Uluahunter

I've searched the boards for any possible insights, but couldn't find what I'm looking for. I recently converted my 2008 Lux to HID's with an aftermarket kit (Xentec)...I know, I went the cheap route . Anyway, installation was pretty simple as I've installed several kits on mine and other family/friend's cars. Fired the lights up and everything works, but I notice that there are slight flickers in both lights, moreso in the passenger side light. Slight meaning that it's not noticeable when driving, but when I pull up to the rear of another car I can see the flickering. The lights haven't shut down and they turn on and off without any other issues.

I just checked my ballasts and confirmed that they are of the DC type. Does anyone know if my flickering issues is due to the ballast being a DC type instead of an AC? I have error code eliminators installed on both sides, and am not throwing any codes. I don't want to waste anymore money if DC or AC doesn't make any difference. Please help!

DRGilroy

Your probably experiencing the CAN-BUS flickering problem I havae as well. I have the slim ballasts, Xentec I think, It's been awhile since I put them in.

There are ballasts that are supposed to work with vehicles that have CAN-BUS and I've seen cables you can add to your existing HID's to resolve the problem. I am currently looking at the following HID's that are also AC instead of DC:
http://shop.hidcountry.com/CAN-BUS-H...t-p/canbus.htm

Good luck!

Uluahunter

Thanks! I knew I should've just went with the ballasts with the built-in CAN-BUS and in AC format. That's what I get for being a cheapskate . I guess I'll be shopping around for a set of new ballasts now. Thanks for the link, I'll go check it out. Good luck to you too!

Domm

You should also think about purchasing more reputable brands. Although the Xentec brand does work now, you'll kick yourself when they die after only a few months.

Its more worth it to invest in a higher quality ballast that'll last a few years. I purchased my HID kit from TRS.com and they're warrantied to last 5 years and they cost $150. Divide that by the years they last and it comes out to around the same price of $30 per year but without the hassle of troubleshooting dying ballasts/bulbs.

Uluahunter

Thanks Domm! Still not sure how long we're going to keep the car, so first choice was to get a cheap HID kit. I have a kit that I bought about 6 yrs. ago and installed into our Toyota Sienna, and I've never had to change the bulbs or ballasts yet (knock on wood)...I believe it was an Eagle Eye kit. They definitely don't make them like that anymore. I'll be shopping around for better kits or ballasts with a little more leeway on costs. Thanks for the advice!

NCBob

Sorry to hijack your thread. Just bought two Philips Xenon kits for my C300 and GLK350. All the threads I've read indicate this is a simple plug-n-play. Take a look at this kit. I've never seen so many connections. The harnesses sitting in front of the light kits are for connecting directly to the battery. I've read where a lot of people just plug the kit to the existing wiring with no issues. Do I need the extra wiring harnesses? They were $100. I also paid $60 for the little metal mounting clips in the lower RH of the pic.
I paid $700 for everything. Lots of $$$. Kinda feel like I've been screwed.
Open for any and all opinions.
Thanks

Uluahunter

I'm not familiar with the Philips kits, but $700 is very expensive, even for two kits. Where did you purchase from, online or brick and mortar?

Most kits nowadays are plug-n-play. The harness you are speaking of is a relay harness, which is used to connect the kit to the vehicle's battery, an unneccessary step in our/most applications. The little metal mounting clips seem unneccessary (especially for $60) also. All you really need are the ballasts (preferably AC), a set of error code eliminator harnesses (or buy ballasts with built-in eliminators) and the bulbs. The error code eliminator (CAN-BUS) help 'trick' the vehicle's system into thinking that you are still running a 55w bulb instead of a 35w HID bulb. When the system senses anything less than what it is rated for, it'll send an 'error code/check light/bulb out' message on your console because it thinks that one or more of your bulbs are out of order.

You should be able to get a good kit for less than $150 each. I bought my cheap set with a pair of separate error code eliminator harnesses for less than $40. But as you may have read, I believe that my ballasts are of the DC variety, thus causing my flickering issues, so now I'll have to spend a little more money to get better ballasts (AC type). Nonetheless, you shouldn't have needed to pay $700.