Aftermarket HID ballast to replace OEM ballast?
 

Anyone use an aftermarket ballast to replace a busted OEM one?

I don't see the problem other than quality difference for sure. Make sure to get correct type and wattage.

Sorry was not able to make the original post clearer. Being in the new topic page seems to close my browser for some reason.

Aftermarket HID ballasts incorporate the igniter and ballast itself in one package, as opposed to the BMW OEM Hella system where the ballast is under the headlight assembly and the igniter is behind the bulb. It is not going to be a plug and play job, at the very least it would entail a bit of splicing.

I lost light on one side recently and traced it to the ballast. Ordered a used OEM one off of Ebay and replaced it. Afterwards a friend theorized on the possibility of replacing the OEM separate ballast/igniter with an integrated ballast/igniter as found in most HID conversion kits, which are a lot cheaper.

Wondering if anyone has tried that. I have adaptive headlights too, would that be affected by any conversion?

Wondering how you accessed your ballast. Did you have to remove the fender? My drivers side headlight went out. I checked and it isn't the bulb or the igniter, so I figure it has to be the ballast. I think I see it mounted just below the headlight casing, but haven't figured out how to get to it.
Any help would be appreciated.:dunno:

^unless we know what version of the E53 that you have, it's pretty hard to help.
For pre-facelift, remove the headlight to gain access to the ballast underneath. For facelift, drop the bumper before you can remove the headlights.

Exactly, pre-facelift uses Hella Gen 3 ballast and facelift uses Hella Gen 4 with igniter mounted to back of bulb.

Thanks for your prompt replies!
I have a 2005 x-5 4.4i. The igniter attaches to the back of the bulb.