Hi T4Runner06, thank you for the helpful response and encouragement! I took another look at your writeup and it does seem pretty simple. The main thing I'm worried about is how to properly wire all the cables...such as keeping it water proof, safe from heat, or whatever risks there are when you wire yourself. Do you have any suggestions or warnings when rewiring? Is there a "proper" way to run wires? How/where do I fasten them down?

Sorry for all the questions...I didn't know it would cost me a couple hundred to get it installed...so I will probably just do it myself. My parents can afford the couple hundred but we are still careful about wasting money.

I live in the South Bay (near Mountain View)

Thanks!!

RockyRoad,

Glad to see another NorCal/Bay Area member.

The wiring is pretty straight forward. If you're going with the Xenon Depot kit, you will need to make five connections: two connections to the HID ballasts, headlight socket, battery positive and negative (ground).

Make sure you've already made the appropriate connections from the ballast to the HID capsules. Never power up a ballast without the HID capsule plugged in; there's a chance the ballast could be destroyed because instead of the arc taking place inside the capsule, it arcs between the ballast wires.

With the wiring harness: plug in both ballasts first, then headlight socket, remove the ground to the battery before doing anything to the positive battery terminal. (If this step is ignored, and your wrench or rachet/socket accidentally touches the body or the negative terminal, it could fry an electronic component in the truck.) I would recommend removing the fuse on the wire harness when you're making the wiring connections and put the fuse back in after you made all the connections. Reconnect the negative battery terminal after all the other connections have been made.

All the connections in the wiring harness and connections in the Xenon Depot kit has rubber seals and gaskets to keep water out. The only wire you will need to seal off is one of the factory Toyota headlight wire sockets that you unplugged from the factory headlights, the wire harness only utilizes of one the factory headlight sockets.

The wiring harness is protected by a sheath/jacket to protect the individual wires. You can zip tie the wires to either existing holes in the upper radiator support or to another existing wiring that's firmly attached to the truck's body. Make sure the wires are tied tight and snug, because if there's slight movement, vibration from driving may wear out the sheath/jacket/insulation and possibly cause a short. Just precautionary measures.

The risks are very minimal, although the ballasts do carry a high voltage. Make sure you've made all your connections from the wire harness to ballasts and ballasts to capsules before powering them up. If you need to check your wiring or HIDs in case they don't come on, I'd recommend removing the fuse in the wire harness to ensure the HID ballasts don't have power to them. All the connections in the Xenon Depot kit are keyed, so you cannot reverse the polarity and create a short. Also, the wire harness provides fusing for the HIDs.

Just like halogens, don't touch the glass on the HID capsules.

Good luck.

Thanks Uneek! That was very helpful, especially that warning about frying the electronics in my car. I feel pretty confident now with the whole installation so .... I guess I'll just have to order them

Thanks again Uneek and T4Runner06

Let us know when you get it and start installing it. If you have any problems I'll PM you my phone number so you can give me a call.

Trust me, you'll love it!

Let me know if you have further questions. Take your time and loosely zip the wiring until you get the extra slack you need at the connections (in case you need to replace parts or unplug something). Zip everything down tight once you have the correct lengths for each connection.

I haven't installed a kit in 4Runner yet, but I installed one in my Camry and done another for a friend's. It'll take about two hours if you take your time and do a very clean job like T4Runner06 did and make it look as factory as possible.

As my friend puts it, halogens are for those that can see, HIDs are for those that can't.

where can i get some fog lights like the one u got?

Your photo-illustrated instructions are some of the best how-to guidance I've ever seen.

If only the government would do as well with the income tax forms, life would sure be a lot easier.

Have you ever considered a step-by-step book on blackjack, betting on horses or do-it-yourself divorces?

T4Runner06,

Do you remember if your HID bulbs had a strip of black material around the bulb?? I know that some HID bulb have this (D2R bulbs because they're mainly used in reflector based HID systems) and some don't (D2S bulbs because they're mainly used in projector based HID systems). The only reason I ask is because I know for a fact that the D2S bulbs are brighter than the D2R bulbs. Thanks for your time. -Gene

Mine are still factory. I couldnt' bring myself to pay hundreds of dollars for the HID yellow fogs. I'll probably upgrade to some PIAA Ion Crystal foglight bulbs in the near future. That will give a similar look and the color change that I'm going for (like the fogs in the Lexus IS300).

LOL. Thanks for the kudos. I actually had a good time doing the writeup and I'm glad it helped a few people out. I know I've benefited a lot from all the info provided by other members on this site, so it's only fitting I did something, too. As for books on blackjack, horse betting, or divorces - Texas Hold 'Em is my game and I've yet to be married (** hence, the $$$ still available to do upgrades like this!). But keep the comments coming and so long as there are people to buy them, I'll write books on anything you want!

Here's a pic of the bulb that I copied directly from xenondepot's website. I believe the bulbs were rebased D2S bulbs, which are designed for use in projection style housings (not reflectors). This makes for a good light output and cutoff line. The halogen projectors in the 06 4Runners aren't as good as having projectors originally designed for HIDs, but they're pretty darn close. Check out the pic of the bulb and let me know if it helps. If it doesn't, I can pull one of my bulbs and take a closer look in person...

Attached Images

 

Dear sirs

Sunshine HID xenon conversion kits are very easy to install, which is plug and play

If you are interested please see our website www.sunshinehid.com


Sunshine HID xenon conversion kits gift for your love car.


http://www.sunshinehid.com

Attached Images

 

SPAM!!!!!!!!!!

Hey, what the hell? Are there any moderators available to kick this hijacker off our thread about HIDs? Now I may be biased in supporting XenonDepot, but this sunshinehid company has had no contribution to our site except to adverstise. They're just another generic eBay type HID company that offers garbage products in my opinion. If anyone thinks I'm being off-base here, please let me know!

He has been restricted from forum use.