LED tail lights

[Xrider57]

Is there a conversion for our stock tail/brake lights and turn signal?

[F6Pilot]

You convert by swapping out the sockets and bulbs.

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=NhumqeAgYSY

[SimonTemplar]

Not necessarily true. SoCalMotoGear.com has drop in bulb replacements that work quite well and after a year in service have not had any troubles at all.

Turn signals will require a change in the flasher relay which is a little bit of a PIA to perform....but not impossible. And I would steer clear of SoCal's license plate bulb replacement....I've had troubles with those failing. HOWEVER, Sylvania now makes an LED equivalent of that bulb which works very well and can (at least hereabouts) be had from any Auto Parts retailer in town.

.....sT

[JackB]

I bought my from Rick at Value accessories.
But I wired mine so I have brake lights in the outer lens with the blinkers.

[53driver]

I bought my from Rick at Value accessories.
But I wired mine so I have brake lights in the outer lens with the blinkers.

Me too!
Whole backside lights up red with the brakes applied now!

[F6Pilot]

Sorry, I’ll rephrase. You “can” convert by replacing the sockets and bulbs. Admittedly it has been a while and vendors have clearly introduced new solutions.

[olegoat345]

Seems like I got some LED bulbs that went right in the OEM sockets. Ebay has them but I got mine someplace else, may be AMAZON. Yes, you do need a LED flasher, don't remember where I got it either. But I do remember you can get to it from the R. side by going under the bars, slow & EZ. Find it by feel & sound, just turning on your signal.

[Xrider57]

I just want something brighter and more visible. I noticed in Cherokee following that the stock lights were not near as easy to pick up as others.I was watching for braking so I can only imagine a car driver following not looking for it.

[Xrider57]

Me too!
Whole backside lights up red with the brakes applied now!

Can you tell me what you bought and how you wired it?

[Draxsr]

+1 on the SoCal solutions. Plug/Play.

[tenxxx]

Hard to miss the BACK OFF lights. They really catch the eye.

[53driver]

Can you tell me what you bought and how you wired it?

Yes. One of our gal members is an incredible DIY chick.
She has a YouTube video with parts numbers and sources.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NhumqeAgYSY

Cheers,
Steve

[2wheelsforme]

I have lots of light on the back of my bike with the Kury strips down each side and pulsing when brakes are applied. What I just found out and something I have seen on other bikes with LED upgrades is very little noticeable difference in light output is viewed between the run and brake lights. While yes more brighter lights are a good thing but if the runs are really bright you can lose the effectiveness of having brighter brake lights. No visible brake lights is not something I desire to have. This mod adds being red run and brake and keeps the turns working in amber. What I would be more interested in doing is making the turns work also as a brake light and not as run. This would return me the brake lights that are washed out by the really bright run lights. I was already thinking about how to add two more strips of brake only lights. Found some I think would work from Radantz.

[53driver]

I... This mod adds being red run and brake and keeps the turns working in amber. What I would be more interested in doing is making the turns work also as a brake light and not as run. This would return me the brake lights that are washed out by the really bright run lights. ...

This mod lets you configure it either way.
The switchback lights are red, with amber for turn signal use.
I started out with my switchback red lights in Running light mode and 2wheels is correct, the difference between running and braking was not enough.
I switched the switchback red lights to Brake mode, and now my entire ass end lights up red when I apply the brakes - much better.
All happy now.
Steve

[Rickc]

I have lots of light on the back of my bike with the Kury strips down each side and pulsing when brakes are applied. What I just found out and something I have seen on other bikes with LED upgrades is very little noticeable difference in light output is viewed between the run and brake lights. While yes more brighter lights are a good thing but if the runs are really bright you can lose the effectiveness of having brighter brake lights. No visible brake lights is not something I desire to have. This mod adds being red run and brake and keeps the turns working in amber. What I would be more interested in doing is making the turns work also as a brake light and not as run. This would return me the brake lights that are washed out by the really bright run lights. I was already thinking about how to add two more strips of brake only lights. Found some I think would work from Radantz.

I did the LED upgrade and had a rider following me comment that very thing, that he saw little difference between the brake light and the running lights. If not for an added brake light that flashes he did not notice the difference in light intensity.

[Casper96]

Sylvannia makes led replacements for factory bulbs..no need for flasher change either. Been in mine for over a year now no problems....

[Vandal]

Got mine from SoCal, fronts and rears and led headlamps along with the relay that I replaced in the front. Very happy with the easy conversion.

[shortleg0521]

What is needed is a conversion that Kury has, it consists of a wire that has a resister or diodes wired in and then out
to 2 wires for brake and run. It lowers voltage for run and ups voltage for brake.
Works great iif you change the socket in rear and use led bulb that goes from amber to red.

[jmdaniel]

Got mine from SoCal, fronts and rears and led headlamps along with the relay that I replaced in the front. Very happy with the easy conversion.


Part number?

[SeaSteve]

Lets see if I can set the record straight on changing from incandescent to LED bulbs.

Hyperflashing

The standard OEM turn indicator relay on modern motor vehicles is designed to let you know when one of your incandescent bulbs has gone out. If an incandescent bulbs filament breaks it creates an open electrical circuit and no current is used in that circuit. The OEM relay detects the loss of electrical current and then Hyper, or quickly, flashes all (left or right) turn signal circuits INCLUDING the arrow on the vehicles dash, giving you and indication one or more turn indicator bulb not working.

The reason we get hyperflash when changing to LED bulbs is because LED’s use so much less current than incandescent bulbs that the OEM relay thinks the LED is an open circuit and “senses” a fault in one or more of the bulbs and therefore hyperflashes.

The two ways to fix hyperflashing is to either: 1.Use MORE current in each circuit or 2. Replace the OEM relay with one that’s designed for lower current draw.

The better solution is to replace the relay with one designed for LED bulbs low current draw. The main reason for installing LED bulbs is to use LESS current which saves battery power for other accessories. Using load resistors is a waste of battery power. It will stop the OEM relay from sensing the open and hyperflashing but it does this by literally burning off the extra current in heat dissipated off the resistor. The other reason for using LEDs are the longer life span of the low power usage bulbs.

Brightness

Changing to LED bulbs saves battery power but the reality is most “standard OEM replacement” LED bulbs are not brighter than incandescent bulbs. Some can even be dimmer because they're focused in one direction and the focal point may not work well with the OEM lens cover the replacement LED bulb is illuminating though.

Now, IMHO, I believe flashing/changing/blinking/alternating gets more attention than brightness. Think of every emergency vehicle you ever seen. (Hopefully they were passing you and not parked behind you.) Yes, all the lights are bright but the real "out of the corner of your eye attention getter" is the flashing.

Several Goldwing riders have added some version of an “LED Emergency Vehicle Grill Warning Light” to the rear of the bike. These are designed to be very bright and can be programmed to flash at different intervals.

I’ve added a Swift 3.0 TIR 2 watt 4 LED (https://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_from=R40&_trksid=m570.l1313&_nkw=Swift+3.0+TIR+3+watt+4+LED&_sacat=0) below my license plate and set it to flash 4 times before going solid red. If I’m in a spot where I need more than 4 flashes I simply let the break in and out every five-ten seconds to get the LED flashing again. I also changed the two OEM break lights to LED Ultra-Flash Pathfinder 7443 (https://cyclemax.com/inc/sdetail/led_ultra_flash_7443_style_taillight_bulb/46037/440624) bulbs. Everyone tells me they can see my break lights.

None of this addresses red running lights. I've heard of modification to add bulbs to the rear left and right turn indicator housing but some have had issues with water condensation. Obviously you can’t have flashing running lights but I’m open to just some additional, regular brightness, red running LEDs.

[jmdaniel]

"I also changed the two break lights two LED Ultra-Flash Pathfinder 7443 (https://cyclemax.com/inc/sdetail/led_ultra_flash_7443_style_taillight_bulb/46037/440624) bulbs to the center break light."

Huh?

[SeaSteve]

"I also changed the two break lights two LED Ultra-Flash Pathfinder 7443 (https://cyclemax.com/inc/sdetail/led_ultra_flash_7443_style_taillight_bulb/46037/440624) bulbs to the center break light."

Huh?

Oops! Corrected.

[2wheelsforme]

Not really crazy about lots of lights but do think it is safer. First Owner added the Kury lights, I added the outside dual bulb conversion and the additional brakes. Also have additional turns in yellow. Mine in run and brake.
7283 7284

[jmdaniel]

Oops! Corrected.


All clear now. I think these are the same bulbs, directly from SoCal:

https://www.socalmotogear.com/ProductDetails.asp?ProductCode=7443RP2

Did you do the turn signals as well?

[SeaSteve]

All clear now. I think these are the same bulbs, directly from SoCal:

https://www.socalmotogear.com/ProductDetails.asp?ProductCode=7443RP2

Did you do the turn signals as well?

Yes, same bulbs, but retailed by CycleMax. About the same price but you can get them individually, if you need to replace just one.

I'm not planning on changing the turn indicators to LED because I don't want to fight to get to the relay, and again, I think the incandescent bulbs are bright enough. I watched the "up close" videos on SoCal's site which make the LED bulbs seem so much brighter. In my experience, there's not much difference...In full daylight...At 50 feet...When the bikes moving.

Now, I would like to find a good water tight way to add red running lights to the turn indicator housings. Even considered a bright LED strip to attach UNDER and outside the turn indicators. Still searching.

[FarsideF6B]

Not really crazy about lots of lights but do think it is safer. First Owner added the Kury lights, I added the outside dual bulb conversion and the additional brakes. Also have additional turns in yellow. Mine in run and brake.
7283 7284

Nice, looks familiar but not laying down. :rolleyes: I like to be seen so had the outside edge LED done too. It is bright but not for too long. :cool:

[valkmc]

All clear now. I think these are the same bulbs, directly from SoCal:

https://www.socalmotogear.com/ProductDetails.asp?ProductCode=7443RP2

Did you do the turn signals as well?

I have the same bulbs. They have been on my bike for 3 years and around 40K. My friend put the same bulbs in his HD they lasted about 4 months and both blew. They did cause me one problem with my extended warranty. I had the fuse blow twice and thought I have the warranty so I dropped it off at the dealer. They told me the bulbs were the cause of the failure and put OEM bulbs back in. Honda wouldn't warranty it. I brought the bike home put the flashing bulbs back in and have not had a problem since. Since the dealer couldn't figure out what was up with the fuse. I checked it out and found a break in the rubber around the wire that came from the front brake handle. It was very close to the handlebars and I bet when turning with the brake handle suppressed it caused a short. Fixed it my self. I no longer use that dealer for many reasons.