OK I had bought some E46 bi-xenon projectors and had them all set up and running for like the past month and last night I was driving and I was messing with the high beams turned them on just to see how far I could see driving down a dark straight road and then turned them off and on again and like a second later they flickered and I was like wtf and I turned them off and now when I turn them on all that stays on is my fog lights because I have the fogs rewired.

The low beams work. It is just the high beams that dont.

Is it possible I blew a fuse? Which fuse would I check? I looked in the engine bay today and seen 2 fuses but they didnt appear to be blown. What can it be?

 

I doubt you blew a fuse, your high beams should be drawing maybe 37watts or so including the current to the solenoids, normal 9004 high beams are 65 watts so you should be fine.

It's possible that you blew a relay, diode or something... did you make your own harness? If you could post the wiring diagram you used it might help.

 

Well I bought the whole setup from a fellow orger. The wiring harness was done by the guy on here that does them. Forgot his org name but I am sure you know who I am talking about.

So what should I check?

 

Check for loose wires on the harness. The e46 bixenon circuit is tricky, you would have to check for loose connections then it could be either a diode or the capacitor that possibly blew.

 

i would say wiring harness cuz it has a lot to do wit the high beams.... i couldnt use high beams wit my e55s until i got my harness so maybe sumtin is wrong wit urs???

 

Alright I guess ill check for some loose wiring or something. They were working perfectly fine before. Ive used them several times before.

Just hope it nothing expensive

 

Alright I went and checked around tonight. I went and installed a bulb into my factory harness and both my lows and hi's work so It has to be in the harness.

I looked around and stuff but I see no loose wires. I didnt check the whole harness. Just the ends where the wiring comes out because it is wrapped up in that plastic tubing stuff. Heh forgot the name of that stuff.

I didnt check the relays but should I? How would I tell if a relay was bad? How do I tell if it a bad diode?

 

There are probably 2 relays. Remove them both, turn on your hi beams and install one relay, it should click, remove it, install the other relay, it should click. You would need a test light to test the diode or an ohmeter. If juice is getting past the diode then you know it is not the diode, it might be the e46 bixenon circuit itself.

 

I have E46 bixenons as well and have always had this problem (although intermittently and only once every couple months). I have taken apart the harness and replaced just about every single connection; soldered and re-soldered and soldered again. Mine still act up once in a blue moon

 

Do the E46s have one solenoid or both "pull" and "hold" solenoids? Some bixenons had this and needed a special device/board in order to operate them right--if your harness has one of these in it, it's possible that's toast.

 

When u say remove the 2 relays and install one at a time. What time of click noise are we talking about? I did it earlier n I didnt seem to hear a click from either one of them.

 

a realay works by contact points and if you are not hearing it, it is probably bad. sometimes you can feel them too, depends on the size.

http://forums.roadfly.com/forums/lig...7563638-1.html
"You are going to need a new LCM (Light Control Module) as well, one programmed for xenon, if not a fault will show up as LIGHT OUT on your dash computer. Find this first (not cheap!)"

Not sure if this is the board that Morpheus was talking about ... but if so aaahhhhh

I would also check the wiring, take the wrap off and just make sure nothing is loose. Shouldn't take too long and if you find anything, soldier and tape it good. to test the diode, if you use an ohm meter, set it to ohms and it should read your voltage output (with lights on) but as ohms. (if i am wrong here .. please someone correct me, cause it's been a while since school )

 

So does it mean my relays are bad if they do not make a click noise? I am not hearing a noise from either one. But if they are bad how are my low beams working then?

What exactly is a diode? Sorry I do not got any experience with projectors.

 

Nah, you don't need to worry about that. That's just for Bimmers--if they came with halogens from the factory, they'll expect headlights to be drawing 55 watts. Since HIDs only draw 35 watts, they'll think your bulbs are out. You won't have this problem.

 

http://forums.maxima.org/showthread.php?t=398427

52 - check this thread. Complements to MorpheusZero for the help with my retro and the wiring! Works great and I have no problems at all. This will at least help you to understand what the wiring looks like before it's all wrapped up.

a diode directs the flow of electricity. this means that if the diode goes bad, the result is no elect passes through. this is my guess as to the problem. if you don't get power readings from the output side of the diode, it's bad. I need to correct the way I told you to read it though ... sorry. It should read in Volts on the ohms meter, so set your meter to AC setting at 20v (or so) and see if you get a reading when you hold the red lead to the diode (do both sides to be safe) and Ground the black lead ... like on the Ground on the relay maybe ... or a bolt.

Try this .. then hit us back mate!

Cheers!

 

Alright guys it has been a while. I ended up tearing it apart today. Well I began with a new relay to find out that wasnt the problem. Guess ill be taking that back. I have 2 relays and 1 side works whereas the other side doesnt. I got out my volt meter and set it to 20v on ac. The relay side that works gives me a reading whereas the other side is completely dead. Alright here are some pics. Ill try to make the best out of them and explain kinda.

Alright in this first pic. The right relay is the one that does not work. It mainly got all the wiring with the diodes in it.


In this pic this is just a closer up


Why exactly are these diodes needed? Why cant you just have wiring? Also what is that big blue thing? This kinda looks like a disaster. Actually it is a disaster lol. I would like to just rewire it all. Atleast organize it a bit better. Also where do I get these diodes at so I can rewire this stuff?

 

The diodes are needed because it is a negative hold circuit for the e-46 bixenons. If you think that looks confusiing, you should see the schematic for it. I did electronics in the military and I don't like constructing that circuit. The way it is put together is actually an easier way than using a breadboard for the capactior, resistor and diode. The big blue thing is a capacitor. Ohmeter should be set on d/c to check all these components, not a/c. Capacitor check, the numbers should read high then low when you switch the leads in a certain direction. The diodes should read on one side, if they read on both or none then the diode is shot. There is a diode from the low beam and high beam wire higher up on the harness, check those diodes first.

The schematic I hate. http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v3...g_final_v3.gif

 

Why'd you set it at 20V AC?

Relays are needed because the current drawn by HIDs is initially much higher than from halogens, and you don't want to run that through your stock halogen wiring:



You use your halogen wiring to trip a relay which will draw current directly from the battery through much thicker wires.

Basically, one of the relays will close (activate and let current through) with your low beams on and either the other (likely) or both (given your current problems, probably not) will close with your high beams on. You need to check to make sure that they close.

Since you really have no way of knowing the wiring schematic, you can't assume that a click with the high beams means everything's working. You'll need to take your DMM and hook it up, one side on either LARGE wire as close to the relay as you can get them (don't attach them after any other devices). You should get a reading of ~12 or ~13.8V, depending on if your car is on. Then try the low and high beam. If the reading goes away (to 0V) then the relay is working. It has closed the circuit and is doing its job. If it remains at 12-14 volts for both low and high beams, then the relay is shot.

Diodes are like a one-way valve--they only let current through a single direction. They're needed because your low and high beam signal wires are essentially connected with a single node, and if you didn't have them then current from your low beam signal would travel up the high beam wire and activate your high beam solenoids, and you'd have high beams every time you turned on your lights.

You might want to try radio shack for diodes, I think that's the only place I found some. Most people go for the 1N4005s, they do the job but they will fry with about 1 amp. Get the most heavy-duty diode(s) you can find (within reason). The more amperage (current) it can take, the better.

 

Oh I should be checking in DC? I just never seemed to get a reading in that so I switched to AC. Well now that I actually understand a bit more of what I am checking for maybe it will be easier.

Well I tried both relays in the one side that was working and they both worked for that 1 side so I assume it not my relays. So it has to be a dead diode somewhere wouldnt you think? So a bad diode will read on both side or neither in DC if it is bad? Do I just want low beams on or what to check them?

I just wish these werent on the car and it would be so much easier to check without bending over the car and stuff but I guess I will get around to checking them this weekend.

 

The harness/relay looks like a mess, re-do it neatly and I'm sure you will find your problem.

 

Yea it really is a mess. It was just all taped up all together until I ripped it all off today. It totally needs redone. I guess that will be my weekend project Some wire needs trimmed off there excessive wire in some spots. It just looks unorganized.

 

Not looking at the circuit diagram (I'm tired) it could either be a diode, a capacitor, or a solder joint somewhere that just broke.

Someone correct me here, this is what I remember about diodes and caps (haven't played around with blown ones too much):

Diode will give a .7 volt drop across the "right" way and will be an open circuit the "wrong way" when they're working. When they're not working they will be an open circuit both ways (anything over a volt or so drop across and it's an open circuit).

Capacitors will generally become a short circuit when they blow, so there will be very little (<1V) to no voltage drop across them. Functioning capacitors in DC circuits are initially a short circuit and will charge up and become an open circuit over time, so make sure you leave the DMM attached for a few seconds to make sure you get a good reading (but the charge-up time should be well under a second).

I'm speaking mostly from theory and a foggy memory here, so someone correct me if I'm wrong.

And yah, you should be checking in DC. The lighting system from the battery to the ballasts is all DC (the ballasts convert the DC to an AC signal for the D2S bulbs), as is most everything else in your car.

 

what a hack job lol.. jk jk (btw WTF happened the display and everything on here looks terrible, my avatar is tiny etc.)

 

Haha yeah, I did mine myself on the floor with poor lighting and they probably look better than that.

 

Ok alright guys thanks for the help. Ill get around to it this weekend and see what I can come up with. Probably a whole new wire setup lol.

I dunno if this helps or not but when the highs stopped working I had them turned on and they flickered and then were gone. I dunno if that gives any insight as to what could be wrong?

Yea it really does look like crap. It was done by a member on here. The one who did the retrofits for people. I cant say much as I bought the lights of a org member and this is how it came. I will prob redo it all and make it look atleast neat.

 

I might have done that wiring harness quite awhile back, it may look a mess cause too many people messed with it. If it is the person I think it is, that harness has changed hands and has been taken apart 3-4 times or more. Good luck fixing it.

 

Yea it has been taken apart a few times. Yea you are the one who did it. I purchased the harness from Powill and he bought it from another guy cant remember his name but he no longer an org member.


But where would I find a capacitor at and which one do I need?

 

Looking at that again... unless you just want to desolder all of the components (will be the only way you can test them well), you might want to consider throwing in the towel and making a new one, or having someone make you a new one if you have the money.

 

Radio Shack probably, it has the rating in that schematic link I posted. Last time I fixed it it was a bad diode.

 

Alright guys so I just wasted the better half of 3 hours replacing diodes. So I replaced 5 diodes. I think that was all the diodes there was? I didnt take the tape off everything but from what it looked that all there was. I connected it all back up and turned the lights on and yet no high beams. I dunno what left to do.

What are my options here? I kinda miss my high beams.

Yea I can make a new harness but Ive pretty much replaced everything in the harness besides a capactitor and wire. Would that have any affect on my highs? Is that a possible cause?

 

Did i make this HARNESS?? do you have pics of it..?

if so i offer lifetime support = )

ahh hmm any pics .. take some close up of key points adn post them.. its usually little things..

 

Honestly I dont know who made the harness. I just wish I could get the highs to work.

The pics I have arent all that great but here some that I took once I took out the harness and untaped some of the stuff. Let me know if there something else you need to see or what not.

 

Oh man that's some ugly wiring right there. I'd get new components and do it all over again. You'd prob fix it.

MorpheusZero, I've ran HIDs on my Max w/o relays for years. And on my other cars also. Despite the slightly "high" inrush current of HIDs, it's just not enough to damage any components in most cars.

 

did you put the diodes back in the correct direction....

 

Yep all 5 of them are going the same way they were taken off.

 

Alright so I am assuming just redoing the wiring harness seems to be my best option. Im really sick of taking this harness out and in. This is probably the 3rd time so far. It a pain.

But where can I get the relay sockets for cheap? I found some on the internet for like $2 a piece but then you have to pay shipping. Is there anywhere I could purchase these at for like that price and pay just tax?

 

I would jump in here but these guys got it covered...

but WTF is this spaghetti?


Please follow this Bi Xenon wiring



Only you can prevent engine fires!

 

Sorry to bump this back up but I am going to attempt to rewire this thing. But my ques is can I use a 1000 uf capactitor instead of the 2200 uf that is already on it? I cannot find anything from radio shack larger then the 1000.

 

terrible bump...

 

Tell me about it lol. I just need to know if I can use a 1000uf capactitor instead of the 2200. Sucks I dont want to put all this back on the car and they still not work. If they dont work then it would be the capactitor all because I didnt replace it. Unless of course the circuit board for the projectors has blown.