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Thread: DIY: **HID in e36 FOGS BY Brent**

  1. #1
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    DIY: **HID in e36 FOGS BY Brent**

    i would like to express my thanks to Brent (zx7rhitch) for this excellent write up, well done.

    start by popping the fog light out, use a long flat screw driver to pry it out.


    bracket minus the fog light.


    remove the connector and cut the wires, leave a bit of slack should you ever get the urge to go back to stock..


    minus the plug.


    one more, black and red wires are from the adapter harness (marked as input from hid box) we include with the hid kit:


    -zkw- -hella- -bosch- -depo- -prolumen- -kwd- -bbs- -predator chromium- -predator ice- -simota- -ecis-

    //-install guides-//-total lighting group buy-//-zkw group buy-// -exhaust group buy-//-ellipsoids+hid group buy-//-led tails group buy-//

  2. #2
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    remove back cover from fog and pry the back cover plate:




    drill a hole in the back cover, ~7/8" will do:


    this is what you should have when you are done:


    solder the harness into the factory wires:

    -zkw- -hella- -bosch- -depo- -prolumen- -kwd- -bbs- -predator chromium- -predator ice- -simota- -ecis-

    //-install guides-//-total lighting group buy-//-zkw group buy-// -exhaust group buy-//-ellipsoids+hid group buy-//-led tails group buy-//

  3. #3
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    heat shrink and cover with elec. tape for good measure:


    this is what it should look like at this point:


    lit up :


    mount the ballast in the bumper support beam or another solid surface, pop the fog light back in place and enjoy.

    -zkw- -hella- -bosch- -depo- -prolumen- -kwd- -bbs- -predator chromium- -predator ice- -simota- -ecis-

    //-install guides-//-total lighting group buy-//-zkw group buy-// -exhaust group buy-//-ellipsoids+hid group buy-//-led tails group buy-//

  4. #4
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    Excellent writeup.

    Think for yourself. Question authority.

  5. #5
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    Damn, nice work. This one was awesome too.. http://forums.bimmerforums.com/forum...d.php?t=716091

  6. #6
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    Quote Originally Posted by Forged328 View Post
    Damn, nice work. This one was awesome too.. http://forums.bimmerforums.com/forum...d.php?t=716091
    not really, cutting and splicing your hid kit is not a good idea not to mention that your warranty would be voided on the spot.

    -zkw- -hella- -bosch- -depo- -prolumen- -kwd- -bbs- -predator chromium- -predator ice- -simota- -ecis-

    //-install guides-//-total lighting group buy-//-zkw group buy-// -exhaust group buy-//-ellipsoids+hid group buy-//-led tails group buy-//

  7. #7
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    Quote Originally Posted by habbie View Post
    not really, cutting and splicing your hid kit is not a good idea not to mention that your warranty would be voided on the spot.

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    Quote Originally Posted by Forged328 View Post
    car looks badass

    -zkw- -hella- -bosch- -depo- -prolumen- -kwd- -bbs- -predator chromium- -predator ice- -simota- -ecis-

    //-install guides-//-total lighting group buy-//-zkw group buy-// -exhaust group buy-//-ellipsoids+hid group buy-//-led tails group buy-//

  9. #9
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    Quote Originally Posted by habbie View Post
    car looks badass
    Ditto

  10. #10
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    Do the bulbs get very hot? Will it melt any of the plastic? How does the bulb mount to the fog assembly?

  11. #11
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    Attached Images Attached Images

  12. #12
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  13. #13
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    Quote Originally Posted by BXMPWR View Post
    Do the bulbs get very hot? Will it melt any of the plastic? How does the bulb mount to the fog assembly?
    Its a H1 socket from the factory so as long as you get a H1 hid there is no issue about fitment.Not sure about the tempature but I havent had any problems and I havnt heard others having any either.Maybe with cheap after market I supose

  14. #14
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    Are any of you guys popping fuses by running the ballast 12V through the fog light switch? This doesn't seem like a particularly good idea to me.

    EDIT: I neglected to notice that the original poster is using an electronic ballast as opposed to a more conventional magnetic-type ballast (with internal igniter). The electronic-type, which I believe BavToys carries (although not exclusively) does not need to be powered separately from the battery.
    Last edited by mmaigret; 10-06-2007 at 09:32 PM.
    2007 Porsche GT3
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  15. #15
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    Quote Originally Posted by mmaigret View Post
    Are any of you guys popping fuses by running the ballast 12V through the fog light switch? This doesn't seem like a particularly good idea to me.
    3 years later im still waiting for the fuse to pop.

    -zkw- -hella- -bosch- -depo- -prolumen- -kwd- -bbs- -predator chromium- -predator ice- -simota- -ecis-

    //-install guides-//-total lighting group buy-//-zkw group buy-// -exhaust group buy-//-ellipsoids+hid group buy-//-led tails group buy-//

  16. #16
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    I dont have a lot of experience over a period of time with this but Ive done 2 cars with hid heads and fogs and 1 with just the headlights and have not blown a fuse with any of them.

  17. #17
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    I'm assuming you're using the electronic ballasts (external igniter)? Have those been readily available for 3 years? I thought electronic ballasts have only been available from automotive lighting retailers since early 2007.

    Are you implying that you've been using magnetic ballasts for 3 years w/o popping a fuse? That certainly seems odd. Please clarify...

    Thanks,
    Mike

    Quote Originally Posted by habbie View Post
    3 years later im still waiting for the fuse to pop.
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  18. #18
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    Quote Originally Posted by mmaigret View Post
    I'm assuming you're using the electronic ballasts (external igniter)? Have those been readily available for 3 years? I thought electronic ballasts have only been available from automotive lighting retailers since early 2007.

    Are you implying that you've been using magnetic ballasts for 3 years w/o popping a fuse? That certainly seems odd. Please clarify...

    Thanks,
    Mike
    35w hid kits draw at least 30% less power than halogen why would the fuse be a problem??
    i have had full size hids in my fogs, i have had digital kits, i have had 55w kits and digital 50w kits, 3 years later and countless combinations later the fuse is still intact.

    -zkw- -hella- -bosch- -depo- -prolumen- -kwd- -bbs- -predator chromium- -predator ice- -simota- -ecis-

    //-install guides-//-total lighting group buy-//-zkw group buy-// -exhaust group buy-//-ellipsoids+hid group buy-//-led tails group buy-//

  19. #19
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    and for the record, yes i am running a full size 3 year old magnetic core prolumen kit, the original one that i installed.

    -zkw- -hella- -bosch- -depo- -prolumen- -kwd- -bbs- -predator chromium- -predator ice- -simota- -ecis-

    //-install guides-//-total lighting group buy-//-zkw group buy-// -exhaust group buy-//-ellipsoids+hid group buy-//-led tails group buy-//

  20. #20
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    In an e36, the low beam circuit only has 7.5A fuses from the factory. Magnetic HID ballasts powered directly by the low beam switch 12V WILL draw more than 7.5A on cold start-up, thus blowing the fuses. This is a fact.

    I have seen two solutions for this: 1) replace 7.5A fuses with 15A; 2) use 12V relays powered from battery 12V and switched by the low beam circuit.

    The second method is superior from an engineering standpoint, but either will get the job done.

    Honestly, I can't speak to a fog lamp application nor an e46 as I never installed HID's in either, but am curious as to individual results.
    2007 Porsche GT3
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  21. #21
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    Quote Originally Posted by mmaigret View Post
    In an e36, the low beam circuit only has 7.5A fuses from the factory. Magnetic HID ballasts powered directly by the low beam switch 12V WILL draw more than 7.5A on cold start-up, thus blowing the fuses. This is a fact.
    thats not fact, i as well as 95%+ of my customers run a 7.5A or lower fuse, there's no reason to up the fuse unless you are running a 5 or 6 year old ballast, newer ones magnetic or not work just fine with the 7.5A fuses, thats a fact.

    -zkw- -hella- -bosch- -depo- -prolumen- -kwd- -bbs- -predator chromium- -predator ice- -simota- -ecis-

    //-install guides-//-total lighting group buy-//-zkw group buy-// -exhaust group buy-//-ellipsoids+hid group buy-//-led tails group buy-//

  22. #22
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    Quote Originally Posted by mmaigret View Post
    In an e36, the low beam circuit only has 7.5A fuses from the factory. Magnetic HID ballasts powered directly by the low beam switch 12V WILL draw more than 7.5A on cold start-up, thus blowing the fuses. This is a fact.

    I have seen two solutions for this: 1) replace 7.5A fuses with 15A; 2) use 12V relays powered from battery 12V and switched by the low beam circuit.

    The second method is superior from an engineering standpoint, but either will get the job done.

    Honestly, I can't speak to a fog lamp application nor an e46 as I never installed HID's in either, but am curious as to individual results.
    I've been using a newer (aftermarket) 7.5 fuse since the install of my HIDs for the past year and a half with no blown fuses as a result of the HID or any disruption of my HID lighting and I'm using the older "brick" type Prolumen ballast.

    I thought that HIDs only consume like 5-6 amps or something like that. I don't see the need for a larger fuse. If anything you'd end up blowing the circutry of the ballast by allowing too much power.

    No LBF either.

  23. #23
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    Quote Originally Posted by habbie View Post
    thats not fact, i as well as 95%+ of my customers run a 7.5A or lower fuse, there's no reason to up the fuse unless you are running a 5 or 6 year old ballast, newer ones magnetic or not work just fine with the 7.5A fuses, thats a fact.
    Yah I have had no problem... Stock fuse... 120K on the car... Kit is ~4 years old...

    No problemo!

    This is also a fact hehe

  24. #24
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    no problem here with stock fuse. just installed 55w's too. nothing blown, no need for bigger fuse!

  25. #25
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    Interesting. I'd like to know what changed btw 5-6 years ago and later magnetic ballasts. I'm an electrical engineer and know that magnetic ballasts, which have been produced for over 30 years, use a reactive circuit to stabilize the output current being delivered to the bulb's electrode. In order to achieve a reasonable power factor (amount of potential power delivered to the load), these reactive circuits employ a (large) capacitor to minimize the phase angle between output current and voltage.

    A capacitor appears as a short circuit at time instantaneous, or turn-on state, before settling to a nominal steady-state current draw. The turn-on short circuit causes a car's electrical system to "see" an extremely high transient load, which in the case of HID's requires greater than 7.5A.

    Furthermore, if the ballast is powered directly from the headlight switch, all of the other loads sharing this power source will temporarily experience a low power condition due to the high current draw of the ballasts' capacitance. For example, the dashboard guage cluster in an e36 use the same power source as the headlights; hence, when the high transient load of ballast turn-on occurs, the gauges reset due to a temporary low power condition.

    In response to Habbie's certainty that 95% of his customers have never had such problems, there are a few explanations for this....

    1) BMW's other than e36's have different electrical layouts for the lighting circuits (I only have direct experience with e36's)

    2) There has been a substantial change in magnetic ballast design in the past 5-6 years which I do not know about

    3) Foglight circuits are substantially different than low-beam headlight circuits in e36 BMW's (possible, but unexpected)

    I really don't know the answer, but I do know that for those experiencing problems such as reseting gauges, audio pops, etc. upon switching on your HID lights... if you want to fix the problems you need to isolate the power source of the HID ballasts from the low-beam supply by using relays powered directly from the battery. In fact, many HID kits used to come with these relays... not sure if they still do or not. It's possible that these problems only affect older HID kits and not the ones the Habbie sells, so I am in no way trying to defame Habbie or Prolumen-- just trying to help those having problems.

    Best,
    Mike
    2007 Porsche GT3
    2004 Honda S2000 Silverstone
    1998 BMW M3/4
    M3 SEDAN CLUB #22

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