The motorcycle you have will affect the compatibility of the light you choose. While some lights are near-universal, others will only work with specific motorbikes. In these cases, you will be provided with a list of bikes which have the correct connectivity or your new light. If you don’t see your motorbike on the list of the motorcycle headlight you would like to purchase, you may need to move on to find a more suitable replacement.
The size of your light affects how well the new motorcycle headlight will fit into position on your bike. For those who are happy to purchase a new housing unit, you’re likely to be able to have a little more flexibility with this. However, with such a wide range of options out there, it’s likely that you will be able to find the right size, with the right level of brightness for your needs without needing a new housing unit.
Also referred to as “lumens” the level of light your new motorcycle lights will give you can affect their viability as an option. Naturally, you will likely be looking for headlights that are brighter than the factory standard or replacements you currently have – and your natural response to this might be to check the wattage.
However, with the change from traditional halogen lamps to LED headlamps, you’ll notice that the same lumens can be produced by a much lower watt bulb. For example, where a traditional 40w halogen bulb might produce 450 lumens on average, an LED bulb may be able to project up to 4000 lumens. So, the best way to check if your lights will be more effective is to look at their lumen count.
When looking to add or remove anything to your motorbike, one of the biggest concerns is usually regarding the installation. Of course, with lights, some methods are easier than others. This will also depend on the bike you have, however many of the options we have given you are noted as being very easy to install. Indeed, most of them use a “plug and play” technique, where you will simply need to plug your new motorbike headlamp to the socket, at which point it will work as per your old headlight.
While the illumination (lumens) of your new headlamp are important, the general spread and length the light hits is just as vital to a safe headlamp. Having a light that is exceptionally bright is all well and good, until you realize it will only light up the two meters ahead of your bike.
Instead, check for the likely length of the illumination, as well as how widely your light will spread. While you don’t want to be blinding other road users, it’s important to both make yourself seen as well as giving yourself plenty of visibility on the roads.
Again, in the interest of yourself and other road users, you should always consider whether or not you will dazzle drivers in oncoming traffic. In order to avoid this, we would normally turn our headlights down onto a low beam or the passing lamps.
Not all motorcycle LED headlight choices have this option, however. Thus, we wholeheartedly recommend checking whether or not your preferred headlamp has the ability to switch between high and low beams – or the ability to change to your passing lamps when required.
There wouldn’t be much point in changing over your headlights if it didn’t provide you with a safer, more comfortable ride. However, we also want your new light itself to be certified or approved against any likelihood of causing accidents for yourself or other road users. As such, you should check to see if your preferred light has one or more of the three main approvals; DOT, SAE and E-Mark.
SAE stands for the Society of Automotive Engineers and was created to drive engineering and technical standards in motor vehicles. While their standards do not hold any legal credit, they are often referred to by the US Traffic Safety Administration.
E-marks were created by vehicle manufacturers by way of an assurance that any electrical goods installed onto a motor vehicle would pass a thorough testing process before being released. This ensures that your item is perfectly safe to be installed onto your vehicle.
Finally, the DOT- approval is the only item that carries any legal credit and comes from the Department of Transportation. All headlights for motorbikes must be DOT-approved in order to remain legally roadworthy in all 50 states of the US. This ensures the lights comply with current legislation and are safe to use.
There are many options and features within our Top Picks that are packed with extra features and accessories, all of which are a great benefit to yourself as a motorcycle driver. For example, many of these choices come with ring adaptors, which help to increase the overall stability of your headlamp. Others are shock proof, waterproof and even scratch proof, which can be a huge help if you’re likely to use your bike on a regular basis.
But that’s not all. With the miracle of modern technology, motorcycle lights no longer have to be a solid, boring, off-white light that comes from your vehicle. Indeed, any of the newer options now come with apps and remote controls that allow you to alter the beam, create a flashing light when you need it most and even alter the color.
