Spyydrman
New member
Here in Aus (& I suspect in Europe too) we get the '2 light' system, not really a '2 beam' system!! Our High beam is where North American models have their main beam lights (hi & lo) while our Low beam is where you get Fog Lights. Our Low beam lights come on with the ignition, only to go off if you select Hi beam - so we can only have one or the other on, never both!! (altho there is an a/mkt 'mod' that will allow the Lo beam lights to stay on when Hi beam is on too, making for some useful light output & a significant light output improvement over stock!! Thanks Pogo!) Having headlights set up like this is a bit of a problem, because the fog/low position is generally somewhat lower than most other drivers here tend to look &/or focus their awareness, especially if you are close to them (ie within about 30 yards!) This means that while we might be seen by other drivers when we are further away from them or approaching from a distance, once we get closer we suddenly seem to become invisible! :yikes:
I'm pretty sure that most Spyder Ryders Down Under will have a few 'near miss' stories where the only thing that saved them from some idiot who just 'didn't see you there' pulling out was the great braking or the 'Nanny' enabling a rapid swerve!! And as I come from a few decades of riding & rider training on many bikes, I can assure you that despite its 'bigger' size & supposedly being more easily seen by other drivers, instead our Spyders seem to be somewhat more prone to this 'invisibility phenomenon' thing than most 2 Wheelers!! Running with your lights on High beam all the time during the day can alleviate it a little, as can mounting a pair of 'day-time running lights' above or on the back of the mirrors, while adding even a heap of LED's down low or on the sides of the Spyder makes for very little difference in our 'apparent visibility' during daylight hours once you get close to other vehicles! Any 'improve your visibility to others' lights for daytime use really need to be up high where other road users not only see them at a distance, but also look for them up close! :sour:
So I for one would dearly love BRP to re-consider the silly arrangement we get foisted upon us of splitting the Hi & Lo Lights into the upper & lower housings and instead give us a 'normal' Hi/Lo twin filament globe arrangement in one pair of lights (just below the windscreen) instead!! Heck, even if we got the left light for Low Beam & the Right light for High Beam like many other bikes, it'd be better than what we have now!! Still, once I've got the 'Hi-mount Daytime Running Light' kits sorted properly, I reckon there could be some money in making up a 'conversion kit' for Aus/Europe Spec Spyders; a kit that allows not only both Hi & Lo beams to wired to come on at the same time, but also one that allows the fitting of twin element globes in the upper light housings so both Hi & Lo lights are in the same place, right up high where other vehicles can see them & take notice of us, and also leaving the lower light housings free to run Auxiliary Lights - Fogs or Hi-intensity Spot/Driving lights as you prefer!! Fog lights aren't all that useful here, but at night time, wide spread beam driving lights to light up the verges of our thousands of miles of country roads & give us advance warning/early visibility of Kangaroos, Wallabies, Wombats, or even Cows or Camels could really be handy!! :thumbup:
Where can I get the kit (from Pogo or elsewhere). It is exactly what I want for my 2010 RT? I am running HID's so if you go to high beam instant dark until they warm up [emoji37]. Low beam needs to stay on.
