On Wednesday evening I was at my local bike night (Squires @ Sherburn) and got chatting as you do. I didn't realise the time only when it started dark. It was then on the 20 mile ride home on the country roads that are my journey in the dark, I realised how poor the standard headlights are on an 848. What's the best replacement headlight bulbs to get ?
The HID xenon headlight on my 848 is fantastic! I have the option of using two dips and two mains if I want. Halogen bulbs are at the end of their development life and will never improve by any great amount. You might get different makes that will give you 2% more, or less, light output for the 55 watts consumption, but you will never get anything more dramatic than that.
The 848 already has a lighting relay but after the relay the current goes through a load connectors and switch gear before it arrives at the head lamp. A 1V drop on a 12V system means a voltage reduction of 8.3% at the bulb and a staggering 31% drop in light output. Not easy on modern bikes, but wherever possible If I want maximum light output I've installed 2 relays, one for dip and one for main. Powered directly through a fused feed from the battery and with each relay switched by the appropriate dip switch output. And instead of relying on the earth return via the loom and it's many connectors. Fit a suitable sized earth wire direct from the battery -ve to the headlights.
No one has yet designed an LED headlight for the 848/1098 as far as I know. There is one available for the Panigale. I have tried just fitting an LED bulb into one side of mine to make it look even from the front, but it does not put out any more light than a glow worm.
I agree with derek on this one the crap lights on ducati's have been a long running subject the best thing is a good bulb like an osram night breaker (think that was the name ) a good live feed and earth without a voltage drop a lot has been said about fitting hid bulbs I looked into this for my bike and found unless the headlight unit was designed as an hid unit fitting a hid bulb is pointless on first glance yes it is very bright although it does not project correctly ....so bright but for 10 to 20 feet where as a good halogen bulb with proper voltage will light up the road ahead way better had a friend with a Yamaha 125 recently with a blown hid bulb was adamant it was the mutts nuts when working hid was fitted when he got it he couldn't get a replacement bulb locally and knew nothing about them he found out the difference with a halogen bulb in coming home from work he could actually see the road ahead at 4am
I think that you might be a little confused with your HIDs there. A Halogen bulb consumes 55 watts and is in a projector so any bulb in that projector will give the same beam pattern. Fit a Proper HID xenon with the ballast and it will consume 35 watts but put out nearly 3 times the light as the halogen bulb does with the same beam pattern if it is in the same projector. Sometimes people sell halogen bulbs and describe them as HID or xenon when they are just standard halogen bulbs with, perhaps, a slightly different light colour. A true HID xenon should never be fitted to any headlight that does not have a projector, and the 848/1098 does. It seems that your mate had a HID xenon bulb and ballast fitted to a reflector headlight which would be a mess as the filament is in the wrong place. A halogen bulb would work as designed in a reflector headlight.
Hi, I am new to the forum and purchased a 1098 in May. Yes it's getting darker and I can hardly see a bloody thing. This post is old (following a search) but wondered if there is a more up to date immediate solution to having lights that are actually useful? Cheers
New MOT rules should mean no more retrofit HID setups. LED bulb replacements however, are fine. Philips have brought out their Xtreme Ultinon range, which is LED but has the same beam pattern as halogen. Only trouble is, they sell them in pairs for cars so bikers have to go halves with a mate. I'm waiting on someone to split an H4 with. Having had an LED, they're awesome. Had to switch mine out at MOT time as mine was an ebay special and had no beam cutoff. The Philips Xtreme Ultinon does.
1299S lights are the best Ive ever had on a ducati/bike full stop. On full beam its almost like the suns come out. My 1198 ones were like candles in a dirty glass jar. Useless. Im guessing theyre the same as 848.
Thanks for this. I am a little confused re: H4. The manual says the headlight bulbs are H11 or is this something different? Thanks
Thanks. Having had a quick look on line I am having trouble finding the right/best H11 12v 5w bulb and there are so many. I want crisp white bulbs that actually light the road ahead without blinding and are legal (or at least can be swapped out at MOT). I'm not sure how many I need e.g. I presume one for each headlight? Can anyone recommend some from a good place? Cheers
I assume that 5w is a typo and you want 55 watt. Halogen bulbs have reached the limit of their evolution and they all now put out a very similar amount of light, measured in lumen. Watts is the amount of energy they consume. The only thing that you can vary slightly is the whiteness of the light, measured in kelvin. There are plenty of manufacturers who make slightly whiter bulbs, Philips White Vision is a popular one.
You want these if you want the best. Expensive though but awesome and will not be a problem at MOT https://www.autobulbsdirect.co.uk/h11-h8-h16-philips-x-treme-ultinon-led-foglight-bulbs.html
Thank you . Blimey they do cost but if they are the best I don't mind too much. However, it does say on the packaging that they are not for road use. Cheers
It does say that, however, MOT rules do not stipulate against them like they do with HID retrofits. Basically, if the beam pattern is good and it’s not a HID, you’re MOT passed
