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Another DIY HID install, best place for ballasts (with pics)

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Discussion Starter · #1 · (Edited)
Hi, I am new here and I wanted to share my Xenon HID install with you. I think I have found the best place for the ballasts, everything is completely out of sight.

Lexus DIY Xenon - Photo Station 5

I have debated for a long time about which kit to use, there is a variety of prices and quality. In the end I decided to spend a little more and go for the Pilot Pro Line H11 5000k:
http://www.pilotxenon.com/?id=125&title=Xenon-HID-Kits

The set is 199 Euros which is about 265 Dollars and it is not cheap, but I wanted to make sure I wouldn't had any miss fires or failing lights when I am in the middle of nowhere (there are many dark country roads where I live). In Holland Pilot is known to make quality kits. The 5000k version is (to me) about identical to the DRL's, also from a distance, and yet still the road signs light up nicely blue. I was a little skeptic in the beginning, but so far I am pleasantly surprised! The view is also a lot better than several other cars with OEM HID I have driven so far.
 
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#2 · (Edited)
I just installed HIDs from The Retrofit Source. Morimoto ballasts. $160US. Excellent quality. They have a very good reputation and are not the cheap [email protected] from eBay.

The quality of the kit was impeccable. All wires where covered in braided sheathing. Bomb proof ballasts. Relay harness looked like it could be OEM. When installed the components looked like they could have come from Lexus.

The best location for the ballast on the passenger side IMHO is under the headlight on the windshield fluid reservoir. Easily accessible and completely hidden. Much closer to the headlight than installing on the side of the body over the wheel. I used velcro here because there was no place to bolt on. The ballast sits flat with no force pulling/pushing the ballast in any way so the velcro is just keeping the ballast from sliding. There is no direct dirt, sunlight, rain, etc at this location. Should hold this way for a very long time.

On the driver side there are plenty of places to bolt the ballast on for greater security. If you want to hide it it's pretty easy to do that too by bolting under cross member. Lot of unused and existing bolt holes on that side.

I went with 4300K because it's closest to the LED color. Also over time, the color in HID bulbs "shift" so they start approaching 5000K anyway. I'd rather start out with a close match and end up pure white than start white and end up blue.
 
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Discussion Starter · #3 ·
Well then I guess it is not my eyes that fail me, I did notice that my bulbs start to get a tiny bit more blue. But I have been debating a lot between 5000K and 6000K so I am not so worried about that. I like the way the blue lights up the traffic signs.
Have you had anyone flashing you when they approach you usando? I lowered my lights 1 nudge and now I have no complaints anymore. Also do you have pictures about where you exactly placed the ballasts?
 
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#8 ·
usando said:
I just installed HIDs from The Retrofit Source. Morimoto ballasts. $160US. Excellent quality. They have a very good reputation and are not the cheap [email protected] from eBay.

The quality of the kit was impeccable. All wires where covered in braided sheathing. Bomb proof ballasts. Relay harness looked like it could be OEM. When installed the components looked like they could have come from Lexus.

The best location for the ballast on the passenger side IMHO is under the headlight on the windshield fluid reservoir. Easily accessible and completely hidden. Much closer to the headlight than installing on the side of the body over the wheel. I used velcro here because there was no place to bolt on. The ballast sits flat with no force pulling/pushing the ballast in any way so the velcro is just keeping the ballast from sliding. There is no direct dirt, sunlight, rain, etc at this location. Should hold this way for a very long time.

On the driver side there are plenty of places to bolt the ballast on for greater security. If you want to hide it it's pretty easy to do that too by bolting under cross member. Lot of unused and existing bolt holes on that side.

I went with 4300K because it's closest to the LED color. Also over time, the color in HID bulbs "shift" so they start approaching 5000K anyway. I'd rather start out with a close match and end up pure white than start white and end up blue.
Click to expand...
Did you need to install the relay? Or were you able to just go with the complete plug and play route?
 
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#9 ·
you should not need a relay if you use a high quality ballast. I just installed my bulbs without relay and not only do the lights work without flicker, they also turn on in Auto mode.
 
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#12 ·
Hi Guys,

I'm new here. Daylights thanks for the post of pics as to where you hid the ballasts. I've just done my CT and everything is so well concealed! Awesome post.

Side note, I found the left and right fender panels a tad too troublesome. They slid off easily but were a read b**** to put back on. No matter how i tried they would not slide back on. I ended up having to remove the 3 white clips on each side (dropped on of them down into the engine bay in the process and set me back by 30 mins :mad:) and slid them back on the fender panels before clipping them back in. Other than that, the overall install process was easy.
 
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#15 · (Edited)
Hey guys, thought I'd join the conversation. I decided not to mess around and get the Morimoto Elite H11 kit 3Five with the standard Morimoto bulbs from the retrosource.com. I also went for the plug n play can-bus set up. I actually bought the kit in May, but did not get around to installing them until this weekend.

I really took my time to install them and when I lit them up, I was very happy with the warm up time and color. They buzz during warm up, and after a few seconds, dead quiet. I got the 5000k because I wanted the color to be whiter then OEM. They look really good. I wanted to mount the ballasts somewhere using the bracket/bolt. On the passenger side I actually found a nice hole to bolt it to right next to the windshield wiper fluid where it hung down vertically but snug against the front body. On the driver side, I looked straight down and saw a nice hole flat that fit the mounting bolt perfectly. So I mounted it flush down lower. On both sides I tidied up the wires using lock ties against other larger braided/shielded cables in the area. I didn't want stuff flopping around in there.

During my first short evening trip, I noticed the light to be very good and the spread really nice. I did notice thin shadows pointing straight out in front of me low on the road. I thought it could be due to the ground poles on the bulbs, and after watching the recent video from retrosource describing the newer Morimoto XB35 H11b bulbs verses the standard 3Five H11 bulbs, I now know why.
The mounting in many Japanese cars will face the standard H11 bulb with that bar upwards which will cause this shadow. The XB35 11b will face it downward and will fix this. I wish I would've seen this before I ordered the standard ones in May, but I think that these newer ones just came out recently. I just placed my order and will probably ebay my standard bulbs as used or keep them as a backup.

Seriously though these look really good. I think the warranty is 5 years and if you look at the reviews for these on TRS, I don't think you can go wrong. I played around with cheap Xentec crap on my old car for fun, but these Morimoto equipment is pro.
I will update after I get my XB35 bulbs in.

Black Light Darkness Mode of transport Atmosphere
 
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#17 ·
Yep, I already ordered those bulbs and confirmed with Retrofitsource that those are the right fitment. I just updated my previous post with a picture of the shadows. I should get my new XB35 H11b bulbs within the next day or so. I'll post a pic after I swap them out.
 
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