Switched Power and Motolights

[ebueker]

I purchaed a set of Motolights for my 06 R1200Rt. They were easy to install, until I got to wiring the relay to a switched lead. I had read somewhere to hook up to the tail light which I did. The lights will not come on until I hit the brakes. Does anyone know of another switched wire that doesn't involve taking off plastic?

thanks for any assistance.

[mwnahas]

Don't own an RT, but that probably should have been the tail lights as opposed to the break lights.

[RaffyK]

Like Michael said. You should tap into the tail light power lead. Looks like you tapped into the brake light lead. Surprised you don't have a fault showing.

[ebueker]

Like Michael said. You should tap into the tail light power lead. Looks like you tapped into the brake light lead. Surprised you don't have a fault showing.


Didn't have a fault showing. There are only two wires that go to the tail/brake lights. Finally hooked onto the rear accessory plug wire. Everything working now.

[garyj]

There's a wire at the front headlight connector that 's easy to reach that I used. There was no fault light. When I installed the unit that pulses the brake light it works fine but I do get a fault indicator. It blinks with the brake light.

A note - My CD player had a problem and the dealer gave me some flack about "modifications" and the warranty. I convinced them that a cut in the tail light wire and the motolights had nothing to do with the radio. Before replacing the radio they required I discount my "modifications". I just hid my wiring better and they replaced the radio.

[Digtlartst]

I purchaed a set of Motolights for my 06 R1200Rt. They were easy to install, until I got to wiring the relay to a switched lead. I had read somewhere to hook up to the tail light which I did. The lights will not come on until I hit the brakes. Does anyone know of another switched wire that doesn't involve taking off plastic?

thanks for any assistance.

I believe that the tail light and brake light are a single circuit rather than separate wires. When you hit the brakes, power is boosted to the tail light to make it brighter. Your Motolights were not getting enough power until you hit the brakes.

[jskene]

Digtlartst is correct.

On the RT, BMW has used two single-filament brake light bulbs, rather than the usual double-filament bulb. They apply a pulse-width-modulated signal to these bulbs to control their brightness. When the brake is not on, the bulbs get a 12 volt pulse that is on 25% of the time and off the other 75%. When the brake is ON, the power comes on 100% of the time. There are only two wires going to each bulb, so there is no tail light wire. Consequently, you cannot run additional items like running lights from this wire, as they will not get enough power.

BMW is doing a similar thing with all post-2005 bikes in firmware, in that they are powering the brake light filament on at 25% power even if the brake is not on, to give a brighter tail light, something that all BMWs desperately need. The latest firmware update adds this feature.

The new brake light arrangement on the RT also causes a problem with after market LED brake lights. They see a 25% duty cycle signal even when the brakes are off, and so don't operate correctly.

I have developed a new type of auxiliary LED rear light that is designed specifically to work with the RT and the new BMW firmware, called P3 Lights. P3 Lights provide two additional LED modules that function as bright tail lights and very bright, modulated brake lights. An emergency flasher function is also included, as is a voltmeter.

You can see details on what this product provides here:
http://www.P3Lights.com

[Georgewk]

Hi,

I am installing P3 lights to add brightness to the back of the R1200RT. It is an '08. Will also be installing Motolights.

I can not find a switched power source for them. I have connected to the rear power outlet, but it is the timed power source. I would prefer a switched power source that is not timed.

Apparently other models have this under the seat. If the RT does I can not find it.

Where can I get the switched power source for the "08 RT?

Thanks, George

[brianbeemer]

Has anyone worked out how to get the LED brake lights in the Givi E52 to work with the brake lights on the 1200RT?

[atps1234]

Has anyone worked out how to get the LED brake lights in the Givi E52 to work with the brake lights on the 1200RT?
I am in the middle of this project myself. I mounted the Givi E52 hardware and added the Admore Lighting LED kit to the Givi case, now I just need to connect the electronics.
Since the R1200RT has a shared tail/brake light lead, you need a separate switched power lead to connect to the blue lead on the Admore Lighting controller harness.
My plan is to wait until I have my Centech AP-2 box installed, with the relay switched power coming from the front parking light circuit (using the Electrical Connections CANbus adapter). I will then connect the blue (switched power) lead from the Admore Lighting LED controller to one of the switched circuits on the AP-2. Ground will also be connected to the Centech. The rest of the leads (brake light, left and right signals) will be tapped at the taillight assembly.
The Centech box is not required, you could just connect the blue wire from the Admore Lighting LED controller to the parking light circuit without going through the fuse box. I just also need more switched (and non-switched) power to my front-mounted farkles so that is why I am getting the AP-2.

Bob