Query Approved

First, adjusting the beam makes a good amount fo difference. Since you say you already did that, let us see further.

Yes, the light spread is good but not intense. That makes it difficult when we have on coming traffic. I am using one Osram Night Breaker (55/60W). Makes a good difference. When I tried using two 55/60 W bulbs the battery drained after 4 hours of night riding. So, for one or two hours kind of riding it is still pretty fine.

HID: A bunch of people are using them in their R15 without any issues. Please search for relevant posts in the ownership thread.

All the Best.

if you do not wish to take any risks, invest in a philips 35/35W which comes as OE in FZ/UNi/Stunner and fit it in the right pod,
it illuminates better than halonix

^^^ +1 to that. It is better than the stock Osram. You can buy those bulbs from Honda spares for Rs 195 each.

But then, the reflectors are not great (blame it on design constraints) and won't fetch you a lot of difference.

Thanks for the inputs so far... I have revised my first post and added a few more queries...

My answers are in bold .

Well, I'm a newbie here, just got started to learn riding. My R15 is about a month old, 1st. service done and ~900KMs on the odo.

Now my observations and help needed:

1. Headlights: Even though it has dual 35W headlamps, the lighting is very poor even on high beam. The illumination as a whole on highways was simply pathetic... first I thought it might be solved by adjusting the beam (screws at the back of the lamp housing assembly), it improved a bit but not upto the mark a 70W light should illuminate. Also, the low beam isn't that good too...

a. I can go for HIDs... but given the small battery, not a good choice. Also, I intend to keep the bike as close to the stock condition as possible.

I have read that HIDs (with full relay circuit) doesn't hold good with the stock battery. Leave dual, even single HID gets the battery down... is this true?

Also, the dealership owner's son (my school friend) says a mod can be done with 2 batteries in parallel (put it in the box space under the seat, no charger circuit change needed) and HID can be used easily... any comment on this?

No need of adding batteries .Most hilarious thing i have ever heard "2 batteries in parallel " .Grab a good HID and fix it . It works .

b. I can go for a nightbreaker on the left so as to get a brighter 60W beam on low as well as a 55W+35W on high. Is this feasible with the stock battery? Any chance of damage to the left reflector?

The night breakers eats the battery in lower RPMs not a good idea.. Tried and tested by a few friends.

c. Each parking light draws 5W, so 10W for both. Is it better to replace them with LEDs? How easy is this? Recommended mod?

Leds will help. And it will look cool..

d. Angel eyes... Estimated costs including fitting? Considering to be LED based, hope it doesn't draw much power off the battery...

I wouldn't recommend fancy lighting . To install angel eyes you need to rip open the headlight .

e. If you have done any headlight mod... used it yourself, please share your thoughts and reviews...

I have a HID on the high beam 4300k H4 . Use it only on highways .

f. Can I install a high Amperage battery in the stock battery holder? Or even cut/mod the holder to hold a bigger one?

Not a good idea. Higher amp batteries are bigger where are you going to fix it ? how will you take care of the charging circuit the R15 electricals are complex dont go to R&D with it . Parts are really expensive . ie the ECU costs 8-9k .

2. When I took the bike to 1st. service, I checked other R15s there at the SC + showroom and found the gap between the throttle grip and the tank is way less when the handlebar is turned to max in my case. I've been experiencing difficulties when turning the bike in a low radius (say a U turn to change direction) since day one... the wrist comes in close contact with the tank that it is difficult to apply throttle... I thought it was made like this... but NO! every other R15 has better clearance.

I showed it to the service guys, they did some tweaking on the handlebars but the gap didn't increase much... also their were to go for lunch break and seemed to avoid anymore work. Any help from experts?

Need to check the bike then can comment.

iirc HIDs have a lesser overall current draw than regular bulbs.. its the initial current needed by the chokes that increase the current.

Dont go for angel eyes, unless you know how the person is opening up the front plastic of the headlight... I have seen some really screwed up examples with bends and pieces of plastic jutting out inside the lamp ( im proper way of opening the light ).

AND NO, dont even think about the double battery, bigger battery nip and tuck here and there... Its a new bike.. why do u wanna void your warranty and stuff... Your friend might get his share of experience and experimentation on your bike... if you wanna make it a guinea pig..

you can go for a Lo beam Hid with 4300k rating . it will improve lighting by huge margin .
also go for a ballast that consumes less than 6 amperes at startup and convert pilot lamps to Leds.

Sorry for trying to steal the original thread, but has anyone from Mumbai/Pune successfully turned his bike full DC and HID? I am interested in converting my GS to DC HID, and within 3000rs. Any pointers?

@ksatish,jd666,Puneet1,

Thanks for the advice... however, as always, HIDs are costly... as one suggested to use only low beam HID, what would I do for high beam?
Won't the bike look like blind with 1 HID and one halogen when both headlamps are lighted?

If I want to do minimum mods and also spend less, how about using one nightbreaker on the left assembly as I had asked before?

Any pointers about the handlebar issue?

NEW Query:
3. Horns... Doesn't the stock horn sound like mopeds? Can dual-tone horns be fitted (like pulsar ones)? If so, where do I mount the 2 separate horn units? Will the battery suffice?

^^ HIDs work for both low beam and high beam. the filament/lighting component inside moves horizontally, changing its orientation from low to high beam spread.

Buy a genuine philips HID, will cost you atleast 10k, but it comes with warranty, and is the most reliable.

Use two horns with relay a between.. its the best.
Try this if u can for your head light.
http://sites.google.com/site/bevinabraham/yamaha-r15
check under yamaha for a cheaper headlight Modd

R15 Modd

Wonder Wall: Yamaha R15

the thread still alive??
I have tried Osaran NB on my Pulsar 150, (came in a twin pack for around 650 Rs) It had a very small life. Both died out.
whe you change the battery, go for BOSCH 9AH. Its a good one IMHO. Or Amaron (Both come from the same factory)!!!