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Aftermarket HID problems, Auto Headlight feature not working properly

4K views 6 replies 5 participants last post by  mjcaddy 
#1 ·
Im sure there are plenty of us out there that purchased v6 STS's that came stock halogen headlights prior to 2008. this thread is to talk about those earlier year 2005-2007 STS's with self installed aftermarket HID's.

I have done my low beams, high beams & fog lights without any issue. but my driver side head light does not come on when my auto-headlight feature engages when the sun goes down. I have to switch the auto off, than back on for the driver side to turn on. well after a few months of this my driver side head light will not turn on even when turned auto off, and headlights turned on directly. my high beams, low beams, fogs, markers/signals & running lights all work fine, no issues, no codes on the cluster.

I have read that CTS's have reversed polarity on there head lights meaning each head light harness has the same colored lines, but the +/- is reversed. has anyone found this to be true with the STS? has anyone actually tested the polarity before installing the snap-in harnesses to their ballasts? im starting to wonder if I have caused an issue by feeding my driver side bulb incorrect polarity and prepared to pay the piper, but I need a little insight. anyone had a similar issues specifically with the auto head light feature? or flickering/bulbs going out only after short use?

please, if you purchased a 25 dollar kit from ebay, do yourself a favor and realize that's the problem in the first place. although ill admit they do have decent brands on ebay, which I have used & ill assume most other have.

so issues? solutions?
 
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#5 ·
I agree. Not enough power is being delivered to start both hid ballasts. This usually happens with certain cheaper ballasts. I used to sell hid kits and some Japanese kids are crap. A relay could fix it. If you don't feel like installing a relay a better hid kit would or ballast would be recommended.
 
#3 ·
well I agree, it's not a Honda and I pride myself on buying excellent parts for upgrading a Cadillac. otherwise you're just downgrading. so I did purchase a relay kit and it didn't help. but I decided to purchase a new kit that was about $189 which included in-line relay and "warning cancellers" and ohm resistors. kit works perfect and I resold my original kit on eBay. HIDKitXeonLights.com had all the info about the computer controlled auto headlight issue on my car as well as 55w ballasts that do NOT warm up thanks to the capacitor built into the relay harness. I did a 10000k kit which was a bright white with blue tint, but with the higher wattage ballasts it tones down the color hue and it is a truly pure white. the highest display bulb kit with the best look. I'm absolutely satisfied and they know Cadillacs very well.

if anyone has aftermarket HID issues, it behooves you to contact them for your lighting needs.
 
#4 ·
When messing with aftermarket HIDs in the past I've found that its best to stick with 35w for simplicity. The wiring can usually handle it and there is usually no need for relays and resistors or new fuses. When I tried 55w a lot of times only one would turn on and the wiring leading to the other would start to cook. 35w is plenty bright right around 4-5k depending on brand and it just makes things simpler. I'm glad you found a good kit that ended up working out.
 
#6 ·
yeah man thanks. I went with the 55w because after reading it said it toned down the color hue and added better intensity. my last HID kit worked great being all the same brand slim ballast kits. XeonTech was the brand. i had 35w 12000k low beams, 35w 10000k high beams & 35w 6000k fog lights. all except the auto head light feature wouldn't turn the driver side on. I tested the harness polarity and it was correct so after reading up I got an aftermarket relay harness that would turn the lights on instantly. almost no warm up process needed but than the driver side just stopped working. I swapped bulbs & ballasts to trouble shoot and even used my high beam bulb & ballast. so further reading led me to find out about the computer controlled headlight issue so I went with a more expensive brand for the low beams and with all the goodies it came with it was well worth the price. and the new 55w 10000k low beam kit I have is just a tad whiter than the blue 35w 10000k high beam kit and a lot brighter. so I am pretty satisfied.

next step is to take everything apart again and paint the inside of the housing to tone down the back-reflection of the way the STS lenses are. with all the reflective plastic it makes the entire (huge) headlight lenses look like one huge light bulb close up. saw a few ppl who painted the reflectors inside of the lense and it gives the bulb a more distinctive directional appearance.

any feedback on my next project is more than welcome. thanks.
 
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