DDM hid install/ Thoughts

[vadrzsm]

I placed an order for 2 DDM tunning hid kits 2 weeks ago. One for my self and one for a friend to save on shipping costs. The kits arrived today through USPS. Upon opening the package i found 2 bulbs, 2 harnesses, and 2 ballasts. So all was good so far. I like this style of kit becuase it uses a bulb that moves in and out to get the Hi/Lo function.

 

So of to the garage i went. I stripped the bike down first. I pulled the tank, air box cover, headlight cover, and left rear side panel. 

 

After this was done i picked up the harness to find that it was designed for a car. After some bad words and a little thinking i came up with a solution. 

 

first you will need to pop the back of the relay box off

 

Then clip the wires that go to the long side of the harness. be carefull to clip the correct side!

 

Now pull the long side harness from the groment. 

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Next you will need to clip the small bits of wire left on the circuit bored flush.

 

 

Finally you can put the board back in the black box and clip the back into place.

 

 

Okay so now that we have somthing to work with its time to go to the bike!

 

I started at the battery and worked my way forward. I connected the power wire to the battery first and ran it along the frame rail reusing the factory zip ties.

 

Once i made it to the relay box I placed it right beside the ignition coil above the valve cover and zipped it into place.

 

Its a good idea to mount the tank up ro make sure it will clear you box and not rub. I had plenty of clearance.

 

once i was happy with the relay box location I ran the remaining wires forward and conected them. You will connect the factory headlight plug to the harness. If you get it all placed correctly no one will ever know its not factory.

 

 

Now you will pull the 4 bolts that hold the headlamp lens in. slide the lamp out and remove the stock bulb. Now its time for your fancy new HID bulb! After you have installed the new bulb( sorry no pictures of this step i had my hands full) you will need to connect the small Hi/Lo connector at this point as well. You can connect this while you have the lamp out. The male end comes from the bulb and female from the harness. Now you can re install the headlamp like you removed it.

 

Next you will need to connect the ballast box to the harness and ballast to the bulb. There is also a small black wire coming from the harness that will need to be connected to a ground. I used one of the 10mm bolts that holds the dash on. After you have everything connected zip tie it all into place and your almost done!

   

 

Finally its time to test your light before you re assembling your bike.

 

If it works then you are good to re install the tank, headlight cover, air box cover, and right left pannel.

 

And finally back your bike out of the garage and check out your work!

 

So my final thoughts on this kit are mixed. I was not impressed with the harness as this was supposed to be motorcycle specific. I am impressed with the light output and Hi/Lo function. It works perfectly as it should.

 

Overall I would recommend this kit. It is a great value for the money in my opinion.

 

I hope this will help someone that is on the fence about going HID. If you have any question ask away! 

 

 

[150ron]

Good work,  love the bright blue light,  matches the bike really well. 

[Arthur1265]

nicely done.. however this type still blinds oncomming traffic correct?

[MtnRyder25]

whew glad you know about all that and figured it all out before my install lol hopefully i'll be able to make it up tomorrow! take some pics tonight of how well it lights up the road! 

[Plane Dr]

The colour is temp dependant. Blue looks cool but whiter is brighter.

I just cut the wires for the second line and capped them easier than opening the box but certainly not as clean.

HID does have a bit more scatter so just ensure it is well aimed . I ran a DDM kit for 3-4 years never a problem.

Edited September 26, 2013 by Plane Dr

[vadrzsm]

Good work,  love the bright blue light,  matches the bike really well. 

Thanks man, Its supposed to be 6000k but does seems a bit on the blue side.

 

nicely done.. however this type still blinds oncomming traffic correct?

It is bright but is still aimed in the same location as the stock beam. I had 2 people pull out in front of me last week so I think it will help stupid idiots see me better.

 

whew glad you know about all that and figured it all out before my install lol hopefully i'll be able to make it up tomorrow! take some pics tonight of how well it lights up the road! 

I rolled it out side and it lights up the drive way well but isnt quite as bright as i had hoped but its still better than stock.

[George 99]

I have a pair of the DDM HIDs setting in the garage awaiting install into my Honda ST1100. On my DRZ, I'm installing an M44 and M60 LED light from ADVMonster with his fairing. Pics to follow soon. 

Thanks for the tip on removing the extra harness wires. I could have just done the (automotive) dual bulb setup but like the idea of two separate systems in cases a failure should happen on one. Still cheap enuff.

[MtnRyder25]

Visited the same garage and had mine installed the night after this one... i love the hid light!

The only reason i was dissapointed was cause i was expecting something that this light set up is not... i guess i was expecting somewhat of a flood light effect as in it lighting up the entire road in front of me!

That being said as far as what area the light lights up it is basically the same area as a stock bulb however it is much brighter and it is a white light as opposed to the dull yellow of the stock bulb... i also like the effect the hid has on street signs as far as making them "glow"... great light though!

[707LAKE]

 

 

 

 

on ddm's website theres a motorcycle section.. 

im not sure if a motorcycle 1 piece kit is different in design from a 2 piece car kit...

 

but just wondering, did you order 2 motorcycle kits, or 1 car kit and split it between 2 ppl?

[William1]

Do not ground to the bolt (or any bolt) on the forks. To get to ground from there, it has to travel through the steering bearings. Connect instead to a black with a white stripe wire or run a ground directly to the battery or ground on the frame (the coil is a good spot, there is a ground wire there already).

[f2dog]

I have bought several kits from DDM, all for motorcycles, never got anything wrong from them.

For best light output use a bulb in the range 4-5000k, lumens are dropping on higher temperatures.

[rjsurfer]

I have bought several kits from DDM, all for motorcycles, never got anything wrong from them.

For best light output use a bulb in the range 4-5000k, lumens are dropping on higher temperatures.

+1

I like 4300k, to my eyes it's the purest white.

Ron W.

[Plane Dr]

The motorcycle kit has 2 leads.

[Qqqqqqqqqqqq]

Do not ground to the bolt (or any bolt) on the forks. To get to ground from there, it has to travel through the steering bearings. Connect instead to a black with a white stripe wire or run a ground directly to the battery or ground on the frame (the coil is a good spot, there is a ground wire there already).

Good point

[SpudRacer75]

I've started the install on the DDM kit for my DRZ400S.  I'm not very impressed with the huge size of the ballast.  I'm having a terrible time trying to find a place to hide it.  I've finally decided to hide it just above the headlight using double sided 3M tape, but it's also a little on the heavy side.

 

The roads here in Papua New Guinea are just terrible and I'm not sure the tape will hold.

 

Suggestions where to hide the ballast?!

[jas6395]

Spud, I installed a h4 hid kit into my bike that I bought from eBay. I have mixed feelings about it and ended up going back to the stock bulb for safety reasons. If you're not too far into it, can I suggest installing a GOOD QUALITY led light bar instead, one with large reflectors, something from a local supplier that you can test out in the shop if possible, to see if it emits the right beam for your needs.

So back to my hid kit, I installed a 4300k bulb because it is a more natural colour, comparable to sunlight and because you use colour as part of your object recognition, it made spotting and avoiding furry animals easier.

I'll list the pros and cons.

Pros; much brighter light output, I could see heaps better at night,

colour made it easy to see hazards,

similar current draw to stock,

drivers can definitely see you.

Cons; beam pattern had a very large dark spot in the middle of the pattern where things seemed to disappear right in front of you,

pressing the starter would sometimes make the light go out and fail to re-light, meaning I used the kickstart at night so the light would stay on.

Somethimes if I was going on very bumpy paths or jumping the bike, the bulb would go out and the ballast wouldn't reignite it- this was my major worry, as once you swap to hid you only have one light source, not two filaments like an h4. This could potentially leave you with no lights, doing 110km/h on an unlighted road at night. Doesn't sound like fun to me.

I had to take the bulb shield off to get good light output meaning it was always shining in other people's eyes.

I couldn't get it adjusted so that low beam was useable without it also being blinding for oncoming traffic, luckily it is only one light.

Anyway I liked the improvement in light output, and if I had an led light bar on as well as a backup I might still be running it, but in the interest of safety I have gone back to a halogen bulb.

[ptgarcia]

Mine has been taped to the shroud for at least 5 years now.

[SpudRacer75]

The input and suggestions are deeply appreciated.  Unfortunately, as I alluded to in yesterday's post, I'm currently serving in Papua New Guinea and my nearest "local" parts store is in Australia.  I can't swim that far.

 

I'll have to make due with what I've got and give it a fair chance.  If it doesn't work out, I can always order more parts from the US, but it'll take three months to get here.

 

I had an HID headlight on my Honda Valkyrie back in North Carolina, and I installed an ON/OFF switch into the wiring for the headlight so I could have the bike on with the headlight off.  I never had problems with the ballast dropping out on me, but no bike I've ever ridden has seen roads THIS BAD.

 

These are literally the worst roads on the planet, hence the Suzuki which I bought on ebay in the US 5 months ago and just got it a couple weeks ago.

 

So you think taking off the HID bulb shield will help get rid of the black spot?  I haven't yet ridden in the dark here, it is NOT safe.  And by safe, I mean life-threateningly not safe, and not because of the roads...  If I ever get caught out after dark, I want a good bright light to find my way back home as fast as possible.

[SpudRacer75]

UPDATE:

 

Install is finished.  Everything electrical seems to be working fine.  The headlight switch I installed also seems to be working fine.  I'll snap a couple photos.

 

Thanks for the recommendation to remove the shield over the bulb.  Wow does it help with the brightness with it off!!

 

Now we'll see how it lasts on these roads...

[jas6395]

Glad to hear you got it sorted. I can imagine what the roads are like, I went through some very rural parts of Bali and was shaken to bits. Drz is probably the best tool for the job. You should be right with the switch because you can cycle it back on. I ran mine without, and yes the cover blocks the light so I took it off.