HID Lights

It has been gently pointed out to me today, that when posting here about upgrading bikes' lights with HID lights I failed to put a link to the bulb kits in the blog. Apologies to Les, and for all you people wondering where we got them from, please look here.

This seems an opportune time to review our experience of them. They're brilliant! (Sorry, no pun intended!) Headlights serve two purposes, to let you be seen and to help you see. These bulbs do both extremely well. We have done many thousands of miles with them, mostly by day but also at night. As LB and I generally ride together I know how visible he is. Not only are the lights bright they are also very white and stand out against other headlights. Even when riding with a group of bikers I can always pick him out. Last May at the GS meet at the Baskerville Hall he even stood out against other HID fitted bikes as, unusually, he has HID accessory lights fitted on his engine bars as well as headlights. Importantly neither of us has been flashed by any on coming traffic because of them. They obviously don't cause any glare to oncoming drivers.

At night they give a big area of light, much like daylight as they're so white. I can't praise them enough. Initially I was reluctant to have them as they're so expensive but I now think they are well worth it. I tried taking photos of my bike before and after fitting. Both photos were taken in late afternoon. Unfortunately I used an automatic camera which compensated for the bright light by making it look darker than it was. Here's the photos, anyway, for you to see the difference.


First is my bike with original lights










Then mine with HIDs












Finally LB's with his HID headlights and accessory lights







Elvie.

As Elvie has pointed out, only a few weeks to go before the big trip, and time for a little bling on my BMW, aka the Pickfords Truck ( because of all the stuff it carries) For some time I've wanted some additional lights so as to be more visible to other road users. We went up to Cheshire to have it done, and I'm very happy with the results. These are pictures of the extra spotlights as being fitted. I might look as though I know what I'm doing in the picture above, but in reality it was more relief as it all started to go back together correctly. I'm going to get the bike out in the dark tonight just to see what it looks like. Elvie has also had her headlights converted to HIDs