We Shine Some Light on Motorcycle Lights
I'm sure that most motorcycle owners only think about the front and rear lights when they stop working. Like your brakes, these critical safety equipment is often overlooked – until they stop working. And that's stupid as there's a lot of stuff you probably didn't know about your motorcycle lights. Do you know how the difference between a regular light bulb and a HID light? Or did you know that light bulbs can influence your fuel efficiency?It's best that you know a bit more how your motorcycle's lights work, you will be better prepared to maintain them, so other road users can see you before you slam into them. Also, it is interesting to look into what is currently available as alternative light bulbs.
Most motorcycles are equipped with quartz-iodine lights, it uses a small light bulb build inside a reflector assembly. Modern sealing materials and techniques make quartz-iodine lights very durable and reliable. The quartz glass used for the housing can withstand high-temperatures, which allows the filament to remain at a much higher temperature and therefore this lights are much brighter than conventional bulb lights.
HID lights are often installed as replacement light bulbs. And you can find plenty of aftermarker conversions for popular motorcycle models. These aftermarket HID conversions use an HID arc lamp and a ballast, and are designed to retrofit into a conventional socket and reflector designed conventional light bulbs. HID light conversion kits often not cost that much. The downside is that the shape of the original bulb is different from the shape of the arc in the HID light, which makes the HID beam pattern not as safe for other road users, as you maybe see much better, your headlight will also throw this bright light in some undesired directions.
