The importance of motorcycle headlights for riding

The older your motorbike is, the weaker the headlights will be. Many of us just accept the fact that when it's dark we have to crawl and struggle to see a fraction of the distance we normally scan ahead, but it doesn't need to be that way. Modern replacement bulbs can make a huge difference for a relatively small outlay. So whether the bulb has just burnt out or you're tired of riding by candlelight, here's how to improve the problem.

What headlight bulb do I need?

Find the headlight bulb you need. For motorbikes over 600cc produced in the last 20 years or so, it may be a slimmer bulb, a thicker bulb containing a dual filament for both high and low beam or a thicker bulb but containing a single filament. But the only reliable way to find out is to check the manual, take the old bulb out and look at the inscription, or enter your bike's registration information into the retailer's website.

If your bike is pre-1980s, it may even have a 6V bulb (all modern ones are 12V). Sourcing a 6V replacement bulb shouldn't be a problem, but you won't get much more light than standard - unless of course the original bulb has blown, in which case a functional replacement bulb would be a marginal improvement.

The lights on motorbikes are mainly divided into warning lights and lighting lights. The former mainly serves to alert others to the current trajectory of the vehicle, while the latter mainly provides effective assistance for the normal movement of the vehicle.

The scenarios and rules for their use under different definitions will be different. For example, turn signals can only be used when the vehicle is turning, which includes turning around, overtaking, turning and starting and stopping. Usually, the turn signal is turned to the side to which the vehicle is steering.

For example, the front and rear taillights are usually only on at night. Of course, with the introduction of imported models into China, some motorbikes have headlights that are always on, meaning that these vehicles do not have a headlight master switch.

The headlights are switched on at the same time as the taillights, and on some models the wide lamps are also switched on. The normal standard of light use here is to turn off the high beams and use the low beams when meeting traffic, and not to use the high beams in areas where there are street lights, as we cannot interfere with the normal passage of others for our own riding requirements.

As for the daytime running lights, the licence plate lights and the brake lights are usually automatic in all cases. For example, the purpose of the daytime running lights is mainly to alert oncoming traffic; they can be automatically illuminated once the vehicle is started, but some models will automatically go out as the headlights are switched on. The licence plate light is part of the same circuit as the tail light and it lights up automatically when the headlights are switched on. The main purpose of this light is to make the licence plate more visible at night and allow it to function as it should.