Hey Hey... I got a big problem, my head light bulbs will not stop blowing out!!!! if its not one its the other. I go for a ride, one blows out, i replace it, ride again the next weekend and the other one blows, out its like a cat and mouse game, some time, one might not work in a certin setting (hi/low beam) and out of no where it will work again, something is screwed up, any help greatly apprechiated (sp) Thanks

 

Are you getting any water in your headlights at all? Mine on my Prairie will blow in a second if water gets inside the lamp and touches the bulb. I've lost three or four in a year and a half.

 

Is it possible that there is a bad ground or faulty wiring causing increased voltage or surges to the bulb? That could be a cause of your problems. I have only replaced both bulbs on my 220 once, but they still had plenty of life in them, but felt that they werent as bright as they should have been. Right now my right hand side bulb is intermidately going out and on, so I believe I have a grounding problem? Insights?

 

The problem you desribe is usually the result of too much current (amps) or voltage (volts) being supplied to the bulb. The filament in a lightbulb is designed to carry a given amount of current with a given voltage applied across it's leads. Increase one and you increase the other. I will try to remember to check the electrical diagram in my 220 shop manual to see if there isn't a voltage regulating device to control this.

 

The bulbs on my 220 frequently go out. they're not actually burned out. If the light is out, I just hit right above the light on the front fender and it comes right back on!! Don't know what the problem with it is though....

 

Are you sure no other bulbs are blown too? On the older Yamaha's, you needed all bulbs working to balance the load, if one blew, the rest followed it soon after, replace all your bulbs at the same time and see if that fixes it. If thats not it, you may have a regulator problem. When you quad is idling are the lights a lot dimmer than when your at speed? Do they brighten up alot when you give it gas?

 

If the light comes back on when you tap against it the problem is probably dirt and/or rust on the contacts. It is common for lights to become more bright when you rev the engine since the output of the mangeto is increased when you do so. Keep in the mind that the output of the magneto is somewhat higher (about 1-1/2 volts) in order to charge the 12-volt battery. The purpose of the voltage regulator is to limit it at that level. The battery is more tolerate of a bad regulator that allows the level to go too high whereas light bulbs are not.