KDXRIDER.NET

Is there anyone familiar with the UFO #KA02789-026 enduro rear fender for 97 kdx 220?

I want to set up the bike to pass road legal inspection. So far I've learned that the lower portion of the lens is clear to illuminate the license plate so that's one hurdle. I want to use an LED bulb so hopefully I won't have to upgrade my lighting coil. I have learned that this fender uses a 7528 dual filament bulb which has the same dimensions as the 1157.

I have some clear 1157 LED bulbs but they are directional and won't throw light in a wide angle. So, what I'm trying to find out is, does the socket opening in this tail light point to the side, or to the rear like the stock single filament bulb does?

I've asked several suppliers of this fender, but they either don't know or have given vague answers that leave me in the dark.

Any answers will be greatly appreciated.

Why would you need to throw the light at a wide angle? And could you post a picture of a "directional" 1157. I have sold hundreds of those over the years and haven't seen a Directional Clear 1157 Bulb. just curious

I think it points aft. I know the one spare enduro fender I have the bulb points aft but I can't remember which brand of fender it is. I removed the 1157 bulb and installed an LED bulb for a similar reason. The LED bulb I have does not have a clear portion however. It is all red. I decided to use the Meier motocross fender with the Baja Designs LED tail/brake/license plate light assy on my plated KDX so I don't know how the LED bulb looks in place of the 1157 since I've never actually installed the enduro fender.

Correction. The 1157 LED bulbs I picked up at a car swap meet are clear but illuminate red. The "directionality" of LED bulbs is not something I have experienced, but online research says these only shine light in a narrow beam, kind of like a flashlight. So, if the socket points to the side, it won't shine light to the rear.

I am also considering the Meier MX rear fender / BD or similar LED tail light license bracket combo. Only thing keeping me from making this choice is cost, which is close to double that of the UFO.

Thanks for everybody's input.

I recently installed one of the UFO fenders but I removed the lense and bulb.

The bulb faces to the left side of the bike so those LED 1157 you have won't do much good.

I tried those on a street bike I had for a while and unless you were down pretty much on the same plane as the bulbs they appeared very dim. Even when you squatted down on the same level with the tail light they were no brighter than the normal bulbs. Now the expensive LED bulbs are a much different story.

Back to the UFO fender...the one I got doesn't fit very good. It is not really wide enough to go over the frame rails at the back without some manipulation and the contour where the fender and the side panels meet doesn't line up very well.

I had to use longer bolts and make spacers for the two mounting bolts at the very rear to be able to pull the fender down to cover the frame stubs.

It looks acceptable now but I think next time I will just pony up the extra $10 or so and get an OE from Ron Ayers.

Thanks for your post. That's just the information I was looking for but not the answer I wanted. At least I won't buy it and be disappointed. I assume by OE you mean original equipment. I have 2 original equipment rear fenders now. They don't meet my requirements of dual filament low power draw tail/stop light with clear lower lens to illuminate the license plate.

So it looks like I will have to bite the bullet and get the MX type rear fender with LED tail light / license plate bracket combo @ around $120. That hurts!

Anybody have any other suggestions?

Search around, someone did a dual filament swap to the OE rear light.

rbates9 wrote:Search around, someone did a dual filament swap to the OE rear light.

easy as pie

all you need to do is splice the hot wire to the tail light in two

then you buy a generic 1157 socket of ebay or from your local parts store

you cut out the stock socket and put the hot wire on the one pole of the new socket
then run the wire you spliced to a brake light switch (the stock unit on my 96 works fine for this) and from there to the other pole on the 1157 socket

finally, you run the ground and your all set

I got this one from freddette. Even has
Too screw holes in bottom of fender for license plate

Wiring the OE light for dual filament would not be a problem, but not having a clear portion in the lens to illuminate the plate would be. That would not pass legal inspection.

Can you be specific as to just what light / fender this is you got from Jeff Fredette? I've sent him a few emails on this subject but still haven't pinned down what would be best. I think he's getting tired of my questions, and quite frankly, I wouldn't blame him. I am considering making a trip down to Beecher to check things out myself but haven't been able to get a free day.

This board is Awesome! I've learned so much about the KDX and I really appreciate the responses everyone has given.

Dennis

He said this was the modern UFO one. It has extra wire for brake light plug in. I think by modern he means its not as square as the stock one. My bike is a '02

I believe this is the same UFO fender I asked about in my first post.

Did you have the installation and fit problems vixk98 described in his post above?

If the taillight bulb socket points to the side, I will not be able to use an LED 1157 bulb although I am petty much now accepting the fact I will need an upgraded lighting coil and use an incandescent dual filament taillight bulb.

Dennis

vlxk98 wrote: ↑07:13 pm Aug 11 2012
Back to the UFO fender...the one I got doesn't fit very good. It is not really wide enough to go over the frame rails at the back without some manipulation and the contour where the fender and the side panels meet doesn't line up very well.

I had to use longer bolts and make spacers for the two mounting bolts at the very rear to be able to pull the fender down to cover the frame stubs.

It looks acceptable now but I think next time I will just pony up the extra $10 or so and get an OE from Ron Ayers.

Do you happen to have any pictures of this fender mounted along with the changes you had to make?

Not sure if you're going to get a response from vlxk98 - "Last active:04:57 pm Jun 23 2015" and this thread is 9 years old.

You might want to ask user "Kick" to see if he had any fitment issues or not. In this post he says that he used "UFO fenders" and there are a few pics. My 04 Winter Project

I'm the originator of this thread.

Regarding how it fit, I ended up getting one of these UFO enduro fenders for my 97 KDX 220 and it fit perfectly. I couldn't be happier in that regard.

In my case I made a separate license plate mounting bracket from HDPE, heat bent to a +- 30* angle. There's four (4) 6mm tapped bosses on the fender's underside, just like the stocker has, that make a perfect place to bolt up this bracket.

I'm wondering if reported fit problems might be due to a tweaked frame?