Awhile back one of my ballast went her on my 03 tl and I installed aftermarket ballasts, well I want to go back to oem because they look so much better and was wonder if the 2000 tl ballast will work on an 02? Could I just cut the pig tail off the 00 and splice it back into my car? Would this work without and issues?

 

OEM 2g tl ballasts are notoriously bad for weather sealing purposes. . I'd highly recommend you buy a quality aftermarket like Morimoto in order to get a good bang for you buck


The Retrofit Source Inc

They're a AZ vendor as well. use the code 'acurazine' for a discount.

 

is it the bulbs you don't like? The ballast just ups the voltage, not sure how that would affect the looks??

 

are you running 6000k color bulbs? 5000? what exactly? that's the ability to see right there!
what brand parts did you install?
Often swapping 6000 out for 5000 in, will return pleasure to your night driving
OE parts suck plain and simple, you need aftermarket with its micro size and waterproofing built in, plus sealed connections etc.

 

The answer us no. They are different units. This is why I don't like people recommending cutting up the wire harness.

I'm guessing you didn't save your old stuff. It will be a lot cheaper for you to stay aftermarket. I would recommend you go with a major brand name. Do your homework and research the internet.

If you must pick one of the oem and stick to that system. If it was me I would get the whole system used from a junk yard, connector and all.

If its feasible try getting the whole connector section. That way you don't have to use butt connectors. I'm not saying to get the whole wire loom. There is a reason why not one car manufacturer use butt connectors. The reason is because it is an inferior connection. This may be an issue down the road if you live in a wet climate.

 

i have the phillips brand from autozone installed, I think they are 4300k? they are just alot more somewhat of dull white I guess you could say. and another reason I ask the question is I am having this issue where if I get in my car turn on headlights and then start car and the power gets shut off and quickly back on, my pass side light wont work until i turn car off for a min then turn car on and then turn headlights on, and I cant turn off headlights with engine on or pass side wont turn back on till i turn car off. not sure what the issue is, any info would help if maybe i can warranty the ballast. I got them from hidextra.com and they are the slim edition with OE bulbs (I hated the 1000ks I ordered) I want my headlights to have a little blue tint to it.

 

Philips is a major brand, should be ok.

The above poster 01tl4tl is correct you may just be unhappy with the color temperature, try the 5000k or what ever you want. Again use a major brand.

Your lazy eye. lol

If they're wired in series some times the power will take the path of least resistance so only one side will come on first and the other may not because it takes a lot more power to ignite the unlit lamp. The power will stay on the lit circuit.

If that is the case rewire the lamps in parallel. Meaning use two relays, one per each side independent of each other.

If you are already using two relays on two circuits then test the lazy eye by jumping a hot and neg directly from battery to the lazy eye. If it lights up every time then you have a bad connection somewhere. If not then you have a defective unit.

 

hidextra has a 1 year no hassle warranty- just call them!

Why not use their bulbs in 5000?, a lot of systems are picky about the bulb and ballast combo for whatever reasons

4300 was stock color and has a little blue, 5000 a good mix, and 6000 too much blue at loss of white light to see with
10,000K really?!!! who suggested those to you?! cant see nuthin with those

hid extra can hook you up with the right bulbs for cheap, try code newfb or ask them for latest coupon code

odd thought - its happened before- did you buy HID bulbs? how much were they $$?

 

the symptoms point to a bad ballast- it happens - they warranty it or 60 bucks gets new bulbs and ballast
Morimoto had a recall on theirs...so it happens to 200$ parts as well as 50

Connectors: no need for butt connectors on this diy!!, male/female blade connectors in waterproof cover, plus shrink wrap to double insulate it from dangers

 

I just got off the phone with them and they seem to have a great warranty and will be sending me a new ballast and igniter with a pair of two free bulbs! I originally liked the 10k look but after installation I hated it so i put my oem ones back in, but the great rep also was able to send me 6k as the free replacement bulbs! He said those were the most brightest ones

Thanks to all for the info and help!

 

Actually, they're not. While 4300K bulbs put out approximately 3200 lumens, 6000K bulbs put out only about 2800 lumens.

 

yes but 4300 are hard to find,
this seller offers a 5000 which many of us use, I personally ran 5 on 1 side and 6 on the other in the TL to compare light output =
5000K wins for actual seeing stuff on the road to avoid
6000 does amazing at lighting up lane edge lines, freeway signs and the reflecto tape on semi truck trailers, all visible from 1/2 to 1 mile away!!
BUT it definitely loses white output that 5000 has and still has a lot of blue in it.
4300 had blue when they were new~ AGE CHANGES COLOR OUTPUT

Note New bulbs need about 50 hours run time to fully `burn in` color and brightness,
Use them all the time and they get better!!
NEVER touch bulb barehanded!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! use latex or rubber gloves
Oil from fingertips- even with freshly washed hands- gets on bulb and creates a hot spot-- which burns onto the glass and lessens bulb life substantially

 

4300K bulbs are widely available since this is the OEM color temperature for most car manufacturers. These range from top quality brands such as Philips or Osram down to cheap Chinese made bulbs or even Philips counterfits, depending on how much or little you want to spend.

There are a couple of interesting D2S bulb options for guys who have done projector retrofits on their 2G TLs. Philips makes an 85122XV C1 Xtreme Vision bulb that is 4800K, but more lumens than a 4300K bulb. Osram makes a Xenarc 66240 CBI bulb that is is 5500K and puts out about 3500 lumens. Neither one of these is cheap ($185 a pair on The Retrofit Source), but these are some of the best performing bulbs that you can buy if you have HID projector headlights.

 

I just want to make sure your HL lens is clear. If not all this is a moot point.

There are many lens polisher kits... I know 3M works great.