Justinhubner

hey guys i just recently bought a basic plug and play hid kit 6000k w/ a 35 watt ballist first problem i ran into was the kit did not come with the hid spacer so i read around and saw that u can just use some bath plugs so i did that got it all installed up and running drove around a bit and the next time i started my car i could see the reflection in a store window i always have my lghts on auto so i saw the DRL come on then fliccker then nothing i turned the switch to night lights they work but now my drl dont work and i cant use auto anymore please help out as i dont kno if its my car or the bulb and if i should just return the bulb under warrenty

djs2571

I'd figure those bath plugs would melt.. but anyhow.

the DRL can turn the lamps on for a very short time, this doesn't work well if an HID ballast is not set up to hot restrike. Basiclally an HID needs a lot more of an arc to start when it's already hot. Some of this is in the bulb design - to handle the power, some is in the ballast to know when to apply the power.
Switching from your "lights on" to the "DRL on" the system relay cuts power and turns the lights back on - which could keep the aftermarket HID's from relighting. Note that in DRL mode the lights also turn off when you start the car. These features make me unhappy with the car designers, as it shortens the life of the relays and the headlights - especially if you have HID's.

rereading the above, does it just not come on with the DRL? you can leave it in DRL mode and see if they come on per normal. If not i'd swap back to the stock bulbs for a bit to see if it's an HID problem or if something in the car / relay system is dead.

Justinhubner

hey thanks for the responce ive been reading around on the interenet it seams this is only a problem with 04-06 models where for normal bulbs the realy for drl turn power to the bulb on and off to keep it running at lower brightness and this does not work for hids as they need constant power so some guy on another site was saying install a capacitoor like you would a sub in your car but much smaller u can get from radio shack and installl one per light but he says not suggested if your kit doesnt have a relay and of course my kit doesn not have a relay it just plugs into the original bulb harness and runs the new hid bulb so im so lost and have no idea what to do and your the only person who has responded to my post on any site so im kinda stuck but heres the link to the other thread if your interested and think u could help me out : http://www.mazda3forums.com/index.php?topic=120616.0

djs2571

So basically the car is not using a relay directly to control the headlights, but using a solid state control instead. This allows the car to dim the lights as needed, or put them on full bright.
You can easily add a relay, though the normal 12V relay is probably not too happy getting switched on with a lower voltage (when the lights are dim), though to go further with a correct solution i'd need to see what sort of signal is running the headlights when it's in DRL mode.
The proper fix is probably to use a lower voltage relay (relay coil voltage) and a voltage regulator to drive that relay at say 5V. This would keep the relay on when it's supposed to be driving the lights at dim or on full, and that relay would then feed your HID kit.
Let me know what sort of electrical knowledge you have - aka if you feel comfortable building something yourself or not.

Justinhubner

yeah i wouldnt trust myself to do any of that to my car im fine with plug and play stuff

djs2571

well I think you may be stuck then, adding a relay that runs at a lower voltage is a possible solution - see what I wrote on the 20th above. You may be able to find a local person on the forum to get you set up.
Good luck.