Up rated headlamps

[rjg30091982]

Hi guys,I've noticed when switching between my rotaries and my Kawasaki er5 that the lights are really dim at night on the A38!Has anyone up rated there lights? I imagine its a whole lamp unit replacement as I can't imagine changing a bulb would do anythingAny ideas?Russ

[vontripper]

hi, have a look at {Xenon HID} they are very bright like day lights this from a web site I found about Xenon HID kitsHID is only legal if the headlight unit is correctly 'E' marked. Halogen headlight units and Xenon HID units have different 'E' marks. The only way for an HID kit to be road legal is if the whole headlight unit is replaced with one specifically designed for HID or the existing headlight unit is reassessed for compliance and assigned a new 'E' mark. As you can imagine, this is vastly inconvenient and expensive. In short, unless you take steps to do all of this then your vehicle will not be road legal. In the Department's view it is not legal to sell or use after-market HID lighting kits, for converting conventional Halogen headlamps to HID Xenon. If a customer wants to convert his vehicle to Xenon HID he must purchase completely new Xenon HID headlamps. The reason for this is that the existing lens and reflector are designed around a Halogen filament bulb, working to very precise tolerances. If one places a HID "burner" (bulb) in the headlamp, the beam pattern will not be correct, there will be glare in some places and not enough light in other places within the beam pattern - Department for Transport (2006). web page http://www.norbsa02.freeuk.com/goffybulbs.htm UK company go to bottom of page on left and select what you want RG von

[vontripper]

hi again , have a look on eBay http://www.ebay.co.uk/bhp/motorcycle-hi ... ersion-kit £ 20 to £ 70 I think I mite buy 2 for me commander & commando RG von

[rjg30091982]

Hi Von It doesn't look expensive but has any one tried it because a hid bulb with the same wattage shouldn't make any difference as the power is the same! I'd imagine to get a better result you would need a complete headlamp change with better reflective material inside to project the beam after all the bulb in my ip2 and commander is the same as my Kawasaki yet the Kawasaki has a better light because of the head lamp unitIf anyone has tried the hid and can give any advice?

[vontripper]

hi, I will be getting 2 for me commander and commando soon so I will let you knowRG von

[Ian]

Had one on my Commander for about four years and I posted the tale of it's fitting on here at the time. Seems it might be illegal after all and also it obviously isn't self-levelling.However it has passed the MOT fine and the world lights up when I use it. Personally I thoroughly recommend it even if it is technically not on. I think you'd need a very unsympathetic MOT tester or traffic plod to come unstuck. Most seem to understand that a bike wants to be seen. And it only takes 35w!Ian

[John in Leeds]

Well, don't drive on the A38 then! :-DAlternatively, if you haven't already, first try fitting relays to the headlamp circuit. My Commander was only reading 9V at the headlamp before I did this. I'd suggest that if you fit a HID lamp without trying installing relays, you've pretty much wasted your time & money. A Commander wired this way - with nice chunky wiring - has a fairly decent headlamp output, though admittedly not quite up to inducing retinal bleeding.Meanwhile, the quoted power of a lamp is the power going IN. The light OUTPUT is determined by its luminous effeciancy, so a 55W - or even 35W - HID lamp can be MUCH brighter than a standard 55W QH bulb. Hence the requirement to be fitted in a proper housing.(Now to see if I can post this without it all disappearing in a puff of virtual smoke this time!)