Hey,
I seem to be having a problem of my HID's flickering or turning off altogether while driving. It seems as though when I am going over small bumps at a slow speed (under 10mph) they would turn off, but when I go over manhole covers at 30, they are fine. However, then I was driving and they turned off completely a couple of times.

So, I opened the hood and wiggled all the wiring and knocked on the ballasts and I couldn't get the HID's to cut out again. Then after bouncing the car for a few minutes they flickered but only once and they came right back on.

Any ideas? This problem seems to happen randomly. I was pulled over last year for a headlight being out (same problem) but I was using the DDM slim ballasts. So I am getting paranoid, especially since the cops jump on a chance to pull over an import.

This is my second set off DDMTuning HID's and they are about 6 months old. I'm also using a relay.

 

Maybe loose wire rubbing against something thats causing it to cut off? Did you make sure that everything was connected securely? Is your ballast secured?

 

This flickering problem is common for cheap chinese ballasts. I had it with mine and searched for weeks trying to find a fix. I even bought a 2nd set of ballasts from another company, and had the same problem again. Best thing to do is buy a high end OEM ballast. The flickering issue is almost nonexistent with the OEM set ups.

 

Check to see if the ballast is loose. If its bouncing around you could have intermittent issues. Or like Blazin Si said it could be cheap parts... Used MK3 Volkswagen GTI Portland Oregon

 

The wiring is connected securely, I even used zip ties to keep the plugs from coming apart. However, one ballast is mounted on the engine bay and the other is sitting in it because it kept falling off of the double sided tape. I know that can cause problems, but the thing is that the problem is intermittent and most of the time when I hit large bumps they are fine. Also, last night when I was checking the wiring, I even picked up the "free" ballast and knocked it against the metal a few times and the lights didn't flicker.

Assuming it is due to the fact that one ballast is not secured, would it cause both lights to turn off? I just find it odd, that immediately after the problem was happening, I could not recreate the flickering/turning off.

After I posted the original post, I had to meet some people and I had zero problems with the HID's even after going over train tracks and whatnot.

 

It's a very common problem that really has no simple, cheap fix. Someone told me to buy a relay. I did that and it still continued. Someone told me to check all the grounds. I checked and rechecked. Had the battery and alternator tested and both were good. Relaced pig tails with new ones. I grinded down the clamps on the battery terminals to make sure the connection was secure and free of any dirt or corrosion. I replaced the bulbs with an $85 set of Philips 85122 bulbs, still flickered. Nothing would remedy the flicker issue until I bought a set of $135 Morimoto ballasts (not quite OEM quality, but close) and the problem went away.

Either my car just didn't like PnP ballasts or I recieved 2 bad sets.

 

not getting enough ground might want to wire a new line for it

 

my hid blew up in my headlight
everyone is sayin thats the 1st

 

Nothing really new.

It has been working fine, only did it once since the last time I posted. When it gets warmer out I will have to dive into it.

 

Went to Wal-Mart, bought some Lucas fuel treatment and a $20 "mechanic" tool kit. Left the parking lot and the lights did it again.

Luckily I had the tools! Found out it WAS a bad ground! So far no problems!

Thanks guys!

 

Those grounds will go bad. Good you checked before spending tons of money.

 

mine does it as well. I have OEM ballast that was hooked up to 4300k bulb then when i switched to 6000k after a while it would start flicker on bumps and sometimes i have to reset the switch to ignite it. Im thinking its wiring since ballasts is OEM. I would check wiring first and make sure everything is tight fitted

 

I got 6K HID in my fogs and for some reason they have stopped working completely. I got them wired to the OEM wire harness for the 6th gen civic so I dont know what the problem might be? Soon I'll check the grounds, ballasts being tight/secure to where they are, and possible loose connections, but what else might it be for them to stop working?

 

Well i had my ballasts mounted to the inner bumper but i did not think that water would get there. Even tho most companies tell you that they are water proof they are not. I had slim ballasts mounted right near my bumper vents and once it started to snow and got slush on the road it all got frozen and wet and eventually died on me. I dont know where you mounter yours but few things that can happen
1 balast got wet and burned out
2 your wiring is loose and needs to be readjusted
3 your bulb died due to a lot of flickering or shorting out due to bad connection.
good luck

 

also if both stopped working it wouldnt hurt to check fuze for the fogs

 

The ballasts for the fogs I have them monted on the bumper bar, its the very front bar to where the bumper mounts if u know what I'm talkin about, and now that u mention it, they might get wet evrytime I wash the car and if so, then I'll new ballasts. Also does the switch to turn them on have to have the two little light bulbs on? (if u open it up) cuz mine doesn't anymore but idk if they were before