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Headlight Options

9K views 24 replies 11 participants last post by  Benjiquattro 
#1 ·
Hey guys looking for some input on a better bulb for the head lights since they're terrible. I see the bulb size is H7-55W can this simple be replaced with an LED bulb that will fit that size? Sorry if this is a dumb question I have never replaced bulbs on a bike before. I have used LASFIT bulbs and they are great quality and extremely bright which is what I am leaning towards. Thanks in advance for any input.
 
#3 ·
Not a dumb question, at all.

LED lights typically have issues with space, due to the fan assembly on the backOof the bulb. If that sticks too far out, it can be hit by your forks when you steer near the maximum left or right.

The shape of the emitter will be important, because of where that will cause the light to be sent. Halogen bulbs have the light coming from one filament, about the thickness of a human hair. Neither HID, nor LED match that 'envelope' exactly.

Because the LED are located on the surfaces of a circuit board sandwich, you have two emitters with a gap between them. Depending on the layout of the emitters, the violation of the light box can make the light pattern scatter or spread. More light not aimed where you want it to go just annoys people.

I, rather than O is a better shape for the emitter array as it more closely matches the halogen filament shape. Still has that gap, so both sets of chips are off set from where they should be.

My '14 Toyota Corolla has LED low beams OEM. Fookin bright lights. Good pattern, and slightly annoying to oncoming traffic if I have a load of stuff in the trunk. Aim is important.
 
#8 ·
Keep in mind that LED retrofit bulbs are not legal for on road use. You might have some issues if you have to submit to inspections.

If you go ahead and do it anyway make sure your light is being projected properly or you might find yourself getting some tender loving from law enforcement as well. People get "fix it tickets" for shitty LED's that spray light everywhere around here, as they should for blinding everyone else on the road.
 
#9 ·
@16Stealth636 No additional wiring is needed. It's all plug and play. The wires are long so I wrapped them with ties and secured in the corners. Also, on my bike, the beam's aim is projected straight ahead so no aim adjustments were needed. It works perfect for me.

Although you have to punch a whole in the black rubber boot, the bulbs are water proof. I vouch for the bulbs since this is my 3rd time using them, 2 bikes and 1 car ...soon to be on a 4th car in the family.
 
#18 ·
OP,

For the money, it's hard to beat the amount of light you can get with HID. The price of these things has come down so much it's pretty hard to believe.

If you do decide to go the route of HID, please consider limiting yourself to the 35W setups rather than the 55W.

The way HID work is exactly like any other florescent bulb..... there is a ballast that has to charge to a high voltage to make the arc in the bulb. Once the arc has happened a number of times, the gas remains energized enough that it doesn't take a lot of power to make it arc again. Until then, the HID uses far more power than the number stated on the literature. 3-5 times as much, for some number of seconds as it warms up. One 35W HID is going to draw about the same power as both OEM 55W halogen bulbs would, for that start up period. The electrical engineers at Kawasaki designed the charging system with that much load in mind. Should last the life of the bike.

2 35W bulbs place some strain on the charging system if you start them at the same time. 55W bulbs, single or double, definitely put some stress on the charging system.

This is an issue for a motorcycle charging system, as there is very little excess power available. The power all comes from the alternator, and any excess gets stored in the battery for future use up to the point where the battery is fully charged. Because sport bikes are as light as possible, the margin is even thinner here, than it is with touring machines and the like.

When you hear about people having to replace the stator, that's almost always due to drawing more power than the bike can make. Whatever the HID may need, the battery will loan out. The budget has to be balanced by the alternator, which has to work harder, to replenish the charge. The alternator is made of two parts. The rotor, and the stator. The stator is static..... sits in one place. As the ends of the rotor pass it, the magnetic lines of force shove electrons off the wires in the stator windings. That is where the current flow comes from. It isn't without some work being done, which results in heat being generated in the windings.

The only way for the stator to cool off, is to pass that heat to the engine oil that is splashed around on the windings by the rotor. The oil falls back to the bottom of the case, and then gets returned to the pan/pump/lube system. The hardest part of the stator to cool, is the point furthest away from the bottom. Heat rises, gravity drains the oil away from that point the most..... it stays hotter longer. The stator fails due to the melting of the insulation between the windings on the poles. As the insulation melts, the wires short together.... that makes that part of the winding produce less current. The demand doesn't change so the alternator has to keep producing power anyway, but now it has to do it for a longer period of time..... which means it gets even hotter, which melts more insulation, etc., etc.
 
#23 ·
Seconded. If done correctly (retrofit projectors, wire it nicely, so no crappy splices, etc) it’s awesome, at least in my experience. Definitely more expensive, and cracking open the headlight lenses can be nerve wracking, if it’s your first time. But I have an awesome light pattern, it doesn’t blind other drivers on low, and on high beam, I call it “The Daybringer”. So far, zero reliability issues, on a bike that’s parked outside, in the Houston area, and daily ridden in whatever weather happens to be present.
 
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