Poor headlight on main beam

[nettshubby]

I have only just started riding my NOS '08/09 Stelvio, and have done only a short ride at night.

I find the dipped beam OK, but but can hardly notice any difference when going to main beam.

If I adjust the lights upward, then dip would be too high and dazzle traffic.

Is the wiring already there to fit the two extra lights from an NTX?

Or has anybody fitted any other spots to an early Stelvio? I am in UK.

Ray.

 

[WayneOrwig]

Only one of the high beam filaments comes on when you go to high beam. Some people added a wire to turn on the second one. That extra heat can damage the switch and the headlight housing.
I converted mine to HID.
I also added a set of LED driving lights to the factory wires.
I assume you are somewhat limited by your countries testing.

 

[Brian UK]

No reason why you should not add a wire to get both main beam lights on, the switches are the same as the Norge which does just that. No idea why the Stelvio is set up like this, not due to UK regs anyway.
HID are technically illegal in this situation in the UK.
However it might be worth investing in something like the Osram Nightbreaker Unlimited bulbs, claimed to give 120% more light and 40% greater beam length, with no additional power consumption.

 

[iainw]

I have a HID fitted to the low bem on my Breva and they are technically illegal as an aftermarket fit to a headlamp, but there isn't anyone who's doing anything about it. The police aren't bothered, I've worked the last 4 Tour of Britains and been with 20+ motorcycle bobbies and a few in cars all day for the full week, not a mention to me. The MOT only test for beam angle and it's not been mentioned there either.

Fitting it to a low beam gives plenty of bright light directly on the road, having the high beam on a standard bulb allows the flash to still work, HIDs take a second or two to warm up. The low beam is that good that on unlit lanes it's easily possible and safe to to ride without full beam.

The biggest advantage I immediately found with the HID was the diffused beam spread (if that's the correct term), when coming up behind cars and filtering they very quickly realise you are there. It's that beam spread which is the bit the law doesn't like.

Iain

 

[Gerrit58]

I ordered myself these: http://proledlights.nl/h7-h4-1800-lumen-cree-led.html

1800 Lumen is around 100 W performance compared to Halogen. Power needed is 20W times 2 when you wire both headlamp = 40 W. In this case no risk for overheating or damage.

By the way I have over one year both headlamp connected and no problems with the Halogen.

BR

Gerrit

 

[WayneOrwig]

I have a HID fitted to the low bem on my Breva

The HIDs that I have in the Stelvio do high and low.
There is a shield wrapped around the HID to reduce the excess scatter on low beam. For high beam a magnet pulls the bulb back to the high position and uncovers a hole in the shield. It has less light scatter then the stock H4 bulb, and obviously much more light output.

 

[nettshubby]

No reason why you should not add a wire to get both main beam lights on, the switches are the same as the Norge which does just that. No idea why the Stelvio is set up like this, not due to UK regs anyway.
HID are technically illegal in this situation in the UK.
However it might be worth investing in something like the Osram Nightbreaker Unlimited bulbs, claimed to give 120% more light and 40% greater beam length, with no additional power consumption.

Thanks for the replies, I didn't realise only one bulb worked on high beam.

However the main problem seems to be that the beam is not much higher, I.e. Shining down the road, than dip, which is why I mentioned about raising the lamps causing dazzle on dip.

I certainly don't want the expense of hid, as set up properly the halogens should be fine.

Ray.

 

[Brian UK]

The difference between the high and low beam is set within the H4 bulb, it will depend on the exact positioning of the respective filaments.
Try changing the bulb, or swapping left and right bulbs.
Had a faulty H4 in my daughter's car which gave a bad beam. Changed the bulb and all was well.
Always buy bulbs from a good source and get a known brand. There are lots of sub standard chinese copies on Ebay. I've been caught that way in the past.

 

[WayneOrwig]

However the main problem seems to be that the beam is not much higher, I.e. Shining down the road, than dip, which is why I mentioned about raising the lamps causing dazzle on dip.

I certainly don't want the expense of hid, as set up properly the halogens should be fine.

Ray.

Before I switched to HID (which is fairly cheap BTW), I ran into this.
In my case, what I had done was set the high beam too high. Each time I adjusted it, I kept thinking I needed to go higher. Until the dipped beam was starting to blind people. At that point I dropped the light way down and started over raising it. That is when I realized that I have gotten the high beam too high to work well.
Maybe that is related to what you have going on.

 

[nettshubby]

The difference between the high and low beam is set within the H4 bulb, it will depend on the exact positioning of the respective filaments.
Try changing the bulb, or swapping left and right bulbs.
Had a faulty H4 in my daughter's car which gave a bad beam. Changed the bulb and all was well.
Always buy bulbs from a good source and get a known brand. There are lots of sub standard chinese copies on Ebay. I've been caught that way in the past.

I know all about Halfords bulbs syndrome! I've been riding and driving since 1965, so I know what should do what. I will look into wiring both main bulbs together,

Why would they do it this way?

From what I've seen on cars coming the other way with HID, the light is bright, but very diffuse and not a very good concentrated beam.

Right now I'm mor bothered about my left wrist pumping up in town due to heavy clutch pull!

Ray.

 

[WitchCityBallabio]

However the main problem seems to be that the beam is not much higher, I.e. Shining down the road, than dip, which is why I mentioned about raising the lamps causing dazzle on dip.

I certainly don't want the expense of hid, as set up properly the halogens should be fine.

Ray.

Before I switched to HID (which is fairly cheap BTW), I ran into this.
In my case, what I had done was set the high beam too high. Each time I adjusted it, I kept thinking I needed to go higher. Until the dipped beam was starting to blind people. At that point I dropped the light way down and started over raising it. That is when I realized that I have gotten the high beam too high to work well.
Maybe that is related to what you have going on.

Wayne,

A couple of questions. How long have you had the HID's on? Do they last? I've heard some horror stories that the longevity is not great on them. I would like to change over to an HID partially because the color temp would be more similar to my LED aux lights.

Which ones have you used if you've had good luck and would recommend them?

I also really like the idea of those LED bulbs.

 

[WayneOrwig]

However the main problem seems to be that the beam is not much higher, I.e. Shining down the road, than dip, which is why I mentioned about raising the lamps causing dazzle on dip.

I certainly don't want the expense of hid, as set up properly the halogens should be fine.

Ray.

Before I switched to HID (which is fairly cheap BTW), I ran into this.
In my case, what I had done was set the high beam too high. Each time I adjusted it, I kept thinking I needed to go higher. Until the dipped beam was starting to blind people. At that point I dropped the light way down and started over raising it. That is when I realized that I have gotten the high beam too high to work well.
Maybe that is related to what you have going on.

Wayne,

A couple of questions. How long have you had the HID's on? Do they last? I've heard some horror stories that the longevity is not great on them. I would like to change over to an HID partially because the color temp would be more similar to my LED aux lights.

Which ones have you used if you've had good luck and would recommend them?

I also really like the idea of those LED bulbs.

I have a pair for the Stelvio from DDMTuning, plus one for my EV, and my results are mixed.
Generally, I'm glad I did it.
The pair in the Stelvio has been in there for about 20,000 miles. No problems.
The bulb in the EV failed after about 20,000 miles. I bought a replacement H4 high/low bulb pair and they are now different design. The new high/low function was garbage. I moved the bare bulb into the old mount to get a good high/low bulb.
On the EV one side of the bulb electrode had eroded on one side. I inspected the two bulbs in the Stelvio and they are fine.
My daily commute brings me home at 1am. The light is great for me, and there is no risk of melting the headlight like the incandescents.

 

[WitchCityBallabio]

Thanks!

From what I've seen and read, there's a ballast for these lights. Any problems with finding a spot for mounting?

 

[WayneOrwig]

Thanks!

From what I've seen and read, there's a ballast for these lights. Any problems with finding a spot for mounting?

They are very thin and waterproof. I just wire tied each onto the subframe on the sides.

Here is the important part. Notice the two bulbs in the photo below.The top bulb has a shield that wraps around the front of the light. It has a magnet that moves the bulb backward to put the light in the high beam position. That also uncovers a small window in the shield to bounce light off of the bottom of the reflector to give you a high beam. This bulb IMHO works better then an incandescent as far as light shielding, not blinding oncoming traffic, and still giving you a great high beam pattern.
That bottom bulb has a crap shield, blocking the high beam. It does not block light off of the end of the bulb that can blind people, even when on low. When you go from low to high, the bulb simply tilts up a few degrees. there is no hole that gets uncovered to bounce off of the lower part of the headlight reflector. Do NOT use this type of H4 high/low bulb.

 

[WitchCityBallabio]

Are both of those from DDM?

 

[WayneOrwig]

Are both of those from DDM?

Yes, the top one came with the kit I ordered for the EV (and Stelvio).
The bottom one came as a replacement only bulb.

 

[sanddweller]

For what it's worth - without going to HID or Xenon options, I swapped out the as-delivered bulb with Philips X-Treme Vision Plus bulbs i got form BikeVIs in UK.
These bulbs were a very good improvement http://www.bikevis.com/motorcycle-phili ... -plus.html
Although no help illuminating the road, I also popped in a couple of these LED wedges http://www.bikevis.com/motorcycle-t10-5 ... rance.html

 

[WayneOrwig]

For what it's worth - without going to HID or Xenon options, I swapped out the as-delivered bulb with Philips X-Treme Vision Plus bulbs i got form BikeVIs in UK.

If you use the high beam much, you WILL melt the reflector. Or at least peel the plating off of it.
Maybe even damage the switch, unless you added a relay.
BTDT.

 

[canuck1969]

For what it's worth - without going to HID or Xenon options, I swapped out the as-delivered bulb with Philips X-Treme Vision Plus bulbs i got form BikeVIs in UK.

If you use the high beam much, you WILL melt the reflector. Or at least peel the plating off of it.
Maybe even damage the switch, unless you added a relay.
BTDT.

I have run these light for a while and have had no such problem nore ever heard of this happening to anyone. They are the same wattage as the stock bulb so not sure why it would damage the switch since the draw is the same and the heat output is the same. Did this happen to you Wayne......

This is directly from their brochure..........

Does this bulb generate more heat?
No, the bulb uses a standard wattage so no extra heat is generated.

Are they safe to use with plastic lenses?
Yes, due to the fact that no extra heat is generated and the product is manufactured with quartz glass - this prevents any UV rays from leaving the bulb.

How does the bulb generate more light without increasing the wattage?
This is achieved through improved design and the use of a xenon/halogen gas mix in the bulb for greater efficiency

 

[WayneOrwig]

For what it's worth - without going to HID or Xenon options, I swapped out the as-delivered bulb with Philips X-Treme Vision Plus bulbs i got form BikeVIs in UK.

If you use the high beam much, you WILL melt the reflector. Or at least peel the plating off of it.
Maybe even damage the switch, unless you added a relay.
BTDT.

I have run these light for a while and have had no such problem nore ever heard of this happening to anyone. They are the same wattage as the stock bulb so not sure why it would damage the switch since the draw is the same and the heat output is the same. Did this happen to you Wayne......

This is directly from their brochure..........

Does this bulb generate more heat?
No, the bulb uses a standard wattage so no extra heat is generated.

Are they safe to use with plastic lenses?
Yes, due to the fact that no extra heat is generated and the product is manufactured with quartz glass - this prevents any UV rays from leaving the bulb.

How does the bulb generate more light without increasing the wattage?
This is achieved through improved design and the use of a xenon/halogen gas mix in the bulb for greater efficiency

Yes, my reflector was damaged after about a year. But then I ride home in the dark with high beam on for a long periods of time.

The bulbs are standard wattage, but the filament design is a bit different so they concentrate a bit more heat at the filament.
They claim they are plastic safe, as in the quartz absorbs UV, so the UV does not discolor the clear front cover of the headlight. They don't care about the plastic mounting or reflector in that statement. In fact, the bulb will be absorbing energy and running the bulb a touch hotter, tending to melt the plastic more.

In my case, the damage was mainly due to the extended use of the high beam. The alternate bulbs just made it a bit worse. If you aren't using the high beam for longer periods of time, it may be a non issue. I tried to design an aluminum retaining plate to help carry the heat away, but the switch to HID resolved the problem.