Guest Roach Posted August 18, 2012 Share Posted August 18, 2012 So, after about 2 years of lurking on this fantastic site, I am in need of some of your experience.I have a 2001 VFR and I noticed recently that I had only one headlight, then on the very next day I had none. I bought 2 GE 60/55 H4 bulbs and installed them and went for a ride, during the ride both low beams were gone. I checked all the usual suspects with a meter and everything seems to check out so off to wally mart to return the bulbs for new ones this time I got a set of Sylvania silverstars 60/55 9003 H4 bulbs, bent the tabs and put them in and went for a ride this morning. Both low beams went during the first part of the ride, switched to highs and they were gone before I got home. Without tuning off the engine I checked the battery and am getting 13.8 v but it is slowly dropping approx .2 v every second. Any help or advice would be much appreciated and thx for all the info I ave gained from this site so far. I will post pics tonight since I know I do not exist without some Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spud786 Posted August 18, 2012 Share Posted August 18, 2012 The slyvania silver stars, are known for weak life on the vfr, the GE Motorcycle ones at walmart, Ive had for 80,000 miles and still ticking. I dont know if there's a differnce between the GE motorcycle bulbs and the standard GE bulb, they look identical. But I had alot of early failures with phillips bulbs which are also oem brand, GE has been premo, could be your regulator is putting out too much voltage though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tightwad Posted August 19, 2012 Share Posted August 19, 2012 I think headlights are usually killed by voltage spikes or by oil on the bulb. Be sure the bulb isn't touched and clean it with alcohol if it does get touched. I find the basic model bulbs tend to last the longest in comparison to extra bright etc bulbs. You should monitor the voltage with the headlights installed and watch for spikes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted August 19, 2012 Share Posted August 19, 2012 I am certain all 4 bulbs were clean when installed. When I returned from a ride yesterday I checked the voltage at the battery with the temp above 190 F and the voltage was dropping steadily. This morning with the bike cold the readings are 12.8 sitting, 12.0 lights on, 10.9 cranking and holds steady at 14.6 while running. The battery is a YTX12-BS Yuasa of unknown age ( I have had the bike 2 years) and the regulator is Sh579C-12 (assuming that is the original regulator) It is a US bike. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spud786 Posted August 19, 2012 Share Posted August 19, 2012 It could be current related more than voltage in your charging circuit, but did you buy the Car Ge bulbs or the motorcycle ones? Still though even with a poor bulb, should get a few months atleast, the 6th gen has seperate bulbs, my high beams have been in there 100,000 miles never failed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted August 20, 2012 Share Posted August 20, 2012 Is there a definitive test that would tell what is the problem? It seems to be a heat related issue. I do not want to only replace 1 thing and have it not be that and then have the new part fried. All tests when the bike is cold check out, even the stator (between .1 and 1 ohm between all 3 leads) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DDO-VFR Posted August 20, 2012 Share Posted August 20, 2012 You definitely should check the voltage when the bike is running. The voltage output should not go much above 14V with the bike revving at 5000rpm. Heat or vibration is what is killing your bulbs. Heat is generated by the current running through it, of course, and this current is determined by the voltage presented to it. Since the power in the bulb is a function of the voltage squared, a small change in voltage will result in a large increase in power. Power (heat) = Voltage x Voltage / hot Resistance of bulb It is no great secret that the Silverstar bulbs are brighter because the resistance is slightly lower (see equation above) which results in a hotter (and brighter) bulb, and thus they don't last long. If the voltage is too high, then your regulator is suspect... Brian Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spud786 Posted August 20, 2012 Share Posted August 20, 2012 put your headlights on High beam and run it up to 5000 rpm,Reading across the battery? Put your lowbeams on , run to 5,000 rpm , reading across the battery? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted August 21, 2012 Share Posted August 21, 2012 Ok, this morning I went out to test voltage at 5000 rpm. Started the bike, let it idle a few minutes and as soon as I twisted the throttle it died. It will turn over and the voltage from the battery while cranking is still over 10 v. The regulator seems to be very hot for such a short period of running. I unplugged the reg and tried to start but got the same result. Now I am really stumped. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted August 21, 2012 Share Posted August 21, 2012 Not sure why but the bike has now fired and getting 13.3 with low beams and 13.5 with highs @ 5000 rpm. Temp got to 225 F and did not blow headlights. 12.6 v @ idle Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spud786 Posted August 21, 2012 Share Posted August 21, 2012 13.3 and 13.5 is very borderline minimum spec, maybe you drained the battery alot, Id charge it fully , let sit for couple hours afterwards, Note the standby voltage before starting, then run the test again. You really shouldnt be seeing 10 volts at any time, that says a weak or depleted battery. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted August 22, 2012 Share Posted August 22, 2012 thx for the help spud. I charged the battery and wiated a few hours, standby voltage was @ 12.9 Started the bike and let it idle 14.9 while idling until the bike came up to 130 F and all of a sudden the volts started to drop steadily and levellled off around 12.6 and 13.3-5 @ 5000 rpm with lows and highs. Battery? or regulator? or both? I have a VFRness and a regulator coming from tightwad and purchased a new battery here locally. Will install when they arrive. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Contributer kaldek Posted August 24, 2012 Member Contributer Share Posted August 24, 2012 You need to perform a full electrical test. It sounds like your regulator is over charging AND your stator is failing (an interesting combination). You'll need to repeat all the tests listed below on a hot and cold engine. http://www.electrosport.com/media/pdf/fault-finding-diagram.pdf Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted August 24, 2012 Share Posted August 24, 2012 Not knowing for sure whether my battery is good or not, should I install a new battery to do these tests? What part of my symptoms makes you believe that the stator is on its way out? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tightwad Posted August 27, 2012 Share Posted August 27, 2012 The charging voltages dropping as you approach the higher RPM is actually fairly common for the stock R/R....not sure why but I hear that a lot. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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