Experience with HID Upgrade Kits for Suzuki Burgman 650
Work in Progress
There is so much mis-information out there, and some that seems to be time sensitive, that I needed to create a document to sort it all out. And in the end, maybe assist someone else.
First off, I am upgrading a 2003 Suzuki Burgman 650. I do not know if and when key parts changed in similar models (Exec, 400) or model years (2004-present). So does not help to ask me. This is simply my learned knowledge during 2011-2012 for the bike model mentioned above and vendors listed below. Use it as you may.
The bike has two head lamp modules (bi, left and right) with H4 bulbs. Key and important factors to understand of the H4 in this bike are:
(a) Filament in a reflector-capped glass housing (prevents light directly from the bulb out the front lens; )
(b) Dual filament for hi- and low- beam
(c) Low beam has a half reflector to prevent light from hitting half the housings reflector
(d) The "lens" is simply a plastic weather cover and not a fresnel or other configured lens meant to modify the light being emitted. All light control is built into the bulb and via the plastic "mirror" reflector the lens sits in.
All these features must be replicated in a solution if using the same housing (lens, reflector) that the bulb sits in.
By default, in some model years of this bike, only one headlight is on for low-beams. Both are turned on for high-beams. My bike had already been modified to have both bulbs lit for hi- and low-beam operation.
Possibly due to this mod, my bike does not turn off the headlights when starting the bike (starter switch pressed). Given others reporting problems of headlights going out due to starter switch contact problems over time, it would not surprise me if the original owner made this as an intended mod as well.
The kit from VVME.com is the only real solution out there. Others tried were found not workable. This is my experience for the reasons stated. Your mileage may vary.
Kit 1: Bikelitz.com (also on EBay)
Appears to be a direct replacement for the bike as advertises specific kits for specific models and model years. Also claims to be local (Florida) and not from China and so of higher quality and reputation. But this is all a scam it seems.
(a) Sends a normal HID bulb with a small Halogen screwed to the base. Expects you to wire low beams to HID and high beam to halogen bulb.
(b) Neither bulb has any of the reflector caps nor half-reflectors on them.
(c) Neither bulb is centered at the same position the original H4 filaments are.
So problems are:
(a) either low or high beams will be a normal Halogen bulb.
(b) Now four bulbs in the bike to possibly go out. And how to replace which bulb when one goes out (custom mounting of small, non-headlight halogen bulb to the base of the HID).
(c) Light emits directly from all bulbs out the front of the lens in all directions. And the light emits to the top and bottom of the reflector at all times from whichever bulb is lit. Loose all light control designed with the H4 reflectors built in and bikes reflector housing. Either bulb on (HID or halogen) will be worse than a "hi-beam" light and shine in all directions. No clear cut line to prevent blinding oncoming drivers.
None of this is described at all in the advertisement. In fact, personally, I believe their advertising is false and misleading. Nowhere do they mention their HID upgrade kit is actually halogen and HID — either low-beam or high-beam still being Halogen then. They advertise it as a direct H4 replacement in the specific bike model. But without the H4 features of filaments at the specific locations and the end-cap reflector and half-reflector on low-beam, the "substitute" bulb they supply cannot be used in the same housing that relies on these features.
Although they advertised a 7-day return policy, they would not communicate once I mentioned I wanted to return the item. So I mailed it back to the same address it came from on the third day and luckily paid by credit card — which I then contested. It eventually settled out but I was out the return shipping cost.
Kit 2:
This kit is highlighted in Micburgusa Youtube howto video. It uses a projector housing (large lense in front of the bulb housed in a tight reflector enclosure) to help assure a clean, specific beam. This is how most cars with HID bulbs from the factory are built. Hence recommended by many on various forums as the way to go (i.e. only install HID upgrade if using a projector housing).
Although Micburg has 650 fix-it videos, the video he demonstrates doing the upgrade is for a Burgman 400. Either the Burgman 400 light housing is different than the 650 OR the manufacturer changed the projector housing OR the Burgman changed the light housing in different model years. After going through all the trouble to remove the headlight housing from the bike and unsealing the lens, discovered the projector unit is 1/2" too long. When trying to compare with the video, it appears the unit I received, which is identical in box to what he ordered, has a "cap" holding the lense and flap that is now larger. Hence I am suspecting the unit now available, as of 2011, is no longer workable in this bike.
You have to be very careful when ordering. They list kits with slim ballasts and those without any ballasts. The only difference in the listing is a missing, small label in the scanned flyer inserted in the Ebay posting that states "Ballast included".
This kit is from China. They simply wrapped a light, thin cardboard retail box in brown paper for shipping. The box cam crushed. Luckily, the projector units are durable and were not affected. Nor was anything else I could tell. But a poor way to pack for shipping. Shipping was DHL from China and took almost a week at a cost of $15.
Kit 3: VVME.com
Oddly the cheapest but likely only solution.
Comes with H4-replacement "bulbs" that fit in the same slot/location as normal H4's. No modifying the headlight housing. So after adding the HID wiring, you can switch back and forth between normal Halogen and HID bulbs if you so desired. No "projector" housings with lens to install in the existing headlight housing.
They have custom built a bulb assembly (i.e. you have to get these custom replacements from them if a bulb goes out). It has a normal HID bulb with a rotating half-reflector around a portion of it. It has a glass cover that slides over and locks in place. The cover is silvered at the end like an H4 bulb and silvered on the upper half of the body except for a small slot not silvered. The rotating reflector either covers the slot or opens the HID light to the slot in the upper half of the body. So turning on the brights does not change the intensity of the light or turn on a different filament/bulb/light source. It simply moves the reflector so light can exit all sides of the bulb.
This near exactly mimics the behavior of a normal H4 bulb with two filaments and built-in reflectors. The default is for the rotating reflector to block the "hi-beam" light output. So if that brakes down for some reason, it should be low-beam by default. But it is well sealed and built and given all inside the existing sealed headlight housing, should not be much of an issue.
The ballasts are HUGE compared to normal or slim ballasts from others. Like two decks of cards strapped together for EACH ballast. Difficult to find room to put them in the front of the bike near the headlights.
The wiring harness has a fairly short cable that is supposed to connect back to near the battery. So you will have to splice in an hermetic-sealed extension to reach all the way back there. (The xxx harness had a long enough power cable to reach the "on" relay near the battery on the 650.)
Others report that the vendor guarantee is honored without question. They have gotten replacement ballasts under the warranty.
The kit is from China and is shipped from there. They actually charge $22 shipping (as of 2012) but send it overnight DHL. I ordered on a Friday near midnight and DHL rang my doorbell Monday morning at 7:30AM in North Carolina. The package arrived before an email giving me a tracking number. But as the kit was the lowest cost of any dual H4 replacement solution, the overall cost was cheaper than anywhere else.