Driver's side HID does not light - aftermarket HID kit installed

Hi,

My son bought an '07 GTI about a month ago.

One of the previous owners put in some sort of HID kit. Not sure if the way it is setup is normal for an aftermarket kit or if it is out of the ordinary (it certainly seems like a hack job to me):

1. The stock light switch/dial no longer turns on the headlights. It will still turn on the interior dash/center console lights.

2. A separate toggle switch has been run from the driver side headlight housing into the car. This is what turns on the head lights.

• The drivers side flash to pass bulb/wiring has been tapped for some reason.

3. High beams still turn on via the turn signal stalk

4. The daytime running lights no longer function - the daytime running light indicator on the dash still lights up (I have coded the fog lights to work as DRLs).

5. When the car is started the info screen states 'Front Left (and Right) dipped beam not working'.

6. It is still the factory headlight housing.

In addition to this behavior, the driver side headlight does not always turn on. Sometimes it works, sometimes it does not.

There was a period where I thought I had it fixed and it would always come on. However, a couple of days ago it stopped coming on again - and had not been on (even sporadically) since.

I suspect the issue is with the drivers side ballast. This weekend I am going to do some bulb and ballast swapping to see if I can confirm the issue.

This said, I would like to get back to a factory setup. A local garage that specialized in VWs has an '07 GTI parts car. 100,000 miles.

They will sell me the ballasts, igniters, wiring harness, and bulbs for $500CAD. Given how expensive the ballasts are from VW, I think this is a reasonable price? However, my concern is that a ballast fails shortly after.

Does anyone know if there is a typical lifespan on the ballasts? Or are they the type of part that could run forever (until they don't)?

They are also quoting about 2-3 hours to pull out the aftermarket stuff and return things to factory. Does this sound reasonable?

Does anyone know why the OEM ballasts are so much more than a factory equivalent I can find on ebay? Talking $40 CAD vs. over $400 CAD. Are these $40 ballasts any good?

Any thoughts are appreciated.

So about $600 US all in to put the HID system back to factory design with original used parts. How are the parts car housing lenses, nice and clear? What about the wiring internal to the housing is it all intact or has the sheathing started to fall off the wiring. It maybe worth it to have a professional do the job based on the PO wiring job you posted on the Tex. Have the shop give you whatever useable part remain from the old system for spares.

You could do the job yourself with the help of wiring diagrams and Vcds to scan for issues.


Can not comment on the New aftermarket ballasts on EBay for $25 US.

GTI's said:

So about $600 US all in to put the HID system back to factory design with original used parts. How are the parts car housing lenses, nice and clear? What about the wiring internal to the housing is it all intact or has the sheathing started to fall off the wiring. It maybe worth it to have a professional do the job based on the PO wiring job you posted on the Tex. Have the shop give you whatever useable part remain from the old system for spares.

You could do the job yourself with the help of wiring diagrams and Vcds to scan for issues.


Can not comment on the New aftermarket ballasts on EBay for $25 US.

Click to expand...

By 'housing lenses', do you mean the headlight housing? I would likely not be getting that from the parts car as mine is the factory one. If it takes them 3 hours, works out to about $650usd (does not include the headlight housing).

I will take a closer look at the internal wiring this weekend when I swap bulb and ballasts. I know the wire that connects to the factory ignitor is fine (it is just sitting in the housing loose right now). As are the wires in the FTP compartment.

Do you know if ballasts typically have a lifespan and what it is?

If my light not turning on does turn out to be a ballast issue, I will likely try find a replacement for the aftermarket one currently in there. If I cannot find a replacement or the ballast is not the issue, will likely have to go the 'return to factory' route.

Sorry my mistake I thought the shop was pulling the complete headlight housings from the parts car they had...............Lifespan of the OEM ballast is unknown?

No, I guess the housing(s) on their car have broken tabs. Not sure what that means, but either way, I've got the housings covered.

Fwiw broken tabs are repairable with the kits from VW if you ever need them

https://www.ecstuning.com/Volkswagen-Golf_V--2.0T/Lighting/Headlights/Repair_Kit/

Thanks!

So, I did a bit of sleuthing. The bulb is not the issue. I did not swap the ballasts as disconnecting the blub/ballast connectors (from the ballast) while the housing is still mounted to the car proved a little tight.

I did manage to unmount one of the ballasts and get a picture of it. Some chinese ballast, no surprise there. It does say on the ballast that the power is 58w.

I know factory ballasts are 35w.

I have manage to find an equivalent replacement ballast for not a lot of money, in both 35w and 55w versions. I am going to try replacing the driver's side one - if it doesn't fix it, I am not out much money.

I assume, at this point, I should get the 55w replacement ballast? I guess I should pull the bulb again and check what its wattage is.