Kevs 2010 1400GTR CAF Modifications

[KeVstrom]

Well its almost 1 year of ownership now. Ive done all i need to do i think with the exception of a remap to smoothen out the bike. So if anyone has any options/advice, then let me know.

[Ant]

I've actually found running in ECO makes a smoother ride, I have been running it in ECO since I got it and have no issues, you can hear the difference when you start it up too......

[KeVstrom]

Mine idkes about 2k rpm from cold on ECO. Its almost like having the choke on (whoooooooooo?)
I would just prefer to have full power snoother. For exanple when i get out of the estate i have to turn right at a mini roundabout, which is uneven anyhow, and with the throttle responce the way it is, just make going aroung it even worse.

[Lonewolf]

I'd say that 95% of the time I ride in Eco mode and I find it's actually smoother than not using it.

[KeVstrom]

Finally got round to installing my projector lights. I first did a bit of research to see what was involved, it wasnt too hard but its not for the faint hearted. The headlight unit need stripped out the bike, and it needs seperated in order to fit these. There a few youtube vids on how to do that but ill give a quick run down to it.

Firstly, heres the kit i bought off ebay for £72 delivered.



These are 8000K White Angel Eye and Blue Demon Eye Projectors. You can choose other colour options too. The kits are universal and very comprehensive and come with all wiring, which is more than long enough for a bike. Our headlight units will accept these 3" units no bother, anything else i think would look too small.

So today, i begun by stripping off a few bits from the bike. All these bits need to come off in order to remove the front cowling and headlight unit.


Bikes looking rather scary




While the bike was stripped down, i used the opportunity to test out both projector units, to make sure they both worked! before i go pulling apart the light.
Heres the Angel eye and Demon eye working.

Heres the HID projector on


Once the front cowl was removed, the headlight unit was simple unscrewed from it.


Heres the unit, i took this pic for reference.


Before going into the oven, i removed any unnecessary bit from the light unit. No point heating/melting bit i didnt need too.


Next preheat the oven to 200*F which is Gas Mark 1/4 (YES one quarter) Basically very low. You only need to warm up the adhesive. Place the light unit on cardboard and stick it in the oven for 5 mins at a time. After first 5 mins, i tried to separate it but found it wasnt hot enough so popped it back in for another 5. Id say first bake about 7-10 mins.


Handle the unit with cloth gloves, lift it out and place it on a clean dust sheet to work on. Gently start prying the clips up and the side apart with some flat screwdrivers. Pull apart by hand or pry apart where possible. Work swiftly and rebake as necessary. Work a gap all the way round the unit, keep it steady and even.




And here we have the light unit separated.


Now before fitting the projector lights, the original H4 spring clip was removed as it wasnt needed.


Next i removed the HID bulb from the projector, this was done by simply unscrewing the retaining clip (word of warning, do not overtighten this screw when refitting bulb!)


Simply pull the bulb out.


Check the orientation of the projector, on these, the TDC is the frosted bit to the left side of this pic. Also there is a slight gap in the angel eye at bottom centre.


With the nut removed from the back of the projector, first fit the rubber mount/support. This should be dished on one side to conform to the bottom of the projector. I test fitted this into position in order to mark out a spot for the next bit.


In order for the angel and demon eye wiring to pass thru the reflector, i had to drill a 13mm hole, this was done by marking out a spot just below the rubber mount. Once drilled, the plugs/wiring could be passed thru.




Now the projector was in place, the H4 locating washer was put around the threaded shaft.


The spring washer and retaining nut could then be fitted and tightened. This needs to be tight, check by grabbing the projector and giving it a wobble. If it wobbles, tighten it further.


Flip the unit over, check make sure the light is aligned correctly. Give them a twist if need be.


I used some conduit to tidy up the wiring which goes into the reflector as the mirrored surface shows them from underneath.


Heres a pic of them both fitted.


Now time to refit the front of the light unit, but before you do, take some time to remove any dirt or finger prints from inside. I then placed the glass front back on, but as the adhesive was hard, i pressed them together as best poss, and then rebaked it for 5 mins. I then just pushed the 2 halves together ensuring the clips all relocated in their proper places.
Heres the light back together




I then refitted the hardware around the back of the unit, the HID bulbs, and also the rubbers/grommets.


The light unit could then be refitted to the front cowl ready for the bike.

Next up is the wiring on the bike. I managed to install the 2 ballasts on either side of the front support and the ancillaries for them just below. As i already had HIDs fitted, i had a direct fused LIVE from the battery, aswell as my earth point.



This is as far as i got today.......... TBC

[Rusty]

I have just been catching up with this thread, and a lot of other things too ... well done for all your dissection skills and making the bike "just as you want it" ... greta stuff !

[Zebedee]

You wanna do mine lol

[Stephen.Stallebrass]

Finally got round to installing my projector lights.

I can't wait for you to finish this project... thanks for getting on with it and for documenting the process. You make it look easy. I think they're going to look insanely cool!

[Charlie747]

You wanna do mine lol

+1.................

[viper]

I initially thought why change a perfectly good quality headlight unit, but on reflection (haha) and after reading steven's comment , they will be" insanely cool". OMG I want to do this and if I get bored in the winter I may just do that,

need some more pics kev!

[KeVstrom]

Thanks people. Yeah I think it will look cool, but if you've seen the other thread, there's a company that sells a complete unit but at a silly price. Even then you'll still have to disect the bike and do all the wiring. This was the best way for me to achieve the look I wanted.

You can also get a different look by blackening out the reflectors with some matt black but I like the silver on mine.

More to follow tomorrow. I need to get it done cos I'm back to work wed.

[Richard]

Hi

Looking good, but how do these achieve head / dip?

Richard

[KeVstrom]

Richard, glad you asked, out of the 3 pairs of wires coming out from the bottom of the projectors, the red & black pair plug into the loom. This controls a built in solenoid which moves an internal reflector to bend the light beam up. It's the same principle as they had in the hi/lo H4 HID kits. So rather than have a separate filament for hi beam, just bend the existing beam.

[KeVstrom]

You wanna do mine lol

Might consider offering a fitting service, if theres interest, you never know.

[KeVstrom]

I can't wait for you to finish this project... thanks for getting on with it and for documenting the process. You make it look easy. I think they're going to look insanely cool!

The main reason why I had to do it this week was cos there was a slight wiring issue with my old HIDs. On occasion, when turning the bars, it would knock a loose connection and turn off the headlights for a split second. Well on Saturday when I went to work, i notice the headlights weren't on at all! I messed about fiddling with any wiring I could reach by hand but couldn't get a fix on the loose connection.

The ride home Sunday at 3 am was interesting! The lights were on for the most part but on occasion they went completely off! And I had to pull over sharpish lol. Anyways, when I stripped it down, i found the bad connection which has now been replaced. It was the main live power feed from the battery which I had shortened and soldered on my first hid install. This had been moving/bending over time ultimately breaking the connection.