Lighting - is this legal in CA?

T

TurkeyRun

Member
Hey folks, long time lurker, first time poster (I think... maybe some "hello stuff, but I digress....)

Interesting thread over in ADVRider about a guy on a GS who 'had some conversation" with a CHP regarding aux lighting. Fella ended up with a warning, about what is still unclear. Seems there was a 10 minute conversation and the officer did not cite him.

Made me start thinking, on my GS I've got:
- Stock LED headlamp
- Pair of Denali D4s on the upper crash bar (60% on low, 100% on high)
- Pair of Denali D2s w/Amber lenses down on the forks (60% on low, 100% on high)

I ride out of the Santa Cruz Mountains into San Jose via Bear Creek Road in the pre-dawn and after-dark hours. I shudder at the the thought of riding that road a 05:00 without these.

Here's a pic, on high beams (Denalis at 100%)

So - am I legal?

IMG_0334-X3.jpg
 
T

TurkeyRun

Member
sportbiker929 said:
Thats all? dial it back a bit for normal riding and have it come on full blast with high beams.
Click to expand...

Yea, I think I'll detune it from 60% low, 100% high to 30% low, 100% high. It's Bear Creek Road before dawn that's the killer. And I'm pretty good about turning off my high beams in the presence of other traffic. So... that, and keep my fingers crossed I guess.
 
Shaggy

Shaggy

Zoinks!!!!
DOT approved or not, no vehicle may be equipped with more than 2 auxiliary headlamps.

§ 24402. (a) Any motor vehicle may be equipped with not to exceed two auxiliary driving lamps mounted on the front at a height of not less than 16 inches nor more than 42 inches. Driving lamps are lamps designed for supplementing the upper beam from headlamps and may not be lighted with the lower beam.
(b) Any motor vehicle may be equipped with not to exceed two auxiliary passing lamps mounted on the front at a height of not less than 24 inches nor more than 42 inches. Passing lamps are lamps designed for supplementing the lower beam from headlamps and may also be lighted with the upper beam.
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K

kurth83

Well-known member
If those are off-road lights, chances are they way exceed candlepower limits for street legal lights. I don't have the CVC on hand, but it amounted to the aux lights had to be no more than about 2/3 the brightness of the main beam, which is much more restrictive than federal guidelines of 150k candlepower total for front lights.

Also, the vehicle code doesn't know about motorcycles in the lighting section and limits it to four front facing lights. Or maybe it does and allows two extra lights.

Like you, I also have five up front, clearwaters, all four are ambers (2 erica, 2 darlas). At minimum brightness and angled down a bit it comes pretty close to legal (with one or two extra lights).

And, the lights look fantastic (sans brightness tuning), my similar setup made a huge difference for me, lots fewer cutoffs when lane splitting.
 
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ctwo

ctwo

Merely Rhetorical
I think there was a spirited thread here about such lighting. could not find...

Most of my night vision problems are from other vehicles blinding lights.
Not as bad as the high intensity LED, full strobe lights some bicyclists use.
 
tgrrdr

tgrrdr

Не мои о&#1073
I read a similar thread somewhere else on-line recently and looked up the code. As I recall you can also have two fog lights and two aux. lights and there was a part that required the aux. lights to be covered when not in use.

<edit> I just went and read the code again </edit>

24405 (a) Not more than four lamps of the following types showing to the front of a vehicle may be lighted at any one time:
(1) Headlamps.
(2) Auxiliary driving or passing lamps.
(3) Fog lamps.
(4) Warning lamps.
(5) Spot lamps.
(6) Gaseous discharge lamps specified in Section 25258.
(b) For the purpose of this section each pair of a dual headlamp system shall be considered as one lamp.

24411
Notwithstanding any other provision of law, a vehicle may be equipped with not more than eight lamps for use as headlamps while the vehicle is operated or driven off the highway. The lamps shall be mounted at a height of not less than 16 inches from the ground, or more than 12 inches above the top of the passenger compartment, at any place between the front of the vehicle and a line lying on a point 40 inches to the rear of the seat occupied by the driver, shall be wired independently of all other lighting circuits, and, whenever the vehicle is operated or driven upon a highway, shall be covered or hooded with an opaque hood or cover, and turned off.
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