Headlight design change?

[peperino]

For those that switched to 55/60w bulb.. Did it burn the headlight because of heat? Or it is ok

[Lee R]

I've got an IR thermometer, I'll try and get the temp from the 35w and the 50/60w when I make the switch and see the difference.

[Huck369]

I switched to a 55/60w H4 and have had no issues so far...3200 miles on it...I didn't cut any extra holes in the housing either, seems to be doing fine.

[detours]

I put a silverstar ultra 55/60w H4 in mine and it's doing fine after 1000 miles. I also cut a hole in the back of the light assembly for ventilation. The stock reflector really does a good job with the right lamp.

[SpudRider]

Originally Posted by Huck369

I switched to a 55/60w H4 and have had no issues so far...3200 miles on it...I didn't cut any extra holes in the housing either, seems to be doing fine.

Keep an eye on the top of the reflector. I noticed some bubbling and discoloration of the plastic reflector at the top of the assembly. I think if you ride another 2,000-3,000 miles, you might begin to see some damage.

After I noticed the bubbling/discoloration, I cut the ventilation hole in the rear of my headlight assembly. The hole also makes it much easier to change bulbs. I have now ridden about 11,600 miles, and the damage has been arrested. I suggest cutting the hole right away, so no damage ever occurs.

[SpudRider]

Originally Posted by detours

I put a silverstar ultra 55/60w H4 in mine and it's doing fine after 1000 miles. I also cut a hole in the back of the light assembly for ventilation. The stock reflector really does a good job with the right lamp.

Indeed, the stock reflector works great with a stock, 55W/60 H4 bulb. I just wish Zongshen would switch to a metal reflector.

[SpudRider]

Originally Posted by peperino

For those that switched to 55/60w bulb.. Did it burn the headlight because of heat? Or it is ok

Yes, I noticed some bubbling/discoloration at the top of the reflector after riding in the summer heat for about 6,000 miles.

I also installed an H4 LED bulb. Of course, the LED bulb operates much cooler than an incandescent bulb, and it does a better job illuminating the road than the stock, 35W/35 HS1 bulb. However, the LED bulb doesn't do as good a job as an H4 bulb.

I will post an installation thread for the H4 LED bulb in the next few days.

[Cyclone54]

Any idea on what it would cost to upgrade to the Canadian version?

[Lee R]

I'm on a 1400-0200 schedule and it's unusually warm this week in Upstate NY so I'll grab some decent pictures of the newer design headlight in the dead of night.

The low beam isn't so great but the high beam actually does a decent job with the 35w bulb. It's not as good as my Guzzi's twin H4's but it's servicable.

I'll still be adding additional LED's but I'll keep the 35w and save the voltage draw. I think just aux lights will be ok with this headlight.

I'll shoot the shots in Manual with a 23mm (35mm lens FF equivalent) and post the settings so others can recreate with more accurate comparison between the new/old design.

[Lee R]

Grabbed a few shots on the ride home:

High Beam 23mm APS-C 1.5x Crop factor (35mm Full Frame) 1/8th Shutter, F2.8 ISO 6400



Low Beam same settings



From behind the bike 1/15th F2.8 ISO 6400

High Beam



1/15th F2.8 ISO 6400

Low Beam

[SpudRider]

Thanks for posting the nice photos, Lee.

I haven't seen the new headlight for sale on Taobao. I think the original headlight does a very good job with an H4 bulb. I would certainly love to compare the original headlight with the new design.

[Darkrider]

So...the Canadian version headlight looses the LEDs of the original US bike and gets a slightly different lens from what im understanding of this thread? And to get best output out of the stock headlight one would need to upgrade the H4 main bulb? What purpose does the smaller bulb on the bottom serve in either case?

[Lee R]

Originally Posted by Darkrider

So...the Canadian version headlight looses the LEDs of the original US bike and gets a slightly different lens from what im understanding of this thread? And to get best output out of the stock headlight one would need to upgrade the H4 main bulb? What purpose does the smaller bulb on the bottom serve in either case?

It's the same 35W HS1 bulb but the reflector is different. The smaller bulb is some kind of lower watt parking lamp.

This is a US bike but both CAN/US have the same headlight to simplify costs. I took delivery of mine about 3 weeks ago.


Lee

[SpudRider]

Originally Posted by Darkrider

So...the Canadian version headlight looses the LEDs of the original US bike and gets a slightly different lens from what im understanding of this thread? And to get best output out of the stock headlight one would need to upgrade the H4 main bulb? What purpose does the smaller bulb on the bottom serve in either case?

As Lee stated, all Zongshen RX3 bikes will now have the new, Canadian headlight. The original headlight had LED side markers, and a running light with a blue lens. The new headlight loses the LED side markers, and the blue lens.

Illumination from the original headlight improves greatly when switching from the stock, 35W HS1 bulb to a 55W/60 H4 bulb. I'm betting the new headlight would benefit from this switch as well.

The small bulb in both headlights is a running light, which will illuminate the headlight even if one, or both filaments of the main bulb extinguish. Many countries require this running light because of safety reasons. The running light is not mandatory in the United States, but is included with many, if not most of the motorcycles sold here.

[SpudRider]

Originally Posted by Cyclone54

Any idea on what it would cost to upgrade to the Canadian version?

I have not seen the new, Canadian headlight being sold on Taobao. CSC will probably sell the new headlight for the same price as the original headlight, which is listed at $119.95. Alternatively, one could probably just buy the reflector, which is sold at CSC for $72.95.

http://www.cscmotorcycles.com/OEM-RX...IGHT-s/142.htm