Modern Vespa

I just added an LED bike light for some additional visability. I know there's been some concern with the headlight placement on the GTV regarding visibility at night.

I was at a bike shop recently and they were having a good sale on some bike lights. I already had one for my road bike, but picked up an extra one just because.. Anyway, after 4 months sitting in the garage doing nothing, I figured I'd put the light to good use.

I used an unused GPS windshield mount (we use the Garmin dashboard beanbag in the car), a rubber grommet, and the mounting parts of the bike light. The light can stay on steady or blink. It's also really bright so I'm thinking this will really improve visibility.

There are still some reservations regarding how strong the suction thing is but if it can hold a heavy GPS, it should have no problem with the relatively lightweight light. I'm not sure how it will do in a rain situation either.


Edited:
Just took a ride in the dark. First thing I did was sit in the driveway with my headlight off. The bike light provides negligible additional light to see with. The real benefit is being seen by others. From the front, its a bright much higher than the fender light. When I set it to blink, it really catches your attention. I was concerned people in front of me would think I was a cop but nobody pulled over, so I guess it's OK. Also, because the way the bike light is designed, I had to twist the mount around so the bike light wasn't up-side-down. This way the pattern went straight forward and down, instead of in the air.

Have you used it at night yet ? Does it do any good? Does the GTV really have a problem with the low light placement? Most people I have asked say no real difference to the gts in being able to see. Or is this a extra just in case I want more? Does it give other vehicle operators nightmares when they see one light over the other?

Is that a silver metal flake paint or just the way the photo turned out? Very nice.

I'm planning on taking it out tonight for a short ride. I could see just fine with just the fender light, but i added to bike light so others can see me better. Especially cresting a hill. I'm planning on aiming it kinda low so I don't blind anybody.

The bike is the standard Portofino Green. The picture was a bit overexposed because of the bright sun so I made some adjustments in Aperature so that the bike light could be seen better. This is the reason the bike color and finish is wrong (though looking at it again I really like!!!).

You should put in the center over the top of your wind screen. Ill bet they would see that, especially since the color is so different! It is an interesting addition - thanks for sharing!

Having a "blinking" bright light to the front is likely illegal--that's not the same as a headlight modulator, which is legal.

Cary

+1 Definitely not legal here in Texas, but I have a modulator that only works in the daytime, which is legal.

Thanks for the info regarding legality. I'll just keep it on at night and not use the blinky feature.