Bulb numbers?

Discussion in '6th Generation 2002-2013' started by OldSchoolInterceptor, Jan 9, 2020.

  1. OldSchoolInterceptor

    OldSchoolInterceptor New Member

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    Can someone do me a solid and list the bulb numbers for headlight, ft blinkers, rr blinkers, stop light, etc.. and if I use LEDs do I need load resistors and if so for which bulbs or all the bulbs? Frustrating me. I’ve searched and looked in the owners manual AND the service manual and it gives me the wattage for each but not the dang bulb numbers. I’m going to replace all the bulbs with LEDs probably, just need the numbers and resistor type or not. Thanks guys! Your help is much appreciated.
     
  2. fink

    fink Member

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  3. skimad4x4

    skimad4x4 "Official" VFRWorld Greeter

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    Sorry I am cannot help with a list of bulbs fiited to your 6th Gen as I am pretty sure the North American VFR 6th Gens had different lighting/wiring systems to comply with the relevant local laws. Over in Europe it is relatively simple as any bulbs fitted to vehicles has to have E marked bulbs and the various types and ratings are all neatly listed in the Honda Owners Manual. Have you checked if they are all listed in your manual?

    As for switching to LEDs I doubt the ECU fitted to your 6th Gen has any bulb out monitoring functionality, so pretty much any bulb with a suitable fitting/pin-outs should work without any need for resistors.

    I assume you know many LED bulbs are polarity sensitive so if an LED bulb does not work when first installed, it is worth removing it and refitting it the otherway around before sending them back as faulty to the seller. NB do not touch the glass element of any bulb as grease on your fingers can shorten its life!

    Personally I have looked into "upgrading to LEDs" as they do look nicer, but eventually decided to steer clear of LEDs on a 6th Gen for several very sound reasons.

    So before reaching for your cheque book you may want to...

    (1) check out a couple of videos.




    (2) be aware that the charging system on your 6th Gen is notoriously fragile - basically you need to keep the electrical demand on the RR within the output sweet spot - too much demand will slowly drain the battery, whilst too much supply can fry bulbs overheat the RR and damage other electrical components.

    Whilst you may think its is a great idea to reduce the electrical load by moving to LED bulbs, that simply reduces electrical demand on the charging system. BUT unlike an alternator, output from your Stator does not automatically adjust to produce less power. Meaning all that unused electricity has to go somewhere and consequently your RR will have to work harder dumping all that "saved" electricity as heat. Sadly heat is often the underlying culprit in charging system failures with 6th Gens - that is why so many electrical failures crop up in mid summer. It may seem perverse but rather than helping protect your charging system by fitting LEDs, it is likely to hasten the onset of charging system problems.

    (3) If you really want better lighting for your VFR to ride at night then you may want to simply rewire the headlights so they work exactly like Mr Honda originally intended (ie the wiring scheme used on VFRs everywhere else on the planet except North American models). I recall a few threads on here where others have done excatly that and found the results well worth the effort. Hopefully the search feature will unearth suitable threads.
    What changes is that over in Europe VFRs only use H7 bulbs for both the dipped and main beam lights (I think USA uses H4 twin filament bulbs but actually only run one filament at a time). The European set up means that the low beam lights will stay on whenever using main beam. As a result all 4 lights are lit and that delivers amongst the best lighting pattern for any motorbike. Sadly local rules in the USA resulted in North American VFRs having far less effective lighting.

    (4) If you do go LED - expect to be paying well over 100 dollars for any LED bulbs which actually deliver better lighting for you and oncoming drivers. For that much cash you could of course buy a heap of regular bulbs.

    Have fun


    SkiMad
     
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  4. OldSchoolInterceptor

    OldSchoolInterceptor New Member

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    Thanks! Geez quite a bit about LEDs I didn’t know. There are SO many cheap LED bulbs out now. Ebay is packed with them. It’s difficult to tell which is good quality or a good price for what you’re getting. Morimoto looks good and has good reviews $65 a pair for blinkers with resistors. I like your “and oncoming drivers” comment. It’s nice at least one person gives a cr*p about blinding people coming towards you. Where I live we have lots of lifted trucks and they don’t adjust their headlights. Thanks again for all your helpful info! Appreciated!
     
  5. OldSchoolInterceptor

    OldSchoolInterceptor New Member

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  6. raYzerman

    raYzerman Member

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    Skiimad's given a good rundown there... I'll say it is very most likely you need either load resistors or an LED-capable flasher relay for the signals. The flasher is the easiest and requires no re-wiring.
    The tail/brake & front signals are dual filament 7443/7444 wedge base I believe, looks like rear signals are single filament wedge base...... here's where to find some brighter ones, but you'll get what you pay for........ I just got some for my Gen5. Are they a ton brighter, not really but "better". You can search by model or by product no.
    https://www.superbrightleds.com/cat/motorcycle/

    As for the headlights, if you've got H7 single filament, try these F2 LED's... I have them in my CBF1000. I have used the 9003/H4 version on a couple of bikes also... a forum buddy on another forum is a lighting engineer and worked with the Chinese to get them developed as close to DOT compliant as possible.
    https://www.ebay.com/itm/H7-F2-LED-...e=STRK:MEBIDX:IT&_trksid=p2060353.m1438.l2649
     
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  7. Camp

    Camp New Member

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    Go resisters that incorporate oe plugs. Mount them to metal to dissipate heat. No additional work for the RR to dump voltage as the resistors emulate incandescent draw and dump it as heat. No need for special flasher either.
     
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