Any auto-electricians here? (HID problem)

Duff

Hey,

Have a strange problem going on with a HID kit I installed on my car.

Sorry for the long-windedness of this but I fitted a Canbus HID kit to my car (E60 BMW with projector lights) about two months ago that was working perfectly apart from the odd blown bulb error I'd get on the dash. Got the errors coded out and the bulbs were working fine for about two weeks after.

Then one evening about a month ago, I turned the lights on and only the passenger side lit up. Got a replacement bulb and ballast and fitted them and still the problem persisted, indicating it wasn't a faulty bulb or ballast. I did some research online and was told to try a wiring harness to provide even power to the bulbs from the car's battery. Bought and fitted that and still only the passenger side lit up.

I then bought a more expensive/reputable non-canbus HID kit along with some warning cancellers and fitted that and again it made no difference.

So I've been driving around for the last month or so with just one working headlight bulb (luckily I don't drive in the dark now with the long evenings), then yesterday I flicked the lights on and low and behold both bulbs lit up and stayed on the entire journey home. When I got home I parked the car, turned it off/on and both bulbs were still working. Left it over night and tried it again and was back to just the passenger side working this morning. Just tried it again there and both sides lit up and then the driver side bulb went out after about 30 seconds with a blown bulb message on the dash.

So, that's where I am now. Anyone have any ideas where to look? It seems the bulb on the driver side isn't getting enough power to stay lit or something. Maybe battery or alternator related? I have no other electrical issues with the car, though, it turns over and starts fine etc.

I've asked on a few BMW and HID forums and no-one seems to have come across this issue before where a wiring harness or a replacement bulbs/ballast didn't solve the issue.

Cheers.

blackbox

I replaced old but working HID bulbs in Lexus for new Philips ones.

Had intermittent problems with one or other not striking.

Subsequently found my battery was weak, and when it was replaced the HIDs worked OK.

Duff

Was thinking the battery must be the issue even though I have no other battery related problems. I'll try get my hands on a multimeter to test it out.

rex-x

Have you just tried normal bulbs for a bit? The HIDs fitted are illegal and won't pass the nct unfortunately for you

HIDs operate at very high voltage and you an get all sorts of noise and interference, especially in a car with a sensitive canbus system like the E60.

It may be the case it's just detecting excessive noise and shutting down one side as the car thinks there is a short or error

Duff

rex-x wrote: »

Have you just tried normal bulbs for a bit? The HIDs fitted are illegal and won't pass the nct unfortunately for you

HIDs operate at very high voltage and you an get all sorts of noise and interference, especially in a car with a sensitive canbus system like the E60.

It may be the case it's just detecting excessive noise and shutting down one side as the car thinks there is a short or error

I have halogen bulbs here that I'll re-fit during the week for now. I actually passed the NCT at the start of April with the HIDs in, right before they stopped working!

Yeah I know how picky the E60 canbus system is, and the HID kit I bought was recommended by several people on an E60 forum I'm on which is why I'm surprised I have this issue and no one else seems to. I had blown bulb errors when I first fitted them but got them coded out and they worked fine then, but the coding may also need to be looked into if it's not a weak battery I guess.

rex-x

Duff wrote: »

I have halogen bulbs here that I'll re-fit during the week for now. I actually passed the NCT at the start of April with the HIDs in, right before they stopped working!

Yeah I know how picky the E60 canbus system is, and the HID kit I bought was recommended by several people on an E60 forum I'm on which is why I'm surprised I have this issue and no one else seems to. I had blown bulb errors when I first fitted them but got them coded out and they worked fine then, but the coding may also need to be looked into if it's not a weak battery I guess.

I think passing the test was just luck as they should be a fail due to non OEM and no self levelling system.

If you use halogens for a while and they don't stop working or error then you can eliminate everything but the hid kit as a problem, is it worth it?

Del2005

I had similar problems with my factory fitted HIDs for a few months after I got it. Tried swapping, replacing but still one side failed occasionally. I even tried to follow the wiring harness with an endoscope. Turned out that the earth connector on one side wasn't making contact, its a bit of sprung steel, so I gave it a squeeze towards the bulb and working fine for several years.

Duff

rex-x wrote: »

I think passing the test was just luck as they should be a fail due to non OEM and no self levelling system.

If you use halogens for a while and they don't stop working or error then you can eliminate everything but the hid kit as a problem, is it worth it?

It'll be worth it if I can get the HIDs working reliably as the halogens in the projector set up in the E60 are akin to driving with two candles. Checked the battery voltage in the BMW menu and got 12.1V with the engine off and 13.6-7V with the engine running. Looking online it should be 14.0-2V with the engine running. The battery might be the culprit after all..

rex-x

Duff wrote: »

It'll be worth it if I can get the HIDs working reliably as the halogens in the projector set up in the E60 are akin to driving with two candles. Checked the battery voltage in the BMW menu and got 12.1V with the engine off and 13.6-7V with the engine running. Looking online it should be 14.0-2V with the engine running. The battery might be the culprit after all..

Battery doesn't affect the running engine voltage only the voltage with engine off. From those readings id say the BMW menu is just inaccurate as the car wouldnt be starting at 12.1 volts

Duff

I'm at my wits end with them. I'm going to take it back to the place I got it coded and if they can't figure it out, I guess it's back to the Yankee candles.