[rtekkam]

Perferct..looks easy

Thanks for the posting. Hate the stock lights. Question. Where do you get the suggested raptor kit? Links would help.

 

[rtekkam]

Ordered the Raptor

From the link posted. Both are DDM products, the Slim kit is just a different type of HID kit compared to the Raptor. Slim was meant for cars where you will have a hard time fitting a ballast, but it's a plus for anyone as the kit is easier to conceal.

Placed an order for the Raptor kid with 35W H11 5000K bulb choice.
Being a rookie..I hope I can do this right.

 

[rtekkam]

Raptor Kit

From the link posted. Both are DDM products, the Slim kit is just a different type of HID kit compared to the Raptor. Slim was meant for cars where you will have a hard time fitting a ballast, but it's a plus for anyone as the kit is easier to conceal.

Just looked into the hood last night; just got me wondering where I can hide the Raptor kit. Of course i would like to conceal it to the point of not being "in your face" (primarily for the dealership).
Do you think the raptor being bulkier than the slim ballast is going to be a challenge? Appreciate any pics as a suggestion where these raptors can be concealed.:mellow 1:
Much appreciated.

 

[rtekkam]

Headlight Seal

Some people are putting the ballasts against the inside of the fenders, but you need some STRONG adhesive tape for that. I tried it with my 3M tape and it wasn't enough to hold the Slim ballasts. It's a great hiding place if you can manage it.

Forgot to post this question. Do you have to remove the rubber seal before you insert the HID (or while taking out the halogens)? A DIY video for an older MZ3 shows that this was taken out prior to insertion of the HID bulb.

 

[rtekkam]

Same Question

Nice job. How does one go about aiming/adjusting the headlights on the 3? I haven't located any normal looking adjuster screws.

Unfortunately DDM shi;pped the Raptor kit with Spade connectors..and am in search of H8/9/11 male connectors...ebay returned no results...Also, had the same question about headlight adjustment.
ANy suggestions?

 

[rtekkam]

Connectors

could you post a more detail description of the connectors by any chance I will definitely do this now that i see how simple it is

The connectors are the same ones as posted by Dano on page 1. Ther are the spades..exactly the same. I purchased the Male connectors on ebay; however, I am going to try and install today using the spades..by just shoving it in the stock harness.

 

[rtekkam]

Installed the Raptor DDM

Well, finally installed the HID kit. BUT...guess nuthin can go smooth with me...the first headlight i tried installing, I messed up. ..I assumed the Red seal around the bulb had to be removed..well ok..so I went along with this plan...of course the bulb dd not sit properly..so I figured maybe there is a reason the seal was there ..so I put the seal back in (THE WRONG FREAKING WAY) and i tried forcing the bulb in...used Dano..suggestion and used a wrench to turn the bulb into the housing..and viola!! it turned...BUT wait a minute..it popped out...AND noticed a piece of plastic on the inner part ( it was from the HID bulb kit which broke off) of the housing tried to get it out but the bugger fell into the housing...so..DAMMIT..no way to get it out..anyways I now have the HID bulb in the housing...and holding it in the hole are strips of electrical tape:argh 1::argh 1::argh 1::argh 1::argh 1::argh 1:
The other side went smoothly..Ballasts were placed along the fender..(place where Dano had his) I used 3M tape that is double sided specifically used to hold the molding of a car..got it from Autozone.
Well the lights work fine...BUT the side I messed up on..I noticed a banding on the road...its quite prominent ..but the HID's really light up the road quite well...I now am thinking of getting the Bulb harness for the messed up side. Will have to call DDM tuning and see if they sell this separately.
Will post pics of my project soon. BUT its a breeze to install the kit

 

[rtekkam]

You got Lucky

Raptors ordered on 9/30, recieved on 10/9. Connectors included.

My Raptors came with the spades...seems like DDM ships out whatever they have in stock

 

[rtekkam]

Metal Mounts

Well that stinks!

At least you got the metal mounts for the bulbs right?

If by saying Metal Mounts is indicative of the circular area which clicks in the housing when you turn the bulb? if so, nope it was plastic. I received my replacements today. Will change the affected headlight this evening. I hope that the threading in my housing is not affected by my previous forceful install. If my stock bulb sits in the housing as expected..I will breathe a sigh of relief.

 

[rtekkam]

This is the first I'm seeing "metal mounts" for the bulbs? Not mentioned at all throughout this thread, I did visit the "Official HID" sub category somewhere else in this forum and noticed that someone indicated that to do this HID modification you need to change the headlight housing to the Xenon one if your car came with stock halogen bulbs?

So:

1. Please explain what is meant by "metal mounts" for the bulbs

2. is there a different Xenon headlight housing/assembly that needs to be changed to upgrade to aftermarket HID's if your/my Mazda 3 came the stock Halogen headlight assembly?

Thanks!

Not sure of the answer to Question1.

For question 2; if your car came with the projecter type of lens, then all you need to do is replace the stock bulb with the HID bulb. But if your's is the reflector housing; then you would HAVE to do a conversion of the Light Assembly.

 

[rtekkam]

By metal mount, yes I am talking about the 3 prongs that click into the housing to hold the bulb securely. If people are getting plastic ones then that's just the randomness of DDM I suppose. In my research after having purchased the Slim kit I dsicovered everyone who had ordered the Raptor kit was getting the H9 connectors (not spades) and metal mounts (not plastic).

Sorry if this turned out to be bad advice, but I can only go with what I know.

Dude! no need to apologize, in fact I should be saying THANKS! for your posting of the DIY. I would not have considered doing this if it was not for your posting. I bought the Male Connectors from e-bay just as you suggested as well as mounted the Ballast's in the location you mentioned.
The Raptors seem solid so i have no regrets in getting these. Also, I replaced my HID bulb Harness for the side I goofed up. For some reason i still had a hard time turning it in the housing; but all said and done, it's sung in place and the lights look good.

Couple of questions. How Can you raise the light beam? are there any adjustment screws? I would like my lights point a lil higher.

Also, on another topic, have you used plasti dip on anything? I do a lot of highway driving and would like to black out the bumper with plasti dip and a clear plasti dip on the front part of hood 9where the emblem lies)

 

[rtekkam]

its pretty much random but i think majority of ppl who ordered recently have been getting the spades. The raptors come with 3 metal tabs on the bulb that fit into the housing while the slims i think come with 2 plastic tabs on the bulb. The spade connectors arent that bad. You can just but 2 covers for them cheap on ebay. That way if the polarities are reversed you can switch them instead of sticking the male connector upside down on the female one.

Ok I had ordered the Raptors and they came with the spade harness and the Plastic Tabs (3 tabs) I doubt there are harnesses with just 2 tabs as you mention. I know they were plastic cos i goofed up on my 1st install where in i forced the turn of the bulb into the housing. It turned but something snapped and the bulb popped out. I noticed that the plastic from the tab broke off and fell into the housing.

So i ordered another set from DDM and they sent the same looking harness and this time though was a bitch to get into the housing..I managed it. I can say for sure the plastic that broke off came from the bulb harness (as my stock bulb turned into the housing with no problems). Needless to say, maybe DDm has become cheap and are sending out just the spade and plastic tab harnesses.

However, I dont see why this is a concern. As long as the bulb snaps into place within the housing, there should be no issues in functionality. But I am guessing the Raptors are more solid a build than the slimlines and should last longer. ( i maybe wrong though)

 

[rtekkam]

Exactly the same thing I got today in the mail. Loving them alot!

wtf...you guys got lucky

 

[rtekkam]

Inteference with FM Radio

Hey Guys!
Anyone having issues with the FM radio interference? I just noticed this last night; for some reason there was a lot of static while listening to the radio..for all channels. Didn't know why until i parked the car and turned off the HID's. The signals were clear as expected; turned on the HID's and the interference occurred again. This sucks. I have thye Raptor's

Anyone else notice this?

 

[rtekkam]

You probably have a bad connection somewhere leaking some current, that'd be my guess. Check over everything again, make sure your HID wiring isn't wrapped around stock wiring, etc.

Hmm..I zip tied the HID harness along with some stock wiring for neatness...do you think this might cause the interference? I will probably have to separate them out and see if this works.

 

[rtekkam]

You probably have a bad connection somewhere leaking some current, that'd be my guess. Check over everything again, make sure your HID wiring isn't wrapped around stock wiring, etc.

Hey Dano!

You were right. I separated the HID wiring from a stock wiring. This fixed the static issue BUT only to a certain extent. There is still some static when I turn on the HID's.