Canada DRLs | GTAMotorcycle.com

Canada DRLs

D

Didi

Member
So I bought an Aprilia RS660 and noticed that the switch that allows you to just have the DRLs on without the low beams is missing on Canadian models. After some research I found out that due to the laws in Canada the low beams have to be on when the engine is turned on hence why the switch is gone. I also read that some people have been able to get the dealer to reenable this feature on some ducatis. So my question is if anyone has been able to reenable their DRLs and how did you go about it? yes I get its not a big issue since its only a cosmetic thing but the bike looks so much better with only the DRLs on.

Aprilia_RS_660_1200x900.jpg
 
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Interesting. My car has strip led drl without headlights. Iirc I can change the coding to change the behaviour. I havent hooked up a current bike to a computer to know what they let you change.

Congrats on a beautiful bike.
 
Didi said:
So I bought an Aprilia RS660 and noticed that the switch that allows you to just have the DRLs on without the low beams is missing on Canadian models. After some research I found out that due to the laws in Canada the low beams have to be on when the engine is turned on hence why the switch is gone. I also read that some people have been able to get the dealer to reenable this feature on some ducatis. So my question is if anyone has been able to reenable their DRLs and how did you go about it? yes I get its not a big issue since its only a cosmetic thing but the bike looks so much better with only the DRLs on.

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Just an FYI you likely won’t pass a safety check at the shop or a road side stop by police.

My BMW is the same, but idc. I can’t see it when I’m riding.
 
Per HTA s. 62(2) all that's required is a "white lamp" facing forward, and the DRL is white, so you are okay on the road with that configuration. I don't know what CMVSS 108 specifies but that just applies to the way the original manufacturer has to build and sell it.

If the switch is physically missing, you'll need to obtain the European-spec switch, at a minimum, otherwise you won't have a way of turning on the actual low beam when you actually need it.

Manufacturing loves "make 'em all the same whenever we can". Check wiring diagrams ... there is a fair chance that your left switchgear simply has a jumper that fakes the rest of the bike's circuits into thinking the nonexistent switch is always on. If that's the case then it should work by simply installing the Euro-spec switch. If they've actually changed the main wiring harness and/or lighting module configuration or programming to disallow it, that's when things get much more complicated.
 
Reading the regulations, there is no mention of daytime running lights on a motorcycle. Only that the headlamp itself must be illuminated.

Law Document English View

Welcome to the new e-Laws. It’s now easier than ever to find Ontario laws. We welcome your feedback.
www.ontario.ca www.ontario.ca

SCHEDULE 6
INSPECTION REQUIREMENTS AND PERFORMANCE STANDARDS FOR MOTORCYCLES EXCEPT MOTORCYCLES WITH TWO FRONT WHEELS
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(2) The headlamp, tail lamp and licence plate lamp on a motorcycle manufactured on or after the 1st day of January, 1975 shall be continuously illuminated when the engine is operating and each forward gear is engaged.
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Dimitri said:
Reading the regulations, there is no mention of daytime running lights on a motorcycle. Only that the headlamp itself must be illuminated.

Law Document English View

Welcome to the new e-Laws. It’s now easier than ever to find Ontario laws. We welcome your feedback.
www.ontario.ca www.ontario.ca
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Well that's it then. I doubt the strip LED's would be considered a headlamp. Old wording, new solutions.
 
Oldschool solution - access headlight wiring. Wire hidden toggle switch inline with low beam circuit just before plug for headlight.

Problem solved.

Wipe hands on pants.
 
Didi said:
So I bought an Aprilia RS660 and noticed that the switch that allows you to just have the DRLs on without the low beams is missing on Canadian models. After some research I found out that due to the laws in Canada the low beams have to be on when the engine is turned on hence why the switch is gone. I also read that some people have been able to get the dealer to reenable this feature on some ducatis. So my question is if anyone has been able to reenable their DRLs and how did you go about it? yes I get its not a big issue since its only a cosmetic thing but the bike looks so much better with only the DRLs on.

View attachment 48998
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My ktm had the setting buried in the menu and a warning not to enable the drl in Canada. I did no issues the headlight turns on with a light sensor now and drl led during the day.

Sent from my Chesterfield using my thumbs
 
PrivatePilot said:
Oldschool solution - access headlight wiring. Wire hidden toggle switch inline with low beam circuit just before plug for headlight.

Problem solved.

Wipe hands on pants.
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You forget we're dealing with euro engineering here. It would detect a fault somewhere and refuse to crank the engine. 😬
 
Evoex said:
You forget we're dealing with euro engineering here. It would detect a fault somewhere and refuse to crank the engine. 😬
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Or, detect abnormal current in that circuit and kill the circuit and turn on the fault-warning. And then set an unresettable trouble code that can only be reset using an expensive proprietary scanner ...

I don't know if the RS660 uses old school hard-wired circuits with fuses and mechanical switches (like most Japanese bikes still do), or feeds all switch inputs into a magic black-box lighting module that in turn feeds power and monitors current to all lights (like most cars do nowadays).

Check wiring diagrams. In particular, check the pin-outs and schematic of the left handlebar switch module, and compare between the European and Canadian (or North American) models. I'd give it even odds that all you need is the European left handlebar switch module, which contains the actual switch rather than a jumper, and it's plug-and-play. The other choice is that the handlebar switches are multiplexed or have a canbus signal to an inflexible black box that is completely opaque to anything other than that factory scan tool ...
 
I like having the low beams on. It give more visibility.

I manually turn them on in the car, since it doesn't have that feature like my Subaru used to.
When I'm done, I turn them back to auto.
 
Baggsy said:
I like having the low beams on. It give more visibility.

I manually turn them on in the car, since it doesn't have that feature like my Subaru used to.
When I'm done, I turn them back to auto.
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Many cars use dim high beam (pwm-modulated) to get increased daytime visibility without dazzling people. I'm not sure if any bikes have gone this route yet. For bikes with high on one side and low on the other, a similar solution can avoid the situation where it looks lopsided and also makes it more visible.
 
I agree for some bikes like the newer BMW's the DRLs can be a little hard to notice due to their size but on the RS they're pretty big so having just the DRLs on isn't an issue for me. Plus like Steve mentioned about his KTM the Aprilia uses the dash's light sensor to turn on the lowbeams when it gets too dark so you'd never forget to turn them on in the dark. Problem is that the menu relating to the light mode in the dash is missing so I suspect that even if I were to get an EU switch cluster there would be some software restriction preventing it from working. EU bikes and cars can get away with so much more than us. Just an example I saw today is that on the new Ducati monster the turn signal is integrated into the frame but on North American models it's a regular signal bulb. Same goes for the RS, EU models have the turn signals integrated into the headlights while we get them on the mirrors. Again I get these are minor cosmetic things but sometimes it's a shame seeing what could've been.
 
There's a thread over on the Aprilia Forum asking the same question. Assuming it's someone else and not you posting, you may want to check in. They seem to think the setting is embedded in the firmware as opposed to a simple closed circuit in the controls, and that the Canadian model has different part numbers from the US/EU models for both the switch and the dash...
 
Priller said:
There's a thread over on the Aprilia Forum asking the same question. Assuming it's someone else and not you posting, you may want to check in. They seem to think the setting is embedded in the firmware as opposed to a simple closed circuit in the controls, and that the Canadian model has different part numbers from the US/EU models for both the switch and the dash...
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Thanks for the info, I'll give it a look.
 
Brian P said:
Or, detect abnormal current in that circuit and kill the circuit and turn on the fault-warning. And then set an unresettable trouble code that can only be reset using an expensive proprietary scanner ...

I don't know if the RS660 uses old school hard-wired circuits with fuses and mechanical switches (like most Japanese bikes still do), or feeds all switch inputs into a magic black-box lighting module that in turn feeds power and monitors current to all lights (like most cars do nowadays).
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And this is why everytime there’s a thread here with people suggesting to buy a newer bike versus an older (simpler, perhaps even carbureted) bike, I’m all like “Yeah, I like older stuff, it’s simpler”. 😉
 
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