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HID kit advice

Discussion in 'Gen 3 Prius Main Forum' started by KrazyDawg, Nov 14, 2017.

  1. KrazyDawg

    KrazyDawg Junior Member

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    I've had a HID kit installed in my 2011 Prius for nearly 2 years now with 55k miles driven. I've had issues with it for a total of 3 times. The first time was 1 week into the initial install where they failed to turn on. The second time I believe I just had one bulb replaced. Last night the driver side went out. At this point, I'm not sure if I should be looking into a different HID kit or maybe even a LED kit if they're more reliable. Since I drive a lot I'm wondering if that might be why my lights are dying faster. Originally I was looking at a HID kit from TRS but I've seen some mixed reviews from them. Does anyone know if I need to use H11A or H11B?
     
    #1 KrazyDawg, Nov 14, 2017
    Last edited: Nov 14, 2017
  2. xliderider

    xliderider Senior Member

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    H11b. The H11a bulbs will give you ground wire shadows.

    Did you use an HID wiring harness with a relay or relays instead of connecting your ballasts directly to the oem lowbeam connectors?
     
    #2 xliderider, Nov 14, 2017
  3. KrazyDawg

    KrazyDawg Junior Member

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    When I had them installed the first week (Feb 2016) they stopped working. Both lights failed to turn on. A wiring harness was added to make them work. It wasn't part of the initial install because the installer also had a Prius but didn't need to use it on his car. A 50w ballast was used to power them on. Originally I wanted to use a 35w ballast with 4300k HID bulb but the installer only had 50w and 5000k.
     
    #3 KrazyDawg, Nov 14, 2017
  4. PriusNP

    PriusNP Junior Member

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    I have base model 2011 with led kit very reliable last 3 years no problem
     
    #4 PriusNP, Nov 14, 2017
  5. xliderider

    xliderider Senior Member

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    If your wiring harness has a dual relay, one relay may have failed. If the wiring harness has one relay, then you have to determine whether your problem lies with the bulb or the ballast.

    If your ballasts are AC, then it would be rare to have a bulb fail, it's probably the ballast or, as mentioned previously, a relay.

    An easy way to determine if it's the bulb or ballast is to switch your bulbs from one side to the other. If it's a bad bulb, the problem follows the bulb.
     
    #5 xliderider, Nov 14, 2017
  6. KrazyDawg

    KrazyDawg Junior Member

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    I ended up getting the TRS HID kit. I wish I got them earlier. There's a big difference between them in the light output. It completely blew away the 55w ballast. I'll post a video later when I get the chance.
     
    #6 KrazyDawg, Nov 20, 2017
  7. KrazyDawg

    KrazyDawg Junior Member

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    Here's the video of the HID kit.
     
    #7 KrazyDawg, Nov 27, 2017
  8. Raidboss

    Raidboss New Member

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    Thank you for the video, they look amazing. I'm looking to do the same thing using the Morimoto kit from TRS as well. I was worried about going with the higher wattage ballast, but it appears if there is not melting/heat issues, this will give me the high light output that I'm seeking over the 35w ballast.

    Did you just install the kit as is into stock halogen housing? any leveling or other issues you see. I think I will have a professional do the install for me but I definitely think I want to go with the higher ballast even thou you get some reduced life.
     
    #8 Raidboss, Jan 6, 2018
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