What kind of driving lights do you have on your k1200?

[SweetT]

I spent the better part of the afternoon today putting on some Hella driving lights I ordered from JC Whitney. My last pair of lights on my K75 were Hella FF50s and those were just great! So I thought I couldn't go wrong with another set of Hellas. Not FF50s this time as they wont fit under the oil cooler.

The new lights I put on absolutley suck. They are "projector" type lights and hardly throw out any light at all. Even when I squat down to view them at eye level they dont seem as bright as my low beam. Plus, the reflector is made so that the light shines down on the ground instead of reaching far into the darkness like I want them too. And Yes I did wire, adjust, and install them correctly.

So here's what I'm looking for: A bright driving light that will shoot a lot of light down the road so I can see bambi beside the road long before he decides to make a break for it. I guess you'd call it a "pencil beam?" I also want them to be small enough to fit under the oil cooler.

I went back through my old issues of the ON and read the article about driving lights and the only types they tested were the huge PIAA lights that are the size of saucers and some really expensive HID lamps. While I was impressed with the HID lights, I'm not ready to shell out $500 for lights.

Surely someone out there has lights similar to what I'm looking for. Tell me, what are you using?

[jibimy]

MotoLights are good. I live on a private road in GA, with many deer. The motolights always shed light on them. I had them taken off my old KLT and put on my new one. The give good three-points of light for other to see you as well.

Motolights cast a very bright horizontal beem, at least as good as my bike's headlight low beam, but wider.

[SweetT]

Yeah, I guess I do want to have a little bit of light cast off to the side of the road, so maybe a "pencil beam" light isn't what I want.

Although the box the lights came in clearly says "driving light" I've noticed they have more of a spread like a fog light, or my ex-girlfriends hips. Low and wide. :laugh

I've been checking out the PIAA website and it looks like I might bite the bullet and get a pair of P1100XT. $180 for lights seems kind of steep...but if it keeps me from hitting that deer... I can always justify any motorcycle expense under the guise of "safety." :clap

[bmdubyou]

Hey...I was about to buy some from Whitneys as well. I actually live near their store and I looked at some of the Optimas which are made by Hella but didnt think any of them looked like what I wanted (ff50) and their stock numbers dont correspond with Hellas'. Anyway, I was curious which ones you ordered?

[SweetT]

I just checked thier web site and they are the hella projector FOG LAMPS?!?! Wha? :banghead

I ordered these over the phone and described what I wanted to the salesperson ( I even specifically asked for driving lamps) and this is what they sent me. Nowhere on the box does it say anything about these being fog lamps. In fact it says in large letters that these are driving lamps, so I can see how someone would be confused.

I guess I'll be more careful next time before I call and order something without consulting the catalog first.

[SHawn_P]

Tarren,

How are things over there in Cowboy country after the win over TexasTech?

I ride through 'deer country' a lot over here as well.

For lights I have:
* HID low beam
* Hella Micro fog lights under the nose
* Hella FF200s (no-HID) under the mirrors...

http://www.bmwlt.com/gallery/files/4/8/9/4/all_lights_on.jpg

[Will]

I don't know my lights help me spot deer but they help when driving through city freeway and roads at night, also I seem to be seen by drivers more during day. can actually see at night on low beam unlike only using the standard low beam. I suppose if I wanted to shine deer I could just aim them into the ditches. anyway..

Went to farm store (fleet farm) after looking at all of the local parts houses, JC Whitney etc. what I ended up with are some that have a standard 55 W halogen bulb, rectangle shape that allows both to fit perfectly under head light. These were packaged as driving lights. Had to drill out the mounting bracket to a little larger size to allow radiator mount bolt to fit.

lights 29.99 for pair,
relay 3.99
electrical tape
couple of wire connectors
couple of hours to install
power fused directly to the battery
relay switched to key on, no on off switch added for these additional lights
aimed to fill in just under and to sides of low beam standard aim

[frisbeebmw]

Check Ebay for many models available from CATZ. I have XLO's on my Triumph Tiger and XSL's on my K1200rs. Very cost affordable if you're patient....and most effective. I prefer the fog patters due to the great amount of light on the sides, and I like the amber look so as not to give the pilot (me) a sudden case of night blindness when I switch the lights off for oncoming traffic.

[messenger13]

I'm a MotoLight fan! And their customer service is SECOND-TO-NONE!!!
This winter, I'm converting the stock low-beam to HID.

http://home.alltel.net/paulsey_dsl/messenger13/motolights.jpg

[RUBBERT]

I have always installed the highest wattage bulb I could use without burning the bike up(a real possibility). This alone is more than some get with additional lights. I never go for the "100watt light out of a 60watt bulb" and have used many different brands over the years. At this point I HIGHLY prefer Hella bulbs and never use PIAA.

On my K1200s I have all three changed to 100watt Hella Optilux and love it!