HID Ballast Going Out?

[saratoga]

One of my low beams has started to flicker and go out intermitently. I can get it to turn back on by switching the highs on and off, but a few seconds later it flickers back off. Crap. :cuss:

Would this be the ballast or the bulb? not that it matters since I have to buy an entire new set anyhow.

 

[RYDNHI4X4]

Saratoga,
Go to this ebay link and ask the guy if you can buy just the ballast from. This is the place Nick and I bought our HID's from. He only charges $25 for an extra bulb also. Pretty reasonably priced.
http://stores.ebay.com/HID-Outdoor-Equipments

 

[saratoga]

Thank you :wink5:

Through my incredible troubleshooting skills :willynilly: I figured out the bulb is bad... not the ballast. Threw an old set of 9006's in there for the time being until I get the chance to order some stuff.

 

[RYDNHI4X4]

No problem. Good thing it's just the bulb. $25 is better then a new ballast.

 

[duratothemax]

I was going to say its the bulb. Ballasts rarely go bad.

Usually as HID bulbs age they have changes in color temp get get dimmer. Eventually when the electrodes burn away enough the voltage required to maintain the arc increases. When it increases above a certain point, the ballast is no longer powerful enough to maintain the arc, and the light goes out. Most ballasts detect this and will attempt to re-strike the arc X amount of times, before finally deciding that the bulb is bad, and then they shut down. Turning the headlights off and on resets the ballast and generally allows it to re-light the bulb, but only for so long before the gas inside heats up, and causes the arc to extinguish again.

 

[Unit453]

Hmm....

Thats why I bought an extra set for parts...

 

[golfcartguy]

My fog lamp started doing that to, where I had to flick them off and back on to get it to light the one side. Turns out the ballast went bad on me, because the bulb worked just fine on the other side. Guess I should order another set or two Just what I needed, an excuse to change over to 5300K bulbs instead of the 8000's I've got now. :smilewinkgrin: