'11 HID Conversion w/ pics

LSB · Dec 21, 2010

'11 Halogen to HID Conversion w/ pics

I pulled out my stock H4 55 watt halogens and replaced them with H4 hi/lo 55 watt 5000k HID lamps. Its quite a difference, not just in output, but in quality and color of light of course. Pics don't really do it justice. This was my first conversion with the hi/lo and it does make a difference but a guy could get away just fine with a standard H4 conversion for this application at least.

Ive also done my RZR (pic is avatar) and several H3 (PIAA, KC Daylighter) halogen conversions.

Bburrap · Dec 21, 2010

Tell me more

It looks good but...
What are the details with this job?
-What'd it cost
-How long did the install take
-How hard of a job was 1/10

Just wondering

LSB · Dec 21, 2010

The kit for the hi/lo is $60, yes you read that right. If you went with a standard kit (not hi/lo) it would be $45. That includes two slim ballasts, the hi/lo box (a piece not in the normal kits), and two bulbs. It was completely plug and play. I order all my HID stuff from ddmtuning. I first went with them for off road lighting on my truck and RZR and have had great success.

The install took me longer than it would obviously if I had to do it again. Their was no how to threads or pics from other installs that I could find. I was doing it fairly blind. Im sure if I did it again I could do it in an hour. You only need a few tools to do this.

Power was tapped into below the empty fuse by the chaincase. I used the ground which is right next to that. The rest is plug and play literally I taped off one H4 plug and you plug the other one into your kit. The bulbs literally move forward and backward when changing modes from high to low. I put grease on all connections before plugging together. I stashed the ballasts and wiring above the headlight compartments and behind the digital guage.

I realize a lot of guys might not care about this, especially if you never get out at night, but figured most could still appreciate its uniqueness.

MT boondocker · Dec 22, 2010

Do you have the part number for the lights?
Looked at their site, but not sure on the correct part number, thus the question.
Thanks

LSB · Dec 22, 2010

Here is the link.
http://www.ddmtuning.com/Products/DDM-HID-Kit-Slim-Ballast-35W-or-55W

For the XP you need the H4 bulb. You could do a H4 35w for as low as $35. I did the H4 hi/lo 55w for $60

Edit: H4 NOT H13 those are for the new UTVs

Seeyacop · Dec 23, 2010

Any melting issues with the 55W and stock plastic housing?

LSB · Dec 23, 2010

"Any melting issues with the 55W and stock plastic housing?"

This is a comment that concerns many people especially over on other forums for atvs or cars, etc. Lots of people buy the 35w version simply because they are concerned BUT no one that I know of (myself included) has had an issue with the 55w.

The stock headlights were 55 watts. They also put out a lot less lumens so lumen to watt they were a lot less efficient. In my mind their less efficiency should be lost through heat or some other energy. I think people correlate higher light (lumen) output with more heat. I just haven't seen this in the real world. On any of my housings that I have put them in they get no hotter than stock did.

Again though if a guy was that concerned he could get the 35 watt kit and still put out more lumens than the stock headlights and pick whatever color you want.

Edit: Also the HID bulbs are slightly longer than most of the halogen setups. They are skinnier but longer. For this reason some fixtures may not work OR might put the bulb very close to the lens. This may be a reason that concern has been raised in the past in certain housings. Thermodynamics would tell us the closer the bulb to the housing the more heat it would transfer, but for the small amount it is closer to the lens, it IS also further from the sides. Im sure that part is a toss up then. In the XP housing there is lots of room though.

sledhead_ak · Dec 23, 2010

I have a 2010 xp, would i use the h-4 bulb too? Also, when ordering do u need HID harness or error elminator with the kit?

Thanks

LSB · Dec 24, 2010

With a 2010 I would assume its an H4 but dont hold me to it. If you remove the halogen bulb you have in there it SHOULD be stamped on it something like "H4 55 watt".

The hid harness and error code eliminators are meant more for car applications that cause problems with certain vehicles. I have never had to use any of those things yet.

Again if a guy wanted to save a little he could run just a normal kit without the hi/lo. It wouldn't be quite as plug and play but you could wire up your switch to use it and be either on or off.

sledhead_ak · Dec 24, 2010

Thanks for your help

LSB · Dec 24, 2010

ALSO make sure your stator has the power to run the initial startup. My 11 starts right up and fires the bulbs up at idle. I believe though in the past sleds stators were not as strong and this might cause problems with flickering or not firing the bulbs up at all.

Maybe they would fire when you got on the throttle maybe not? Its a concern though that you should address.

Your 2010 being a carb sled might have a few less things to run electrically and therefore MAY have had a weaker stator. Just check into it.

The problem occurs right when the bulbs initially fire. The ballasts suck more energy than 55 watts to ignite but then just need a steady 55 watts to maintain.

sledhead_ak · Dec 25, 2010

That was my next concern after talking with a few people was whether or not i had enough power to get them started. Without a battery you make a very valid point

LSB · Dec 25, 2010

Find out what the stator outputs on your sled. Can you? Id be interested to know. Lots of people in the past who tried this were putting in batteries etc. Or had electric start sleds. If I had to do all that I wouldn't do it.

Mine is a battery-less setup.

Powderhound101 · Dec 25, 2010

There was a post on here about a headlight bulb replacement that was equivalent to PIAA bulbs but was a different brand and half the price. Anyone know what the brand was? I'd rather try these before going HID.

LSB · Dec 25, 2010

PIAA bulbs etc have nothing special about them. They are all just halogen bulbs. The differences amongst halogen bulbs come mainly with different wattages, change in filament size and some coatings they can apply to the bulbs, or lenses etc.

Yes you could get some fairly cheap halogen bulbs with a blue coating and a much higher wattage.. say 130 watts. Then though you are talking about a true heat increase AND a 260 watt draw on your stator. Stock 55's drawing 110.

The beauty of the HID setup is the Lumens or light output you get for the energy you use. They arent just simply, whiter or bluer bulbs. You CAN get yellow HID if you want, by the way. The beauty is in the truly much greater light output for a given amount of energy. So on our ATV's, snowmobiles, etc with limited charging systems, and battery power, we can achieve greater light output and still use less watts.

Example: my RZR with two stock 55 watt headlights and 2 PIAA lamps that I upgraded (like you mentioned) to 130 watt bulbs. Thats 370 watts of lighting. I replaced that with the 55 watt HID kit in the stock headlights and converted the PIAA lamps to 55 watt HID and now have a total draw of 220 watts. Thats a 150 watt savings on my charging system. Plus I have MUCH more light output.

off road rider · Dec 25, 2010

Do you know if the dc power out put you tied into has a capacitor in that circuit?
I'm thinking it might. it would surprise me to see the dc circuit reliably fire up a set of HIDs without the battery or cap inline.. somewhere.

LSB · Dec 26, 2010

off road rider said:
Do you know if the dc power out put you tied into has a capacitor in that circuit?
I'm thinking it might. it would surprise me to see the dc circuit reliably fire up a set of HIDs without the battery or cap inline.. somewhere.

I dont know about that. You are right that in the past non battery equipped sleds had issues with HIDs, BUT if they used a large enough stator on these new sleds it should be able to fire them up (my thinking at least). It just has to get over ignition and then "maintaining" the light should be no different than stock.

trickedout700 · Jan 9, 2011

I have a dragon that i installed some 6000 k HIDs in and the stator is not strong enough to pop them at first yet if you start it and give it a little throttle it fires both with no problem. I just purchased a 2010 Ski Doo and will be installing some on also. I absolutely love HIDs and think they are a must on all machines. I like your Razor too, that is goona be one of my next purchases. Good post here!!

LSB · Jan 10, 2011

I absolutely love HIDs on everything as well. Transforming more KC Day-lighters from halogen to HID now.

Polaris just came out with the RZR 900 XP which has 33+ more hp out of (im pretty sure) a Weber motor, super long travel suspension. Very nice!

'11 HID Conversion w/ pics

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