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55w 8k DDM HID Install on 2009 with dual headlights

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35K views 54 replies 30 participants last post by  garcia2389 
#1 ·
Here is my install of the DDM 55 watt kit on my 2009 Ram. I have the dual lamp setup and this kit worked perfectly. I can not speak for the quad lamp setup but this was a simple straight forward install. No need for any extra harnesses or any can-bus canceller.

1. Remove the radiator protector.
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2. Remove the 4 bolts holding the grille.
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3. You will have to pull straight out at each bottom corner of the grille once the bolts are removed to free the grille. There is a snap clip at each corner holding in place.
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4. Now you can start removing headlamps. There are two bolts in the front and one in the rear accessed by panel in fenderwell from tire side.
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5. There is a white plastic tab that hold the headlight in place. Just lift up on the tab to be able to pull the headlight out. (note: there is still a snap clip holding it in place also, after lifting up on tab I recommend pushing from fenderwell side and pulling from front at the same time to remove the headlight.
Here is a picture of the locking tab.
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#2 ·
continued...

6. Now you can install the new HID lamps in housings. I found that the new bulb did not fit very tight into the housings so I modified the seals slightly. I removed the rubber seal and placed an o-ring underneath and re-installed the seal to make a tighter fit.
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7. Now install the wiring in the truck. First the Positive wire to the battery terminal.
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Second the gound wire. I found the chassis ground was closer to the head lamp and the wires were very short that came with the kit so this worked alot better than the (-) terminal on the battery.
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8. Next I mounted the Relay and the Slim Ballast.
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9. Then I positioned the wiring.
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10. Now on to the passenger side. My truck was slightly easier than stock due to the fact that I have the factory intake removed because of the aftermarket K&N intake setup, so you might want to just drill an access hole in the plastic here next to the intake hole. I was able to just run the wiring through the old factory intake hole. (NOTE: You need to drill a hole some where for the ground wire on this side. Make sure you grind any paint off to ensure you get a good ground here... I made that mistake and when I turned my lights on the passenger side did not work... grinded the paint down and on she came... just my 2 cents)
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11. Final step before re-assembly (optional)
I took a bag and taped it over the old headlamp connector on the passenger side since it is not used with this kit to keep any corrosion out.
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#27 ·
DDM 55 Watt and computer issues

Have you had any troubles since you installed the DDM kit? I installed mine on my 2011 RAM early Frebruary and they worked great up until June. One light started flickering then it went completely out. I put a new Balast I had purchased (in case I installd the HIBeam HID). And It worked for a few minutes then when I restarted all the lights were not working. Now the lights work intermitently. Some days they work others they stop working. I am afraid they will not honor the warranty since I Drilled the covers for the Quad Lamps.

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

By the way I bought the adapter with the kit to prevent the computer error on the Dash. As I explained earlier it worked nicely for about 5 months.

Here are the before and afters


BEFORE...
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AFTER...
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This was a 55 watt 8k slim ballast kit from DDM. It is a bi-xenon which means it has Hi and Low beams in one bulb (telescoping bulb).
 
#8 ·
excellent write up!!!i wish this was up when i did my H.I.D's
 
#12 ·
I can't really speak for the 07' model but for mine I did not have to buy any of the extra harnesses or anything else just the 55w kit. Either my truck doesn't have the can-bus system or the 55w kit is enough to trick the system by itself, because there was no flickering with the kit I purchased. The main difference between the 35w and the 55w kits is the light output. The 55w kit does washout the color a little more in the bulb due to the brightness. If you want a 6000k bulb color then order the 8000k bulb and so on... The main reason why I ordered the 55w kit for mine was the fact that so many people were having problems with the 35w kits and the can-bus systems on their dodge trucks(aka flickering problem), and they were having to add extra stuff to trick their system into thinking it was still using the factory 55w halogen. So I figured well if I put a 55w kit in then maybe I won't need any special harnesses or a can-bus cancelling kit, and it worked in my case. I'm not saying it will work on the 07' but on my 09' SLT it worked perfectly.
 
#16 ·
great write up woodmw! i had an hid kit for my dad's 09 ram from ddm tuning 38 watt hi/lo and it worked great for a few months then the driver side ballast stopped working. this happened twice and it was deff a pain in the ass. deff thinking about trying a 55 watt kit now since u have had good luck with yours. and u said u installed them with just the wiring harness that it came with no error code eliminators?
 
#18 ·
nitro017: Yes, I did not order any special harness or anything else and it worked great.

Speed 1B: My FM radio is not affected by the HID's. I can't say that it will not affect a factory radio since mine is an after market radio, but it doesn't create any interference on mine at all.
 
#20 ·
great i'm going to get a hold of a 55 watt kit for my dads ram soon. hopefully throw some pics up of it done.

Speed 1B: 100% agreed with woodmw. I have hid's on my 08 nitro now for about a year and a half now and never had any issues with radio interference.
 
#22 ·
I followed this to the "t" in order to put my Sylvania Silverstar Ultras in my 2011 Ram. I didn't remove the grill, but I did undo the top screws and pop the bottom brackets off slightly. There are a few tabs on the insides of the headlamp assembly that need some extra clearance when removing. I put 4 new bulbs in for the highs and lows, and Sylvania Silverstars in for the fog lights. They aren't making a 9145SU anytime in the near future, so I had to compromise. I'll keep everyone posted on the 'perceived' improvement. Just waiting for it to get dark.

Thanks again
 
#23 ·
Hey i got a 55w slim H13 h/l kit 10k from DDM tuning and mine work when the truck is off but when the engine is on, the lights stay on for like 5 secs then flash 4 or 5 times and shut off? Any suggestions on fixing this? Oh and i have a 2007 dodge ram 1500 quad cab
 
#32 ·
HID issues

Last night I finally solved the issue on my new Ram 2011 HID lights going out. I had the Raptor Kit from DDM tunning with the thin balast.
The system worked well from February to June. Then when the temperature got hot the left side started flickering and then it would not come on. At some times all the Headlights and fog lights would not come on.

Solution

I read somewhere that they were using the THICK balast and they had no problems. I had an HID kit from my 2004 Ram that I removed when I traded my truck. The old rusty Thick balast is woking fine with the old bulb and the error correction adapter. I think the thin balast are not compatible with the new truck.

Hope this helps.
 
#25 ·
Its okay Thank you for trying, im going to give them a call
 
#26 ·
Wow, thanks for the tutorial on changing a freaking headlight. They had to make it so dang complicated. Just about every other car, I look behind the headlight, pull a wire a pop a bulb out but not Dodge!!! I'm probably not going to go HID after seeing this, but go with a Nokya or PIAA bulb instead just to make things easy.
 
#34 ·
Dodge isn't the only manufacturer that makes it difficult to change a freakin' light bulb. My previous vehicle (GMC Canyon) was also a challenge to change the bulbs. Unless you have very small, and dainty hands, changing the bulbs required removal of the grill and light assemblies. I can recall removing the first layer of skin on my right hand after ATTEMPTING to squeeze my hand behind the driver's light assembly. Once I got my hand in there (albeit a bit less skin), I just about didn't get my hand out! And I did this in October (temperature was around 6 degrees Celsius) so the metal was already cold to the touch. Colder temperatures = less feeling in fingers/hand!! LOL.

I wasn't too impressed with Dodge and their headlight removal/installation process, but once you've removed the lights the first time, everything is easier the second, third, etc., time around. And although removal of the grill isn't needed, I did just so I had 100% access to the headlights. I was going to magnetize my socket (but didn't have a speaker lying around)... that's why I decided to remove the grill. An extra long socket extension is pretty much all you need though (if you don't remove the grill.)

I'm tackling my kit installation this weekend. Hopefully everything works out.
 
#28 ·
after installing these in my friends fathers denali 1500 this weekend i was seriously thinking about it until i realized that the only way to do it is to disassemble half of the front end. thats really a poor design, you shouldn't have to take the truck apart to change bulbs. now i don't know what i want to do but i have to do something, the light output when i switch to high beams is garbage, i have better light with the fogs and lows on.
 
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