# OEM ballast question



## PatStock11 (Oct 25, 2008)

so im in the process of replacing my ignitors and ballasts from my passenger side oem hid setup (mk4 gti).
anyway i found an ignitor on vortex and now im looking for a ballast.
i know ecs carries them as well as the dealership (new beetle ballasts).
so rather then spend an arm and a leg with those 2 choices i have been scowering ebay looking for deals. Now you'd be hard pressed to find an oem hid ballast on there from a mk4 so i typed in "bmw/audi ballast" to see if the application of the ballasts is much broader. And im pretty sure it is. I saw quite a few that look EXACTLY the same as mk4's from audis and bmw's. obviously they didnt have the VW part # on them (7M3-907-391) but they do have the manufacturer part number on them which is visible in most of the pics. 
The manufacturer # on my ballasts are 307-329-068.
But the ones i have seen on ebay are 307-329-074 & 307-329-082.
any chance they are the same ballasts? even with a small variation in p/n's like that? think they are usable? 
obviously they all say 35w d2s blah blah blah blah....help, suggestions


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## PatStock11 (Oct 25, 2008)

*Re: OEM ballast question (PatStock11)*

ttt
doesnt this look like it should work?
only the last 3 digits of the p/n are different. http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors...ories


_Modified by PatStock11 at 10:10 PM 1-5-2009_


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## nater (Apr 10, 2000)

*Re: OEM ballast question (PatStock11)*

I'm willing to bet they are IDENTICAL. The only worry I have would be the pin-outs - which could be *fixed* fairly easily if needed. In other words, you would have to do some testing to see which is which and swap wires in the harness. But if I were a betting man I'd say that even the pin-outs are the same. I'm not sure why the manufacturer would make different pin-outs on an otherwise identical ballast. 
I have some photo's showing some part #'s of ballasts I've used but I can't seem to find them right now. I'll take a look at home on my Mac and post up if I find them. I'll also pull a part # off of an old broken ballast I removed from a set of MK4 oem hids AND a set of Euro MKV HIDs. 
I'll report back to you later today on that. But again, if this is your only option I'd say you buy them, try it, and if it doesn't work throw it back up on ebay. 
http://****************.com/smile/emthup.gif


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## PatStock11 (Oct 25, 2008)

*Re: OEM ballast question (nater)*

this is exactly what i was thinking. just basically hoping that the pin arrngement was the same for the plug n ballast. i was thinking that in all likelyhood most car manufacterers build they're harnesses to the ballast suppliers pin arrangement...i think they are the same ballasts across the board....atleast i hope.... thanks in advance if u get those pics nate ! http://****************.com/smile/emthup.gif 


_Modified by PatStock11 at 1:42 PM 1-6-2009_


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## nater (Apr 10, 2000)

*FV-QR*

Ok, 
Ballast in-hand...but if I recall it's from an OEM MK4 HID...So chances are the VW part # won't match that of the ones you are seeing on ebay. 
*But* I just noticed that the VW part # is on a sticker....So, notice next to the sticker there is an engraving...which the manufacturer puts on the item. I'm guess that's ALL that matters.
The VW Part # that I see (from my MK4 OEM HID) is: 1 307 329 090
The part # engraved on the ballast itself is: 2 285 510 600
And a quick google of that part number (sans the spaces) got me these results:
Mercedes Benz Ballast
2004 Alfa Romeo 156
Both of those results have the same manufacturers part # engraved in the exact same (looking) ballast as what you've seen in your ebay searches AND the OEM MK4 HID ballasts.
So, if I were you I'd pick up one of those ballasts on ebay. Just ask the seller if his part # engraved on the ballast is that of what I just posted (or look on yours). 
http://****************.com/smile/emthup.gif
EDIT:
Let me say that I can't sell you this ballast because I don't think it works. It was failing on me which is why I'm not using it.







Otherwise I would.


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## PatStock11 (Oct 25, 2008)

*Re: FV-QR (nater)*

ok here is what i have found on my ballasts.
my engraved # is the same as yours 285 510 600
my other number is 307 329 068 
but i also have a very small number on the top left of the main label, next to a small vw symbol that reads 7M3-907-391...i believe THIS is the actual vw number bc if u put that number into 1stvwparts.com it comes up as a ballast module...
one of the other 2 numbers must be the manufacturer #...anyway since my engraved number is the same as yours and the same as the ebay ones im gonna chalk this one up to a win and buy one of those setups....seems pretty straight forward http://****************.com/smile/emthup.gif 


_Modified by PatStock11 at 6:55 PM 1-6-2009_


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## nater (Apr 10, 2000)

*Re: FV-QR (PatStock11)*


_Quote, originally posted by *PatStock11* »_ok here is what i have found on my ballasts.
my engraved # is the same as yours 285 510 600
my other number is 307 329 068 
but i also have a very small number on the top left of the main label, next to a small vw symbol that reads 7M3-907-391...i believe THIS is the actual vw number bc if u put that number into 1stvwparts.com it comes up as a ballast module...
one of the other 2 numbers must be the manufacturer #...anyway since my engraved number is the same as yours and the same as the ebay ones im gonna chalk this one up to a win and buy one of those setups....seems pretty straight forward http://****************.com/smile/emthup.gif 

_Modified by PatStock11 at 6:55 PM 1-6-2009_

While I've got no personal experience I'd guess if the engraving is the same it's GOT to be the same ballast, only for a different mfr. Make sure to post up your findings here so I can add it to the FAQ, ok? 
Thanks man!


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## PatStock11 (Oct 25, 2008)

*Re: FV-QR (nater)*

absolutely...probably gonna be a week or so bc the one im ordering is in washington state


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## PatStock11 (Oct 25, 2008)

*Re: FV-QR (PatStock11)*

UPDATE:
So i got the new ballast and ignitor in the mail 2day from an ebay seller. The ballast looked exactly the same, and has the same engraved part number on it (285 510 600)....
It doesnt have a label on it with a part number like our VW ballasts but that is the only difference. The pin layout is all the same as well.
So i plugged it in and it was a success ! everything works fine.
To anyone who is interested it appears you can replace oem ballasts and ignitors with the exact same ebay ballasts/ignitors as long as the engraved part number is the same. I wouldnt worry about the actual label b/c it appears to be car manufacturer specific. Nothing related to the actual ballast http://****************.com/smile/emthup.gif 
upclose of part # engraving:

a comparison from ebay ballast to vw ballast:

so i assume as long as it is the same ballast bosch/valeo (i forgot who supplies oem ballasts) with the same engraved p/n you should be fine! http://****************.com/smile/emthup.gif 
And i have seen these ballasts on ebay from e46 m3's to audi tt's to maybe even A8's if i remember correctly. Its nice to know you dont have to pay 300-$400 from the dealer or ECS










_Modified by PatStock11 at 5:57 PM 1-9-2009_


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## nater (Apr 10, 2000)

*FV-QR*

Very nice. Congrats. I'll add this to the FAQ soon. 
http://****************.com/smile/emthup.gif


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