Faulty headlights or wiring?

[ShirleySerious]

Since this is the second time this has happened, I'm starting to get concerned. A few weeks ago, I changed out the headlight on my '78 GS550E. It was one of those Sylvania ones from Pep Boys. Before you give me sh*t for buying from Pep Boys, every other place I tried, online or not, either couldn't find it or didn't have a motorcycle type bulb in stock. Remember, I put it in a few weeks ago and I don't use the headlight during the day.

Tonight I was going on a ride and flipped on my high beams. I revved the engine to go a little faster and all of a sudden the beam turned blue like a xenon light and burnt out. I know bulbs burn out for a number of reasons, but let me remind you that this happened to the previous bulb before that.

I don't know if it's a voltage spike or what, but my high beams like to burn out really fast. Also, I'm assuming this happens with other GS's, my headlight's brightness depends on my engine speed. When I rev it, the bulb gets brighter.

I was thinking of using a bulb conversion kit. Is this worth it? And why is the high beam burning out so fast?

[terbang]

I'd be looking at the voltage across your battery (What your light is getting) at higher RPM before going too much further.

[SqDancerLynn1]

Definate voltage problem

[ShirleySerious]

So what do I do about it?

[Steve]

So what do I do about it?

The first thing to do is to measure the voltage. Connect a voltmeter across the battery terminals, start the bike. When it is properly warmed, read the voltage as you increase the RPM. Your voltage should peak no higher than 15 volts, but will likely be more like 14. (Anything over 13 is barely acceptable, but 14+ is better.) If it goes higher than 15, you can assume (OK, deduce) that your regulator is not regulating.

Find the regulator on your bike. There are probably 5 wires attached to it. Make sure that the connectors on all 5 are clean and tight. Pay particular attention to the ground wire. Use a jumper wire to connect it directly to the battery and do the voltage test again. If it is still high, your regulator is bad and must be replaced. Many times, a good ground wire will make things better.


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[smoothbomber23]

ahhh that happened to me on my way home from work tonight in the pitch black!!!! I'm gonna do the test tomorow!! Those bulbs are 10 bucks a pop, cant afford to buy a new one everytime i dig in on the throttle.

[focus frenzy]

ahhh that happened to me on my way home from work tonight in the pitch black!!!! I'm gonna do the test tomorow!! Those bulbs are 10 bucks a pop, cant afford to buy a new one everytime i dig in on the throttle.

only 10?? the bulb in my SV set me back $150!!

[BassCliff]

Hi,

I've been going through one Sylvania SilverStar H4 bulb every 10 or 12 months. When my last one went out I fixed a bad connection on the headlight socket and cleaned up the wiring in the headlight bucket. We'll see if this one lasts any longer. They are $20 at my local Pep Boys.

Be careful not to touch the bulb as you install it, only the metal frame. Any finger prints or skin oils on the bulb will cause it to run hot and burn out sooner.


Thank you for your indulgence,

BassCliff

[smoothbomber23]

150!?!? What kind of bulb are you using, im just using a Sylvania H4 from NAPA.

[focus frenzy]

150!?!? What kind of bulb are you using, im just using a Sylvania H4 from NAPA.

a metal halid arc lamp!! (HID) actualy the lamp itself is around $40 but it requires a balast/starter and a control relay for power and the switch over coil for high beam. all together the kit is $150 but it has no filiment to break so it is imune to vibrations that kill regular bulbs.

[smoothbomber23]

Ooo thats pretty cool.