 (bright housing) so i got it, but had to purchase 2 more H4703's (dims) (i had one H4703 with a metal back on the car i could use) so now i have one dim housing in the brights spot. and the other is right. but you can see a difference in them. i didnt even notice it until the silicone was dry and everything was hooked up. seeing as the only difference is the texture of the glass face, i didnt figure it would change that much. but yeah, ive checked on the LMC trucks housings. good advice btw. but for the $$$ i wanted to see how the stock housings do. plus if i decide to go with them, id be switching to the stock bulb style so its plug and play, so i would be forking out $60 more for new bulbs. but i will just kind of play it by ear. thank you for your help.