Step-by-Step HID Headlight install....
Lately there has been quite a bit of questions and comments about which HID and how to wire one. So after reading all the stuff here for the last several months, detailed below is the route that I went with.
I also ended up doing a step-by-step write up for those of us who need pictures and steps to assist us in the installation of pretty much any HID kit. They can’t be much different (the ones without the Hi/Low will not have the Hi/Low connections to worry about).
Bought my HID kit from DDM Tuning. It’s the H4 Hi/Low Kit. It’s the 55 watt as opposed to the 35 watt kit. Color is 5000k.
The 55 watt gives out more light. I could have gone with 6000k in 55 watt, but if you go with the 35 watt, you do want the 5000k, to get the most light.
DDM’s product is the least expensive kit out there with the added bonus of the hi/low option. They warranty the HID bulb and the ballast for life. They say that no one has reported any issues with the ballast powering up and out when starting the bike. If it burns out, they will replace it. There are other here on this site who have been using their kit for some time now without any side effects.
DDM’s service sucks. I called three times, and got pretty much people got three different people in their technical department that knew nothing. I got put on an indefinite hold the 2nd time, hence the reason for calling the 3rd time and after waiting 10 minutes, I hung up. I dont mean here that you should not buy from them, hopefully you will have much better luck with them than I did. I would still buy from them because of the reasons listed in the paragraph above.
Please note: that DDM says that their warranty on their HID bulb, Ballast & the wiring harness is VOID if it is alter in any way!! This meant that I could not cut out the fuse and move it to another location. Also, I could not cut and extend the Hi/Low plug into the headlight bucket (solved this problem by using the plug on the shorter lead for the ballast-see below).
Before you begin the install, make sure you test out the kit while it is separated from the bike. Install the bulb into the headlight first, and connect the three prong switch into the headlight bucket then with it on your lap or on a stable surface, connect it to the battery and see if everything works. You don’t want to install it completely and find out that you have to pull it off to get warranty work done.
Steps you need to do to start first that are not explained here:
1. Remove the seats
2. Remove the tank
3. Partially remove the air breather box from the carb, don’t need to remove the lower hoses.
4. Remove and unplug the head light from the headlight bucket.
Here is a look at the kit I got (see pic below), No instructions, had to ask them to email it to me because I couldn’t down load them.
This gives you a closer look at the (2) wiring leads for the ballasts. Plug the longer lead into the ballast and the Hi/Low plug on that one in NOT USED. We will use the 2nd wiring lead (shorter of the two) for it Hi/Low plug only. See picture below. Please note when the wire from the ballast is routed to the bucket, the smaller black box will fall somewhere in between the neck and the bucket. This will be clear in a picture further down.
Note: in the next few steps, make sure you DO NOT TOUCH THE HID BULB WITH YOUR HANDS OR ANYTHING. You don’t want the HID bulb to burst on you when you plug it in.
I completely forgot to take some additional pictures for the next few steps in removing the old halogen bulb and installing the HID bulb, but I got a shot of the final condition
Remove the rubber housing on the back of the head light bulb. Then unclip the metal clip, it rotates to you left and remove the bulb. Store the bulb away for future use when you HID goes out and a replacement is ordered.
Now remove the plastic case from around the bulb. Then remove the metal housing from the HID by hold the black part tightly and twisting the metal housing, and then pulling it off. Place the metal housing into the head case (it can only go in one way – there are prongs on there that will not allow it to be installed any other way). Place the pin over it and lock it in.
Now place the rubber boot over the metal housing. The inside round opening in the boot will go over the metal housing, not inside of it. The bulb has a rubber washer at the end that will seal that opening once the bulb is in place. I found that once I heated up the rubber boot, it installed on to the metal housing a lot simpler, otherwise you will be fighting it.
Once the boot is in place, install the HID bulb into the metal housing by sliding it in all the way and turning it. You can see that in the next three pictures. One is the HID bulb separated from its shield and case, one picture from the back side and the other of the front.
The next picture show where I placed the ballast and the Hi/Low module.
All of the wires were run on the right side of the bike. The following shows all the extra wires and length tucked into the free space in the neck.
Next picture shows where I snuck the Fuse Box for the HID to take to the left side of the bike.
The next picture shows where the fuse for the HID ended up being located for easy access at the cost of forfeiting the all warranty rights to this product.
The Next image shows where the positive and negative wires were routed to under the seat area.
Connect your positive to the battery. They have it all set up, so why not since I was using their inline fuse anyways.
Connect the negative to a ground post like I did or connect it to the battery ground terminal.
Note: when you are routing the wire from the ballast to the headlight bucket, the small black box will end up in between the neck and the headlight bucket. I have a 2.5” headlight extension on my bike, maybe that is why it ended up there.
The next image shows the plugs handing in the bucket for connection. You have the shorter ballast lead (only going to use the Hi/Low plug on that lead), the positive and negative connection to the HID bulb. Lastly, the three prong plug.
Connect the three prong plug into the socket that you pulled from the halogen bulb.
Now connect all three lead from the HID bulb to the remaining three connections.
You are now done wiring your HID!!
Just put the headlight back on, the tank back into place and install the seats and you are ready to test out your new HID.
Since I still need to work on the flange bearings, I don’t have a picture with them on at night on the road, but it will soon follow and I will post it here.
Sorry for being picture intensive, but that is what I like to see and is helpful for me. If I forgot something or something needs to be added or you have any other advice or comments, feel free to post them too…..
Ride Safe and be seen !!
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