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Coloured lights on front of bike

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I have had these 55 watt driving lights with amber lens covers on them for about 15 years.Never had anyone pull out in front of me while on this bike.It's happened a few times on other bikes i have owned.But then again...the couchrocket's headlights are rather formidable.
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Flywheel said:
I like those lights, Doctor T. A good solution instead of those "adventure" lights.
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Thanks, I really like them too, although my pic does not do them justice (possibly because of the slight off angle). Much better pics on skenelights.com.


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thwak said:
Check out Photon Blasters by Skene Designs. I bought mine at Motorcycle Innovations. They are modulating amber LEDs mounted on the lower forks. I've had them for many years and I find them highly effective.
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Thank these are the brake lights I was looking for .
 
I highly recommend amber lights. You know - the colour of hazard lights, turning indicators, and amber lights at traffic signals. I don't know about you, but something about that colour really draws my attention at night. Ideally, don't put them so close to your bike either like 'flush-mount'. Consider trying to make your bike appear wider by having them stick away from the fairings - almost like - stock turn signals do.

If your front signals don't always stay on in the front then consider making it so they do.
 
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Wingboy said:
I have had these 55 watt driving lights with amber lens covers on them for about 15 years.Never had anyone pull out in front of me while on this bike.It's happened a few times on other bikes i have owned.But then again...the couchrocket's headlights are rather formidable.
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1500's aren't as blessed.
 
Bagman said:
If your front signals don't always stay on in the front then consider making it so they do.
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Most modern motorcycles have the front signals dimly lit as clearance lights all the time, with signals being a brighter flash on a second filament - I think it actually became a requirement by law quite a long time ago.

Rear signals, not so much...because most use amber lenses and having amber rearward clearance lights is not legal, so they only light up with signal lights.

On my VTX I converted my rear signals to have clearance capability (more rearward projecting light at night) as well as flash when I apply the brakes -
again, an additional set of stop lights that get cagers attention...but to stay legal I had to change the lenses to red vs amber.
 
PrivatePilot said:
Most modern motorcycles have the front signals dimly lit as clearance lights all the time, with signals being a brighter flash on a second filament - I think it actually became a requirement by law quite a long time ago.
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Nope; no requirement for amber clearance/running lights. I have a high-end 2015 Kawasaki that does not have amber clearance/running lights.

I modified my cbr125 (the bike that I ride in traffic the most). Swap front (but not rear) turn signal bulbs for as-bright-as-possible LED, re-wire the harness so that what was previously connected to ground is now connected to switched power (I stole it from another bulb in the headlight circuit), reverse polarity of connector, replace turn signal flasher with a LED-compatible flasher. Now by default the front signal is powered from +12 and the other side of the connector "leaks" the current through the rear bulb (which is incandescent and won't actually illuminate), and when the flasher is in the "flash" part of its cycle it feeds +12 to the rear bulb (illuminating it) and there is now +12 on both sides of the connector for the front bulb, so it's off. The front bulb thus flashes opposite phase to the rear bulb. This is actually contra CMVSS 108, but I have no idea why that requirement for all bulbs to flash in phase exists. Someone seeing the front of the bike isn't seeing what's happening on the rear and vice versa, and if someone seeing the bike from the side observes that the front and rear are out of phase, so what?

I think the Kawasaki uses a central lighting module as opposed to a traditional hard-wired flasher relay, which might thwart this approach ... I haven't dug into it yet.
 
Brian P said:
Nope; no requirement for amber clearance/running lights. I have a high-end 2015 Kawasaki that does not have amber clearance/running lights.
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An H2? I bet it's an H2.
 
Brian P said:
Nope; no requirement for amber clearance/running lights. I have a high-end 2015 Kawasaki that does not have amber clearance/running lights.
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I stand corrected there then, but I thought they had changed that requirement.
 
Some of the newer bikes (2011 cbr125 included) have WHITE supplementary lighting together with the headlights. I don't consider it to be very effective, because these extra low-powered bulbs are so close to the headlight that it appears to be one light source from a distance.

On the 125 in addition to making the turn signals into running lamps, I also replaced the bulbs for those supplementary lights in the headlight cluster with amber LEDs. So now there is one white main headlamp and four smaller amber light sources surrounding it.
 
Hasn't been mentioned, but if a Volunteer Firefighter, a Flashing Green Light is OK to use if on the way to the Firehall/Station responding to a call, as for other uses for Green Lights, I'm not sure.
 
Flashing lights other than for prescribed applications are going to be trouble regardless of colour. Legality aside - Keep in mind that you want your presence to be noted but you don't want other drivers to target fixate on you.
 
Lord Letto said:
Hasn't been mentioned, but if a Volunteer Firefighter, a Flashing Green Light is OK to use if on the way to the Firehall/Station responding to a call, as for other uses for Green Lights, I'm not sure.
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Yes flashing GREEN lights to the front of a vehicle are a no no, they are prescribed by the HTA as for Vol FF, (which can ONLY be used while responding to a call). Of course it also states that they can NOT exceed the posted limit, by more than 10 Km/h, while using the light and responding..lol
 
I thought the HTA said white and amber lights only on the front of a car/truck....and White only on the front of a Motorcycle.

I had been pulled over before for having yellow headlights on my bike and car. Both times I argued that they weren't yellow, they were "amber" as allowed in the HTA.

The Yellow/Amber headlights didn't help me get noticed when my VFR750 got written off over a year ago. Doesn't matter what color or how many lights on your bike you have if they aren't looking.
 
You are most certainly allowed forward facing amber on a motorcycle....case in point as I mentioned earlier a lot of bikes (My VTX for one) has the signals do double duty as clearance lights on the front which I like...more forward visibility, especially at night.

Now, your HEADLIGHT, well....different case - the HTA does specifically state that headlights must emit a white light. Arguably even aux driving lights could be considered headlights under this statute and be ticketable if not white as well. If you can make an argument that any forward facing non-white lights are either clearance or simply for visibility (but not a "headlight") you could probably get a ticket tossed though.
 
Lamps required on all motor vehicles except motorcycles
62 (1) When on a highway at any time from one-half hour before sunset to one-half hour after sunrise and at any other time when, due to insufficient light or unfavourable atmospheric conditions, persons and vehicles on the highway are not clearly discernible at a distance of 150 metres or less, every motor vehicle other than a motorcycle shall carry three lighted lamps in a conspicuous position, one on each side of the front of the vehicle which shall display a white or amber light only, and one on the rear of the vehicle which shall display a red light only. R.S.O. 1990, c. H.8, s. 62 (1).
Lamps required on motorcycles

(2) Subject to subsection (3), when on a highway at any time every motorcycle shall carry two lighted lamps in a conspicuous position, one on the front of the vehicle which shall display a white light only, and one on the rear of the vehicle which shall display a red light only. R.S.O. 1990, c. H.8, s. 62 (2).
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From my understanding and how an officer and the courts can read this...you can only have white lights facing front on a motorcycle.


PrivatePilot said:
You are most certainly allowed forward facing amber on a motorcycle....case in point as I mentioned earlier a lot of bikes (My VTX for one) has the signals do double duty as clearance lights on the front which I like...more forward visibility, especially at night.
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I know bikes come with Amber lights on the front. My VFR has steady ambers on the front. Not saying the laws make sense. I'm just repeating what I have been through and what I recall the HTA saying.

Edit: If you get a ticket for how the bike comes from the factory I am sure it's easy to argue in court. But aftermarket stuff may be a different story
 
The wording requires that the bike have one lamp facing forward which emits a white light only. It doesn't say there can't be other stuff beyond that.

If you have two ... you have one. If you have a bunch of other stuff in addition to the prescribed one ... you have the prescribed one. It doesn't matter what else there is.

If in addition to this one prescribed white lamp facing forward you also have three other white lamps and 16 amber lights facing forward ... you still have one lamp facing forward which emits a white light only. It doesn't say you can't have a bunch of others.

Yes, the wording is dumb.
 
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