Installing Morimoto HID Kit and comparison to stock

[Clicky]

Kit includes:
Ballast -Morimoto 3Five
Bulbs - Morimoto XB35 H11B
Wire Harness - Morimoto HD Relay
Hardware - Ballast brackets
Misc - Alcohol bulb wipes, TRS Decal
Warranty - Five Years for 3Five kit

I have a 2013 Mazda 5 Touring. The kit I purchased can be found here:
http://www.theretrofitsource.com/hid-systems/morimoto-elite-hid-system-h11.html

I chose the 4300k for stock like color, and the XB35 option so that I wouldn’t get the ground wire shadow. You can also choose 55W ballast if desired. Stock HIDs run 35W, and I was satisfied with that. I wanted to install the HID in a manner that would be easily removable, and I didn’t want to use double sided tape.

Installation is pretty straight forward:

1.I mounted the HD relay and driver’s side ballast on the Driver’s side well, using the stock grounding points. This can also be used to ground the driver’s side ballast.

2.The passenger’s side was a little more difficult. The existing hole was a little too large, so I had to use a large washer, and 2 wrenches (option 1). There is another location further down (Option 2), however, that one strained the wires. You can use the stock grounding point here to ground the passenger’s side ballast.

3.Twist to remove the stock bulb. Be sure to remove the low beam bulb, not the high beam. There are 3 tabs, line them up with the housing. The pic below shows the position which the bulb slides in. Twist clockwise to lock.

4.Wire it according to the wiring diagram. For the input from car, I had to use the adapter cable.

5.For cable management, I used Velcro cable ties. I made sure not to touch the coolant line or any other line.

 

[Clicky]

Left is HID, right is stock

 

[sac02]

Great write up and nice pics.

So the wiring only uses one input for the system? Makes sense that it could work like that, I just never considered that it wouldn't use both sides.

 

[Clicky]

Great write up and nice pics.

So the wiring only uses one input for the system? Makes sense that it could work like that, I just never considered that it wouldn't use both sides.

Yes, it only uses one input to activate the relay. I am guessing it depends on the kit though.

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[Silentnoise713]

Very nice kit! Looks bright with a sharp cut off. It's probably too late but did you get a side by side pic of the HID bulb vs stock H11 bulb? I'm curious if the size/diameter of these HID bulbs are similar and that the light being emitted are close enough that it use the reflectors properly. But the catch with a sharp cut-off in a retro fit is that you cannot easily level the light if the in-cabin weight changes affecting your beam. This is why OEM kits come with manual (or auto in the fancy cars) leveling.

 

[Clicky]

Very nice kit! Looks bright with a sharp cut off. It's probably too late but did you get a side by side pic of the HID bulb vs stock H11 bulb? I'm curious if the size/diameter of these HID bulbs are similar and that the light being emitted are close enough that it use the reflectors properly. But the catch with a sharp cut-off in a retro fit is that you cannot easily level the light if the in-cabin weight changes affecting your beam. This is why OEM kits come with manual (or auto in the fancy cars) leveling.

I will take a picture when I get a chance.

Sent from my LG G Pad 8.3

 

[Kojack]

I think im going to redo our HID with morimotos. A little more expensive, but worth it. I am going to install low/high/fog (yellow), as well I have a set of bosch driving lights i am going to install 55w HIDs into for night time driving on the highways here to keep an eye out for the big brown speed bumps.

 

[sac02]

IMO HID's aren't the best option for high beams because they don't do the "flash to pass" feature well. (Again, IMO) the highs are bright enough for normal driving where high beams are able to be used, and if you need more light in remote areas to spot the big brown speed bumps, then you can add auxiliary lighting like you mentioned.

 

[Kojack]

I have HID in my Highs already, don't really mind loosing the flash to pass option. The light output is what I am after. If you drove here you would understand. Non lit highways with LOADS of huge moose wandering the highways.

 

[Kojack]

BTW, don't the 5 use H7 bulbs? I know mine does.

 

[Clicky]

BTW, don't the 5 use H7 bulbs? I know mine does.

For low beam, 1st gen uses h7. 2nd Gen h11.

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[sac02]

So what is your overall impression for the install, overall quality of the kit, and driving them?

The install kit looks nice, with sheathing/protector over most of the wires. Are the wire gauges sufficient? Are the wire lengths too short, just right, or too long for the mz5? (if too long, are they MUCH too long - like you had to find a place to hide/secure all the extra wiring?)

The picture below shows what I didn't like about the 55W DDM kit I got cheap on a whim recently. There was more lighting down the road, but MUCH more light immediately in front of the car. Your pic shows the effect I'm referring to, but to a much smaller extent than the 55W DDM kit - I only used them for a couple days b/c I didn't like how bright they were in the foreground.

 

[Clicky]

So what is your overall impression for the install, overall quality of the kit, and driving them?

The install kit looks nice, with sheathing/protector over most of the wires. Are the wire gauges sufficient? Are the wire lengths too short, just right, or too long for the mz5? (if too long, are they MUCH too long - like you had to find a place to hide/secure all the extra wiring?)

The picture below shows what I didn't like about the 55W DDM kit I got cheap on a whim recently. There was more lighting down the road, but MUCH more light immediately in front of the car. Your pic shows the effect I'm referring to, but to a much smaller extent than the 55W DDM kit - I only used them for a couple days b/c I didn't like how bright they were in the foreground.

install was pretty straight forward. It took me some time because I was trying various mounting locations, but Kit is good quality, and driving with them is good. Better than stock for sure. Trs uses 14 gauge stranded copper wire which should be adequate. Wiring is just right for the passengers side wire from the relay with option 1,option 2 is pretty snug. Other wires are a bit long. Wires can be hidden in the various crevices in the car, though I left them tied together, for easy removal. It doesn't look too bad to me.

With regards to the foreground, yes there is significantly more light in the foreground. I have the xb35,which has the ground wire going down. The standard might be different. I like the foreground light myself and usually drive with fogs on, but I do understand your concern.

Sent from my LG G Pad 8.3

 

[Davicho]

I don't have A/M HIDs since mine is a GT and it came with OEM HIDs, however, I did have a DDM kit on my previous 2006 Touring and I can also agree that for functionality purposes I appreciated the increase of foreground lighting because it makes it easier to see at night up close. Of course that may be different for someone that lives where the weather can be wet or snowy and cause more reflection, but here in sunny SoCal we don't have that issue 99% of the time.

 

[Clicky]

Yup. That's how I feel

Sent from my Verizon Samsung Galaxy Note 3

 

[Clicky]

Very nice kit! Looks bright with a sharp cut off. It's probably too late but did you get a side by side pic of the HID bulb vs stock H11 bulb? I'm curious if the size/diameter of these HID bulbs are similar and that the light being emitted are close enough that it use the reflectors properly. But the catch with a sharp cut-off in a retro fit is that you cannot easily level the light if the in-cabin weight changes affecting your beam. This is why OEM kits come with manual (or auto in the fancy cars) leveling.

HID top, stock h11 bottom.

Sent from my Verizon Samsung Galaxy Note 3

 

[Clicky]

Left 07 gti(stock bi xenon) , right 13 5 (morimoto hid)

Sent from my Verizon Samsung Galaxy Note 3

 

[Kojack]

I need these HID. they look like they will fill out our lighting just right. Has anyone run 55w in the high beam? I am thinking about going 55w 4300K in my highs and 35w 4300K in my low.

 

[Secondtyme]

You will never need that much light for your high beams, trust me. At least on my 06 the HID lows stay on when i activate the high beams and i can see into the future. Using 55w highs with 35w lows would start small brush fires lol All joking aside the high beams arent projectors and that much power would really only produce overwhelming amounts of glare.

 

[Rally Man]

Also, won't the stock harness get fried?