[caskey_b]

2011 Crew with stock halogens

HID kits installed in fogs, low beam, and high beams. All have HID relays installed, all connected to same ground, and same positive point (pos lug on TIPM)

Fogs ALWAYS turn on with it set to AUTOMATIC, sometimes the low beams will not come on... I have to flick the headlight switch quickly off then back on for them to come on... NEVER have a problem with high beams coming on either..

Last night, started D, and fogs came on but no LOW beams... messed with the headlight switch for about 5 minutes and was finally able to get them to come on... Same deal this morning early when starting it up... had to mess with switch for about 5 minutes before I could get them to come on..

Testing the lights and checking things over in my garage today.. they still had a little issue coming on, but got them on a lot easier than the previous 2 times..


This is BOTH LOW BEAMS, not just one side... so I have ruled out ballast and of course bulbs since they do light up...
And as mentioned above, all 3 sets of HIDs share common ground and pos post for the HID relays...


I'm stumped?!?!?


any suggestions?

 

[Skippy426]

Too high of a load on the positive point maybe? And are the relays on the hid kit working properly?

 

[caskey_b]

are the relays working properly? not sure... I would assume so..

not sure if I even NEED the relays or not... but I suppose I could disconnect the relays and go from there...

only problem I have right now is that I have everything wired up so neat and tucked away... I had front bumper, grill, and headlight housing off to get everything looking pretty... and I honestly don't have the time to mess around with all of that again right now... especially because the D is currently our only vehicle..

but I work nights so I cannot count on the fact that I HOPE the HIDs work... so for now I have stock Halogens in the low beams


not sure where to go now....

 

[Skippy426]

Try using the positive post maybe? There would be more power available there than on the TIPM lug. You also might need the capacitor link thing that TRS has, I know they have a mopar spec low beam kit. The only things I can think of is that the electrical system in the D is sensing a lower than normal load and killing power, your automatic light system isn't working correctly (I drive with my lights on at all times anyway, looks good lit up), or your relays have gone bad.

I know in my parents van one of the windshield wiper relays went bad, causing the wipers to run even though they were off and the van was turned off with no key in the ignition. The one that went bad rattled when you shook it, the other one didn't.

I understand working nights... 4pm to 4am... But someones gotta pick up day shifts slack

 

[Mirage85]

caskey_b, I replied to your PM. Hopefully you get this sorted out soon, but it sounds to me that you're not getting enough power to for them to fire on properly during some of the cold nights. It'll only get worse as it gets colder. Hooking directly to the positive terminal should help, and make sure you have a good ground connection as well.

 

[gotbags-10]

Ah the wonderful world of dodge hid's! At my shop we no longer install hid's on dodges with tipm's. I've spent countless hours trying everything under the sun. Highs and fogs always work just lows are the problem. Since the LED kits have come out we only use those. They are waaaay less sensitive to voltage fluctuations. Work every time. I know this is not what your wanting to hear. I could go into all the different fixes I've done over the last few years and yes they would work but only for a short time befor customers were back. Big problems were Rams grand Cherokees and durangos. Single biggest problem I can tell you is don't use cheap hid kits but even then they are subject to voltage changes.

 

[caskey_b]

Ah the wonderful world of dodge hid's! At my shop we no longer install hid's on dodges with tipm's. I've spent countless hours trying everything under the sun. Highs and fogs always work just lows are the problem. Since the LED kits have come out we only use those. They are waaaay less sensitive to voltage fluctuations. Work every time. I know this is not what your wanting to hear. I could go into all the different fixes I've done over the last few years and yes they would work but only for a short time befor customers were back. Big problems were Rams grand Cherokees and durangos. Single biggest problem I can tell you is don't use cheap hid kits but even then they are subject to voltage changes.

Im glad you brought that up... I'm considering trying a set of LEDs for at least the low beams (H11).,

Contemplating this set... Amazon.com: OPT7 LED Headlight Bulbs w/ Clear Arc-Beam Kit - H11 (H8, H9) - 60w 7,000Lm 6K Cool White CREE - 2 Yr Warranty: Automotive

What do you think? Or do you suggest anything?

 

[Mirage85]

Im glad you brought that up... I'm considering trying a set of LEDs for at least the low beams (H11).,

Contemplating this set... Amazon.com: OPT7 LED Headlight Bulbs w/ Clear Arc-Beam Kit - H11 (H8, H9) - 60w 7,000Lm 6K Cool White CREE - 2 Yr Warranty: Automotive

What do you think? Or do you suggest anything?

I would be pretty leery of LEDs in a reflector housing. They might be fine, they might not be.... I would just be worried about getting the coverage down the road that you need to be able to see at night.

 

[caskey_b]

If I can get my HIDs to work reliably I won't even worry about the LEDs...

But my HIDs light spread is perfect in the reflector housings I have... Reading about these LEDs seem like they would work.

Hoping gotbags may have some input on what he uses in his shop?

 

[caskey_b]

Got my 3 harnesses wired to the positive lug under hood (jump start position) was originally hooked to positive of TIPM.

Testing with Durango off and not running, still a little finicky. Haven't tried while starting the D. But noticed in the past with other vehicles that when you actually fire up the vehicle and start it, they seem to do better.

I'll test out for next few days and report back.

 

[Skippy426]

Alright it's been almost a month!! How they working now caskey?

Off topic: I noticed my relay harness buzzed and my high beams flickered with the truck running, but not with it off, and I'm wired to the nut on the TIPM. 1 capacitor link fixed the buzzing, but my driver side only still flickers a little bit.

 

[Mirage85]

Alright it's been almost a month!! How they working now caskey?

Off topic: I noticed my relay harness buzzed and my high beams flickered with the truck running, but not with it off, and I'm wired to the nut on the TIPM. 1 capacitor link fixed the buzzing, but my driver side only still flickers a little bit.

Yeah, the buzzing was due to the canbus system, the capacitor smooths out the pulsing current. As for your connection, connect the positive directly to the jump post under the hood. that'll give you the full power that's needed for the HID's to fire on properly.

If its still flickering after that, you'll need to get some cancellers installed between the wiring harness and ballasts.

 

[caskey_b]

Sorry for the delay.... After taking all 3 sets from TIPM and hooking them to positive jump post, it certainly helped... Not 100%, but helped significantly!

Recently just purchased a 2nd vehicle as my daily driver (Mitsubishi Outlander) and am going to try out the Opt7 Blitzen series and see how I like them.. Supposed to be canbus ready. The 2 kits I purchased (for high and low beam) come with cancellers and relays.