HID light drops out

kobachi · March 17th, 2010, 05:18 PM

Hi everyone! Been reading on here for a while. I was going to go for a giant first post, but I thought focusing by topic/question would probably be better, so here we go =D

I found (via Craigslist) and bought ninjaboi57's Blue 2008 back in December. Kudos to him for taking such pristine care of it, and for being so helpful, flexible, and reasonable! It was the first time I ever gave someone from Craigslist their asking price!

I have, of course, had a couple of issues with the bike since then. The most significant has been that the HID light that he installed has the strong tendency to die when the bike goes over a reasonably-sized bump. To get the light to turn back on, I have to shut down the engine until the battery(?) light turns on, then bring it back to life using the starter switch (since the light is wired to there). He informed me that this never happened to him.

This was pretty frightening the first time it happened at speed. These days, pulling the clutch, killing the ignition, and re-starting the engine at 75mph hardly even phases me! Haha. That said, I've not been able to determine where the problem is -- it doesn't seem to be the headlight wiring itself, as the stock high-beam will stay on even when the HID dies. When the bike is stopped, neither whacking the bike nor the ballast box for the HID causes the light to die. (Maybe I'm not whacking hard enough...?) Has anyone else with a DIY HID setup experienced this? Or does anyone have any idea what the problem might be?

Rayme · March 17th, 2010, 07:17 PM

Cheap hardware or poor installation. You have to find out which one it is.

kobachi · March 17th, 2010, 07:21 PM

I took my bike apart with the mechanic at the local Kawi shop for about two hours one day. He helped me wire the stock high-beam bulb back up, but neither of us could troubleshoot the problem with the HID. The ballast is just kind of sitting inside the fairing, which seemed no good to me, but mounting it to the body didn't help...and those things should be solid-state anyway. Bleh.

Rayme · March 17th, 2010, 07:26 PM

well just keep in mind all of the HID kits out there are pretty cheap, no brand electronics. I'd get another ballast and test things out. If not I would attached a switch + relay to the low beam so you can actually switch it on and off with the bike running.

Viper-Byte · March 19th, 2010, 12:41 PM

I have had a HID bulb blow fully (unusable after that) but never this. I personally would check the wiring and even get a new kit.

March 17th, 2010, 05:18 PM	#1
kobachi ninjette.org member Name: Craig Location: Seattle Join Date: Dec 2009 Motorcycle(s): Blue 2008 Ninja 250R Posts: 86	HID light drops out Hi everyone! Been reading on here for a while. I was going to go for a giant first post, but I thought focusing by topic/question would probably be better, so here we go =D I found (via Craigslist) and bought ninjaboi57's Blue 2008 back in December. Kudos to him for taking such pristine care of it, and for being so helpful, flexible, and reasonable! It was the first time I ever gave someone from Craigslist their asking price! I have, of course, had a couple of issues with the bike since then. The most significant has been that the HID light that he installed has the strong tendency to die when the bike goes over a reasonably-sized bump. To get the light to turn back on, I have to shut down the engine until the battery(?) light turns on, then bring it back to life using the starter switch (since the light is wired to there). He informed me that this never happened to him. This was pretty frightening the first time it happened at speed. These days, pulling the clutch, killing the ignition, and re-starting the engine at 75mph hardly even phases me! Haha. That said, I've not been able to determine where the problem is -- it doesn't seem to be the headlight wiring itself, as the stock high-beam will stay on even when the HID dies. When the bike is stopped, neither whacking the bike nor the ballast box for the HID causes the light to die. (Maybe I'm not whacking hard enough...?) Has anyone else with a DIY HID setup experienced this? Or does anyone have any idea what the problem might be? Last futzed with by kobachi; March 17th, 2010 at 06:28 PM.

March 17th, 2010, 07:17 PM	#2
Rayme ninjette.org guru Name: Remy Location: Moncton Join Date: Apr 2009 Motorcycle(s): '04 sv650s Posts: 438	Cheap hardware or poor installation. You have to find out which one it is. __________________________________________________ There's 2 types of people in this world, those who complain and those who act.

March 17th, 2010, 07:26 PM	#4
Rayme ninjette.org guru Name: Remy Location: Moncton Join Date: Apr 2009 Motorcycle(s): '04 sv650s Posts: 438	well just keep in mind all of the HID kits out there are pretty cheap, no brand electronics. I'd get another ballast and test things out. If not I would attached a switch + relay to the low beam so you can actually switch it on and off with the bike running. __________________________________________________ There's 2 types of people in this world, those who complain and those who act.

March 19th, 2010, 12:41 PM	#5
Viper-Byte ninjette.org sage Name: David Location: Wellington, New Zealand Join Date: Dec 2008 Motorcycle(s): 08 Ninja 250R in Green! (Sold) Now 2011 Triumph Daytona 675 SE Posts: 564	I have had a HID bulb blow fully (unusable after that) but never this. I personally would check the wiring and even get a new kit. __________________________________________________ 2008 GREEN Kawasaki Ninja 250R. AreaP Quiet Core Carbon Fibre : 8000k HIDs : Dynojet Jet kit : Double Bubble Windscreen

March 17th, 2010, 07:21 PM	#3
kobachi ninjette.org member Name: Craig Location: Seattle Join Date: Dec 2009 Motorcycle(s): Blue 2008 Ninja 250R Posts: 86	I took my bike apart with the mechanic at the local Kawi shop for about two hours one day. He helped me wire the stock high-beam bulb back up, but neither of us could troubleshoot the problem with the HID. The ballast is just kind of sitting inside the fairing, which seemed no good to me, but mounting it to the body didn't help...and those things should be solid-state anyway. Bleh.