MAC99V Posted November 3, 2019 Report Share Posted November 3, 2019 Morning all.... Just after some thoughts if I may. Cars an 09 987 II S variant, had it for around 8 months. One thing i've noticed when driving at night is how poor the headlights are. I know technology has moved on since 09, but i think i'd get better illumination by sitting on the bonnet shining my phones torch in front !! Passed it's MOT with no issues, so I assume bright enough to pass (if relevant in the test), could it be just the age of the bulbs etc? Are there any improvements that could be made to substantially improve the lighting? Thanks in advance for any comments...(no comments suggesting two phone torches stuck to the front please)....Cheers ,M Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rowbos Posted November 3, 2019 Report Share Posted November 3, 2019 No concrete suggestions - though I believe some people have upgraded bulbs - this can however cause bus errors to be raised as far as I recall... My 987.1 with standard headlights was dire at night, so much so I just didn't drive it after dark. My current 987.2 has PDLS, so Xenon steering headlights and they are superb (not gloating, just stating facts!). Good luck, I'm sure someone will be along with some valid suggestions... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sa utah Posted November 3, 2019 Report Share Posted November 3, 2019 I’d like to get some better lighting as my own 2006 car is shocking at night. Dangerous I’d say in fact. The mk3 mx5 I have had got great lights so I’m not sure why porsche got it so wrong Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
T24RES Posted November 3, 2019 Report Share Posted November 3, 2019 What lamps does your car have? Halogen? Xenon? Will help with the answers, or if you are not sure a picture of the headlamp face on would suffice. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sa utah Posted November 3, 2019 Report Share Posted November 3, 2019 Halogen Id say as it’s a poverty spec car with the exception of electric seats https://photos.app.goo.gl/Rmyzta3xUGTCbVfM9 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thanatoid Posted November 3, 2019 Report Share Posted November 3, 2019 If H7 halogens, many on bimmerforums have had success with the H7 LED replacements, it seems the origin of light is very close between the two, so beam pattern etc is close, these tend to be the £100 region of LEDs, not cheap Chinese ones... The other observation, having sorted both daughters cars out on normal H7 halogens, was to get the best H7's - so Osram H7 Nightbreaker Ultimate - but more than that, properly adjust them so they give decent range - without blinding folk, many many cars appear to have dips pointing at the ground just ahead of the bumper, pretty grim, close to unsafe... White garage door, 6ft away (ish), masking tape - to mark top and side of existing beam pattern, then works out your 2 adjusting screws, no more than 1 turn, with the tape you'll be able to see what's happened, ideal would then later walk ahead of car on a dark lane and crouch to drivers height, see if glare, but underground carparks with lots of glass around can also show if you glare, other road user might also indicate :-) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thanatoid Posted November 3, 2019 Report Share Posted November 3, 2019 Oh have xenons in 987.1 and adaptive xenons in 535d, now they are amusing :-) Still need to point in the correct direction though..... baseline... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PaulQ Posted November 3, 2019 Report Share Posted November 3, 2019 18 minutes ago, thanatoid said: If H7 halogens, many on bimmerforums have had success with the H7 LED replacements, it seems the origin of light is very close between the two, so beam pattern etc is close, these tend to be the £100 region of LEDs, not cheap Chinese ones... They work well, but longevity can be an issue due to the operating temperatures. Probably nearly all of them originate from China and alot of the more expensive ones from UK resellers are identical to 20 quid jobbies you can buy from Aliexpress etc. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Liberty Posted November 3, 2019 Report Share Posted November 3, 2019 Putting some new lamps in will improve things slightly.I think they do get dimmer over time like we all do.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Araf Posted November 3, 2019 Report Share Posted November 3, 2019 This is what you need across the front. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MAC99V Posted November 3, 2019 Author Report Share Posted November 3, 2019 4 hours ago, rowbos said: No concrete suggestions - though I believe some people have upgraded bulbs - this can however cause bus errors to be raised as far as I recall... My 987.1 with standard headlights was dire at night, so much so I just didn't drive it after dark. My current 987.2 has PDLS, so Xenon steering headlights and they are superb (not gloating, just stating facts!). Good luck, I'm sure someone will be along with some valid suggestions... cheers Rowbos...... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MAC99V Posted November 3, 2019 Author Report Share Posted November 3, 2019 3 hours ago, T24RES said: What lamps does your car have? Halogen? Xenon? Will help with the answers, or if you are not sure a picture of the headlamp face on would suffice. Hi T24res, image attached of whats currently in place, checked against the full code list, nothing showing as extra spec, so i guess bog standard?.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MAC99V Posted November 3, 2019 Author Report Share Posted November 3, 2019 1 hour ago, Liberty said: Putting some new lamps in will improve things slightly.I think they do get dimmer over time like we all do.. thats me to a tee then liberty, thanks.....😀 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Liberty Posted November 3, 2019 Report Share Posted November 3, 2019 30 minutes ago, MAC99V said: thats me to a tee then liberty, thanks.....😀 I did put some fancy nightbreaker type in but haven’t been dogging since... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PaulQ Posted November 3, 2019 Report Share Posted November 3, 2019 Don't bother with the Ring 😁 150% ones. Just fitted them and no better then a standard H7 bulb. How much does a pair of used Porsche Xenons cost for a 986...?... got spare pair of lights here but can't really be arsed to diy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
T24RES Posted November 3, 2019 Report Share Posted November 3, 2019 I've had some success with Osram Night Breaker Laser Next Gen Upgrade Headlight Bulb Set - H7, and the same for the main beam in H1. Otherwise it's the LED route, which us more money. What sort of night driving do you do? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Menoporsche Posted November 3, 2019 Report Share Posted November 3, 2019 I put Nightbreakers, or Philips equivalent, in my family car. A bit better but not great, and they blew after a year or so. Original halogens were 7 years old and still working. We looked at this before. Law says OEM bulbs over 2000 lumens have to be accompanied by washers. That implies halogens are 1800lm or thereabouts. I wonder what the 50% or 150% brighter really means, given other advertising claims like “waterproof “ watches which can’t go into water. Apparently xenons are 3000+ lm, which is why you can clearly see (!) the difference. Im interested as your car is a .2. I think all the retrofit xenons we heard of throwing errors were .1. Wonder if you have a better chance of success. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rob™ Posted November 3, 2019 Report Share Posted November 3, 2019 I put Philips Xtreme Vision PLUS in mine about a year ago - very pleased with them. Still legal too, unlike some of the other options. Cost about £20 or so for a pair from Euro Car Parts. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Araf Posted November 3, 2019 Report Share Posted November 3, 2019 Just be careful of higher wattage bulbs. The plastic headlamps have a habit of overheating in the line of the bean. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
xavster Posted November 3, 2019 Report Share Posted November 3, 2019 I have Xenons in my 987, but I don’t think they’re that great - although I also have adaptive xenons in our 530D which are amazing. So I could just be spoilt. I wonder if my headlight lenses might need a polish - they look a little cloudy. Could that really affect the beam cast? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mike597 Posted November 3, 2019 Report Share Posted November 3, 2019 Have a, look at Phillips ultinon LED. Not cheap but easily the best LED I've used. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PaulQ Posted November 3, 2019 Report Share Posted November 3, 2019 7 minutes ago, mike597 said: Have a, look at Phillips ultinon LED. Not cheap but easily the best LED I've used. Do you find them bright enough as I think the H7 only had 6 leds ? The lights I've used which had the same Philips luxeon leds had 8 and while good I wouldnt fancy a 25% reduction in output. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Menoporsche Posted November 3, 2019 Report Share Posted November 3, 2019 38 minutes ago, xavster said: I wonder if my headlight lenses might need a polish - they look a little cloudy. Could that really affect the beam cast? Apparently that’s the reason for the obligatory washers, that dirty lenses dazzle (have I got my cause and effect right?). So do try a polish. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sa utah Posted November 4, 2019 Report Share Posted November 4, 2019 My lenses were yellow when I first picked up the car. Had the maguirs stuff in the garage. They came up well https://photos.app.goo.gl/mm1LJSXQdk2EL1nZA Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mike597 Posted November 4, 2019 Report Share Posted November 4, 2019 10 hours ago, PaulQ said: Do you find them bright enough as I think the H7 only had 6 leds ? The lights I've used which had the same Philips luxeon leds had 8 and while good I wouldnt fancy a 25% reduction in output. Yes they are brighter than the halogens they replaced. One thing to note is they are designed for reflectors so the beam is designed to mimic a halogen. They might not perform as well as alternatives with more leds behind projector lenses. I did try several different led h7 replacements before the Philips and all of these scattered light everywhere. The Phillips are much more focused, still a bit of bleed but easily managed by directing the beam down a little bit. Bit of a fiddly bugger to fit, mind but they all are. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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