Buell nerd needed... Headlight questions

[holleywood]

So, I've got a Buell in the Garage and the head lights suck. It's an 04 Firebolt XB12R. My headlights which I presume are the origional ones had the chome ligning on the back of the projectors fail and the plastic housing up front has cracked and melted. I've had the bulbs apart. I've cleaned the bulbs and housings, I've sprayed the backs with silver paint, and I've cut taped and modified the front plastic housings till I think I probably should replace them. I even tried lining the back side of the projectors with aluminum foil and polishing them. I am so cheap. Anyhow the lights need to be replaced. The beams look like... Well, lets just say chemlights might light up the front end better at night.

To the point- I've done some research... the projector beams seem to have been an issue for the firebolt. It seems several upgrades have been made. The upgraded low beam Y0400.02A8 has been updated to a Y0400.05AA. The updated high beam Y0427.02A8 has been upgraded to Y0427.05AA. My question is what is the difference in the .02A8 and the .05AA other than price. Some shops still have these older lamp housings in stock that should retail for 60.00ish. The .05AA version comands a $90 price tag. What are the features and benefits? Is the 90.00 dollar part that much better? I'd spend that much more if it is worth it. Just curious to see who knows what about this... My local HD shop is very helpful looking up and locating parts but clueless when it comes to knowing the inner workings of Buell. (Not sure why the Buell brand didn't take off for Harley... Hmmm)

Anyhow, I think my decision is between the two parts listed but I could be swayed if someone has discovered an aftermarket solution. Looking forward to see what comes from this. Thanks for your help.

Dave

 

[snrusnak]

My headlights suck as well, please let me know what you find. I can't ride at night [down]

 

[rchuff]

I changed from halogen to HIDS the halogens are really hot and melted the first set of projectors. The HIDS I went with are 35w and the bulbs aren't as hot as the halogens. The HIDS cost me $57.00 from ebay . I got tired of the halogens blowing out to.

 

[holleywood]

Still researching... I'm looking at http://www.badweatherbikers.com/buell/messages/3842/B076A.pdf it seems like my part numbers were wrong. The Lowbeam is Y0400.5AA and the Highbeam is Y0435.5AA. There was a service bulletin that replaced the old head lamps with the updated part due to the the refective material degrading. Seems like if I had hopped on this in 2010 I could have had them replaced for free. Damn!
The Y0427 number was for the European headlamp. Apparently the high and low beams are reversed there and the high beam comes with a running light on low beam. Huh.
I am finding a couple of dealers still stock the y0400.02a8. (really? So, has this part been sitting on a shelf since before 2008?) 55.00 vs. 100.00. Hmmm? Will the lamp last a little while? What causes the reflective material to fail? Heat or time? I've seen XB's with lights that work. When these lights work they light some stuff up! Just need to be reassured ordering the updated lights are worth the money.

 

[holleywood]

rchuff, so you went with the HIDS. Did you get just the bulb to slip in the housing or did you get a whole assembly? My housing is about done. I need the plastic that supports the lenses up front. It has cracks and the lowbeam has melted through.

The HIDS... Do they draw more power? Don't they haveto have a ballast? Do they have to warm up?

 

[ReadyXB]

The HIDS... Do they draw more power? Don't they haveto have a ballast? Do they have to warm up?

If they are real HID, they will have a ballast. LEDs would not. Current draw is not insignificant depending on the wattage, but I don't know what stock bulbs draw. There is a warm-up period. Mine seemed to be around 30-45 second, during which time they got progressively brighter.

When I purchased my current Buell, it came with Lite Eyes HID (now out of business, I think) already installed. They were expensive, and the guy bragged about them, but after my first time driving at night, I realized they were horrible! I think the wrong type of bulb was installed because they extended too far into the reflective cavity. That threw off the entire geometry. I was so unhappy with mine that I removed the HID kit and replaced them with standard 55W bulbs. I have no complaints on the stock setup, but I have no melting or peeling either. I only mention all that to say that the HID setup you buy should be designed for the Buell. A generic kit might not work well.

 

[rchuff]

I used my stock housing and the kit I got came with the ballast and the bulbs I believe they are h3 bulbs. It sounds like you have to replace your housing that sucks check ebay under Buellxb parts ebay . I know I saw used ones and new ones . Buy the way my ballast are 35w and the old bulbs were 55w. (draw less power) I like the HIDS better than the stock bulbs can see better at night. When I bought the kit it came with the ballast and the bulbs they must be h3 bulbs to fit in the housing.

 

[holleywood]

I found a thread earlier that mentioned the updated headlamp assembly has a dimpled lower surface on the lens. My wife has an 06XB12R and mine is an 04. Her lamps definately overpower mine and hers has that dimpled surface. Looking into the lens in the front without the lights on - the backlit reflection is really bright on her bike. Mine is dull in comparison. It was black before I tried some home remedies.
The lights didn't work well when I bought the bike two years ago... I read some of the threads that said 55w bulbs would cook the housings. So, I thought, I cant break what's already broken. I spray painted the back of the housings a chromy silver and the backlit reflection was brighter but light output improved only marginally. I drilled some extra vent holes in the plastic housing to aid in cooling. The housings were already cracked in multiple spots. After a year of use the bulb melted the housing. (Looks like where the bike sat after shut down... not centered over the bulb with the bike upright, more like over where the top would be with the bike on the sidestand. Perhaps after shut down. Maybe the cooling holes worked when the bike was in motion)
The .5AA parts are 95.00 per lamp. Ouch! I don't want to ruin a new part. I would use the 55w bulbs if the general consensus is that the updated housing can handle the heat. IF not then I would want to run the standard bulb or something cooler.
I was hoping someone would chime in that the previous version just didn't hold up to the heat and I could save some dough there and be better off spending a little extra on HID bulbs. I think too damn much!

 

[rchuff]

Just typed buellxb headlight ebay and saw a used headlight assemble from a 9r starting bid $60.00 ,7 hrs left it is in really good shape. Forget it , it is in japan and want $52.00 to ship it.

 

[holleywood]

rchuff; good looking out! I've found quite a bit of firebolt stuff on eBay. The closer I read the more I realize the deal isn't so great. One rescent example: I searched for a right side scoop for weeks. The prices of some were up to 230.00. Some were carbon fiber but still... Then I found a thread with part numbers from a Uly comfort kit. The inner and outter scoop mirroring the stock left side scoop cost 60.00. The guys at Harley are really nice if you know what parts you are looking for your Buell. If you want information about Buell parts you need to go to anywhere else.
The lamps I've seen on eBay and Buellster not sure if I'm not buying another problem.

 

[holleywood]

Buellster has a new Y0427.02A8 for 85.75. I was quoted at a local HD shop today the same part for 55.00. He had it on the counter as we spoke.

 

[rchuff]

Good price! [up]

 

[800screws]

ddm tuning is where I got my hid lights from.....nothing special needed, I got the slim ballasts and everything fit behind the fairing...real easy to install

 

[GregoXB]

For the housing to be effective, it has to be mirror pristine.

 

[holleywood]

Well, as I continue to gather info, the affected years are 03-06 for the dimming reflective backing. I presume the part numbers I listed earlier were used in the 07 and later models and did not have this issue. The Y0400.5AA and the Y0435.5AA are each 95.00. So replacing the high and low beam is over 200.00 with tax and shipping.
I found a part number Y0421.02A8B that seems to be the complete assembly, left and right beams and the bracket that they mount to for 165.00. WTF!? My question here is when I look at these lenses they look to have raised rings formed in the center of the glass. I've seen the little dimples but not the rings. Is this a correct part for the US models? I understand the European models are reversed in which bulb burns low beam and I think the highbeam housing has a running light. As long as it will connect no big deal. Just want to be fully informed.

 

[Shawns]

I used an h4 led kit with stock reflectors. Drilled out the projectors with a unibit to accept the bulbs. cut the base of the bulbs to use the retaining clips on the factory projectors and this also allows high and low on both projectors.

 

[MustangGuy]

I replaced the entire lighting assembly on my Firebolt shortly after I got the bike, which was a couple of years ago. The first time I rode at night - which I do every day coming home from work - I was shocked at how dismal the lighting was. My first thought was to refurbish the reflectors and clean everything up, which I think could have been done, but there was a crack somewhere in the plastic and I didn't want to deal with it. I bought the assembly either from Buell Parts or American Sport Bike.... I don't remember. At the same time, I installed DDM's slim ballast HID in the low beam only (below is a set of instructions I had bookmarked, but if you're used to messing around with stuff like that, you probably don't need step-by-step guidance). The whole process took about an hour and a half. I don't know any part numbers, but the lenses do have concentric rings molded into them. Having good lighting at night is really important... The upgrade/retrofit wasn't cheap, but it was worth the money.

http://badweatherbikers.com/buell/messages/3842/517861.html?1330279316

 

[holleywood]

Shawns, that XB1125 is bad ass! You must post more pics. Really digging the XB fairing up front.

 

[Shawns]

I think that is the way it should have been release. I still have flexiglass fairings to add. I purchases a set of sharkskin fairings for it(they are for the xb platform, but I don't think they will work. I am currently dealing with a rotor and stator replacement. The rotor nut came loose. So one project at a time. Time permitting I'll get pics of the xb fairings up.

 

[holleywood]

Yeah, I shopped the 1125R's before I settled on the xb12r. I thought the fairing looked a bit odd being so wide. The Firebolt fairing looks really good there. And, apparrently it goes well with the radiator cowls. I really didn't need that much speed. Family, kids, house, business... It f-ing sucks getting old!

Sorry to hear about your stator issues. My stator bolt came off this weekend too; but mainly for a nasty, nasty upgrade.