'80 GS850G Headlight Burnt Out In Days

[Guest]

The low-beam on my headlight burnt out last week, I'm pretty sure it was several years old (I've only had the bike about 8 months). I replaced it with a new SilverStar(9003, pretty sure that was the right one, same wattage and whatnot) a few days ago. Both filaments on the new one burnt out last night simultaneously (that was a sketchy ride home). I put the old one back in for now, just running on high-beam all the time, and it works fine.

I've had no other electrical problems.

Did I just get a bad or wrong bulb the second time? Any Ideas?

[tom203]

Why not do this Quick test to find out how your charging system is doing... You might have a faulty r/r

http://www.thegsresources.com/_forum/showthread.php?164993-Charging-System-QUICK-TEST/page2&p=1272192#post1272192

[roeme]

Yeah, sounds like the voltage going too high.

[Brendan W]

Classic symptom of a failed regulator.

[Steve]

I'm curious how both filaments burned out simultaneously.

.

[Brendan W]

Top filament broke and dropped onto the other ? I seen some fail and then the floppy filament reattaches itself and works again for a bit.
It was a bad bulb?
They don't make 'em like they used to ?

[jabcb]

I’ve read that Sylvania doesn’t recommend their SilverStar bulbs for Honda & BMW cars because those manufacturers set their electrical systems up to run at a somewhat higher voltage than typical.
The extra output of the high performance bulbs comes with the penalty of voltage sensitivity.


Your GS electrical system may be in spec but provide too much voltage for the SilverStar bulbs.

[roeme]

I’ve read that Sylvania doesn’t recommend their SilverStar bulbs for Honda & BMW cars because those manufacturers set their electrical systems up to run at a somewhat higher voltage than typical.
The extra output of the high performance bulbs comes with the penalty of voltage sensitivity.


Your GS electrical system may be in spec but provide too much voltage for the SilverStar bulbs.

It's my experience as well that most bulbs advertised as higher <blah, blah, blah> do fail earlier than any plain, non-special bulb.
Which makes sense, given that they have to drive the filaments harder.

However, I never experienced, nor heard from them failing within days because of this. Back when it did happen to me, both the Regulator and Rectifier were on their dying gasp.

I'm willing to bet this is the case here.

[JJ]

It's my experience as well that most bulbs advertised as higher <blah, blah, blah> do fail earlier than any plain, non-special bulb.
Which makes sense, given that they have drive the filaments harder...

I bought a pack of Sylvania Silverstar Ultra bulbs in my truck a year or so ago. It stated on the package that the life expectancy is shorter than the factory bulbs. They are a good bit brighter!

[Grimly]

I had an old Renault with a dodgy regulator like that, once. On a winding back road, everything went absolutely brilliantly blue-white, for about a second, before pitch blackness.
Not fun at that precise moment, I recall. I sussed what had gone wrong, disconnected the regulator and went home on the dipped beams, running off battery power.
Ironically, the current crop of LED headlamps put out pretty much the same colour temperature as I recall those blowing filaments did.