I know our HIDs are not like BMW or Audi HIDs, so when I noticed my headlights were a little dimmer than those vehicles, I wasn't suprised.

But the other day, a 2002 TL-S pulls up next to my 2002 TL-S and I see that my lights are dimmer than his. The guy was older so I am willing to throw out the theory of a HID upgrade on his part. Now we have a problem.

Could this be because of my battery, ballasts, bulbs? Headlight aim? They just aren't as bright as when I got the car.

Help?

 

maybe he had cleaner lenses on his. I dont think they fade/dim, they either work or they dont.

 

maybe your beams are pointing too low/high?

 

I am going to have to disagree on the point that HID's work or they dont. I have noticed that my passenger light is more purple and less bright then the drivers light. I have not worried about it though as our HID lights are so much better then any halogen solution out there. When the bulb finally does go, I will replace it but that is for a later date. With 100,000+ miles on a car, it gets harder to shell out the cash for repairs and maintenance :-)

Talk with you later,
Axe

 

HID's do dim, hence why they recommend changing both bulbs at the same time so they don't look uneven if you don't. Your in CA so I'm going to rule out the possiblity that your headlights are just really dirty from the snow. Here in NJ I noticed my lights were dimmer, but only because we've had so much snow there is a layer of salt and road dirt on my headlights. Wipe that off and ta da...brighter lights. How many miles do you have on your car? I'd probably just take it to the dealer and ask them to park next to another '02 TL-S and compare, if your is indeed dimmer, they may just fix it for you under warranty.

 

Oh yeah, they dim. @ 98,000 I noticed they were dim & pinkish-orange in color. I had them replaced for about $400... I didn't realize just how dim they were until the new ones lit up the road, shocking, actually...

Keep in mind that I've driven around with my headlights on about 98% of those miles.... probably not smart for the life of the bulbs... i've also had to replace my tail light bulbs a couple times, too.

But the HIDs always looked cool, so I left them on... oh, well.

I should be turning 100k this week... still nary a squeak. What a friggin awesome car this has been.

 

Yea dimming of the HID's is a sign that the bulbs need to be replaced soon.
I'd go out and get some Philips 6K like I've got on my bimmer - and they're certainly not going to cost you $400 for the bulbs alone.