HIDs turning pinkish?

[johnny13oi]

Hey guys, I know this is a flashlight forum but since this is also talking about HIDs I think you guys would be very knowledgeable on this. My HIDs inside my car appear to be a little pinkish at times. Does that mean that they're about to die, and does the HID bulb blow (shatter) when it does die or does it just go out? Thanks guys and about how much longer do I have in terms of life of the bulbs once they first start to appear pinkish?

 

[XeRay]

Hey guys, I know this is a flashlight forum but since this is also talking about HIDs I think you guys would be very knowledgeable on this. My HIDs inside my car appear to be a little pinkish at times. Does that mean that they're about to die, and does the HID bulb blow (shatter) when it does die or does it just go out? Thanks guys and about how much longer do I have in terms of life of the bulbs once they first start to appear pinkish?

Are your HID's factory original OEM stuff or Asian made kit. Are they Osram Bulbs? What is the color temp of the bulb. They do not typically shatter but some times this will occur.

 

[johnny13oi]

Mine are the factory original OEM stuff. The headlights also autolevel but I think that's irrelevant. I was asking if they shatter because if they did then all the bits and pieces would be stuck and would be a pain to get out if not impossible. I am not sure which bulbs they are but I think they're about the 4200K temp range. These aren't new bulbs and they just started to turn pinkish. I have a 2000 Lexus GS300 so whatever brand bulbs lexus uses are the ones I have most likely.

 

[XeRay]

Mine are the factory original OEM stuff. The headlights also autolevel but I think that's irrelevant. I was asking if they shatter because if they did then all the bits and pieces would be stuck and would be a pain to get out if not impossible. I am not sure which bulbs they are but I think they're about the 4200K temp range. These aren't new bulbs and they just started to turn pinkish. I have a 2000 Lexus GS300 so whatever brand bulbs lexus uses are the ones I have most likely.

Do you know what brand is the ballast? Most likely you have Philips 4200K bulbs. Any Guess how many hours of use are on them? Are they both producing the same pinkish color?

 

[johnny13oi]

My car is out in the parking garage .. sorry I don't know the brand of the ballast. I can go and check tomorrow. They started producing the pinkish color right after my car alarm was triggered and they went on and off a few times rapidly .. which is most likely the main reason. I know that this is bad for them and was wondering if once they start turning pink, about how much longer till they die. I have no guess on how many hours but ever since I got the car used, I have used them for 2 years and havent changed them. I know that means nothing but thats just a ballpark for now. And any good places where I can get some HID replacement bulbs for cheap?

 

[XeRay]

My car is out in the parking garage .. sorry I don't know the brand of the ballast. I can go and check tomorrow. They started producing the pinkish color right after my car alarm was triggered and they went on and off a few times rapidly .. which is most likely the main reason. I know that this is bad for them and was wondering if once they start turning pink, about how much longer till they die. I have no guess on how many hours but ever since I got the car used, I have used them for 2 years and havent changed them. I know that means nothing but thats just a ballpark for now. And any good places where I can get some HID replacement bulbs for cheap?

Are your headlights on in the daytime. The on off a few times rapid is NOT the cause. They are both the same color? Have you run them for 10-30 minutes continuous since the problem?

 

[johnny13oi]

my headlights are off during the daytime and sorry but yes they are the same color. And I have run them continuously for about 3 hours after the problem and it appears that sometimes when I turn them on it appears but sometimes it doesn't.

 

[XeRay]

my headlights are off during the daytime and sorry but yes they are the same color. And I have run them continuously for about 3 hours after the problem and it appears that sometimes when I turn them on it appears but sometimes it doesn't.

I would say they will fail soon then, the ballasts should be fine. You can find cheaper ones but we sell GE (General Electric) brand D2S bulbs for $160.00 a pair. www.XeVision.com Monday Though Friday.

Is your headlight a projector or a reflector type.

 

[johnny13oi]

I use D2R bulbs because mine are reflector type headlight.

 

[XeRay]

I use D2R bulbs because mine are reflector type headlight.

Can't help you there. Look on E-bay for someone with a very good reputation (statistics). $70-$100 each.

 

[Patriot]

My car is out in the parking garage .. sorry I don't know the brand of the ballast. I can go and check tomorrow. They started producing the pinkish color right after my car alarm was triggered and they went on and off a few times rapidly .. which is most likely the main reason. I know that this is bad for them and was wondering if once they start turning pink, about how much longer till they die. I have no guess on how many hours but ever since I got the car used, I have used them for 2 years and havent changed them. I know that means nothing but thats just a ballpark for now. And any good places where I can get some HID replacement bulbs for cheap?

Johnny, I'm own HID spotlights and drive a car with HIDs but I'm no expert about them in general. I work in the luxury automotive industry and know that sometimes HIDs take on a slight color shift but usually not both headlamps at the same time. Many times when we replace a single headlamp assembly the owner complains that it's a slightly different color than the other headlight. We are instructed by the automotive manufacturer that they require a "burn in" period of 25-50 hours before the color matches, and we've verified this to be true.

With regards to the alarm flashing the lights and possibly causing your issue, I don't think this is the case. When the alarm goes off and the headlights flash it usually isn't the HID projectors that flash, but the halogen set next to them. Even if they did flash, I've never heard of a color shift happening because of that.

It's my opinion that you don't really have to worry about you headlamps going inoperative. I think this is highly unlikely given the bulb life of HIDs and your car being a model year 2000. We almost never replace HID bulbs because of old age. We normally have to replace an entire assembly because of some other outside effect such as a water entry issue.

I would suspect some other type of control or voltage issue since both headlamps are behaving similarly. Maybe you can stop by your dealer and have them check for diagnostic trouble codes. A failure may be indicated, and maybe not, but you might be able to rule out a problem if no DTCs are stored in the vehicle's diagnostic module.

Hope this helps a little.

 

[johnny13oi]

Thanks I might give that a try if I see a color shift once I drive at night again.

 

[XeRay]

Thanks I might give that a try if I see a color shift once I drive at night again.

With VERY rare exception, HID's either work or they don't unless something is wrong with the ballast. It is extremely unlikely both ballasts are going bad at the same time. Since they are output regulated, if they work and both are the same coloration you describe then the bulbs are probably getting close to end of life. Since he bought the car used, I suspect the prior owner ran the lights Day and Night thus more hours. Some do that because HID is "cool". How many miles are on the car? HID bulbs are typically good for about 3000 hrs. With 100,000 miles on the car, it is quite possible to have 2,000 hours on the bulbs if the lights were used in the daytime also. Also, the reason I asked you if they were Osram brand bulbs is that they are known to get pinkish in the later part of their useful life.

 

[Canuke]

One of the HID's at the Los Angeles Flashapalooza last month looked pink as well, towards the end of the event; it was one of the large-reflectored ones, like the Costco or Sam's. I was looking downrange, saw what I took to be a really bright incandescent beam, and traced it back to its origin... and it was a warm pink HID. I've been meaning to ask about that.

 

[Xzn]

I also have a 2000 Acura TL 3.2 that has the left headlight turning pink... this happened after i accidently triggered the car alarm and the headlights "flashed" on and off at a rate of twice per second for a few seconds before i was able to turn off the alarm.