| Author | Message | ||
     Tipsymcstagger |
I've spent the last two full days up at my parents installing Piaa 510's, HID's on both the low and high beams, Rox Risers, Centech fuse block, and a few other odds and ends (no garage of my own in NYC). I bought a set of digital HID's on eBay...two of everything for about $100. Originally I was going to install only the low beam but then I figured I might as well install the high beam as well. I'm powering each HID ballast and the Piaa's directly from the Centech...and each on a separate relay. I'm controlling the low beam and the Piaa relay via the Euro light lead. The high beam relay is obviously switched by the high beam lead. I know there has been talk about the HID ballasts dropping off and not reigniting after the starter is engaged...so I figured this would be circumvented by triggering the low beam (and the Piaa's) by the Euro light circuit which is uninterrupted during starter engagement. My problem, however, manifested before I ever touched the starter button. When I turn the key to "on," sometimes the low beam ignites and sometimes it just flashes for a fraction of a second and does not ignite. If I recycle the key, it'll come on. The high beam HID exhibits similar behavior when selected "on." Here's the weirdest part...a couple times when I turned the key to "on" (and I'm sure only the low beam was selected) the HIGH BEAM flashed for a fraction of a second and then neither ballast ignited. Same fix...turn the key off and back on again and the low beam ignites. This is really strange because as described, the relays are switched by separate sources. Anyone have any similar experiences? I feel very confident about the integrity of the wiring. I used 14 ga for all of the power leads and everything was crimped, soldered and shrink wrapped. If the the system is just junk...I guess it's a matter of live and learn. I'll buy another set and come back up here when I have the chance to swap it all out. The only real pain-in-the-butt is that during daylight, I can't tell if the low beam has ignited while sitting on the bike. I'm going to have to get in the habit of switching the key "on" before I saddle up. But sometimes (like when refueling) I'll shut the bike down and restart it without ever getting off the bike. Oh well. I needed to vent. Been working 20+ hours on this thing since yesterday morning. Tomorrow I just have to install the Drummer, the clutch cable guide and the Kaoko throttle control...and ride back to NYC  Tipsy | ||
| Maximum |
I feel your pain Tipsy. Sometimes I get in the middle of an "upgrade" and I ask myself the question..."Why didn't I just leave it the way that it was". I don't think that it is the HID setup, I only paid a few bucks more than you (not from Ebay though) and my system works as advertised. I did have a missing pin in one of my ballast cables, but that was promptly replaced by the company that sold it to me. The bottom line seems to me is if the high light is flashing (getting power) when only the low is selected, then there is cross talk happening somewhere in your wiring. I understand that you feel confident in your wiring, but it has to be in the wiring. Each HID light uses a separate ballast (as you are aware) with separate power leads, so there is no way for the juice to jump from one ballast to another. I would double check things, maybe isolating each system by unplugging the power to the other system and see what happens. Remember, the first rule of troubleshooting (as quoted by Al_Lighton) is that it is always a ground issue until proven otherwise! | ||
| Tipsymcstagger |
Thanks Maximum. I know what you're saying about the cross talk, but if there is cross talk, it's happening within the Buell harness. The only common element between the two systems is the fact that the relays are switched by the factory Euro and high beam leads respectively. I'm getting things wrapped up as I have to fly a 12 day trip tomorrow, so trouble shooting will have to be put on hold. I posted this to ADV in the "Garage" as well and one response suggests I need 12 ga wire running from the Centech to the ballast. I really can't see that being an issue as I think 14 ga is more than adequate...plus, aren't you running your ballasts on the Buell factory harness? I'm fairly certain that's even smaller than 14 ga. But I have a few minutes and we're going to try to run an extra 14 ga wire between the relay and the battery (just in temporary fashion) to see if that eliminates the issue. I just got the Drummer installed (sounds awesome!) and took a quick ride down the block. I switched the high beam on and had the same issue. Recycled the high beam switch and it came on. So it's not a battery strength/weakness issue. Tipsy | ||
| 911_racer |
I had the same problem with my HID kit. cheep Chinese junk. throw it away now! your life depends on it. kinda hard to see at night going 70mph around a corner when your lights turn off. don't ask how I know this. if you want HID's that work you gotta spend big bucks. |
