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Official HID Lighting Thread

172K views 362 replies 83 participants last post by  Chrisf304 
#1 · (Edited by Moderator)
First off I will cover the pros and cons of true HID's versus stock halogen. The true HID's are not the blue bulbs bought on ebay cheap. HID kits come with ballasts and an HID bulb which is a completely different design when compared to halogen.

Pros-Better light output, less power consumption, longer life (when installed correctly) due to the fact the HID bulb does not contain a filament that can break from vibrations, and some kits cost less than halogen bulbs but some are much better.

Cons-They are illegal if they were not installed from the factory (although most authorities don't do anything to enforce the law), most local stores are not going to carry replacement bulbs or ballasts (this varies though), and in some headlight housings the beam scatters so much as to not offer any benefit over stock.


Some general information when looking at HID kits

- Some places sell "HID-style" bulbs; these are not HID's, only higher wattage bulbs that can melt the factory socket and wiring due to the heat they put out. Watch out for these, they are not worth the money.

- A 35-watt HID kit is the most common and runs cooler than the factory halogen bulbs.

- A 55-watt HID kit runs hotter and is not recommended for small headlamp housings since they can melt. They are brighter, but the beam may scatter more, compared to the 35 watt kit, and blind oncoming traffic. Also, the color temperature will be washed out some. For example, an 8000 Kelvin HID kit will look more like a 6000 Kelvin kit.


Ballast choices

Analog- Larger ballast, consumes a little more power, works well

Digital Slim- Small ballast (thin and about the dimensions of a credit card, easy to hide due to size, works well for gen. 7 malibus due to space limitations behind the bumper cover


The HID color temperature scale (rated in Kelvin)

3000K- pure yellow, meant for low visibility conditions, used in fog light housings

4500K- white with some yellow, good for all conditions

5000K- pure white, good for all conditions, brightest color temp.

6000K- white with a hint of blue, good for all conditions, also good for show without sacrificing much light output

8000K- blue with a little white, it is dimmer and more for show purposes

10000K- pure blue, for show purposes, not good for regular driving

12000K- blue/purple, for show purposes, not good for regular driving





Bulb fitment through the years

5th gen. 1997-2003- 9006 low beam and 880 fog light

6th gen. 2004-2008- H11 low beam
04'-06'- 880 fog light
07'-08' classic- H11 fog light

7th gen. 2008-2011- H11 low beam and H11 fog light


Parts needed (all years)

- HID kit 35-watt or 55-watt and color temp. of choice

- HID relay harness which provides direct battery power from the battery for longer life and less chance of flickering due to small gauge factory wiring

- No error code eliminators or adapters are needed for factory headlamp housings on any Malibu since they do not have a bulb-out warning system


Notes

- Generation 7 Malibus need either the DRL (daytime running light) fuse or relay pulled from the underhood fuse block due to the fact that the HID's will not function properly as running lights. They will flicker and shorten the life span of the kit.

- I do not know for other generations if anything needs to be disabled or not.

- Adjust headlights as needed to help avoid blinding other drivers

- HID's will not work well as high beams, they take too long to warm up and will scatter too much to have any benefit

- Do not turn HID's on and off constantly, this will cause hot starts and void warranties, also the bulbs will burn out faster.


Most of all enjoy the new found increased light output, it is great to have :D .
 
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#4 · (Edited)
Yes, you CAN use HID's for the high beams on the Gen7 since the low beams stay on during high beam operation. But read chevyguy8893's How-To: they scatter way too much to be of benefit in our housings.
 
#5 ·
Excellent write up. Hopefully this will cut down on so many threads about the same thing haha
 
#8 ·
HID's offer a higher lumen output. For example a 35 watt HID kit puts out 3400 lumens and sylvania silverstar ultra bulbs put out 1700 lumens. There is a noticeable difference.

3000k offers better visibility in bad weather conditions since there is less reflected back. True fog lights are yellow, I have them on my car and they are great.
 
#9 ·
HID's still should NOT be used in the high-beams no matter if the lows stay on since as said they will scatter bad, and you will lose your flash to pass.

Also, I would stay away from cheap HID kits. IMO you get what you pay for and just today I had a buddy have a DDM ($35) kit that was installed right have a ballast melt. After some research he said he found others that had the same issue. I have a good ($200) kit in my Camaro for some 5 years now with no issues. I know many have good luck with DDM kits, and I just ordered two sets for the Speed3 and Malibu, but I don't think I am gonna use them until I do more research. I might sell them and get some better kits. In all honestly $35 for HID's scares me. To each their own.
 
#11 ·
I recently bought some DDM Tuning HID's for my 2010 Malibu and after installing them I don't find that they are bright and also dont project that far. I have the 5000k w/ the HID Harness. I have a Nissan Titan with some 4500k hid's that are a different brand and they are much brighter and project alot farther. Any suggestions to why this is happening on my Malibu?
 
#12 ·
The only thing I can think of is a difference in design of the headlamp housings that makes a difference and when you go from one to another it seems a lot worse. Unless there is an issue, then I would get in contact with DDM and see what they say to do.
 
#13 ·
would some one wanna give me a good website and a list for every little thing that i will need but give me the names of the exact parts and the site wheere i can purchase them for an hid kit for my 09 malibu i know its annoying and rude but im just lazy and nervous about doing this i know i probably wont get a relpy but i would greatly apreciate it:) thanks-frank
 
#14 ·
would some one wanna give me a good website and a list for every little thing that i will need but give me the names of the exact parts and the site where i can purchase them for an hid kit for my 09 malibu i know its annoying and rude but I'm just lazy and nervous about doing this i know i probably wont get a reply but i would greatly appreciate it:) thanks-frank
Everyone here helps out others, and not asking for help is sometimes the worst thing to do; especially when ordering online.

I have DDM tuning HID kits in my headlights and fog lights with no complaints thus far. Some other use VVME and may chime in later. Bulb sizes are listed in the first post along with choosing a color temperature.

You will need this http://www.ddmtuning.com/Products/DDM-HID-Kit-Slim-Ballast-35W-or-55W in a 35 watt kit and low beam only. No adapter stuff needed. This is the ballasts I use because of the size since there is not a lot of room to mount larger ballasts.

Also, you will need this HID relay harness http://www.ddmtuning.com/Products/HID-Kit-Wiring-Harness to provide direct battery power to the kit.

Other than those items I would get some zip ties and double side body molding tape to mount the ballasts.
 
#15 ·
Anyone try the V-HID 35W SLIM BALLAST XENON HEADLIGHT KIT H11 by V-Leds.com?
This reads as a very straight forward replacement (other than finding a home to mount the ballasts). I like the plug-n-play approach

From their site:
V-HIDS Headlight Conversion
Our kits offer the latest in High Intensity Discharge (HID) Xenon technology. V-HIDS utilize ultra slim-line ballasts with next generation technology for optimal light output and ballast efficiency. Our exclusive HID conversion kit will provide you with a level of performance and quality that is unmatched by similar HID products found on the market today. The ultra-slim design will enable the product to be used in a wider variety of applications.

Features:
* Ultra-slim design and light weight ballasts
* Automatic reverse polarity protection.
* Our ballast measures 5/8"H x 2-9/16"W x 3"L (15.69mm x 65mm x 75mm)
* Weighs only 7 oz (200 g).
* Simple Plug n' Play installation
* Full 1 Year "No Hassle" Warranty

Includes:
* 2 Ballasts
* 2 HID Bulbs
* 2 3M Adhesive Pads
* Zip Ties
* Install Manual
 
#20 ·
All you have to do is take off the bumper, unscrew the factory bulbs, put in the HIDs, then put the bumper back on. Depending on your mechanical skill it could take anywhere from about 1.5-2.5 hours.
 
#23 ·
Hi, I'm new to this site..
Anyone have thoughts on the advantage/disadvantage to the 35watt or 55 watt ballasts?
 
#25 ·
#26 ·
That is correct. I have the DDM Tuning HID kit it 5000k and I love them!
 
#29 ·
It depends. Are you putting the lights in so you can see, or because you don't give a crap about anyone else and just want to look cool?

If the former, 5000K (Actually, 4000K to 5000K if you can). If the later, why not go to 10,000K ?

DRLs - to use them, you should use a relay.

I'm not sure why everyone fusses about the price of the HIDs - a good set of Ultrastar lights will run me more than a full HID kit from DDM Tuning, so I've got no problem with DRLs. I'm considering redoing them to use the fog lights when I install those, though.

RwP
 
#32 ·
6000K does have a hint of blue to the light output, but not much. I like my 5000K kit a lot too and I have had both 5K and 6K.

Since the relay harness supplies constant power to the HID's the DRL's work fine. Pulling the fuse just extends the life of the kit.
 
#35 ·
Hmm okay, Yea I'll like the 5000k better. Don't much care for the blue lights. So if I use the relay harness and pull the fuse I can still use DRLs or I just will not have DRLs?


Why, what's the point of DRLs during the day? They don't really serve a purpose for me..

I'm just glad that even after pulling the DRL fuse, the lights still come on automatically at night--that's what's most important to me.

Getting HIDs is definitely worth it!

They are useful for me because some mornings I get up for college or work and its early. I find the lights are useful so people can see me as well as sometimes the lights don't always kick on when they should.

That's definitely good they still turn on when the light detector kicks the lights on. I still want HIDs, but want to make sure what I'm getting into before I purchase them.
 
#36 ·
I personally just don't like the location of the DRL's. So, in my case I have been in the habit of turning on the fog lights. Since my fog lights are 3000K and the parking lights are amber they are easily noticeable.

If you leave the fuse in with the relay harness the DRL's will work as normal, basically like having your headlights on all the time. If you don't have the relay harness they will flicker on and off, which is bad all around.
 
#38 ·
Use the relay harness and leave the fuse in, you'll still have DRLs.

Pull the fuse, with or without the relay harness, you won't have DRLs.

Leave the fuse in and don't use the relay harness, you'll have a bad set of ballasts quickly.

RwP
Yea I keep forgetting I can have my fogs on during the day in place of the DRLs and 3000k aren't that bright since they are more of an amber coloring like the parking lights as you said.

So I order them with the harness, leave the fuse in, install them, and I can have DRL HIDs, correct? Will this damage anything?
 
#43 ·
i ordered a hid kit for my car and just got it in the mail yesterday, but before i install it im eager to know a couple things:
1. relay
2. canceler
can someone please explain to me if i need either or both of these for my install or if theyre optional. what what they do exactly.

thanks in advance! scott
 
#44 ·
1. Relay - YES! You want full power to your HIDs or they may suffer from low voltage and fail prematurely.

2. Canceller - If your car has a bulb checker (yours doesn't) it could incorrectly indicate a bad bulb and this device tells it that everything is hunky dorey.
 
#49 ·
I would wait on the HIDs and use the relay harness first, to make sure everything THERE works.

It's a shame to put both in and have no lights, and not be sure why.

RwP
 
#50 ·
does any one have a picture of the front of there car with HID headlights and 3000k Fog lights? i am trying to see if i want to have these or white fog lights on my 2004 Malibu LT. I am going to put 6000 or 8000 for the low beams and just wanted to see what other people think of this combo.
 
#51 ·
5000K headlights and 3000K fog lights. Sorry, they are not the best pictures, but it is hard to take pictures of lights for me. Someone else may have pictures on a previous generation malibu.





 
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