Poll: Which 996 headlight style do you prefer (996.1 or 996.2)?

Hopefully this hasn't been done before (I searched and didn't see a prior poll), but I'd like to see how people feel today about 996.1 versus 996.2 headlights. Many were horrified by the headlights when the 996 came out, but try to think about how you feel about them today (versus when you first saw them) ---------------------------- ADDED PICTURE BELOW FOR REFERENCE ---------------------------- (996.1 on left <=====================================> 996.2 on right)

I’m not going to vote, because my answer is “it depends”. My two favorite 996 variants are the MK I cars with the aero kit, and the MK II C4S. I prefer the original headlights on aero kit cars, and I prefer the second generation headlights on the C4S.

Fried Egg vs Runny Egg. Who is the breakfast of champions?

Can you post pics of the two styles? Call me dense but what is the overall differences from the .1 and .2?

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Fried egg vs. Egg whites

... and now rennlist thinks im hungry

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Good point. I wish I would have thought of that when I first posted the poll. Didn't even occur to me. Then, when looking for pictures, I was afraid the picture/angle/condition might bias the results, but there is a pretty good side by side shot in this article comparing the 996.1 and 996.2 -> https://www.total911.com/porsche-996...-the-carreras/ I added the first photo in that article to post 1 of this thread.

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There’s a tweeter. It’s the MK I headlight with the Litronic option, and you could say that later MK I lights with less amber plastic look a bit different too.

The side rocker on the red 996.2 in your 1st pic is a 996.1 rocker panel. Will this influence the vote?

I don't know...I was actually thinking about changing to .2 GT3 front with .2 headlights in my 997S engine rebuild since I pretty much swapped everything on the car already...but I decided I just love the GT1 look... I actually think its hard to beat....even compared to 997 headlights...

Also note that I de-ambered the headlights doing an amberectomy and removed the inner amber lens...I did it for my son's boxster as well and put in a silverized amber bulb.

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That just looks about perfect. Amazing 996

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I've wanted to do that but I'm a-scared. Btw - your 996 is stunning.

Its a piece of cake....I have done it twice now....only took about 20 minutes for each headlight. If you live in the seattle area... I can show you some time. :-) Oh...and thanks all of you for the kind words...I really need to do a post on what has been done with the car but virtually all the mechanicals and instrumention/EC are new. It has 997 3.8 and tranny in it and a bunch of other stuff...I also had the whole car repainted after a small mishap on the track.

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Thanks man! I say the one on the right, no brainer lol but thats what I have. Wait maybe I have the left side style, but its not orange on the bottom. Sorry for the terrible angle/lighting it was in the garage and I didn't want to move it.

The comparison with the mkI amber lights is a bit unfair, and where the �fried egg� reference comes from. The clear Litronic lights look so much nicer. I actually prefer the shape to the �saggy� look of the mkII�s...which I think are just fine btw - just different. It�s all personal preference.

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I think you make a great point...the real question may be the comparison between the Mk1 with the lower amber or the clear. I also agree with your other point...I like the MKII lights too...just favor the MkI for the racing connection.

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I'm probably the last guy on the planet to get this, but I never realized the fried eggs reference was due to the "yolk" of the amber insets. I always thought the name was referring to the general shape of the lights. I don't dislike the amber, either in the headlights or the side lights (pumpkins) (though I know I am in the minority on that, at least on RL).

I can't see the headlights over the dash. So I guess I could care less. But not much less.

What's interesting is that when I originally posted this poll without a comparison photo, it was a pretty strong landslide for Mk2 headlights. I think Mk1 was just slightly under 30%. When I added a comparison photo (6 hours after the poll began) in response to Mike's suggestion, the Mk1 seems to be getting a lot more votes. Mk1 currently stands at 41.67% as I write this, and a large number of votes had already been cast in those first 6 hours before I posted the photo, so the Mk1 has made up a lot of ground since the photo was added. I'm not if that means the photo I used (and other posted in the thread) show the Mk1 in a more flattering light or if people actually like Mk1 headlights more than they think they do when they see them side-by-side.

People love what they own, so seeing a 996.1 predisposition isn�t surprising. Not much statistical validity to this poll. I own both a 996.1 and a 996.2 and could care less. They both drive great, and I can�t see the headlight shape from the driver�s seat.

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Seeing your comment and slakker's comment made me think about this more since I had to make a decision on my 8 month build by Dundon Motorsports with respect to the headlights. I don't think people realize why the .2 headlight change actually happened. Keep in mind in 2001 the .2 headlight was introduced on the turbo only, I found that a bit peculiar for the longest time... So in my Dundon 996 3.8 I decided to put in Turbo radiators which were 50% larger than the stock C2 radiators. Seemed like a drop in replacement. However, we quickly found that it didn't fit because of the headlights. Our initial assessment was that I needed to go with .2 headlights and GT3 bumper. I was not keen on this because I like the softer lines of the .1 Aero bumper than the GT3 bumper plus I liked the headlights. So I asked Charles Dundon if there was anyway we can make the .1 setup work. The challenge was on. Here is what was done: We had to eliminate headlight washers for litronics....never used them anyway. the exchanger bracket had to be changed with some chopping and rewelding to change the angle of the exchanger so it would go under the headlight. With the new angle of exchanger there was additional tire interference and the suspension had to be modified some (Including new LCAs). So the down side of all of this was I no longer had the sprayers (if anyone wants to add this to their car, I have all the parts that I will never use) and there is a slight bow on the sides the bumpers which you would never notice unless you knew what you were looking for. So the bottom line what I learned from this is I think Porsche came up with the design of the .2 headlight to accommodate the larger heatexchanger/radiator for turbo variants. I believe the response from the market convinced them to use on the 996.2 because of the positive response it got on the turbo headlights and thus introduced them in 2002 on non turbo variants. SO the driver for the design was function and not aesthetics.

I prefer the mk2 over the 997, but I�m biased!

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Given the 996.1 and 996.2 sell for basically the same price, I think most people buy the model they prefer rather than buy the one they don't like and then for vote for it because they now own it. There are enough cars at similar prices that there is no reason to buy a .2 if you prefer .1, or vice versa. So I think the poll is fairly valid, though some of what you're saying definitely does occur. The .2's are still winning (52% to 40%), it's just interesting that the .1's started to gain ground after pictures were posted. Neither headlight style bothers me at all, in fact I actually like them. I hated them when they first came out because it was such a radical departure. Today, though, I feel like the 996 is a modern car and the headlights are more appropriate for a modern style car than the earlier styles would have been.

When I was searching for my 996, I specifically looked for the first generation 996 due to the headlights. I owned a Boxster prior, so maybe that�s colored my opinion a bit? The 996.2 headlights look to me like Porsche didn�t know how to handle the backlash they got from the �fried egg� look, so they tried to fix it with the 996.2. However, what they ended up with really ruined the minimalistic design aesthetic they were originally going for when designing the 996. The �clean lines� of the front end were now gone, and we�re left with an awkwardly shaped, sort-of-trying-to-be round headlight with a strange �tab� on one side. That being said, I like both headlights, but I definitely have a preference for the 996.1 generation. Just because I like one more than the other, doesn�t mean I don�t like the other one at all. It�s just a preference. I also think the 996.1 has aged better, but that�s just my opinion. Save Save

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That's interesting, I had a 2000 Boxster S with the gen 1 headlights (non-litronic) and I didnt like them very much at all. But I think the 996.2 version are just fine. Maybe I would have liked the litronic version better if I would have had those. Originally my boxster had a set of the LED drop in replacements that you can find all over Ebay, but as many have experience the blinkers go out after a couple years and you are left with an annoying repair just to try and fix them. The car also came with a stock set of headlights but they were old looking and very yellow on the inside. Overall just in bad condition so I ordered a second pair off of Ebay from a salvaged car that only had 50k miles. These headlights were in much better condition but you could see a bit of yellow in the bulb area where they were starting to age a bit. The other thing I didn't like about them were the removable corner trim pieces, to me it just detracts from a full seamless look that the gen 2 provides. Also the edges around the gen 2 seem to fit a bit better against the hood and bumper compared to the gen 1. At least on my Boxster there was a noticeable difference in how they fit compared to my gen 2 911, which looks very clean and snug. On my C4S, these gen 2 headlamps have 53k miles on them and they still look brand new. Granted if a car is always garage kept it will be in much better shape overall, but from what I have experienced the gen 2 seem to be an improvement over what I had before, and I think they age better and definitely look more modern IMO. Truly a difference of opinion and personal preference.

.2 fan here (biased) however the .1 get better and better looking as time goes by and is a great point of difference between the years. IMO when I see the .1s I think its now on the cusp of cementing itself as a classic (if its not already there) and reminds me of the curvier softer 993 style - for some reason. Whilst the .2 looks more aggressive and still looks somewhat modern - time will turn it into a classic, that shapes not there yet. .2 Bottom curve reminds me of these:

I wanted an mk2 for the Carrera II wheels & wide open view of the brakes. The headlights suit both makes well in my view... the bigger deal for me is suspension setup. A good ride height and properly spaced mk1 or mk2 is going to blow away a base model of the other generation. The soft lines on the mk1 have aged very well, though. Truly beautiful cars when configured intelligently.

Thanks Peter for referencing this thread on another post. Love the 996 regardless of the headlights. But for some reason, I get fired up every time I see the front end of the 996.2. The uniqueness of the mk2 headlights are just damn cool. A good front end shot on the track with my wife driving.

Well Peter. If I was a betting man, I would bet this poll will end up in favor of the 996.1 headlights. A hell of alot more 996.1s were produced than 996.2. Goes to reason there will be more votes. At the end of the day, you can't go wrong with either.

Mother Nature seems to prefer a touch of amber.