Headlights. Problem.

[KTM_95]

I converted my 05 RT to HID lights and I am STILL not happy. I think the light is aimed too low. When I turn on my HIGH beams combined with my HID lights THEN I can see more than 1 second in front of me at 50MPH. Are my lights aimed too low or what? I was out night riding and at 50 mph I could only see 1 full second ahead of me with just the lows on. I don't want to blind people, but I want to see the damn road! The HID's are amazing for the side and the bit of the road that gets the light...

 

What should I do?

[RodB]

Try adjusting your lights so that they aim higher.

[marcls]

I converted my 05 RT to HID lights and I am STILL not happy. I think the light is aimed too low. When I turn on my HIGH beams combined with my HID lights THEN I can see more than 1 second in front of me at 50MPH. Are my lights aimed too low or what? I was out night riding and at 50 mph I could only see 1 full second ahead of me with just the lows on. I don't want to blind people, but I want to see the damn road! The HID's are amazing for the side and the bit of the road that gets the light...

 

What should I do?

 

Here's a link to aiming headlights that I found useful:

 

http://www.danielsternlighting.com/tech/aim/aim.html

 

Marc

 

[JayW]

I converted my 05 RT to HID lights and I am STILL not happy. I think the light is aimed too low. When I turn on my HIGH beams combined with my HID lights THEN I can see more than 1 second in front of me at 50MPH.

 

Something is definitely not right. My factory headlights do much better than that (plenty of light as-is IMHO).

 

Jay

[marcopolo]

I converted my 05 RT to HID lights and I am STILL not happy. I think the light is aimed too low. When I turn on my HIGH beams combined with my HID lights THEN I can see more than 1 second in front of me at 50MPH.

 

Something is definitely not right. My factory headlights do much better than that (plenty of light as-is IMHO).

 

Jay

 

Ditto for me.

 

I've read some articles linked in posts on this forum that state that converting to HIDs is not as simple as some claim (mainly those selling conversion kits). The point seemed to be that an HID light source does not work properly when enclosed in a reflector designed for the halogen bulb that was there originally.

[KTM_95]

I converted my 05 RT to HID lights and I am STILL not happy. I think the light is aimed too low. When I turn on my HIGH beams combined with my HID lights THEN I can see more than 1 second in front of me at 50MPH.

 

Something is definitely not right. My factory headlights do much better than that (plenty of light as-is IMHO).

 

Jay

 

Ditto for me.

 

I've read some articles linked in posts on this forum that state that converting to HIDs is not as simple as some claim (mainly those selling conversion kits). The point seemed to be that an HID light source does not work properly when enclosed in a reflector designed for the halogen bulb that was there originally.

 

Well, the HID conversion IS very simple, it is all plug and play. I don't sell the kit either! LOL!

 

I will go out tonite and see if I can adjust everything.

[KTM_95]

I converted my 05 RT to HID lights and I am STILL not happy. I think the light is aimed too low. When I turn on my HIGH beams combined with my HID lights THEN I can see more than 1 second in front of me at 50MPH. Are my lights aimed too low or what? I was out night riding and at 50 mph I could only see 1 full second ahead of me with just the lows on. I don't want to blind people, but I want to see the damn road! The HID's are amazing for the side and the bit of the road that gets the light...

 

What should I do?

 

Here's a link to aiming headlights that I found useful:

 

http://www.danielsternlighting.com/tech/aim/aim.html

 

Marc

 

That link is rather confusing. What is the "Axis" of each bulb?

[ducatiparts.110mb]

Just go out in the dark, sit on the bike half a dozen bike lengths away from a wall and turn the adjuster till the top of the dipped beam is at about the same level as the headlight.

 

Go for a ride and check whether the top of the beam is at about the bottom of the rear window level on most cars. That should give you a decent aim.

 

If you get flashed by too may cars lower the beam, if you can't see then raise it.

 

Its not rocket science.

[Bruce H]

I took mine out at night on a deserted road and adjusted it until I could see to my satisfaction. I see well with the low beam and I don't get flashed. The high beam us useless as it is not aimable separtly, it shines in the air. I put on a pair of after market 100 watt lights I use for high beam. I would like to see it head on in a car with someone else on my bike just to be sure.

[Survived-til-now]

I took mine out at night on a deserted road and adjusted it until I could see to my satisfaction. I see well with the low beam and I don't get flashed. The high beam us useless as it is not aimable separtly, it shines in the air. I put on a pair of after market 100 watt lights I use for high beam. I would like to see it head on in a car with someone else on my bike just to be sure.

 

For those putting HID "bulbs" in the 1200RT........

 

As you say - you can only adjust the whole light unit and not the high & low lamps separately - and I found that the beam on my left low lamp was slightly higher than my right low. Rember that in the UK we drive on the left). Getting the left beam low enough so that I didn't dazzle other drivers wing mirrors meant that when the left was set correctly both the right low and the main beam spread were slightly too low.

 

The solution I hit upon was to wrap a small piece of electrical copper wire around the lug on the H7 bulb fitment this tilts the HID "bulb" up very slightly in the reflector thus lowering the left beam - the whole unit can then be set by the adjuster and all three beams are now correct.

 

It's a tiny adjustment that stays within the tolerance of the reflector's design but solves the problem you describe. You could try it on your main beam bulb..........