I don't know about you, but I found the headlight on my R1100RS to be too dim. Email on the Internet BMW Riders' (IBMWR) , and R1100 group lists indicated a brighter bulb should be okay. I went to my BMW dealership and asked what would work in my bike. They sold me an H4 100/80W bulb. That was 3 years and 30K miles ago. Since then, I've had to replace the bulb twice, the last time was two days ago.
There are a few tricks so I thought some directions and pictures might save you mucho aggravation. If you haven't replaced a headlight bulb, I'd recommend you at least practice before having to swap a bulb at night in a pounding rainstorm at the side of the road...
Note: Pictures were taken with a Apple QuickTake 200 .
Click on image to view full-sized. It will open in a new browser window.
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PARTS LIST
TOOLS AND SUPPLIES NEEDED
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Here is BIG tip number 1. Either carry a long T-handle 3mm allen wrench, or remove the center allen beforehand. You can take it out using the small "L" allen, but it is a long bolt and will take *forever*. Also note, the center bolt doesn't have to be removed entirely. The left panel is just notched at this point and can be slid out from under the right hand panel. |
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Remove the (4) 3mm allen bolts retaining the left hand rocker-switch fairing panel. Remove the panel. If you start by sliding the bottom of the panel to the right, and free the bottom, you should be able pop the rest of the panel out without too much trouble. There's no need to unhook any of the switches, just let the panel hang by their wires. |
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Look in under the speedometer and tach for a three-wire connector at the back of a large rubber dust cover. (Sorry for the blurry pictures, it was kinda dark in there.) |
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Remove the connector and notice the orientation--one slot on top, one on each side. |
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This one is difficult to explain, and I don't have a good picture... Pull the outer edge of the rubber boot off of the headlight housing revealing the inner part of the boot which covers the back of the headlight bulb. Reach around both the top and bottom of the bulb base and feel for two spring-clip ends. Pinch them together and pull them back. This should release the clip ends which can then be pulled toward you around the inner part of the boot and the base of the bulb. |
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Here is a better picture of the spring clip, bulb, and boot with the bulb released. |
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Here is a view of the bulb and the inside of the rubber boot. Again, notice their orientation. |
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Being careful to not touch the glass part of the bulb, insert the new bulb into the boot and attach the electric connector. Turn on the ignition and make sure the new bulb works. Insert the assembly into the back of the headlight bucket making sure the base of the bulb is fully seated in the headlight bucket. Swing the spring-clip arms around the inner boot and secure the clip ends into their hooks by squeezing them together while pushing them forward. Push the outer edge of the rubber boot back into place. Important tip: If you have problems securing the spring-clip ends, the base of the bulb is probably not fully seated in the headlight bucket. I found the bulb seemed to be fully seated, but if I moved it around some more, it "clicked" into the correct position. |
Put the rocker-switch panel back into place and secure with the (4) 3mm allen bolts.
That's it!!!
Page created: August 18, 1998
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