So after reading reviews in here for overhauling my HID system for my 03 TL-s, I paid the $60 for my 5k setup...The package gets here and I start to doing the soldering and get it all done etc. I plug the ignitors into the bulbs and one of them wouldn't stay into the bulb...I look at the bulb and saw that it was broken. The terminal at the end of the bulb was missing. I figured maybe it broke off etc so Im looking around the head lens and couldn't find it. . The broken end was inside the box it came in with. So I called customer service and no answer on a Thurs on the 28th and emailed them also. Friday the 29th, received email(see pics) stated to "swap bulb for new one through their program". Keep in mind, THIS IS A BRAND NEW KIT. So at this point I called and talked to cust service rep Elaine. She said they would send me new one. So labor day weekend happened etc etc. Its tuesday the 2nd. no email, no tracking, nothing. So I called...no answer. Emailed them...you can read the responses down below.....So at this point, I bought another set of bulbs from another site. So now check this....The setup works but when I first turn the car on, Pass side doesn't work unless, I cycle the lights on/off. JUST STAY AWAY FROM THIS JOKE OF A COMPANY.

 

you expected to get ANY company to even have employees still at work before the last long weekend of the summer? they were gone by noon Thursday! dude, and didn't even come back till Tuesday

Your problem now is using a different bulb- all these systems like their own bulbs- I don't know if resistance or what but the stock system prefers OE bulbs too!

the bulbs come within a plastic case- it was damaged when removed from case? the external rod part or what?
simply comparing to old bulbs would have found that~

Soldering ? what- the wires together? that's absolutely the least preferred method of install as solder is not good with vibration!! - that's why the matching blade connector to ones supplied on the new ballast are the $2 part you need for install- and some shrink wrap to really insulate the connection

 

reading the notes from hidextra, it looks like you inexplicably did email first instead of the 800 number that gets a human - and got a standard reply albeit with a problem

then a human with actual customer service ability got involved and personally went and found a set of bulbs in the warehouse, when computer thought they were out of them, that's excellent customer service!!!!

I do not have stock or interest in this company (or seafoam) but will stand up for truth wherever it needs


As for your whiny Im gonna sue and tell everyone attitude- items do sell out, its happened before- everywhere! when no spares were found according to inventory= replacement asap on their arrival was promised-
then actual bulbs were sent to you !!!!

Whats more important to you- sitting and watching an email tracking something coming from San Francisco, or let the ups or usps- both of whom probably backlogged behind a holiday day off- do their job

What I read from hidextra says we are sorry and we took care of you- how exactly is this a joke of a company?
Once installed with correct parts= you will enjoy the systems light output and color
Or send it back and spend $300 on a morimoto that needs a lot of work to install!

 

You expect lightening fast response... I had waited 3 days for UPS to get back to me on a shipment that wasn't being updated in a week...
3 DAYS they took to respond my first e-mail from a Multi-million dollar company.. I should just stop using UPS altogether.


HIDextra got in touch with you at the next day... That says a lot of Customer Service dude, At least on my book.

 

1. It is obvious you work for them because every headlight/ballast problem posted on this site/forum, you direct people to the HIDextra site, including me.
2. I'm supposed to know that they leave at noon on a THURSDAY? How do you know that??
3. Yes, the external rod part of the bulb was broken off, but since it's a BRAND NEW KIT, why do I have to inspect each product...thats the quality control person's job.
4. The kit DID not come with the $2 part that is NOT NEEDED for the job. GM tech trained and ASE certified mechanic here. Not an 18yr old weekend warrior here. soldered the connection from the OEM plug that supplied power to the OEM ballast to now the aftermarket ballast. Heat shrinked it and taped it.
5. I DID call the number FIRST..no answer. then got an email and then called AGAIN.
6. Here's what more important to ME. Having a working product that I paid for. YOU directed me to the site and I did my homework. If it was broken 6 months from now, thats understandable. NOT right out of the box! I'll just chalk it off to the "you get what you paid for" department. Cheap prices, cheap parts.
7. I don't care about your subjective point of views on the subject. That's why I posted all of the emails and facts about what happened. I don't even care if nobody else responses to this...I just dont want the next guy who is on the fence of buying from this company.

 

Everyone has problems with UPS/USPS. Why even bother calling them? They dont care. When their delivery jobs are obsolete, then they will cry. I wouldnt be surprised if all packages had to be picked up at the 24/7 shipping warehouses to save a buck.

 

Granted, I reached a human being who spoke good english, but the service still sucked. You guys are missing the point here...Its not like the product was defective 3 months from now. It was DEFECTIVE out of the box and THEN you want me to wait(still waiting as of now) for the replacement bulb??? You want to keep bending over and take it? They could've overnighted the bulb. The bottom line is this...You got a customer with a new defective kit, and then you want to make them wait even longer??? HOW IS THAT GREAT CUSTOMER SERVICE in anyone's book? The problem is, people like you guys saying, "it's ok, don't worry about it" Forget that.

 

Ive bought around 10 kits from them over the last few years for my and family members cars. only about 2 separate ballast were defective out of all the kits ive ordered, and they took care of me each and every time.

 

Am I missing something here? You are getting a Brand New Bulb Shipped for Free right?? So basically the only thing bad is that you have to wait for the bulb to arrive??

Do you know how many times I've been in that position dude? I literally lost count, I don't expect a bulb that cost literally like 5-8 bucks to make in a god forsaken factory in china to work or function as a German Made OSRAM that costs 200 a pop. I have used to this date almost all Kelvin Ratings in my TL from 3200 to 12,000 in cheapo bulbs that cost me less than 30 bucks a pair and right now cost me 16 bucks with free shipping!

Do you know how many times a defective pair came along? I have like 7-9 useless pairs of bulbs and another 3-4 that the color didn't match... Do I leaved a bad rating on their Ebay stores? Absolutely not. As I am paying cheap I don't expect these Chinese crap to be as good as their German siblings as I am not paying premium here neither are you. What I do expect is that they follow through their warranty and send me a working unit at their expense and they had every single time... I can only say good things about them and I will be continuing doing business with them.

Now HIDExtra are in the same spot this time and you are flaming them over a dead bulb? Seriously? I don't even understand what you are doing driving a 2nd Gen TL with the Trans Problem in the first place if you expect perfection for your money?

 

NO, He doesnt. But he, like many others here including me like to pass along good vendors, and sites to deal with as we have dealt with and had good experiences with .

So its important to you having a working product you paid for. Did you ever think that sometimes things happen, either in production, shipping?? Things break or come defective. Its a fact of life. Ive bought stuff in the thousands of dollar range that arrive to me defective, it HAPPENS. Was i mad? Sure, but the place i bought it from took care of me, Just like they are doing with you.

 

Riiiight, I commute 200 miles to work at hidextra- you figured it out = huge commission paid on 60 buck sales! Im living large~

As for Thursday everyone is gone at noon = are you from this country? LABOR DAY WEEKEND!!!!!!!!!! last 3 day of the summer= if you are still working past noon thursday, or worse- still on Friday!! instead of taking a sick day- you are not the sharpest tack in the box = so the statement was a joke not a reflection of knowing their schedule

I recommend hidextra based on info from others on here (that's how I found them when lights acted up) my experience with my TL, and hooking system up on neighbors cars!
excellent customer service on any warranty prob (ballast failed due to improper mounting allowed it to bounce on the ground until the screws came out!!!
and they still put one in the mail free! all that and unreal low price for the QUALITY of what you get
yes I had the Kaixen 100$ bulbs before on stock system and with hid's ballast/ignitor
Actually prefer the bulbs with the kit!!!!

the external rod on the bulb is protected by the screw-on case- something that would make the 2 bulbs look different than each other and anyone who deals with hid parts knows the bulbs have that external rod!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
A real mechanic you say you are-- and didn't notice that!~
do you ck any parts you install???

I say to BUY a $2 pack of 14/16 gauge waterproof female connectors to make the job easy for ziners of all skill levels, I NEVER said it comes with!!!- only has the males on the new ballast wires = buy the mates!!!!

toss the oe parts and use all the wire and connectors included with the kit

 

lets not forget the OP seems to have received one of the last units in stock at the time. Some damage to contents may occur during shipping and storage
That's why the bulb has that special protective case for shipping!
Its the first time I ever read on here of the rod arriving broken
Broken by installer- yep!! seen that a few times when they don't know to make sure parts go back in the same way they came out- don't twist the bulb etc,
things I hope a professional tech such as the OP would know

Please note: I do not have the power to MAKE anyone do anything!
all writings should be verified by your own research~

 

I ordered 5k HID h11's for my TL and found one of my ballasts were not working properly. After emailing the company regarding the problem they promptly notified me that they would ship out a new ballast and also gave me a tracking number. It may have taken about 4-6 days from what I remember to receive the new part.

 

Well, you're THAT guy. people like you continue giving people money for inferior products. 2nd Gen with updated transmission, that I didnt pay for. You're entitled to your opinion and vice versa.

 

Here's what I read from you...EXCUSES. you point the finger at everyone but yourself. If I personally broke the bulb, I am man enough to admit that and would report that. I didn't break it. Yeah, crap happens when shipping etc. yeah, it's such great quality for the price, etc etc. Cheap price, cheap crap. ering job. Just crappy parts. Bottom line, you get what you pay for.

 

I'm gonna swap ballast sides today and if it follows, then it's not because of my INFERIOR soldering job. I'm glad you guys got awesome service from these people and stand by them(as you should, if they treated you good!) All I'm writing is this....I KNOW its not the $400 per side OEM setup. I get that. I KNOW it's cheap parts/china etc. you get what you pay for. In HIDextra defense...they did response quickly. Was it to my standards? NO. Could they overnighted a new bulb? YES, since its a new kit. Spare me the business math side of it. So instead of bashing the OP(me) O1tl4tl, you couldve of just said this..."that sucks man, Ive dealt with this guys before and there are top notch etc." You like to jump to conclusions without knowing all of the facts. Oh, btw, I WORKED on SAT/SUN so, I didnt get to enjoy the long weekend like everyone else. I'll let you reply to this one more time with your subjective and useless point of views and then I'm done responding to this. I'll update it with the ballast problems, warranty, heck, whenever I get my bulb!

 

I ordered some stuff on ebay with buy it now--why hasn't it come out of the slot on my computer yet?

I guess we have a different dictionary, a defect would be a product that fails in operation, A shi**y company would be one that takes weeks to return contact and then a month to get a replacement for you

What you got was DAMAGED, and the replacement part sent the way they send all the replacement parts- Did you ASK for overnight???
no you didn't get special treatment with overnight shipping, sorry- the whole thing cost you 60 bucks- show a little patience
Do you really think the USA operation opens and looks inside the box before shipping to you? do you think anything you buy got that kind of attention? If so why do brand new cars have problems- DEFECTS, numerous trips to dealer for warranty work etc?

Im still laughing about how you could possibly miss the broken external rod part before install,
seriously dude- you never look at the parts you are handed? wow
do you even wear rubber/latex gloves working with hid bulbs?

Excuses? no- explanations of reasonable business practices from a perspective of having been a mechanic and run auto repair shops and work with race cars and airplanes, had brand new parts fail immediately or be damaged in box,,ever buy a brand new -in the box- body panel for your car- comes with dents!!!

to sum it up- you seem to be upset about a broken part that's getting shipped by normal method= not your ME ME ME desire for immediate service/gratification
You have come here for help which we gave, then badmouthed a company over whats really a minor issue, without any idea of how well the product itself works! A trusted supplier and sponsor of this site that has an otherwise excellent seller reputation here and on ebay
Your complaint seems to be your perception/fantasy of how things work= is not aligned with reality here on Earth

As I have said before- many of the tips I provide are for general use, now and in the future, and for mechanical noobs, Skilled persons should take no offense at the basic level of explanation sometimes used
I am NOT trying to say you (or anyone who ever felt offended by my words) personally cant solder like an expert or whatever the issue-

just saying for the average person who reads this forum for help= the ballast maker put that blade fitting on the wire end for a reason= in this age of saving every percentage of a penny in production, they could have left it off, so following their example cant be all that bad an idea

Oh- Yes it totally SUCKS that you got a damaged part and your install was delayed, that's a major bummer you have to remove the nose twice, customer or spouse not happy with the situation, I get it- I do- been therrrrrrrrre!!!!
and here we are =just a bunch of dumb guys (ask the wife) what do we know about compassion?

 

01tl just won the internet tonight....

 

lol! you are right, it does suck to get a broken part especially since I couldnt drive the car. I especially HATE doing the job 3x over because of something stupid and out of my control. As for the blade part connector?? I used that to connect the ignitor to the ballast but still needed to make a connection to the power supply of headlight power signal(that connection I soldered.) If I would of known that there was a $4 part to PNP it, I would of GLADLY paid that. Granted, I was harsh on the reviews and YES, i did ask for overnight but they said NO(poor service, but whatever). I will stand by this...YOU GET WHAT YOU PAY FOR.

 

true to my word on the updates, I did switch the ballasts and the problem did not follow. Wiggled the wiring and connectors to make sure etc I used the "good bulb" that wasnt broken from HIDextra. The light worked. So the bulbs(Maxlux HID) i bought from Amazon were highly rated etc etc. Since Amazon dont send out replacement parts, or MaxLUX USA dont offer it, I was issued a refund. All in all, it really is asinine how hit or miss these bulbs are. First time dealing with these HID systems, and yeah they are nice and bright for night driving but not really worth the headaches etc etc.

 

You get what you pay for, Not all are created equal. Maybe next time try spending a little more for a little more quality/known bulb.

http://www.theretrofitsource.com/

 

Cant we all just be friends?

But in all seriousness the only company I've used since I've had my Tl for lighting purposes is TRS.

 

I was not aware of an adapter for wiring @ 4$, been a while since I did mine and the neighbors

Its not that we are installing a brighter or different system than stock- we have HID lights now (High Intensity Discharge-See the warning label on ballast- mega!! volts used to start the lights- then power use is low) They wear out for a variety of reasons
and with our known problems that take out the power source for these bulbs, replacement of the power and wiring is just a swap, not an upgrade in lighting power itself.
Bright lights of a color you can see objects on the road with at night are the primary job, and daytime use helps you be well seen by oncoming traffic
I call my TL's color Asphalt Grey- It varies with light between invisible against background road to invisible against background road~ So use of low beam HID headlights is a safety factory of approx. 2318% over not using lights in daytime

Note for noobs to HID systems- new bulbs take ~50 hours of use to fully `burn in` their color and light output
Use them all the time to get the hours on- bulbs should last ~3000 hours so you have plenty of years even with the extra use

The bulbs also lose light color and lumens output with age, so most of you will be in for a good surprise when the new lights are installed

 

Yeah that's why I run with my switchbacks and fog lights on at all times. Even being WDP I've had a few people almost hit me in clear conditions. Plus I'm trying to save those 3000 hours of use.

 

so bulbs came in today...1st pic is the 5000k bulb is what i bought off them. so I get a "free" set of bulbs but not the 5000k ones ive paid for....according to the sticker(lol) its 5000k.

 

so they recycle unused boxes with hand written labels, please tell me that IS ok with you~ or ????? for noobs: RED = Sarcasm

Seeing as there are close to zero places selling anything lower than 5000, with lots of 6 8 even 10k bulbs regularly sold online
But how many with the stock 4200-4300 color,,well the dealer can get them and hmmmm ??????????????????
probably a big pile of old boxes somewhere just waiting to be repurposed

All I ask from the Great Beyond- let these new parts work for this ziner!!

 

Ok maybe you dont work for the company but you are DEFINITELY having relations with the owner's daughter/son, whatever you're into.... The whole package looks shady. And dont try to tell me HIDextra is doing us a FAVOR by providing ultra low prices etc. Its all about the bottom line for them. Heck, now Im wondering if the product they send out is even new. Let's just spray it with cleaner and sell it as new(refurb). I'll check back with your next excuse, MOUTH(01tl4tl).

 

^^^ Simply send everything back and request a full refund from the company due to the issues involved, primarily concerning your dissatisfaction with them. I'm sure that they will gladly accommodate you.

Take a chill and peace out man !

 

Hey, I ordered Acura parts but they came in a box with Honda printed on the side. I got jipped.

We all know no matter what you won't be satisfied with them. Send everything back and ask for a full refund.

 

Suddenly fatty your profile pic makes sense, A company sends wrong bulbs: "Acurazine.... We know drama"...

 

the favor all our vendors do us is being a SPONSOR of this site- they pay a LOT of money every month to be verified certified allowed advertisers, which in turn makes azine a FREE to Users invaluable resource for acura owners such as ourselves, and even outsider techs looking for a real answer, potential owners etc
There are plenty of YOU PAY for each bit if info sites if you prefer


At my age Im lucky to still have relations with myself~

 

I bought a 5K kit from them a few months ago. When I installed it, one ballast was out. Went through all the troubleshooting ahead of time. When I called, I didn't get an answer so I left a voicemail. They returned my call later that afternoon. They went through the troubleshooting steps, and I would tell them I tried that. I received a new ballast 2 days later. Would've been next day, but it wasn't processed until later on the evening that I talked to them. That was hella quick service, IMO. Not sure what happened with you.

 

he had a problem just ahead of labor day weekend- when many in America are not at their jobs~

 

Granted it was labor day weekend and that didn't help the situation. Obviously, the majority of you guys have no problems with them or you just accept broken/defective parts as the norm. It is what it is. This forum is sponsored by them so its no surprise people come to the rescue defending them. Like I said before, the ballast were already hardwired in. So, I should just take everything out for a bulb and send it back? As for the acura part in a honda box crack, another useless comment, and its GYPPED, you know...gypsies? I'm done commenting after this. Pointless. All I wanted to do is let the next guy think twice before buying from HIDextra.

 

and yet no one else has had this experience, occasional bad part- things happen to 60 buck parts and 6000
the bulb broken was weird!!! never have I seen one arrive like that in its case

I am totally guessing = as a member of the public at large- based on them thinking there were no spare bulbs or kits to snag bulbs out of- you got the last one they had, from the bottom of the pile, crush damage??
I seriously doubt they had a known damaged bulb and sent out kit anyway, just to be *_#@ about it!!

doubtful they open the boxes to inspect bulbs that closely- beyond visual confirmation of correct number of parts in the box, why would you?? - they travel in a special plastic case!
I have no idea what happens from ship to shipping as I do not work there

sponsors- we thank them all for the hookup and discounts on parts, I also defend products and suppliers outside of those who make azine run when bad info is being placed on the internet.

You chose to hardwire (solder) the ballast in when clearly the maker was suggesting blade connector be used, as one half came pre-attached-
its not a biggie to remove that solder right? you know what you are doing,

but how does that relate to replacement of the bad bulb that started this thread?

Did the new bulb cure all the issues???? or are you boxing it up and returning?
let us know how that morimoto setup works!
or there is a new thread on LED bulbs for fogs or main lights!!

 

the suggestion from many of us on this thread was to remove the entire assembly and get something else, clear it from your life
its not about the broken bulb, you are not happy about the whole event, its not been a positive experience
Change it out and start fresh, its a new day enjoy life to the fullest

My apologies if anything I wrote or write is taken personally by any ziner
Its not meant that way, but the internet leaves the reader without the voice and body language cues = you lose about 90% of the actual content and intent of a conversation/writings
Even my wife says I may not always be ahhh diplomatic and soft of word
I don't believe her for a second, I do know everything!, BUT seem to have misfiled vast amounts of decorum, and lost passwords to parts of brain containing that information D'oh!

 

......

 

 

I didn't read most of these post, mainly because I'm a laid back kind of guy and avoid unnecessary drama. I do want to add that my initial purchase from them (I have been using VVME for over 6 years prior) because of this site, I wanted to give them my business. #1 when I called, they no longer had "Acurazine" pricing, only offered some marginal discount. #2 I did/do have a funky ballast (I am by nature lazy, since the ballast didn't ignite the very first attempt, but has ever since, I have not contacted them). And finally #3, one of the bulb bases shattered, and the tabs that lock the igniter down came off. I was able to force the igniter onto the bulb by securing the back cap of the headlight itself. I never mentioned this because I didn't want to devalue them as a business, but since I have seen that others are having issues, especially with the build quality of the bulbs, I thought it was worth mentioning. I honestly will probably not buy from them again, as I have never had these kind of issues with VVME. I have had ballasts that quit after a year/year and a half, but never had any start up issues. Probably purchased over 10 kits from them over the years for my cars and some friends. I honestly expected better initial quality from a company that everyone supported on this site. Flame me if you must, it is my opinion that maybe they were better earlier on, but maybe now they aren't doing so well (maybe switched manufacturers/distributors?) It wasn't enough for me to contact them (I don't consider the $70 I spent a lot of money), that may just be me, but it was enough for me to go elsewhere in the future. (TBH I am waiting for these to go out, was considering buying another set somewhere else in anticipation)...

 

see- these are things we need to know!!,
maybe they switched bulb makers or ???
Everything in the kit has a full 12 month warranty (I know because I used it on neighbors car- faulty install was real reason but they were cool about it)
its always worth a toll free call!!

the special azine price was whatever code was best at the time, they offer 10% right on the website! with the occasional 15% ~hidden coupon~ -that the operator would find for you, and iirc a December 50%! sale, that's a total score!!

I am saddened to hear of recent quality issues, lets hope that gets resolved quickly.

The only way a company knows of problems is if you the consumer invest a few minutes by phone or email to share your findings. Seems fair, might even hook you up with some gift as thanks~
never hurts to ask!!