Thank you, and kudos to having done it three or four times! You are one patient guy! I followed your instructions to the letter, but I will take some photos of the completed installation and try to post them here when I get a chance.
Steve
HID Install instructions for 2010 OB
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Steve
I followed your instructions for install. Thank you for posting pictures. Great help.
Ordered same kit. Took me 3.5 hours. New plugs require 1" bit (they are bigger).
Will post some night pictures in a day or two
kudos to DM3415 for original post
How do you simply replace a burned out head lamp through the front bumper?
Sorry... I don't know anything about cars... trying to learn.
Sorry... I don't know anything about cars... trying to learn.
2018 3.6R limited w/eyesight Subaru Outback....sold my 2011, Subaru Outback, 2,5i Spt Pack.
Joined
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159 Posts
Side off track - Bulb replacement instead of HID.
So, I've manage to change out both my High beams and Fogs to the White ones from Ebay. But I'm having a hard time accessing the low beams, especially on the drivers side. Pulling in the fender as per owner's manual does not seem to work. Later I came across another document from another poster (can't remember where I saw it) that it showed the front underneath had to be remove as well which made the fender easier to pull in.
I haven't done it yet and was wondering if anyone has gone this route. I like to try this route as oppose to taking off my bumper.
*gripe* Why couldn't the designer make this installation easier??? My 03 impreza was so easy to change it out. Boo!..
So, I've manage to change out both my High beams and Fogs to the White ones from Ebay. But I'm having a hard time accessing the low beams, especially on the drivers side. Pulling in the fender as per owner's manual does not seem to work. Later I came across another document from another poster (can't remember where I saw it) that it showed the front underneath had to be remove as well which made the fender easier to pull in.
I haven't done it yet and was wondering if anyone has gone this route. I like to try this route as oppose to taking off my bumper.
*gripe* Why couldn't the designer make this installation easier??? My 03 impreza was so easy to change it out. Boo!..
I am missing something here... in mine '10 Outback the OEM low beams are H7 halogen bulbs... NOT HID!!! therefore you ain't got the controller & ballast to generate the 23K volt needed to ignite the xenon tubes. So in order to retrofit with HID bulbs you got to get a kit that have a controller/ballast to generate the 23K volt current to fire the xenon filled gas tubes.
The OP did a marvelous job in providing a step by step description of the procedures. Nice job!!!
DM3415, thanks so much for the guide. I didn't have any issues going through the wheel wells for the install. It took a while, but it wasn't as bad as I expected.
I ordered a Philips bulb (6k)/Philips ballast kit from ebay and they look great (imo). Before/after pic below...
I do have a question... I didn't install the relay wires to pull power from the battery, but I want to. The reason I didn't is the relay harness doesn't reach both ballasts unless I run it straight over the engine. Is there an extension for this wire available somewhere? I've spent a fair bit of time googling, but I'm not finding that specific extension wire. I might end up moving the ballasts, but that'd be a pain... Thanks!
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I ordered a Philips bulb (6k)/Philips ballast kit from ebay and they look great (imo). Before/after pic below...
I do have a question... I didn't install the relay wires to pull power from the battery, but I want to. The reason I didn't is the relay harness doesn't reach both ballasts unless I run it straight over the engine. Is there an extension for this wire available somewhere? I've spent a fair bit of time googling, but I'm not finding that specific extension wire. I might end up moving the ballasts, but that'd be a pain... Thanks!
HID lamp install
Does anyone know, if HID highbeam lamps are installed, do they still work at a lower setting as day running lights? I just ordered sets for low, high, and fog, and am realizing I have my work cut out for me! The upside is, I already changed one headlamp bulb, and it sucked! But I know what to expect and it will be nice to not have to do that again once these are in.
Does anyone know, if HID highbeam lamps are installed, do they still work at a lower setting as day running lights? I just ordered sets for low, high, and fog, and am realizing I have my work cut out for me! The upside is, I already changed one headlamp bulb, and it sucked! But I know what to expect and it will be nice to not have to do that again once these are in.
Did you order after market HID conversions, or a genuine Subaru part?
When I was considering after market HID's for my 2007 Liberty, I was recommended not to install them for high beams, as turning them on and off all the time would seriously shorten their lifespan. They take a while to get to full brightness too.
I don't think they generally have a "lower" setting that you could use as a daytime running light.
I'm also not sure that HID's for a fog light is a good idea. All that extra light is just going to be reflected back at you by the fog.
They were after market, Subaru doesn't have HIDs availible for an OB. The brand was recommended to me by a friend, he has a pair on the Chevy truck and said they work well and they come with the ballasts, relay harness, and hardware. I'm not too worried about the fog lights being too bright, I went with yellow. But you make a good point about the highs burning out fast, I'll look into that a little more before I put them in. As far as the lower setting, I think you maybe right. If they don't work the way the original highbeams dim during the day, no big deal.
Another thing about the high beams, I will mainly be using them in the mountains. With having the HID lows and fogs, I probably won't need the highs very often. But its nice to have on dark mountains roads where there is little traffic.
+1000 on this. HIDs just don't work in high beams. The turning on and off is really hard on the ballasts, and they often take 30-60 seconds to reach full brightness.
As for using them as DRLs, typically when in DRL mode, they circuit is still pushing enough wattage to run a 35w ballast, at least this was the case on my brother's Passat, so they will probably be OK. But they will be running at full brightness, which means you will look like you're running around with your high beams on all the time, which even during the day bugs me.
Since you have HID lows and fogs, stick with a good quality Halogen for your highs, you'll be much happier in the long run.
Typically they are just low beams or high beams running at a lower wattage. Cars with HIDs stock will typically have a separate bulb, whether it be a lower wattage halogen bulb or an LED strip. I don't know of any vehicle that uses the HIDs for the DRL.
DRLs come on all US sold cars now. Typically they are the high beams run at a low setting when ever the car is put in gear and the headlights aren't turned on. THanks for the info on the HIDs, RockhopJohn and Weegraeme. I plan on using the lows and fogs and see if I can return the highs.
I did an install
After reading this thread a couple months ago, I decided to do an HID install myself on my 2010 OB. I will say that the best way to do this install is to take the entire bumper off. At first, it took me about 30 min to figure out all the clips to take the front bumper off, but after the first time, it was so easy. I tried to do it without taking the bumper off, but it was way too hard to reach in there
I have since taken my bumper off several times to adjust the headlights and add LED turn signals. I also figured out how to adjust the height of the light. After I did the install, I noticed the passenger light was a lot higher than the driver’s side. There is an 8m socket bolt that you turn to adjust the light height.
My best advice for those who are having issues with height, simply adjust the passenger side to be level with drivers, it’s much easier and you don’t even have to take off the bumper or headlight to do this. Simply, remove to two pins that hold the intake plastic piece that is connected to the grill, it pops right off, and then remove the two 10m bots that hold down the intake box. (You don’t have to remove the entire intake just remove the bolts so you can move the box out of the way). Once these two things are out of your way, you can easily reach the lamp adjuster. It is a (tan/silver) bolt located in the back of the headlamp near your low beam.
After reading this thread a couple months ago, I decided to do an HID install myself on my 2010 OB. I will say that the best way to do this install is to take the entire bumper off. At first, it took me about 30 min to figure out all the clips to take the front bumper off, but after the first time, it was so easy. I tried to do it without taking the bumper off, but it was way too hard to reach in there
I have since taken my bumper off several times to adjust the headlights and add LED turn signals. I also figured out how to adjust the height of the light. After I did the install, I noticed the passenger light was a lot higher than the driver’s side. There is an 8m socket bolt that you turn to adjust the light height.
My best advice for those who are having issues with height, simply adjust the passenger side to be level with drivers, it’s much easier and you don’t even have to take off the bumper or headlight to do this. Simply, remove to two pins that hold the intake plastic piece that is connected to the grill, it pops right off, and then remove the two 10m bots that hold down the intake box. (You don’t have to remove the entire intake just remove the bolts so you can move the box out of the way). Once these two things are out of your way, you can easily reach the lamp adjuster. It is a (tan/silver) bolt located in the back of the headlamp near your low beam.
Just a heads up: KB Carstuff has the H7 HID kits for the outback on sale for $199, and also a 10% off coupon. I got the 4300 Philips kit, and LED backup bulbs for the outback & my wife's Mazda for a total of $260 + free shipping. Thanks for everyone's help with the install info, hopefully mine will go well. I plan to remove the bumper, I don't have either the reach or patience to go thru the wheel wells.
2013 Outback 3.6R Ltd- Nav, Eyesight, HK, Graphite Gray Metallic
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815 Posts
Depends on the type and quality of the HIDs you use, IMO. My HIDs come up to power in a few seconds, and by putting bi-xenons in my lows, I don't even need the high beams. Regardless, I put 1800 lumen LED lamps in my high beams, which, with the Bi-xenons, give me awesome light in a very white color.
With bi-xenons, you aren't cycling your ballasts when flashing your high beams, which I hardly ever do anyway.
And I found the 9v high beam DRL high beams to be lame, so I disconnected them and installed 8 LED Philips DRLs.
Just another option
2010 Outback 6 Speed Stick Limited with Electrical Problems since birth.
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3 Posts
Switched out Lows & Fog lights to HID, LEDs on front position lights
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I gotta say I just hate changing the Lows, it's such a pain in the keister. So after this last set blew after less then a year, I went with HID Xenon kits. Since I was changing the Lows I figured I might as well change out the fog lights as well since I've never changed them out and I run them all the time. One of my coworkers who is heavily into the tuning scene and has one sick Acura all moded out with twin turbos, intercooler and the works. He laughed when I showed him the Phillips kit I was considering at $200 a set. He pointed me toward DDM tuning. DDM Tuning 35W and 55W HID Kits They mostly deal with BMW's but lights are lights. He showed me his conversion that he has been running for over two years with no problems. It looked really good, very bright and at less then $40 a kit for the 55 watt kit ($30 for the 35 watt kit), I pulled the trigger on 2 kits, 1 Low beams H7 & 1 H11 foglight kit, plus LED replacements for the front position lights above the High beams. I also got the mounting plates for the ballasts but they were not used as I couldn't find a decent spot to drill into where I could reach around for the nut of the mounting bolt. In the end I went with industrial strength Velcro as well as zip ties for safety.
I removed both front wheels, wheel wells, battery, and the entire airbox assembly on the passenger side so that I could find the best spot for the ballasts. Like others I went with under the rubber flap at the top for the low beams. For the fog lights I placed the ballasts on the lower body frame behind the wheel well next to the electrical wires for the fog lights. I used a plastic protective overlay for the wires like the OEM wires.
The Bulbs I choose were the standard 6000k like Phillips uses on the Euro Lux cars. They do have a slight bluish tint. It is more noticeable to the on looker then me as the driver. On the road it looks very white, but it is to be expected as the shear power (>5,000 lumens a light) of the 55 watt kit washes out a lot of tint. On the 35 watt kit I would expect that the blue would be more noticeable. The only difference I notice is coming off the white speed limit signs, they have a slight bluish tint now. They do offer a 5000k bulb which should be whiter and a 4000k that has a more standard halogen yellowish tint. Honestly I look at that Halogen yellow as being dull, old, and almost nostalgic.
I live at 7,000ft in deer & elk country here in Northern Arizona (not a lot of big predators up here besides man so some of these elks get to be the size of horses!). I run the fog lights all the time at night to better spot them on the side when they aren't looking my way. With the new set up I'm blazing up the road at over 20,000 lumen with both lows and fogs. The difference is incredible. With the fog lights I can see deep into the forest on the sides as well as ahead of the vehicle.
I haven't been flashed my other motorists or stopped by law enforcement. I think people are just used to seeing Lux and tuner cars with HID now. The only problem is the highlights. They're pretty much useless now as they are completely overpowered by the lowlights and I loose the fog lights with the high beams on. So the net effect is I loose a lot of peripheral light and all I get in return is a yellowish tint to the tops of the trees. They only serve as DRLs so I'll probably go with direct LED replacements like the front position lights if only because I now think the yellowish halogen looks nasty and out of place next to the LEDs and HIDs in my setup. The brightest H9 LED DDM sells is only 400 lumen, pretty weak for highlights considering my lows are putting out over 5000 each but should be more then enough for DRLs. When I can figure out how to post pics I will
I removed both front wheels, wheel wells, battery, and the entire airbox assembly on the passenger side so that I could find the best spot for the ballasts. Like others I went with under the rubber flap at the top for the low beams. For the fog lights I placed the ballasts on the lower body frame behind the wheel well next to the electrical wires for the fog lights. I used a plastic protective overlay for the wires like the OEM wires.
The Bulbs I choose were the standard 6000k like Phillips uses on the Euro Lux cars. They do have a slight bluish tint. It is more noticeable to the on looker then me as the driver. On the road it looks very white, but it is to be expected as the shear power (>5,000 lumens a light) of the 55 watt kit washes out a lot of tint. On the 35 watt kit I would expect that the blue would be more noticeable. The only difference I notice is coming off the white speed limit signs, they have a slight bluish tint now. They do offer a 5000k bulb which should be whiter and a 4000k that has a more standard halogen yellowish tint. Honestly I look at that Halogen yellow as being dull, old, and almost nostalgic.
I live at 7,000ft in deer & elk country here in Northern Arizona (not a lot of big predators up here besides man so some of these elks get to be the size of horses!). I run the fog lights all the time at night to better spot them on the side when they aren't looking my way. With the new set up I'm blazing up the road at over 20,000 lumen with both lows and fogs. The difference is incredible. With the fog lights I can see deep into the forest on the sides as well as ahead of the vehicle.
I haven't been flashed my other motorists or stopped by law enforcement. I think people are just used to seeing Lux and tuner cars with HID now. The only problem is the highlights. They're pretty much useless now as they are completely overpowered by the lowlights and I loose the fog lights with the high beams on. So the net effect is I loose a lot of peripheral light and all I get in return is a yellowish tint to the tops of the trees. They only serve as DRLs so I'll probably go with direct LED replacements like the front position lights if only because I now think the yellowish halogen looks nasty and out of place next to the LEDs and HIDs in my setup. The brightest H9 LED DDM sells is only 400 lumen, pretty weak for highlights considering my lows are putting out over 5000 each but should be more then enough for DRLs. When I can figure out how to post pics I will
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