Burned out Headlight Bulbs

[RCinNC]

I've seen this issue pop up from time to time, and I'm just curious where I fall on the "burned out headlight bulb" spectrum of experience compared to other members.

I bought my bike new in 2014, and it now has 99,719 miles. In those nine years of ownership, I've had to replace six right side headlight bulbs and two left side headlight bulbs. The bulbs have been all over the map as far as longevity; some have lasted as long as 41 months, others only made it for 12. I've pretty consistently used Sylvania Xtravision H7 bulbs, which is the mid-range choice at O'Reilly Auto.

In May 2022, I had to replace a headlight fuse when a riding buddy noticed that both my headlights were out. This was the original headlight fuse. I replaced the fuse and both headlights were still working, so the fuse wasn't blown due to a headlight failure. I've never had any other issues with the headlight fuse.

Does this mirror anyone else's experiences? I've been riding about forty years now, and I don't recall ever having to replace a headlight bulb, let alone eight of them. I know I'm not using a top flight bulb choice, so maybe that's the actual issue, but I was interested in hearing about other members' experiences with this.

 

[bimota]

my 2013 from new, had 1 oem bulb go in the first 3 yrs, and i then put leds in 6 yrs ago and not lost one of them
so i,ve lost 1 head light bulb in 9 and a half yrs luckly
rob

 

[jeckyll]

Hmm, I bought my 2012 in 2016. Since then I've replaced 1 headlight in approximately 80,000 km. It did melt the harness on the right side (post recall from what I can tell) and I had to repair that.

Overall I hate the headlights not because they burn out, but because they're near useless at night. I need to get moving and add some LED Auxiliary lights

 

[RCinNC]

I agree with you about the nighttime effectiveness of the headlights; I almost never ride after dark for that reason. At this point I doubt I'll put any money into a better lighting system with LED lights, but they'll be an immediate upgrade for the next bike.

 

[WJBertrand]

I blew two or three incandescent bulbs pretty early on, then switched to LED. The LEDs didn’t last any longer than the standard bulbs, so I bit the bullet and installed an HID system. No more blown bulbs in the last 60,000 miles or so and the light output is far superior to either the standard or LED bulbs.

My bike is a 2015 ES bought new in June ‘15.


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[Fennellg]

I have a 2015 es. 31k original bulbs. I added a rigid led light bar with low and high beam t9 serve as a back up. Fortunately, I have not needed it that’s far.

 

[SkunkWorks]

Typically with bulbs like the "Xtravision" and other (brighter than stock) bulbs, you gain better performance but will sacrifice longevity.
The dimmest bulbs will last the longest.

I did have to replace one of my oem headlight bulbs during a tour of southern Utah a few years ago (somewhere in the high 20K's mileage)
I bought a pair of bulbs at Napa (can't recall which ones I purchased). Replaced them both, and kept the remaining good oem one as a spare.

 

[Sierra1]

. . . . No more blown bulbs in the last 60,000 miles or so and the light output is far superior to either the standard or LED bulbs. . . .

HIDs don't have filaments. Two electrodes that arc through ionized gas (plasma). Very likely will last forever.

My bike is 6 1/2 years old, and almost 25k mi. Both bulbs are OE. I pretty much only ride in the daytime and keep them on "high". Which means that the metal shield is up and not reflecting heat back on the bulb(s). My opinion is that heat is the reason for the failures.

 

[Cycledude]

My previous 2013 never had a headlight bulb last 10,000 miles, at 50,000 miles I traded for a new 2018, first bulb burned out at 24,000 miles, at 55,000 now without anymore burned out bulbs but have switched to Cyclops LED

 

[Boris]

I have a Gen1 bike, have had 2 headlight bulbs fail in the 48k miles I’ve had the bike. First one around 35k, second 47k miles ish. First time failure I changed as a pair and kept the good one as an emergency spare. I just use whatever is available at the time.

 

[Jlq1969]

the filament has a "limited" life in hours... which is shortened by temperature (many hours in the city)... or too much vibration... An H7 asphalt lamp and highway speed should be the one that lasts the longest in hours

 

[Boris]

Both my bulbs failed whilst on tour, where the ignition is on and off many times each day, on consecutive days. That’s a lot of frequent heat/cool/heat cycles. Could just be a coincidence too……….no real idea, just thoughts.

 

[cyclemike4]

I will buy the cheapest H7 I can find and if I am going on a road trip I will carry a pack of spare bulbs. I always have both go out with in a day or so of each other so I will always replace both. If I get a year out of a set of bulbs that is good. I have gone a year and half or so one time. If I use the most expensive and brightest I am lucky to get 6 months out of them. I have two extra sets of lights on my bike. One set is wired to the high beam and another set I run on all the time so I do have back up when they go out. I have had to use them several times too. the last two years or so my headlight lens has really gotten foggy. May have to replace the whole thing or figure out how to get it cleaned up.

 

[gv550]

I burn out lots of bulbs. They have 1 year warranty and when one burns out I do a claim online and they (NAPA) send me 4 at no charge and that keeps me going for a while. Always carry spares.

 

[cyclemike4]

I burn out lots of bulbs. They have 1 year warranty and when one burns out I do a claim online and they (NAPA) send me 4 at no charge and that keeps me going for a while. Always carry spares.

Never thought about warranty! Duuuuu! I am going to have to look into that!

 

[WJBertrand]

HIDs don't have filaments. Two electrodes that arc through ionized gas (plasma). Very likely will last forever.

My bike is 6 1/2 years old, and almost 25k mi. Both bulbs are OE. I pretty much only ride in the daytime and keep them on "high". Which means that the metal shield is up and not reflecting heat back on the bulb(s). My opinion is that heat is the reason for the failures.

Yup. Had a set that went well past 100,000 miles on my ST1300.


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[RCinNC]

I burn out lots of bulbs. They have 1 year warranty and when one burns out I do a claim online and they (NAPA) send me 4 at no charge and that keeps me going for a while. Always carry spares.

I may have to give the NAPA version a try, if they have a warranty like that. I go through enough headlights that I custom made a bulb case for my tool tube so I could carry two spares without damaging them.

 

[gapmtn1]

I may have to give the NAPA version a try, if they have a warranty like that. I go through enough headlights that I custom made a bulb case for my tool tube so I could carry two spares without damaging them.

I bought NAPA while on tour just over a year ago because NAPA was the first store I encountered. Napa Proformer 1255H7. Other side went out this weekend and decided to get another ... was like ten bucks.

 

[holligl]

I burned out OEMs and Cyclops LEDs. Went to Amazon Shengda Tech 360° LEDs w/ 2 yr Warranty. Running strong @ 38kmi and 36 mo.

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[arndtmp]

I may have to give the NAPA version a try, if they have a warranty like that. I go through enough headlights that I custom made a bulb case for my tool tube so I could carry two spares without damaging them.

What tool box is that