Bumper Removal, Headlight Removal, and HID Kit Installation

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KuroNekko
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delusional29 wrote:
KuroNekko wrote: My Morimoto 35W kit is nearly 4 years old and still running on the original bulbs and ballasts.
That's what I want to hear! My goal is to change my lights less frequently.

Thanks all!
Just keep in mind that after I installed my dash camera, I noticed some occasional flickering with the HIDs. I remedied that with inline capacitors. I simply just added them to the original components and everything's been great since.
2011 Suzuki Kizashi Sport GTS 6MT (Black)
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delusional29
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KuroNekko wrote: Just keep in mind that after I installed my dash camera, I noticed some occasional flickering with the HIDs. I remedied that with inline capacitors. I simply just added them to the original components and everything's been great since.
Do you happen to have the specs of the caps and where you installed them?
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KuroNekko
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delusional29 wrote:
KuroNekko wrote: Just keep in mind that after I installed my dash camera, I noticed some occasional flickering with the HIDs. I remedied that with inline capacitors. I simply just added them to the original components and everything's been great since.
Do you happen to have the specs of the caps and where you installed them?
https://www.theretrofitsource.com/wirin ... -link.html

I installed them between the HD Harness and the ballasts therefore the ballasts get the stabilized voltage.
2011 Suzuki Kizashi Sport GTS 6MT (Black)
SamirD
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KuroNekko wrote:
delusional29 wrote:
KuroNekko wrote: Just keep in mind that after I installed my dash camera, I noticed some occasional flickering with the HIDs. I remedied that with inline capacitors. I simply just added them to the original components and everything's been great since.
Do you happen to have the specs of the caps and where you installed them?
https://www.theretrofitsource.com/wirin ... -link.html

I installed them between the HD Harness and the ballasts therefore the ballasts get the stabilized voltage.
One of the PIAAs I installed just a few months is now out again. :evil: And after reading what you posted about the HIDs flickering, I'm really thinking thE the reason it burned out was due to some fluctuations in the electrical system.

It doesn't seem like this capacitor can be used with the factory bulbs without modification, but I wonder if one exists for the regular harness? That might solve this bulb issue. I've changed more bulbs on the Kizashi than all my other cars combined. :o :shock:
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KuroNekko
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SamirD wrote: One of the PIAAs I installed just a few months is now out again. :evil: And after reading what you posted about the HIDs flickering, I'm really thinking thE the reason it burned out was due to some fluctuations in the electrical system.

It doesn't seem like this capacitor can be used with the factory bulbs without modification, but I wonder if one exists for the regular harness? That might solve this bulb issue. I've changed more bulbs on the Kizashi than all my other cars combined. :o :shock:
To affirm your notions, yes, the capacitors have harnesses that aren't compatible with halogen harnesses so you'd need an adapter or get capacitors designed for halogens. However, filament bulbs like halogens are typically better in dealing with fluctuations. After all, that's how the DRL system works with halogens via Pulsed Width Modulation. On the contrast, this sort of PWM causes HID and LEDs systems to flicker. In essence, they are more sensitive to voltage fluctuations than halogens.

As for resolving the bulb issue with the Kizashi, you can investigate and implement solutions or go around the problem altogether which is what I have done. I've stated this before but I consider some things obsolete at this day and age. As a lighting freak with cars and flashlights, I've been keen on ridding myself of halogen bulbs and alkaline batteries. Both are far from the best available today and cause more trouble than they're worth despite their low price. Alkalines have rapidly diminishing performance in high drain devices and often leak. Hence, many call them "alkaleaks". As for halogens, the bulbs are not energy efficient and produce a lot of heat for the light they emit. In the Kizashi, we all know they blow out quick and are a bitch to replace.

Given what's available today, I simply see it smarter to go around the problem than tackle it head-on to resolve issues with the original equipment. HIDs are far superior in every single performance parameter than halogens. Today, you can even get LED kits and reap their unique benefits. While these solutions don't actually fix the issue with the Kizashi, I think sometimes it's smarter to go around a problem than try to resolve it directly. Consider that I've had my HID bulbs and ballasts working reliably for 4 years now. My LED kit has also worked more reliably and lasted longer than your PIAA halogens.
2011 Suzuki Kizashi Sport GTS 6MT (Black)
SamirD
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KuroNekko wrote:
SamirD wrote: One of the PIAAs I installed just a few months is now out again. :evil: And after reading what you posted about the HIDs flickering, I'm really thinking thE the reason it burned out was due to some fluctuations in the electrical system.

It doesn't seem like this capacitor can be used with the factory bulbs without modification, but I wonder if one exists for the regular harness? That might solve this bulb issue. I've changed more bulbs on the Kizashi than all my other cars combined. :o :shock:
To affirm your notions, yes, the capacitors have harnesses that aren't compatible with halogen harnesses so you'd need an adapter or get capacitors designed for halogens. However, filament bulbs like halogens are typically better in dealing with fluctuations. After all, that's how the DRL system works with halogens via Pulsed Width Modulation. On the contrast, this sort of PWM causes HID and LEDs systems to flicker. In essence, they are more sensitive to voltage fluctuations than halogens.

As for resolving the bulb issue with the Kizashi, you can investigate and implement solutions or go around the problem altogether which is what I have done. I've stated this before but I consider some things obsolete at this day and age. As a lighting freak with cars and flashlights, I've been keen on ridding myself of halogen bulbs and alkaline batteries. Both are far from the best available today and cause more trouble than they're worth despite their low price. Alkalines have rapidly diminishing performance in high drain devices and often leak. Hence, many call them "alkaleaks". As for halogens, the bulbs are not energy efficient and produce a lot of heat for the light they emit. In the Kizashi, we all know they blow out quick and are a bitch to replace.

Given what's available today, I simply see it smarter to go around the problem than tackle it head-on to resolve issues with the original equipment. HIDs are far superior in every single performance parameter than halogens. Today, you can even get LED kits and reap their unique benefits. While these solutions don't actually fix the issue with the Kizashi, I think sometimes it's smarter to go around a problem than try to resolve it directly. Consider that I've had my HID bulbs and ballasts working reliably for 4 years now. My LED kit has also worked more reliably and lasted longer than your PIAA halogens.
At one point, PIAA made a harness just for this purpose for halogens but they discontinued it a long time ago. It's unfortunate that an entire bulb system change is necessary for what could be solved with a simple harness (or maybe better grounding).

I've been starting the project to convert the lights to led and hid and was amidst gathering spare parts (like extra headlight covers) when this happened. Luckily, the PIAA bulb is still under warranty and is on the more readily accessible passenger side; it was just so unexpected at this stage since I literally had the car apart last month, albeit this bulb was the oldest in the entire setup.

I remember the one Suzuki dealership (ex-dealership) that I spoke to years ago mentioning how sensitive the Kizashi's electrical system is to even tiny modifications like led replacement bulbs. I wonder what the root cause of that might be and how this will issue will age with the car, especially when exposed to salt and other corrosives found in the wintery states.
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KuroNekko
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SamirD wrote:I remember the one Suzuki dealership (ex-dealership) that I spoke to years ago mentioning how sensitive the Kizashi's electrical system is to even tiny modifications like led replacement bulbs. I wonder what the root cause of that might be and how this will issue will age with the car, especially when exposed to salt and other corrosives found in the wintery states.
From my experience, the Kizashi does fine with modifications like LED bulbs. In fact, given my observations, it's probably better for the car because the Kizashi seems to struggle with higher electrical load. On the contrary, LEDs consume less power with lower wattage. It was shortly after I installed my dash camera that the HIDs started to flicker slightly. The dash camera was powered by the socket in the armrest console while I'd often charge my phone in the center console cubby. The USB port was occupied by my iPod. Given that car accessories are more popular than ever with things like dash cams, radar detectors, MP3 players, phone chargers (multi-port especially), etc., I've read that 12V car electrical systems are getting overwhelmed. I've read that power-hungry OE features and aftermarket accessories are showing engineers that they will have to go towards 24V and 48V systems soon, especially as cars get more electrified.

Lastly, about PIAA:
It was evident from the last time I went to Japan (PIAA's homeland), they had greatly shifted focus away from aftermarket halogen bulbs they are world-famous for and dived right into LED kits. PIAA actually had numerous offerings even for specific applications like fog light LED kits. On the contrary, the halogen bulb selection had shrunk considerably and it wasn't just PIAA. All the major players seemed to shift focus to LED bulbs.
2011 Suzuki Kizashi Sport GTS 6MT (Black)
SamirD
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KuroNekko wrote:
SamirD wrote:I remember the one Suzuki dealership (ex-dealership) that I spoke to years ago mentioning how sensitive the Kizashi's electrical system is to even tiny modifications like led replacement bulbs. I wonder what the root cause of that might be and how this will issue will age with the car, especially when exposed to salt and other corrosives found in the wintery states.
From my experience, the Kizashi does fine with modifications like LED bulbs. In fact, given my observations, it's probably better for the car because the Kizashi seems to struggle with higher electrical load. On the contrary, LEDs consume less power with lower wattage. It was shortly after I installed my dash camera that the HIDs started to flicker slightly. The dash camera was powered by the socket in the armrest console while I'd often charge my phone in the center console cubby. The USB port was occupied by my iPod. Given that car accessories are more popular than ever with things like dash cams, radar detectors, MP3 players, phone chargers (multi-port especially), etc., I've read that 12V car electrical systems are getting overwhelmed. I've read that power-hungry OE features and aftermarket accessories are showing engineers that they will have to go towards 24V and 48V systems soon, especially as cars get more electrified.

Lastly, about PIAA:
It was evident from the last time I went to Japan (PIAA's homeland), they had greatly shifted focus away from aftermarket halogen bulbs they are world-famous for and dived right into LED kits. PIAA actually had numerous offerings even for specific applications like fog light LED kits. On the contrary, the halogen bulb selection had shrunk considerably and it wasn't just PIAA. All the major players seemed to shift focus to LED bulbs.
I should have clarified--when I was talking about led bulbs, I meant in other areas besides the headlights. I think the forum experience with them has been quite positive, but maybe because we're generally using tried and tested products vs 'the cheap junk'.

I actually saw some of PIAAs led offerings the last time I was on their site. Even though there is a huge technical barrier at the moment, I sense that the entire industry is attempting to focus on a drop-in led headlight bulb replacement--that would allow many, many more to convert to led headlights that don't really want to do any more extensive modifications.

My path is clear (and has been for a while)--it's time to start gathering all the parts for a full conversion and be done with this once and for all. 8-)
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delusional29
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delusional29 wrote: Edit: Ended up going with the 5500k kit to avoid it looking too "blue" since I'm not planning on upgrading my fog lights just yet.

Thanks!
I still haven't installed my HID kit yet, although I have all the parts. It's been below freezing for 16 days straight here in New England so I'm waiting for the weather to improve.

That said, coincidentally, my left fog light went out yesterday. So I might as well replace it while I have the bumper off right? Have you guys used any LED replacements? Most LEDs I've seen have heatsinks with fans on them. Will those get hit with water being so close to the ground?

I'm looking at these:

But may go with halogen if there's an issue instead:


Also, can someone confirm which daytime lamps do what? When I looked at my head lights, I noticed that the daytime lamps looked dim. On closer inspection I noticed that the bulb below the high beam was off (probably burned out). In other words, the daytime running bulb on top was lit (this is also the high beam combo bulb) but the one below it was not lit. Both headlights are like this. Again, I'd rather swap out stuff while I'm at it and have the bumper off. I'm researching the replacement bulb now.

Thoughts?

DeL
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KuroNekko
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delusional29 wrote: I still haven't installed my HID kit yet, although I have all the parts. It's been below freezing for 16 days straight here in New England so I'm waiting for the weather to improve.

That said, coincidentally, my left fog light went out yesterday. So I might as well replace it while I have the bumper off right? Have you guys used any LED replacements? Most LEDs I've seen have heatsinks with fans on them. Will those get hit with water being so close to the ground?

I'm looking at these:

But may go with halogen if there's an issue instead:


Also, can someone confirm which daytime lamps do what? When I looked at my head lights, I noticed that the daytime lamps looked dim. On closer inspection I noticed that the bulb below the high beam was off (probably burned out). In other words, the daytime running bulb on top was lit (this is also the high beam combo bulb) but the one below it was not lit. Both headlights are like this. Again, I'd rather swap out stuff while I'm at it and have the bumper off. I'm researching the replacement bulb now.

Thoughts?

DeL
Regarding LEDs for fog lights:
Unlike the headlights, the back side of the fog light bulbs aren't sealed into the housing. This means that the fan of a LED kit would be exposed. However, the Kizashi does feature a splash guard under the bumper that connects to under the engine so water exposure isn't too much of a concern. I personally wouldn't worry too much about risking the fan, but I'd still go with a heat sink LED kit instead of one that runs a fan. There is plenty of space to accommodate a heat sink connected to the rear of the bulb.
That being said, I have HIDs in the fog lights given the previous owner had them that way. I've since swapped out the bulbs for Morimotos which are much better but I run the same ballasts.

As for the DRLs:
The DRLs are supposed to be dim, running on a fraction of the power that the high beams would normally run on. This is due to the pulsed width modulation which sends unstable voltage to the bulbs to keep them from being fully powered. However, if the bulbs look extra dim and aren't bright when used as high beams, the halogen filaments are likely worn out so you should replace the bulbs.

As for the little bulb directly beneath the DRL/High beam bulb, that's called the Position Bulb or Parking Light bulb. These only operate when the headlight switch is either in Parking mode or On. They don't come on when the switch is set to Off, unlike the DRLs. The purpose of these Position Bulbs is to function as a parking light to show the car's location while idling or waiting without the use of the bright headlights. These are of special importance in Japan where people turn off their headlights when stopped at traffic lights. The Position bulbs work to show that a car is present without the extra glare of the headlights. That being said, because we have DRLs, these bulbs are rather pointless other than while parked with the handbrake engaged. However, they are important during that because our turn signal bulbs do not stay illuminated as markers unlike most other cars and function only in blinking mode. Hence, the Position Bulbs are basically the only frontal marking lights on the Kizashi.
The Position bulbs can also be replaced with T10 LEDs to match the Kelvin color temp of your HIDs or LEDs. I swapped mine out a long time ago.
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2011 Suzuki Kizashi Sport GTS 6MT (Black)
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