Want to stand out on the road or racetrack and make your ride more eye-catching? If so, upgrading your motorcycle headlight bulbs is the answer.

If your bike is fitted with halogen bulbs, switching to HID or LED motorcycle headlights is a decision you won’t regret. But what are HID and LED bulbs and what makes them different?

HID (High Intensity Discharge) bulbs are brighter, longer lasting and make driving at night or in bad weather a far safer experience. They use Xenon gas instead of a filament and when exposed to high voltage, this gas ignites and produces a beam of light that’s around 3 times brighter than halogen.

LED bulbs, however, aren’t so different to standard bulbs although they don’t contain a filament. LED’s produce light by utilizing the electricity’s movement along its semiconductor. This creates electromagnetic radiation - some of which takes the form of visible light.

LED car bulbs are more vivid and longer lasting. They consume less energy and have a faster response time. The only drawback is that they aren’t quite as bright as filament bulbs - although the colour is more intense.

So, here are 3 reasons why changing your dull halogen motorcycle headlight bulbs to HID or LED is the way forward:

1. Play it safe: obviously the brighter your headlights, the safer your journey. HID lighting, in particular, stands out more than halogen. It’s closer in colour to natural daylight, making it more visible to the eye and is 3 times brighter – that means you get 3 times more visibility when driving at night or in overcast conditions.

Not only can you see the road better, but the blue-white arc of HID headlights makes you impossible to ignore - let’s face it, not all other road users are such competent drivers as you!

LED bulbs also have their plusses, having a faster on/off response time which means your visibility to other road users is apparent the moment you switch your lights on.

2. Save money and the planet: LED and HID motorcycle headlights have much more longevity than halogen. HID lasts up to 10 times longer whilst LED bulbs have a lifespan of around 50,000 hours! What this means for you is less time and money wasted on maintenance. And as for the environment: the less power a bulb needs to run means the less fuel your car uses which in turn means that your vehicle’s harmful CO2 emissions are lowered.

3. Looking good: you’re more visible, you’re safer and you’re saving running costs and lowering emissions. All good, but what you really want to know is "do HID and LED headlights look cool?"

‘Yes’! In comparison, halogen bulbs appear dull and lifeless compared to LED and HID headlights, which really do illuminate better.

HID’s come in different colour temperatures so you can say goodbye to that boring halogen yellowy-white. In fact their blue-white light is outrageously eye-catching! With LED, the range of colours (red, white, blue, yellow, orange, green and even pink!) make your bike a real head-turner; just make sure any changes you make are legal. LED bulbs can also be used in any of your bike’s lights so why not upgrade your motorcycle indicator lights and tail lights too?

That’s 3 reasons to customize your bike and now you need to decide whether you prefer LED or HID motorcycle headlights. Halogens are fine, but when ‘fine’ doesn’t cut it and you want a brighter beam that not only looks good but is safer and cheaper, changing your lights is the way forward.

Don’t just take my word for it: HID and LED headlights have to be seen to be believed. Do some research, check out photos of upgraded bikes then find yourself a converter kit – there are loads of great deals out there which make changing your headlights a cost-effective way to customize your motorcycle.