Hypothetical WOF issue - headlight aim.

**Mully** · 20th September 2009, 21:44

Righto, fellow (and felless) KBers. I need your collective opinion on a situation with regard to a WOF.

Imagine, if you would, you are a Husky Gentleman (or Lady) with a sprot-touring type motorcycle say (for example), an RF900.

You are the sole rider of said motorcycle and generally ride solo.

Being the law-abiding citizen that your parent's raised you to be, you take said motorcycle for it's six-monthly WOF checks at a respected local motorcycle shop (because you don't trust car WOF stations to do a correct job on a motorcycle).

During the course of your WOF check, the esteemed tester notes that the headlight aim is "too low" (that is the description on the sheet - "too low"). On checking with the tester - he says that the low beam needs to be raised to where the high beam points (about 5-6 inches on a wall approximately 3 metres in front of the bike).

So, off you toddle. You raise the beam slightly (using a similar set-up - bike 3 metres from a wall, etc) and sit your husky arse on the bike. The low beam raises up slightly when your weight (it's all muscle, honestly) settles on the bike - raising the low beam to a suitable height.

You ride (within all laws) back to the shop and present the bike to the tester. He lines the bike up with the wall with his weight on it and proclaims it "still too low". Almost expecting this, you explain that your weight (again, muscle) means the bike sits lower on his suspension when you (i.e. the rider) are on it than when the tester is on it. This, apparently, doesn't matter.

Eventually, to get the damn WOF, you adjust the light to where the tester wants it. However, this means that you know that with you on the bike, the low beam is too high.

The law may be an ass - but it is the law. And your insurance company are sticklers for having the WOF sticker.

So two questions:
Should the tester have some descretion with regard to the aim of headlamps on a motorcycle?
Once you satisfied the tester, should you adjust the headlight aim so that it's not too high to annoy other motorists?

(as an aside, this is the third WOF that you, theoretically, have done on this bike. There has been no fettling of the light aim between any of the previous WOFs, and not a dicky-bird mentioned, including by this facility, at previous WOFs.)

**YellowDog** · 20th September 2009, 22:00

The requirement is designed to be adequate (not blind others) for when the bike is being ridden on the road.

If you ride the bike and the adjustment is correct with your (perfectly reasonable for your physique) weight on it, then that is how it should be.

Otherwise, whilst you are within the law during the WOF examination, you would be outside of the law whist riding your own bike with your heavier than anticipated musclebound physique.

Before giving you a ticket, the cops are unlikely to ask you if the reason your lights blinded them is related to that lightweight WOF examiner (who really does need to join your gym) at VTNZ.

**AD345** · 20th September 2009, 22:02

For such a tester there can be only 1 response:

**Motu** · 20th September 2009, 22:29

Originally Posted by Mully

the low beam needs to be raised to where the high beam points (about 5-6 inches on a wall approximately 3 metres in front of the bike).

First point - lightboards are now illegal,a beamsetter has to be used.

Second point - your suspension is set incorrectly,both front and rear should compress at the same rate for your body weight.You need more preload on the rear,or less on the front.

**Mully** · 20th September 2009, 22:38

Originally Posted by Motu

First point - lightboards are now illegal,a beamsetter has to be used.

What's a beamsetter? Is that the red do-hickey?? They had one and didn't use it at all. There was no lightboard either - he just shone the light at the wall.

Second point - your suspension is set incorrectly,both front and rear should compress at the same rate for your body weight.You need more preload on the rear,or less on the front.

Agreed. However, both Mr Frosty and Mr Harris have fiddled with my suspenders (snigger) and declared respectively that they were at the limits of the adjustment (Frosty) and that they were effectvely cheap rubbish and needed to be replaced (Shaun). However, I have no money cos I have a fiance - so any possible upgrade of suspension has to wait.

**caseye** · 20th September 2009, 22:40

Originally Posted by AD345

For such a tester there can be only 1 response:

Nice and I fully concur! Fry his arse, should know what he's doing and obviously doesn't.

**Voltaire** · 20th September 2009, 22:49

Pretend you are dumb and ask the almighty tester to adjust your headllight.
I had to revin my 78 Ducati as I had been overseas and the rego lapsed....it passed.
6 months later it failed as they said the light dipped to the right...euro style.
I had to get a new lens for it.....$ 150.00
They failed it again......
I showed them them the old lens and they started going on about the reflector and the lamp....like that makes a difference.....
They ended up rotating the lens about 12 mm.

Moral of the story...
Don't take your bike to Onehunga Testing station as they are idiots.
Take it to Sylvia Park.
There is no consistancy with these places..... they would rather nit pic over a headlight lens than look at 30 year old brake hoses......20 year old tyres.....etc.....rant over.
PS I changed the tyres and hoses....the lens stays.

Hey Dangerous Bastard....you must have pearls of wisdom on this.

**MaxB** · 20th September 2009, 23:07

On my 70s Beemer at WOF time I slacken off the headlight clamping nuts just enough to change the beam level if I have to. Never had a problem.

Agreed that there is a big difference between testing stations.

**Motu** · 20th September 2009, 23:19

Originally Posted by Mully

they were effectvely cheap rubbish and needed to be replaced. However, I have no money cos I have a fiance - so any possible upgrade of suspension has to wait.

So why blame someone else when it's your own fault?

**Mully** · 21st September 2009, 00:17

Originally Posted by Motu

So why blame someone else when it's your own fault?

What's my own fault? Having rubbish suspension or having a fiance?

I'm not blaming anyone for either of those things. I acknowledge that the suspension has shortcomings when I'm riding and my point was that we could have had the headlight set to a point where it isn't a danger to other traffic when the bike is loaded with it's normal load. However, Slappy at the bike shop demanded that the light beam be "measured" with him on it.

Surely that's entirely subjective (what if he was significantly larger than I? Would my headlight have been too high in that case?) and on that basis the argument could be made that the measurement should equally be made with the bike entirely unloaded and simply being held upright for all the good that would do to the direction of the light beam?

So what precisely am I blaming on anyone?

**Gremlin** · 21st September 2009, 00:48

The VTNZ at Botany Hub has some good guys.

They make me sit on the bike while they check the light, ergo, we know its at the right level for me. However, what if you chuck piles of luggage on the bike etc, it will mess it up anyway...

**thepom** · 21st September 2009, 08:03

two weeks ago went to have the wof done in chch at the same place as the last two wof,s.....guy says my dipped beam points too high and asks if I have changed the lamps,I say no and its been wof,d here last two times......goes to ask his boss and comes back and tells me he,ll let it go but if I get a problem not to come back!!!!!

**MikeL** · 21st September 2009, 08:10

Originally Posted by Voltaire

Don't take your bike to Onehunga Testing station as they are idiots.

On the last two occasions I tried to get a WOF there I was told that they couldn't do it, as they didn't have anyone qualified to do WOFs on bikes over 250cc. WTF???

Went to the AA place in Mt Roskill (Carr Rd??). No problem.