Headlight Rewire with Relays

[al_roethlisberger]

So, I'm going to embark upon rewiring the headlight with relays to circumvent the stock wiring, as mentioned here:

 

http://www.v11lemans.com/forums/index.php?...3&hl=relay&st=0

 

 

But here's a question: When the high-beam is on, I assume(believe) that the low-beam is disabled. If so, with the new external work-around and in theory less of an issue with electrical capacity.... would it be beneficial to wire the system such that both the low and high filaments are on when the high-beam is on?

 

al

 

 

P.S. Thanks again, and credit to Gary Cheek for the diagram below:

[Guest Gary Cheek]

The heat may be too much for the glass . No real benefit . You can try it; on some bikes the high beam winker will turn on the high beam while the low is on . You can the turn the low off by flipping the dimmer to high while holding the winker too , watching the difference .

An auxilliary light or two would be a more efficient use of the Guzzi's limited dynamo capacity .

[docc]

I agree with Gary. Although I have a 16 guage hot to two separate relays for the hi/lo, I plan to add a dedicated ground to the frame ( maybe taking in the tach as well).

 

Also a frame to engine earth strap ( there is none in the stock set-up).

[andy york]

I would not worry about the heat as far as the glass is cocerned, its the small PLASTIC reflector that Guido so kindly put in the LeMans.

Its a shame they could not have used a regular V11 Headlamp .Oh well, I'll continue my search for a real headlamp for my LeMans,Maybe even one of those fancy arc light thingeys!!

 

 

Cheers andy

[rossojoj]

Probably a stupid question but does the headlight-relay rewire benefit all Guzzi V11s, or has the wiring been changed on later (2002+?) models that make this mod less effective or useful?

My understanding from reading Gary's mail is that it would apply to all V11s no matter what vintage, but just wanted to be sure before embarking on what is, for me, some complicated electrical job

I have a brand new 2004 Ballabio but certainly the headlight efficiency could be improved. Also, at least for EU models (or is it just Germany?) there is no light on/off/sidelight switch - the headlight is on dipped beam when starting the engine. Is there some way of working the mod so that power goes first to the starter and then to the headlight if there is enough juice on the battery?

regards

Jonathan

[dlaing]

Newer models will benefit less, but still benefit.

Older US models have an underated relay, that will wear out early if you use the horn or high beam flasher.

I am not sure about the European bikes that do not dim. but I suspect if they do not dim they will not have the overloaded relay problem.

Older non-european models should either get the GEI relay or add the relays in the bucket.

Newer models are already reliable in this area and will likely benefit just from increased brightness and possibly greater wire harnass longevity.

I'll bet it would be simple to rig something up to dim the beams when starting.

but we would need a wiring diagram...

[Guest Bruce]

A tangential wonderment from deep in left field...

 

A road test in Rider Magazine claims that the Honda 599/919 headlight is 70% more effective than other single headlights due to a unique reflector arrangement. If this is true it looks like all or some of the bits and pieces could be adapted to the MG.

 

Possibly the answer to a maiden's prayer; an Italian bike with Japanese electrics.

[Guest robbrugg]

Question - how possible is it to just replace the entire headlight? Is the wiring and sizing compatible with others???

[jrt]

It should be pretty easy to swap out the headlight on a Sport- it's just a standard 8" (std. auto size...I could be wrong with the measurement). Dunno about the Le Mans, but it can't be that hard.

One should be able to swap out the entire bucket assembly and use whatever headlight and shell works best. I've been told (but I don't know for a fact) that the Ducati Monster headlight shell has a cutout on the right side which is perfect for the speedo cable routing.

J

[al_roethlisberger]

The headlight on the non-faired models(i.e. *not* LeMans ) should be a relatively easy swap/replacement if one so desired. As pointed out, it's a standard size, and is interchangeable with the Ducati Monster headlight(more or less, some fiddling probably required)... with the added benefit that the Ducati bucket actually has a slot for clearing the speedo cable that the MG doesn't have

 

 

Now with the LeMans, it's an odd size(7" I think) and just an odd animal all together. So yeah, you could probably find another light that would fit, but I don't know off hand.

 

What would be neat would be to find something from another manufacturer, that incorporated two projector beams in that 7" diameter, sorta like the headlight shown on the Breva1100 prototypes we've seen. Dunno if there is anything out there like that though. I haven't looked.

 

Since I don't do a lot of night riding, by choice, the headlight is a minor issue to me. It's at least as "good" or "bad" as my old FJ headlight, and I lived with that for years

 

al

[Guest Neronut]

One way to go for improved lighting is to install extra lights such as the ones from Motolight. I had them on my Aprilia Pegaso for about three years. I'm thinking of installing them on my goose, using the new caliper mount. That way the lights will be as low as possible and blend with the colors in that area better than the normal strap to the ( Ohlins) sliders arangement.

 

www.motolight.com

[Guest Gary Cheek]

Probably a stupid question  but does the headlight-relay rewire benefit all Guzzi V11s, or has the wiring been changed on later (2002+?) models that make this mod less effective or useful?

My understanding from reading Gary's mail is that it would apply to all V11s no matter what vintage, but just wanted to be sure before embarking on what is, for me, some complicated electrical job 

I have a brand new 2004 Ballabio but certainly the headlight efficiency could be improved. Also, at least for EU models (or is it just Germany?) there is no light on/off/sidelight switch - the headlight is on dipped beam when starting the engine.  Is there some way of working the mod so that power goes first to the starter and then to the headlight if there is enough juice on the battery?

regards

Jonathan

The benefits of improved lighting with the relay pkg are shared by all Guzzis . Any problem with early relays aside , the headlight current in standard Guzzi wiring ,old and new flollows a ridiculous path through small switches and light gauge wire . A reminder and thanks to Docc ,that the GROUND side of the circuit needs attention as well . Be sure to run a 16 gauge wire from the headlamp to a FRAME ground or ,if you prefer to the battery negative . The short distance from the headlight to the battery makes the battery negative post a viable alternative to a frame ground point . If you have a digital volmeter you can measure the voltage at the headlight before and after the conversion . Use high beam with the engine turning 3500 rpm so you will get a good idea of the improvement.

 

Regarding burning both filaments;

The HEAT in the bulb GLASS may indeed be too much . The H4 and 9003 glass envelope was not designed to handle the heat from the combination of both filaments burning at the same time .

[Guest ratchethack]

...extra lights such as the ones from Motolight...  I'm thinking of installing them on my goose, using the new caliper mount. 

A somewhat novel idea (I've actually seen this on choppers and chop/cruisers), but just a coupla thoughts -

 

First off - Brake, wheel, suspension, and tire engineers work very hard to minimize every gram of unsprung mass in the pursuit of better performance and handling. If you're bolting more mass onto the calipers there will be a price to pay in the behavior of the front end.

 

Next, have you ever looked down at your calipers when the front end is chattering over anything other than a smooth surface? The sheer violence that unsprung gear is subjected to usually dictates the use of forged, hardened, billet, and/or other kinds of the most robust materials. Just my opinion, but I'd expect any electrical component, particularly filaments, bulbs, sockets, reflectors, lenses, and any other parts of standard auxiliary lighting fastened to a caliper to be reduced to a trail of fragments and powder in pretty short order...

 

Just my .02

[Guest bshpilot]

RH...spoken like a person thats never had 'em....MOTOLIGHTS that is,

have you actually touched a pair ? theyre billet, high quality & have

a great fit/finish !

 

i have over 35,000 miles on a set and i can tell you they dont shake

rattle or vibrate...they have the original bulbs in 'em too !

 

in fact motolights backs their products w/ an UNLIMITED LIFETIME

warrenty...including the BULBS ! *I* broke a plug (self install) on 'em

and they sent an entire wiring harness to me FREE.

 

i had a lens fog early in my process (they admitted the issue

was the wire sheeth that they used) and the rewired the entire

bike when i was in daytona...FREE....they asked me to leave the

bike & they put me before some paying customers <w/out my

complaining or insistance>...to say the least i am impressed !

 

(they apparently no longer use the same wiring sheeth)

 

i highly recommend these lights & wish ALL my bikes had 'em....

theyre high quality BILLET MATERIAL and provide FANTASTIC

LIGHTING...w/out any vibration what so ever !

[Guest ratchethack]

have you actually touched a pair ?

To answer your question, no. But then not touching them doesn't necessarily limit my ability to form an accurate opinion - or would this also be an observation that you'd take offense to?

 

Per my post, you'll recall that I was referring to the previously posted idea of mounting auxilliary lights on brake calipers. You didn't indicate in your post that you had your lights mounted on the calipers for the 35,000 miles you referred to. Were they?

 

If so, it could be that I've learned something new and unexpected (it happens almost every day on this forum), and I thank you kindly in advance for your friendly contribution!