Well i recently got myself a nice little system. I just have one questions. Sometimes if theres a bunch of things running. IE Heat, Radar Detector and headlights, my lights will dim a little bit whenever the sub hits. Its not really noticeable, like for example, if you're standing behind the car looking at either the tail lights or license plate lights, you'll notice that the lights do dim a little bit whenever the sub hits. But its really only noticeable if you're looking for the lights dimming. Anyway. My question is if this power fluctuation could hurt my HIDs. I know they need a constant 12v source so I'm wondering if this slight fluctuation could hurt them. They're running off a relay plugged directly to the battery.

 

You may need to look into purchasing a capacitor for your new system.

 

Yeah I was thinkin about that. But the dimming is so minimal, it doesn't really effect my driving. Like it doesn't effect it enough for it to be hazardous. So if i doesn't hurt my HIDs I'm not gonna bother.

 

but it is effecting your electrical system. you know how they tell you to plug in your computer to a surge protector? this is the same thing. you are causing surges of power which will kill your car electronics over time. also, your alternator will go out prematurely because of the quick drain when the sub hits.

most caps cost about 100-150 bucks which is not bad for what they protect. i have a 1 farad cap in my ride and i have two amps hooked up to it. no dimming.

 

are you running a relay for your HIDs? also make sure you have a good ground on your amps, sand them down to bare metal.

 

Yup. Hids are running on a relay. I'll try sanding down but I'm not sure if its gonna do much. Its a 500 watt set up and only very lightly dims when a bunch of stuff is on and the subs are all the way up.

 

with the car running and nothing on, ac-lights-heater-radio, try to get a voltage reading. and then turn everything on and get another reading.

have you ever drained your battery? needed a jump start?

 

I don't have a volt meter down here with me so I won't be able to check the voltage atm. Maybe after thanksgiving when I come back. I've never drained my battery nore ever needed a jump. *knock on wood* But i've also never ran my system with my car off, Nore do I plan on doing so.

 

well it sounds like the battery might still be good. draining the battery cuts the life in half. if the voltage with everything off if 12.x it is the alternator. im at 14.1 or so and with everything on including the radiator fans, it drops down to about mid 13s

 

well i don't really think its an issue with the alternator or the battery or anything for that matter. like i said its a very light dim that's barely noticible. I don't notice my foglights nore my HIDs dimming but sometimes I can see a very faint dim in the tail lights and rear license plate lights if and only if my subs are turned all the way up with other things in the car running. The cheapest cap would fix the issue but I'm wondering if its really necessary to fix or not.

 

u might be right but take a look at your numbers to be sure. i know one of our members has a similar issue but his system bumps hard. i hooked up my radar detector which has a voltage gauge and the lowest it went was down to 11.3

he doesnt have a cap on his

its a nice upgrade and for the protection it provides, i see it as a good investment. but its not needed only if you have a good voltage reading with everything on.

 

^^ ZOMG. I forgot my radar detector has a voltage guage too. haha. i'll check that later. Thanks for the reminder.

 

cool.

 

cheap cap here:

https://www.scionlife.com/forums/viewtopic.php?t=243129

but hurry these things usually go fast