LED headlight for 2013?

[John_Atkinson]

Have been looking for options and came across these:

https://www.amazon.ca/dp/B0CMZQ1SCF...otive&sp_csd=d2lkZ2V0TmFtZT1zcF9kZXRhaWw&th=1
Seems like a pretty healthy amount of lumens…wondering if anyone has any experience with the Firehawk bulbs.

Would welcome any feedback.
JA

 

[RossKean]

I haven't heard anything about those ones. Aftermarket H4's (9003) are a bit of a crapshoot. The problem is rarely insufficient light but a good beam pattern is the biggest complaint (generally much better now than they used to be). Unless someone has successfully tried them in a Gen III headlight bucket, you're taking your chances. (Apparently the Gen II bucket is different enough that there is no guarantee that one that works for a 2012 will be good in a 2013.)
Don't buy into the "more lumens are better" hype and avoid anything with a higher colour temperature.
I searched this forum and two other FJR forums and the only reference I found was your post on FJRowners...

Good luck if you decide to try them!

 

[FJRJayke]

I used these on my '13 and was pretty happy with them. I'm not an Amazon associate - I just copied the link. Not a lot of room behind the headlights I don;'t know how you would get LED's with external fans in there,
https://www.amazon.com/AUXITO-Headl...-3-spons&sp_csd=d2lkZ2V0TmFtZT1zcF9hdGY&psc=1

 

[RossKean]

I used these on my '13 and was pretty happy with them. I'm not an Amazon associate - I just copied the link. Not a lot of room behind the headlights I don;'t know how you would get LED's with external fans in there,
https://www.amazon.com/AUXITO-Headl...-3-spons&sp_csd=d2lkZ2V0TmFtZT1zcF9hdGY&psc=1

I think that "associate" statement gets added whenever someone links to Amazon in a post...

Regarding H4 LEDs with fans, a lot of people have managed to get them to work just fine. Sometimes there is a need to cut a bit of the rubber boot. For a lot of these, you install the light, install the boot and connect the fan after. (Or install the light, push the end of the fan through the boot and install both fan and boot together)

I don't know about the ones you linked but the fanless ones have been less bright than the ones with fans. (Some have a braided metal heatsink as well.) I previously mentioned lumens aren't everything. For any, I would like to see a side-by-side comparison.

 

[zasx]

I used these amazon link and put em in my GEN-1. I went with a fanless heatsink because I've heard that the life span can be advertised at 50k+ hours yet the fans will die before that leading to a loud whine. I did not alter the rubber boot at all and so far I've had em since September and I love them.

 

[zasx]

another thing is stated lumens especially on Amazon are false in reality you will be getting 2000-6000 lumens per bulb

 

[Whooshka]

LED's have been discussed so many times if you do a search you'll find a ton of suggestions.

 

[Fred W]

I’ve still got the same set of LEDs that I once had in my ‘05 FJR now in my ‘14. The LED elements on mine look quite similar to the ones linked to in the OP.

The most important part of the “bulb” for proper low beam cutoff are the little cup shaped shades on the outermost (low beam) LEDs. That shade will cover the bottom half of the LED, which after bouncing off the reflector becomes the top half of the beam.

The ones in the Amazon ad also show both high and low beam leds being lit simultaneously, which is something that mine do also, and is highly desirable IMO. The stock halogen bulbs don’t do that, probably to keep the watt consumption down. When high beam is on, low beam is off, and there is a large void of light in the foreground. I much prefer having equal lighting from near to far. LEDs use much less power so having them all on is no big deal.

 

[RossKean]

The ones in the Amazon ad also show both high and low beam leds being lit simultaneously, which is something that mine do also, and is highly desirable IMO. The stock halogen bulbs don’t do that, probably to keep the watt consumption down.

Possibly a power consideration with the bike, but only one filament or the other is lit at the same time when an incandescent H4 bulb is used in an automotive application where alternator output isn't as much of an issue. I suspect the problem with both halogen elements being lit simultaneously would be melting the quartz envelope of the bulb, cooking the socket or toasting the plastic reflector (or lens) of the headlight bucket. (I had to replace a toasted headlight socket on my 2007 due to (what I assume was) a defective halogen bulb that overheated.)

 

[Fred W]

May be right about it being heat related. 50 + 55 watts of incandescent bulb heat would be hard to dissipate.

Which reminds me that I did not mention that my old led “bulbs” have the little cooling fans too. They fit easily behind the FJR headlamp assembly, and have yet to be a problem. There was very little trimming of the rubber boots required, keeping the weather seal to the headlamp buckets intact.