I've only just got the bike, but feel quite let down with the lamps. They're great on dip beam and even the mains are great on a straight road, with a nice wide, bright white beam lighting up all the verges and way down the road.
It's when I've been in the corners, leaning over that I have a problem. With the beam being so narrow, I find I'm looking into the corners and there's no light being cast by the headlights at all - even on main beam.
My mountain bike's got better spread than the VFR and I do wonder if a couple of additional LED spotlamps that only come on with the main beam would cure this issue.
I've had a look around, but cannot find any solutions being offered at the moment - has anyone else had this issue and already sorted their bike out?
I find them to be a lot better than the lights on the 6th gen bike, which was renowned for having great lights. Sounds like some aux lights might be in order for you.
I did have a couple of opportunities to want to flip the high-beams on during curve and corner negotiation.
I did not find the resulting lighting insufficient but I was far from attempting a Marc Marquez impersonation.
I could easily envision how the well-defined beam would result in illumination issues in those situations. Not likely I'll be testing that. In the urban areas here the pavement is not trustworthy and in the suburban areas, too many deer.
Solutions? Like what? Little stick-on pieces of glass to re-shape a portion of the light beams?
I can't believe you are not able to find LED spot lamps. There are plenty of auxiliary light choices, tons of them being LED -based these days. I was discussing my friend's Tesla LED light kits in another thread. There are many other options as well if you prefer local and/or more well-established vendors. Google is your friend. Try this link... http://www.lmgtfy.com/?q=motorcycle+led+auxiliary+driving+lights
I replaced the bulbs on my 6th gen with HID's (an improvement for even the best-lit moto I ever rode) and find the LED headlamp to be equivalent to the HID's. I live in an area with lots of deer, so night speed is relative.
I live in a rural area about 25 km from the city. The road I ride has a lot of wild life, particularly Kangaroos which just love trying to take out motorcyclists in my area. Once funds permit, I will be getting a pair of these for my 2014 VFR800F. They may solve your issue. Be sure to check out the youtube video on the page, great demo of just how good these lights are (they are just not cheap).
Just got my vfr on Friday, was also concerned about the lights, took it out onto a country road with no lighting, I noticed the beam was a little high so decided to pull over and adjust it, found the knob on the left and turned it, didn't notice much but when I rode off I realised I then had 2 horizontal beams. I pulled over again, lowered the other side slightly and raised the other so they met in the middle, giving a deeper spread on the road. I thought it was one knob to adjust the whole fitting, but there are two and if some time is taken, they will cover the entire Road like a good HID will. If you look at the YouTube vids of this model when it was being reviewed, you'll notice that both lights will catch the camera at the same time. They are not properly spread either. So out of the factory and even from the pre sale inspection, the lights are not being properly adjusted to work on the road. Abit long winded but hopefully this solves the issue.
I based my concerns of the level of these lights from previous experiences and the fact that it was over the top of the number plate of the car in front. Coupled with the fact that there was little light within 5 meters of me, fine for fast country roads but not so much on pot holed city ones.
Have the same problem. Seems to be just a band of light. I am used to cranking over to the edge of the tyre at my favourite roundabout but I can't with the vfr at night because of the light, As the bike tilts over the band becomes more vertical and throws the judgement of the bend ahead. If one can adjust the throw spread (or whatever its called) I think this will help the issue or by adding spot lights this could also help.
Interestingly, parts fiches now show the original headlamp unit has been superseded by a new one, with a different part number. Presumably there has been some sort of revision since initial production, possibly intended for 2015 model year.
That seems quite unlikely. The current unit is more than adequate for the vast majority of users, and the fact that it passed regulatory approval in Japan makes it more likely that the revision is for cost control or a change in vendors. There has also been a revision to the main harness to bikes above USA serial number xxx350 or thereabouts, as the fiches show different part numbers above and below that number.
Possibly a change made for improvement, or simply improved ease of assembly, changes to the supply chain (mine is made in Japan, but the newer harnesses could be from China, something I have seen in other Honda bikes such as Japan made harnesses in 2007 CBR's but Made in China on 08)) or cost.
Unless dealer bulletins have been issued, only Honda's Japan staff would know.
I just rode my new 8th gen to work for the first time this morning. (Just got him yesterday) :D The lights seemed brighter and with a much wider spread than my'06. Either the old bike wasn't set up right or they did a damn fine job lining the new ones up.
I just ended reading a test in a mag (motorrad) of the new RC79, and they praiced mutch but the lights power was a thing they tought was a step back compare to the RC46 (vtec) that had mutch more powerfull lights.
Well, short of using photometry I'm not sure what that means. One thing for certain, cagers notice the new lights, especially with the handy high beam flasher switch.
With proper viewing technique, the dark part should not be a problem. Looking right in front of the bike instead of far away is one of the most common beginner's mistakes. I've only been riding for 2 years and I still have to force myself not to do it. There is nothing of interest there while riding; if anything appears that close, it's too late for a reaction.
I rode a demo 800F in fog at night, and I thought the lights were great.
Some headlight conversions dump so much light onto the ground directly in front of the bike they could possibly cause pupil contraction. However, it is very difficult to tell from a photo what the beam spread actually looks like.
you get a good spread which easily covers the width of any road I have ridden on , dark spot just in front of bike but the distance is great. I get light back from ref;lective signs that are 1/4 mile away! If I am following a car I can see that it is my bright white rather than the cars murky yellow which is lighting the road ahead. Seriously, there is little wrong with the lights
Sorry but I think you guys are getting sidetracked by the real issue with the headlights. Riding straight ahead or around gentle curves the headlights are great with good long view illumination. It is around dark tight bends that the issue appears. The LED puts out a fairly narrow band of light and as you crank the bile over it looses the apex of the turn so you cant see it and it throws your (at least my) judgement out. Here in the UK we have loads of dark roundabouts which I find myself crawling around in the dark on my VFR. On my Pani I have no issues and can knee down around the same corners at night. I don't know how Honda are going to fix this with the LED lights but the dark patch you get in front of the bike which you would ignore when going in a straight line imo becomes a real issue around dark tight corners.
Sorry but I think you guys are getting sidetracked by the real issue with the headlights. Riding straight ahead or around gentle curves the headlights are great with good long view illumination. It is around dark tight bends that the issue appears. The LED puts out a fairly narrow band of light and as you crank the bile over it looses the apex of the turn so you cant see it and it throws your (at least my) judgement out. Here in the UK we have loads of dark roundabouts which I find myself crawling around in the dark on my VFR. On my Pani I have no issues and can knee down around the same corners at night. I don't know how Honda are going to fix this with the LED lights but the dark patch you get in front of the bike which you would ignore when going in a straight line imo becomes a real issue around dark tight corners.
And I know just add some aux. driving lights but still .
Now wondering what Honda did to help ? Larger LED's or more or more and larger LED's .
I see your point, Paul, but I think this is a function of the sharp cut-off found on LED (as well as projector xenon) headlight systems, so it is not going to be easy to solve. With a sharp cut-off, low beam is never going to enable you to see into the corner whilst leaned over. Perhaps Honda has omitted the LHS "kick-up" on their UK-spec bikes (opting for a completely flat cut-off), which I believe is legal. (They might have done this so that the bike could be ridden on the Continent w/o having to change the kick-up.) I had an Audi S3 that went from an LHS kick-up to no kick-up at all when you moved the adjuster levers. Ironically, the "low-tech" DOT-spec headlamps (which, legend has it, are designed to provide illumination of overhead road signs...) would work better in these kind of cornering situations!
Hey International Bodger you are right on. It is the light and dark cut off issue. On the Duk using halogens the light sort of fades to dark where the VFR G8 has great illumination then more or less just blackness. When I've really had to slow down around a corner at night I've puled the headlight flasher while on low beam and this sort of helps. I love the LED light for cruising but I'm still not too sold on them for twisty dark roads or dark roundabouts. Maybe some halogen helpers will work.
In recent weeks, I've become aware that dark and especially wet roads aren't being lit very well by the headlight within the close quarters of the bike, the wet roads make it terrible to see much at all at night, I've decided to go for a more close wash light without spoiling the look of the bike.
I've ordered a set of Denali DM1, with the 25 degree optic in they should do the trick. I'll look at mounting options when they arrive but my first thought is between the forks and clamped to the top of the outer tube.
I agree with PaulB, I can put up with the dark spot when going straight, but tight turns in the dark, I have a thin strip of light, and not much is illuminated around the corner. You don't need to be knee dragging, but going slow in tight corners (around 30K), and it is really bad. I have not looked, but is it a bulb or optics issue? You can get LED bulbs for all the different types, wondering if the bulbs are interchangeable, or if you have to replace the whole unit - housing and all..
Sorry but I think you guys are getting sidetracked by the real issue with the headlights. Riding straight ahead or around gentle curves the headlights are great with good long view illumination. It is around dark tight bends that the issue appears. The LED puts out a fairly narrow band of light and as you crank the bile over it looses the apex of the turn so you cant see it and it throws your (at least my) judgement out. Here in the UK we have loads of dark roundabouts which I find myself crawling around in the dark on my VFR. On my Pani I have no issues and can knee down around the same corners at night. I don't know how Honda are going to fix this with the LED lights but the dark patch you get in front of the bike which you would ignore when going in a straight line imo becomes a real issue around dark tight corners.
Paul is absolutely right, it's only high beam in unlit corners that's the issue; with the really sharp cut-off you get with LEDs you don't get the 'secondary' light (if I can call it that) that the four halogens on the 6th gen give out, which allows you to see better round bends in the dark when leant over.
An old thread but an interesting one nonetheless, especially for me now that I have a 2015 model 800X Crossrunner which has the same headlight as the 800F.
I agree that night cornering is not as well illuminated with the LED setup as it was on the 6th Gen, probably due to the sharp cut-off inherent in LEDs as much as the beam pattern. A set of aux lights would probably sort that as long as they were properly set up and aimed. Conversely, for day riding I think the LEDs are fantastic and catch the eye of cage drivers even better than the best incandescent setup that I've seen.
I'd like to get some aux lighting for my winter mornings & evenings but the standard setup from Honda on the Cr is ludicrously expensive so I'm interested in how others mount their aux lighting without resorting to bull bars.
I agree with PaulB, I can put up with the dark spot when going straight, but tight turns in the dark, I have a thin strip of light, and not much is illuminated around the corner. You don't need to be knee dragging, but going slow in tight corners (around 30K), and it is really bad. I have not looked, but is it a bulb or optics issue? You can get LED bulbs for all the different types, wondering if the bulbs are interchangeable, or if you have to replace the whole unit - housing and all..
Overall I think the lights are very nice even though they have the strangest beam pattern of any car or bike I've ever owned. As you can see in my vid, even at gentle lean angles, they don't provide enough illumination on turns because of the severe light cutoff.
And just because I've not revived an old thread on the site...
Have just ordered some cheap LED spotlights to try out for size. My thinking is to put them where the front fender is bolted on as there doesn't appear to be a lot of room anywhere else. Won't bother with the wiring harness kit yet, will see if they fit first! As others have noted, the headlights are really good (better than any other bike I've owned) except when you hoik it right over at night. Seeing the road disappear is more than a little unnerving!
Hey Katie, you might also be able to somehow use the reflector mounting bolts?
Awhile back, I was tossing around the idea of adding aux lights to either the upper fairing, on the sides of the headlight, or the mirror stalks. They would ideally be angled "up and away" (and adjustable) so that when leaned over, the beams would then be illuminating the road up ahead through the turns. I was also thinking about adding a tilt sensor/switch so that they would be unlit until leaned over and only the light on leaned side would turn on/off. I emailed a few companies on aliexpress but none of them got back to me and then I sorta lost momentum and motivation... lol
Hey Katie, you might also be able to somehow use the reflector mounting bolts?
Awhile back, I was tossing around the idea of adding aux lights to either the upper fairing, on the sides of the headlight, or the mirror stalks. They would ideally be angled "up and away" (and adjustable) so that when leaned over, the beams would then be illuminating the road up ahead through the turns. I was also thinking about adding a tilt sensor/switch so that they would be unlit until leaned over and only the light on leaned side would turn on/off. I emailed a few companies on aliexpress but none of them got back to me and then I sorta lost momentum and motivation... lol
I saw that on another pic but sadly, the UK doesn;'t have the reflector thingy.
Also know what you mean about the motivation thing. I find chocolate and coffee are great at reinstating it!
I saw that on another pic but sadly, the UK doesn;'t have the reflector thingy.
Also know what you mean about the motivation thing. I find chocolate and coffee are great at reinstating it!
The Crossrunner in the UK has the reflectors....and the same headlights. Luckily, a set of safety bars provides the perfect mounting place for my Givi LED spots.
Sadly, the bars wouldn't look quite so good on an F model.
The Crossrunner in the UK has the reflectors....and the same headlights. Luckily, a set of safety bars provides the perfect mounting place for my Givi LED spots.
Sadly, the bars wouldn't look quite so good on an F model.
Ha, no! Might be useful for fitting stabilisers on one of those 'ride like an idiot' days though...
I saw that on another pic but sadly, the UK doesn;'t have the reflector thingy.
Good luck with your auxiliary lights Katie. BTW, has anyone in the USA removed their reflectors up front? I was able to rid myself of the rear red reflectors by adding the tail tidy but as you can see in the pic below I still have the ugly yellow ones. I'm guessing they wouldn't be that hard to remove since most of the world doesn't have them?
Good luck with your auxiliary lights Katie. BTW, has anyone in the USA removed their reflectors up front? I was able to rid myself of the rear red reflectors by adding the tail tidy but as you can see in the pic below I still have the ugly yellow ones. I'm guessing they wouldn't be that hard to remove since most of the world doesn't have them?
In some places with bored Nazis wearing police badges, the missing reflectors can earn you a summons.
Good luck with your auxiliary lights Katie. BTW, has anyone in the USA removed their reflectors up front? I was able to rid myself of the rear red reflectors by adding the tail tidy but as you can see in the pic below I still have the ugly yellow ones. I'm guessing they wouldn't be that hard to remove since most of the world doesn't have them?
And just because I've not revived an old thread on the site...
Have just ordered some cheap LED spotlights to try out for size. My thinking is to put them where the front fender is bolted on as there doesn't appear to be a lot of room anywhere else. Won't bother with the wiring harness kit yet, will see if they fit first! As others have noted, the headlights are really good (better than any other bike I've owned) except when you hoik it right over at night. Seeing the road disappear is more than a little unnerving!
Ok, the lights turned up today and it looks they will be a perfect fit, bolting onto the front fender. Have now ordered a wiring harness to fit it. The wiring costs £30 (fully fused with ignition cable splicing connector) but can't complain when the lights were less than a fiver!
Ok, the lights turned up today and it looks they will be a perfect fit, bolting onto the front fender. Have now ordered a wiring harness to fit it. The wiring costs £30 (fully fused with ignition cable splicing connector) but can't complain when the lights were less than a fiver!
Mind and let us know how you get on with them Katie.
Ok, the wiring has finally arrived and I'm off work next week so will be making attempt number 1 to get these on and working! First question:
The wiring comes with a splicing plug (no idea what it's actually called) to attach to a live power source. Any recommendations for the best wire to clip to that won't be
As have mentioned before I make a harness which plugs into bike which will allow you a switched live. From this you could add a relay and switch for your lights.
Ok, the wiring has finally arrived and I'm off work next week so will be making attempt number 1 to get these on and working! First question:
The wiring comes with a splicing plug (no idea what it's actually called) to attach to a live power source. Any recommendations for the best wire to clip to that won't be
a) too exposed to the elements or
b) impossible to get to!
If you mean a "Scotchlock", it belongs nowhere on a bike! No corrosion protection, plus they damage the wire they're attached to. Horrible, horrible things! I believe Posi makes something slightly better (though I still don't like them).
Found another thread which shows the accessories plug already fitted and used that as the switched live. Would never have found it unguided as Honda appear to have wrapped every wire and connector together in black tape to ensure the entire inside of the bike is black! :angry:
Got to find somewhere suitable for the on/off switch yet but that's a much nicer problem! Wasn't sure where the cables would go so had all the fairings off, tank up etc which turned out to be a tad unnecessary. Ended up feeding them down the left side, along the frame and back up to the horribly familiar area at the front. Good news was, the relay bolted in via the fairing screw so that's nice and secure.
Oh, and all the wiring I did switching the switch gear has survived! :cheerleader:
If I could just find out where the GT85 spray straw went last time it pinged off in the bike, my life would be complete... :rolleyes:
End of thread · 68 posts recoveredWayback Machine snapshot 6 Jan 2018
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