Hi, my first post & first big single. just bought my 2004 xt 660r yesterday & pretty much stayed on it all day. i noticed the lights are on all the time - is this normal? there are times when i will need the lights to be out while riding it. is there a mod that lets me turn the lights off & on when i want to? few other things i need to sort out with it but if i dont get the jobs done one at a time i'll end up with 10 half finished jobs & my new bike off the road/dirt. thanks in advance for any advice

Welcome on board mate.

Yes. Normal on all UK market bikes these days.

Just put a switch in the feed to the dipped filament.

Out of interest - when/why would you need the lights to be out?

As modern bikes are designed to run with headlights on in the daytime(all the time), if you had an accident in daylight (say a car pulling out in front) and you didn't have your headlight on; you might just possibly be giving the liable party's insurance company a get out of jail free card? Just a thought...

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I must admit that is bloody good thing....they should do the same with new cars - you start the engine and lights automatically on - particularly here in UK.

I absolutely hate those f....rs riding/driving their vehicles in the dark/fog or in heavy rain without lights on!!!! It doesn't matter if the rider/driver can see the road without lights but I want to see him !!! IDIOTS!!!!

some reasons are:
A headlight turns a 3-dimensional motorcycle into a 1-dimensional spot of light making its distance and speed hard to estimate, Going over a bump in the road can give the appearance of flashing the headlight confusing other road users, Daytime lights can obscure turn signals. Daytime lights (from bikes and cars) can obscure pedestrians and cyclists. Road users' search patterns have been shown to be attuned to looking for particular shapes rather than lights. If all motorcycles used daytime lights, other road users would get used to them and 'not see' them again. Positioning on the road is more significant than conspicuity measures used by riders in terms of being seen. blah blah but note of these reasons are why i want to turn my lights out. i do occasional work for a gamekeeper & it would be beneficial to have my lights out on the odd occasion, other than that i dont care if they're on or off when i'm riding, . . . . . switch in the feed wire it is then, thanks for your reply's