'04 R1150RT LEDs

[kruuuzn]

Has anyone found a good plug-n-play LED headlight bulb package for this bike? Including the built in fog lights?

 

After doing some night riding after installing my new Clearwater LEDs I'd like to upgrade the rest of the lights on the front of the bike. Man, LEDs sure make a difference.

[Claudio]

My goto for LED is Cyclops. Very happy with them on our F800GS/650GS. They make a generic H7 and given the space we have in/around the headlamp it should work.

 

These at JP cycle claim to fit/suit the R1150RT specifically but I haven't any experience with the brands they carry: https://www.jpcycles.com/2003-bmw-r1150rt-abs/headlight-bulbs/led

[Lowndes]

Kruuuzn,

 

I've replaced every possible bulb including instrument bulbs on three '99-'00 BMW's and our family cars.

 

A good source of info is https://www.superbrightleds.com/  They have a very good "vehicle bulb finder" that includes bikes:  https://www.superbrightleds.com/vehicle

 

They also have a very good selection of bulbs with colors, temperatures (Kelvins), and lumens (brightness).  For headlight bulbs, blinkers, and turn signals I find the brightest (most lumens) available.  

 

For amber and red lenses (plastic covers) select the same color LED for max brightness.  If your bike is CANBUS, be sure to select those CANBUS bulbs.  

 

I purchased a CYCLOPS headlight for my '99 R1100S that is doing very well.  For my other bikes I've purchased LED on eBay for much less with good results.  Most LED's sold are for cars so they come in pairs (you get a spare), BUT they often advertise a COMBINED lumens (each bulb is half the advertised lumens) so be careful.  

 

Most of these LED's have a cooling fan on the rear of the bulb.  LED's do produce some heat and LED's must kept cool and the heat removed.  Sometimes mods are required to clear the rear dust cover on the headlight bulbs.  On two bikes the fans are mounted inside and clear the cover, one bike required a hole in the rubber cover for the fan.  NO problem.  DO NOT bother with the "finned" heat sink LED bulbs - there isn't enough air circulation behind the fairing to keep these working.

 

I look in my rear view mirror on group rides and the bikes with LED headlights JUMP OUT because of brightness and WHITE LIGHT.   "To each his own", I guess.  I really like seeing where I'm going and being seen (by all the folks that persist in driving with their noses in their cell phones).

 

Super Bright also has a $7 programmable modulator that works well with the brake light.  They even have one with a "credit card remote" to activate/deactivate or change the flash pattern.

 

https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/K2IPwgHeBf4bSifzw-jOkvV82AcN5xk_WvbYXXJkAYkkVUU8uFa2fvTQMcN5gAroFReIX3G6TPcx1cGpQdEgEATohAZ7IVoacjT2UNMutLvbUlmwkzAABY7vPMXLN3DL8q6Cz4Tby1V87bNNMX_FDSs0etD6v4du6VXQEyhMSNkkE8XUPVIvMOrFURIhaGr3OHE-3CxuL-q4NL5AyIuBWg2Key-Xx-YBIKT7Px3vq84tycQO9Uw7fLXnqpFUaVKJAaV_fASUO9CrNGCaJRXPWMCiC6xRRBMYpgirOD4FXs2aw7ZJ8IIA_i6WWWIJhMX1Qhmd_8EZmsfE1H7Nssd6A744fyD-960ZyM7a0lMGLwFMYBtdT35AQb_qMx-F1cHBKN7UE1VwzxJ2BDMWNPlFQlzQdquiBLnpxX5zTdIrGQ82_9l9Q4sVa-Q26QMNLCvatXhuFnbCY8nvIiVojyCBjMViEzxPof4ecApEWELuq0HTfdVOqHY5_gCwCcfd6Z3SuWKQOTqTcSt7Yj_CSWRQbFOycTm-LR2eCTOPcJhDF-UvsDNsQAqXia7NFVJOdt9IdMZgrCFA-83egcqr4A3yq1uaQIbd94sLh1ymvra9u11lmLr5Nl3S7CL8Aw0SsKVKr1lf9ho9kGgSAxib5tJxs3kWm2bsfq5hWFM5hdJ6ZfO0JSMoeEkHUVSd4M3jT2j3QmNTAut1wpQmXOdv9IVFMVlE-meUzVP0wzf4cV-GRHXUx17z6g=s250-k-rw-no

 

[RogerC60]

Last winter I replaced the low beam headlight and the fog lights on my '03 R1150RT with LED bulbs. First I tried the recommended low beam bulb from superbrightleds.com, but the heat sink was too large to permit the headlight housing cover to fasten in place.

 

I returned it and chose this from Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07GKRKN5B. It fits well and gives me lots more light than the stock halogen bulb.

 

For fog lights I used this: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01CTMT01G. I chose amber because I wanted that color for conspicuity. I run with fog lights on all the time. One negative to this particular bulb: the notches on the mounting plate are 90 degrees out of phase. The bulbs need to be oriented in the housing with the LEDs facing left/right; as delivered they face front/back. I solved this with a Dremel tool.

 

I'm still looking for a LED solution for the high beam. The manuals that came with my bike call for an H1 high beam, but the bulb in there now is an H3. Apparently there's a misprint in the manuals. I'm thinking about this one, but haven't bought it yet: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01L91ANWS.

 

Here's the beam pattern I get with these bulbs:

 

[kruuuzn]

Thanks everyone for the responses.

 

Roger, how in the world did you determine those bulbs would work before you ordered them? Whenever I start reading up on LED bulbs my eyes start to glaze over. There seems to be a lot of info (and misinformation) to wade through. Some appear to have external drivers, some don’t. Some have fans, some have heat sinks. Etc, etc. Pretty confusing. Not to mention the fitment issues in the RT headlight housing. 

 

I HAVE found the high beam to be a tough one to find also. Neither Superbrightleds or Cyclops stock a bulb for the high beam.

 

I too run with my stock fog lights on all the time but I think I'll stick with white bulbs since I just installed Clearwater LEDs down on my fork tubes and those have amber lens covers. I don't think my OCD could handle two different shades of amber. LOL

[RogerC60]

6 hours ago, kruuuzn said:

Roger, how in the world did you determine those bulbs would work before you ordered them? Whenever I start reading up on LED bulbs my eyes start to glaze over. There seems to be a lot of info (and misinformation) to wade through. Some appear to have external drivers, some don’t. Some have fans, some have heat sinks. Etc, etc. Pretty confusing. Not to mention the fitment issues in the RT headlight housing. 

 

I did lots of reading on LED bulbs and beam patterns. What I learned is that in order for an LED bulb to produce an acceptable beam pattern in a reflector housing its light source (the LED chips) must closely mimic the physical structure of a halogen incandescent bulb. That means the mounting substrate (the circuit board up the middle of the LED bulb) must be very thin so that the LED chips are physically located right where the coily filament of the halogen bulb would be. Also, the LED chips need to be at the same distance away from the mounting flange as the incandescent bulb's filament. The bulbs I chose meet those requirements.

 

As to fitment, I started with a bulb that didn't fit: the one from superbrightleds. I figured out how much smaller it would need to be, and then started looking for LED bulbs that measured up (or down, in this case :-) The Amazon web page for the bulb I chose gave physical dimensions of all the parts of the bulb, making it easy for me to know ahead of time that it would fit.

[EvilTwin]

9 hours ago, RogerC60 said:

 

I did lots of reading on LED bulbs and beam patterns. What I learned is that in order for an LED bulb to produce an acceptable beam pattern in a reflector housing its light source (the LED chips) must closely mimic the physical structure of a halogen incandescent bulb. That means the mounting substrate (the circuit board up the middle of the LED bulb) must be very thin so that the LED chips are physically located right where the coily filament of the halogen bulb would be. Also, the LED chips need to be at the same distance away from the mounting flange as the incandescent bulb's filament. The bulbs I chose meet those requirements.

 

 

That is exactly the problem with retrofitting LED or HID bulbs into a reflector that was never designed for them.  Way back in the day I worked for a company that designed and manufactured "Forward Lighting" OEM systems for several lines of cars and trucks.  The work that goes into creating the reflector surface so that the light pattern meets SAE and DOT standards is incredible.   Everything is computer modeled then prototyped and then finally in house tested before being submitted for government approval.  The designs are bulb specific down to fractions of a MM where the filament is.  If you look at a typical halogen bulb, the filament is pretty much a 360 degree design in 3 dimensions.   There is no LED that is going to mimic that, no matter what is advertised.  And none of the conversions advertise that they meet DOT standards, because nothing is tested and even if it was, it wouldn't pass.

 

Lighting up the road in front of you like it's daylight is great, for you.  Not so much fun for the drivers coming in the opposite direction.  I understand that it's more critical on a bike to be seen,  but that is more an issue during the day.  At night you are plenty visible to oncoming traffic.  Its from the rear that I think brighter lights can really help.  

 

 

[kruuuzn]

Thanks for the explanation Roger.

 

I'm assuming these two bulbs use an internal driver? I've seen other bulbs that use an inline external driver. Not sure of the pros and cons of each besides the obvious physical room needed.

 

I'd be interested in what you decide on the high beam bulb. Have you considered upgrading the other bulbs like the tail light and flashers?

 

Ya, good points ET. I've been wondering how LEDs would be perceived by on coming traffic since LEDs are so much brighter and the geometry of the hundreds of bulbs available vary widely.

 

Roger, have you had any feedback on your new bulbs? I suppose the headlight could be adjusted down if they shined in the eyes of oncoming traffic but there's no adjustment on the fog lights. What you get is what you get.

 

 

[AndyS]

7 minutes ago, EvilTwin said:

 

That is exactly the problem with retrofitting LED or HID bulbs into a reflector that was never designed for them.  Way back in the day I worked for a company that designed and manufactured "Forward Lighting" OEM systems for several lines of cars and trucks.  The work that goes into creating the reflector surface so that the light pattern meets SAE and DOT standards is incredible.   Everything is computer modeled then prototyped and then finally in house tested before being submitted for government approval.  The designs are bulb specific down to fractions of a MM where the filament is.  If you look at a typical halogen bulb, the filament is pretty much a 360 degree design in 3 dimensions.   There is no LED that is going to mimic that, no matter what is advertised.  And none of the conversions advertise that they meet DOT standards, because nothing is tested and even if it was, it wouldn't pass.

 

Lighting up the road in front of you like it's daylight is great, for you.  Not so much fun for the drivers coming in the opposite direction.  I understand that it's more critical on a bike to be seen,  but that is more an issue during the day.  At night you are plenty visible to oncoming traffic.  Its from the rear that I think brighter lights can really help.  

 

 

 

Hi EvilTwin. You know, a few years ago I would have agreed with you. However, with high quality LED's  I now don't. LED design is such that the illuminating package is as small (if not smaller) than that of the wound filament of a conventional lamp. This means that it can give the same - is not more accurate beam placement than that of the wound filament. If you look at the beam patterns being produced now, there are some extremely sharp cut off's with very little stray light outside of the cut off lines.

 

I am VERY MUCH with you on the annoyance of lighting (particularly from motorcycles). This forum is full of folks who are fitting Clearwater's and lamps of their ilk. They then ride around with them wound up in the name of conspicuity with not a care for others around them. (PS I use Clearwater's too, but make sure that apart from high beam they are either off (preferred) or on minimum settings - which is still WAY too bright when we are talking about Erica's.)

[kruuuzn]

26 minutes ago, AndyS said:

 

I am VERY MUCH with you on the annoyance of lighting (particularly from motorcycles). This forum is full of folks who are fitting Clearwater's and lamps of their ilk. They then ride around with them wound up in the name of conspicuity with not a care for others around them. (PS I use Clearwater's too, but make sure that apart from high beam they are either off (preferred) or on minimum settings - which is still WAY too bright when we are talking about Erica's.)

 

 

Agreed. The main reason I went with the Clearwater Darlas was to get the adjustability. I couldn't in good conscience ride around with high powered lights shinning in everyone's eyes. That's why I'm leery of upgrading my headlight and fog lights to LEDs.

[RogerC60]

My RT has a headlight height adjuster knob on the dashboard and I use that to adjust the beam down to proper height. For reference I use my 2014 Nissan Rogue which has LED projector headlights with a self-leveling system. Bike and car side by side, I adjust the bike so that its beam is comparable to the car's.

 

But yeah, without making the adjustment I could blind oncoming traffic. And from the get go I did understand that I've now got a headlight that's not approved. So far I've not gotten the attention of the cops, so either my headlight is not obnoxious or they're too busy with other things. But one thing's for sure: I can now see the road in front of me at night, whereas before I could not.

 

[RogerC60]

1 hour ago, kruuuzn said:

Thanks for the explanation Roger.

 

I'm assuming these two bulbs use an internal driver? I've seen other bulbs that use an inline external driver. Not sure of the pros and cons of each besides the obvious physical room needed.

 

I'd be interested in what you decide on the high beam bulb. Have you considered upgrading the other bulbs like the tail light and flashers?

 

Ya, good points ET. I've been wondering how LEDs would be perceived by on coming traffic since LEDs are so much brighter and the geometry of the hundreds of bulbs available vary widely.

 

Roger, have you had any feedback on your new bulbs? I suppose the headlight could be adjusted down if they shined in the eyes of oncoming traffic but there's no adjustment on the fog lights. What you get is what you get.

 

 

I did replace the brake light with an LED, and at the same time I added another tail/brake light bar (LED) just above the license plate. I drive both brake lights with a modulator I bought from superbrightleds. I haven't replaced the tail light bulb yet, nor the turn signals.

 

On a couple of occasions my wife has been driving in front of me in the car, once in the daytime and once at night. In the daytime she says my headlight really stands out, and at night it wasn't blinding her through the rear view mirror. That's the only feedback I've gotten so far.

[joeyjamb]

Anyone use those "whiter" halogen bulbs like the silverstar? I would imagine they work better with the reflectors.

[kruuuzn]

On 9/7/2019 at 10:07 PM, joeyjamb said:

Anyone use those "whiter" halogen bulbs like the silverstar? I would imagine they work better with the reflectors.

 

I've wondered that myself and would be interested in experienced comments.

[rondmc]

I'm currently running this Hikari LED low beam from Amazon: https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B07GKRKN5B/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o03_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

it gives a good pattern, nice even light, and fits inside the light cover on my '04 RT.

 

these fog lamps are great: https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B07PJNWRHV/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

i love that i have the option of white or amber simply by turning the switch off/back on.

 

i'm sure others that have been mentioned are great; but for reference, the above bulbs fit great in my bike, and i found a couple others that did not.

 

ride hard!

ron

 

[kruuuzn]

Thanks rondmc.

 

That's cool. Those are the same low beams Roger recommended above. Have you also found a high beam bulb that fits well?

 

The dual color on the fog light bulbs is interesting. Have they been working well for you? Do they always switch OK? No problems of one lighting white and the other yellow?

[rondmc]

kruuzn, i've had no problems with the switching fog lamps. i don't believe i've had issues with them getting confused... maybe once? i've ridden mostly in daylight since getting them.  and even if they get confused, it's simple to reset them by turning off for 5 seconds then back on.

 

i haven't had luck yet on the high beam, because i couldn't figure out how to remove the old one!  i've got it on my list for winter upgrades, when i have more time to fiddle with it.