Proper Care for HID's
 

I've seen in several owner's manuals for aftermarket HID's that it's recommended to warm up the car for a moment before turning on the HID's. I thought to myself, when I have my lights in auto mode, they turn on the instant the key is turned. Is this really bad for HID's?? What other advice should HID owners know for proper care?

I have notice that if i leave my lights on an shut off my car, that when i go to turn the car on when its cold (usually 45 degrees in my garage during the winter) that my hids always seem that one does not ignite. I have HIDs in the Lows and the fogs, my fogs alway light. All i do is shut off the lights and turn them bad on and the HID ignites.

warm up the car before turning on HID? I have never heard of this. I dont know anyone that does this to be honest.

As long as you dont turn them on and off within a short period of time, you'll be fine.

I dont see how warming up the car affects the HID system at all.

The only thing that would possibly affect the hid's by "warming" up the car would be stabilizing the volatage above 13.2v or so. When your car is off it's usually resting at around 12.2-12.8v. Tellinig you to warm the car up may just be a round about way of making sure that the car is up and running and voltage has made it's way back up to above 13v before you turn the lights on. Doubt it makes a difference honestly as they should be just fine to run all the way down to 12v but couldn't hurt I guess.

I think you are confusing with letting the hids warm up before shutting them back off. it's bad to turn them on then off again quickly.

Nope, it said to start the car up for a moment before turning them on. I *think* macd7919 hit it on the head when he said it's to make sure there's enough voltage before turning them on. It's the only thing that makes sense to me so far :confused:

macd7919: Don't know if you remember me but I bought your stock polished Supra wheels awhile back :) Got 'em refinished recently and they're still on my Supra.

But when we use our highbeams during the day. What we have is our daylight lights (the little small ones in the middle) and if we use the highbeam then the HID's at the sides come on too. SO isn't that bad for the car, since they come on and off for a short period of time when u use the highbeam during the day?

The reason for letting the car start first is so the battery voltage is stabilized. When you crank the engine, the batt voltage usually dips a bit under 10v. The first 5-10sec of HID ignition is the warm up stage for the HID bulbs and that's also when the ballasts draw the most power. So when the HID's are on and you try to crank the engine...the HID ballast is going to have to work extra hard to keep the bulb lit. The ballasts have a voltage regulator to compensate for the voltage drops, but it makes the ballast have to work much harder. Over time, it "MAY" cause the ballasts to fail (especially with cheap/low quality ballasts). Also, if you start the car and one fails to light. Your reaction will be to restrike the bulb, and that itself isn't the best for the bulbs either.

who here actually turns on their light before turning on their engine?:uh:

I've always turned on my engine before doing anything anyways so its no issue for me. I could see it as an issue for those who keeps their light in AUTO all the time though.

Exactly.....I was just wondering if using auto mode is harmful for HID's since I use it. On auto mode, the lights come on simultaneously as I turn the key to start the car.

It almost sounds like a better idea to start the car for a few seconds before turning on the HID's.

Thats why I dont use AUTO mode (not to mention it turns on my headlights in the garage, and off when I back out). I also turn off the AC compressor before I turn off the car... just something I got used to doing.

i cant believe you guys are making such a big deal out of this

I do not see why would you have to turn the car ON before you turn HID's. NEW ACURAS AND OTHER CARS TURN THEIR HID'S ON AS YOU APROACH THE VEHICLE AND UNLOCK IT WITH REMOTE ENTRY ( without starting the car )IS THAT A FACTORY MALFUNCTION MAYBE?????

omg all of the HID's on acuras are gonna break for sure now!!!111one

Ok, let me just clarify. I have a lotta experience with HID's so this is what I have to say. If you have a high quality ballast (AKA: OEM unit) then this will most likely not be a problem for you. It's those improperly designed or cheap ballasts with cheaper internal components that will be "more likely" to fail. Even considering that, I haven't seen one fail yet from constant restriking. The only failures I have seen are moisture/water related. If anything is going to suffer at all from restriking, then it's going to be the bulbs. Good thing HID bulbs are pretty cheap now days. Then again, so are the ballasts.

The main difference of having them on or off is that the cheaper ballasts will not be able to keep the bulb lit while the engine starts. On the other hand a higher quality ballast will be able to compensate more for the voltage drop when you crank the motor. I use all high quality ballasts on my car, so my HID's are always on. Even during the day(hey, I gotta show off my custom retrofit :)).

So, as the russian says...you guys are making WAAAY too big a deal out of this. Personally I've tested ballats and bulbs by constantly restriking. Try 100 times constantly :D no problems, fires, or explosions (don't try that at home unless you have the proper protective equiptment....just in case ;)). Automotive HID's have come a LONG way since they were first introduced back in the day. They are pretty robust now.