Hey Guys,

So I have the same issue as everyone else, but its happening to both of my HID headlights at the same time. My question is this, how to i diagnose if the igniter or the ballast is the problem? Im planning to take the bumper off and take a look at both ballast/igniters on both sides, but since both of them randomly work, how do I know which is the problem.

Suppose cleaning and making sure the wires aren't loose on both sides dont eleviate the problem, would you guys recommend installing an after market ballast and ingniter?

And what wattage is our ballast? 35 watts or 55watts?

Thanks Everyone!!

 

What exactly are the symptoms of the issue you're having?

I have gone the aftermarket route before and regretted it. Stay with OEM ballasts. You can find them readily available on Ebay for 150 US. Simply search: acura tl ballast (it's the 02-03 one for TL's, CL's, mazdas or something as well)

Our ballasts are 35 watts.

If they haven't been replaced during the car's life I would expect them to start going soon. Can't expect these systems to last forever. I've had to replace both of mine recently.

Also, try swapping both sides to see if it makes a difference in the consistency of their functioning. Your thoughts on making sure the plugs are clean is also a good idea. It can make a difference. Had an issue with my HID fogs; one didn't work because of moisture in the plug.

All the best with your situation, keep us updated

 

When i start my car and turn on my lights, one of the 3 happens.

1) both turn on
2) just the right
3) just the left

This happens very randomly too. So I can't pinpoint what the problem is. There's one more thing though. Whenever I turn on my lights and it works, and then turn them off again; they wont turn on again for a while.

Could this be the ballast? Im not 100% sure how the ballast works but my general idea of how a ballast works is that it holds and converts a charge and then it can start the igniter.

Well my reasoning for going aftermarket is because of cost issues. Since I dont know exacly if its the igniter or the ballast? I dont want to purchase an expensive OEM part if thats not going to fix it. If I can get 2 years out of an aftermarket kit (assuming it costs around 200 bucks), then that might even be better for me cause I plan to keep the car for 3-4 years.

Also, before your aftermarket set went bad, was the light output from them equal to the stock HID lights?


Let me know what you guys think.

Thanks again!

 

you might want to check out the local wrecking yards or ebay to pick up a cheap oem pair.

 

The light output wasn't exactly as good as the OEM side, it took 3 times as long to warm up and the cheap ballast died after 6 months.

I'm not entirely sure what your issue is based on the symptoms. The ballast is the most likely culprit. It's rarely an igniter issue. Both my igniters are still the original ones while both my ballasts are new.