Installed - Morimoto 2Stroke LED

After poor success with the Morimoto HID retrofit (info can be found here - http://www.planet-9.com/987-cayman-...boxster-modifications/79929-installing-morimoto-elite-xenon-conversion-kit.html ), and essentially only store credit issued by TheRetrofitSource.com on returns, I decided to give the 2STROKE LED option a try. The LED kit was $120 vs. $150 for the HID kit (which conveniently lined up with the ~$30 restocking fee I had to eat to return the HID kit). Install follows essentially the same process as the HID, however has less components. Everything fits inside the headlight housing. My main concern was the failure to fire I was encountering with the HID kit at temperatures below 40F. While not 'as' bright as the HID's, I have encountered ZERO firing failures, and the LED's are certainly better than the halogens. I still do get some intermittent static on the radio when switched on, however I've decided to live with it due to the increase in lighting. The comparison pictures below are LED vs. Halogen. That being said, dealing with TheRetrofitSource.com overall was sub-par. They're customer service is generally short tempered, vague, and expects you to perform quite a bit of troubleshooting on your own; not to mention if it doesn't work out, be prepared to pay 20% of your purchase price just to return it (in its original packaging, by the way). I wouldn't recommend them as a supplier, but the products sold do seem to be built well if you're willing to chance it. Hope this helps someone else on the fence.

I'm definitely one of the "fence" people! First, I was all set, even placed the order, for an HID kit. Then I read so many negative posts about how terrible it is to install an HID bulb in a halogen projector because it can blind oncoming traffic and may not be legal. The legality issue wasn't a concern, but possibly blinding other drivers certainly was something I did not want to do. Then I learned about retrofitting and the Morimoto retrofit kit, which replaces the halogen lens with an HID-specific lens. Well this seemed to be the perfect solution other than having to put my headlight assemblies in an OVEN! Then I read all sorts of horror stories about flickering, non-firing, and cold temperature issues. So I said, screw it! I'll just stay with halogen but get the brighter and whiter Philips bulbs. Then I learned about LED bulbs . But I read some negative reviews about the light not being projected down the road adequately. Apparently the actual LED chips project light sideways, not forward. But now I see your photos and the light looks wonderfully white and bright! Have you noticed how well the light projects down the road? Does it seem to illuminate as deeply as your halogens? I've also read the LED bulbs can have the same blinding glare as the HID bulbs. I really don't like the yellow of the halogens, but I'll live with it if it means not blinding people and having light that doesn't flicker or not work when the weather turns cold. Other than ordering Bi-Xenon from the factory or buying them used (far too expensive!), what is the BEST, TROUBLE-FREE solution? While I like researching various modifications for my Cayman , this research is getting very frustrating!

To try to answer all of your questions, I'll break my reply into a few parts: Blinding: I think this particular point is largely overstated, and more directly correlated to individuals who place HID bulbs in a reflector housing (i.e., traditional headlights which do not have a lens). Fortunately, the 987.2 halogen lights are a projector housing so the light pattern will not scatter and blind people. Take a look at the light pattern in my comparison picture above, the only difference from a visual perspective between the LED bulb, and the factory halogen, is light output. Pattern and shape is almost exactly the same. I can't say for certain, but I don't believe there is a difference in the lens used for the halogens vs. the factory HID's. Additionally, because the factory halogen headlights have a separate high beam bulb the low beam projector housing has a cut off plate which blocks light above a certain point to avoid blinding oncoming traffic. This is exactly the same thing that is present in OEM Bi-Xenon housings, the only difference the Bi-Xenon's cutoff plate is actuated up and down by a electric motor. Plate up - low beam (blocking light above a certain point), plate down - high-beam (allows all produced light through). When installed correctly into a projector housing, HID or LED bulbs will look no different to the passer by than a OEM set up. LED Light Output: The best way I have seen it phrased, is that the LED bulbs have a tendency to cast more light in front of the vehicle than they do long distance 'throw' when compared to HID (for example - more pear shaped, vs. pencil shaped). This is relatively true. I don't know the science behind why, but the HIDs do tend to put more light 100-200 yards down the road, where the LED's pattern tends to be more like a fog and a brighter halogen coupled into one. Factory HID's: Ultimately the best option, would have been to order them from the factory. However, simply sticking a factory HID headlight into your halogen car will not provide the same functionality. Nearly all recent OEM HID set up's, have auto-leveling systems connected to the front suspension. What this does, is adjusts the aim of the headlights depending on where your wheels are traveling within the suspension stroke. This further ensures that light is directed down at the road, and not at oncoming traffic. Based on my understanding, installing the factory HID housings into a Halogen car, will need coding to operate, and remove additional error messages due to not having the auto-leveling components. As far as the best option, it's really situationally dependent to you. If you live in a warmer climate, and want the best output - i'd go HID. If you live in a colder climate, and don't want to deal with additional wiring, or concerns about ballasts not firing - maybe LED's are your best option. Or if the whole thing isn't worth the squeeze to you, maybe you do nothing and keep the factory halogens.

Those LED 's look really good! Are you getting any ECU errors? Need to run a canbus adapter or just straight plug n' play? As for blinding on-coming traffic, I think you're good. I don't see any new "hot spots" above the cut off line. The true test would be squaring up to a wall at 50-100ft and seeing what the spread looks like. To see each bulbs individual pattern, you can cover the other with a towel or t-shirt. Reflector housings are definitely where the blinding issue comes into play.

Thank you, petapotamus, for that explanation. I simply don't understand why manufacturers of these after-market HID kits can't make a unit that works without problems in cold weather! I can't imagine the factory HIDs have this problem. Why can Porsche purchase from an HID supplier headlights that work in cold weather, but the aftermarket companies can't? Who makes the Bi-Xenon headlights for Porsche ? Do they sell an HID headlight kit to aftermarket customers? Or, is the cold-weather problem overstated, much like the glare of an HID bulb in a halogen projector?

No ECU errors, they have canbus adaptors built into them. No need for the additional ‘anti-flicker’ wiring that TheRetrofitSource sells. I do believe that component quality through aftermarket sources is a portion of the issue, however the larger problem is the current draw needed to run the HID components. Halogen bulbs do not require as much power, so the way the cars are wired from the factory is different than the OEM HID counterparts. This issue is compounded when you add the additional variable of cold, because it takes wiring that wasn’t designed to accommodate the higher current draw, and adds in reduced battery performance at lower temperatures. This is no different than your iPod or cell phone dying after being left in a cold car overnight. This is why I believe based on my trial and error, that the only real way to work around the cold issue with the HID kits is to run dedicated wiring from the battery via a relay kit, to ensure enough power is available to fire the ballasts. TheRetrofitSource/Morimoto makes a kit designed for this specific application; However, the reason I chose not to do it is because the factory headlights are sealed, and to accommodate the relay kit wiring, you will either have to modify the factory connection to add in the new wires, or drill holes in the housing. I believe the 987 OEM supplier to Porsche was Osram. Though Denso, Philips, Bosch, ect., also supply OEM equipment to various car makes. To my knowledge, none of these OE suppliers produce an aftermarket kit. There are Philips branded versions that you can find, but from what I've read these are fakes.

Hello! I'd be happy to help out with the issues you've had. With only your username here to go by, i'm having some trouble finding any account information or ways to contact you, so I made an account here on this forum once I was made aware of your concerns here! PM me your contact information and i'd be happy to help out! I'd also like to get to the bottom of the issues with sub-par customer service, and especially so if they were short-tempered, vague, or anything besides pleasant and informative. We've built our reputation, over the last 11 years, by providing excellent customer service, so since you received less than that it's certainly something we'll need to address internally here, as well as obviously see if we can fix those concerns you've had with any restocking fees! Thanks! Zach @ TRS

PM sent. The LED's are absolutely brighter, and put more light on/down the road then the halogens. No question. I'm happy with the overall result, but if your goal is the brightest possible outcome, HID's are what you want, you'll just have concessions as I've mentioned. I can't say whether the led's being placed on the side have any real negative effect. I'm sure there's a reason they're designed that way vs. forward facing. For what its worth, the HID's bulbs don't light from the tip either.

I've exchanged a few emails with the staff at The Retrofit Source. They have provided a wealth of information and recommendations. I've never spoken to anyone on the phone, so I can't attest to their demeanor over the phone. But, as you touched on, what is keeping me from making a purchase is their return policy. I've dealt with a few HID suppliers. All of them had much more flexible and understanding return policies. One company would let me use their product for 30 DAYS and return it for a FULL, 100% CASH REFUND if I wasn't happy with any part of the performance or quality. While it seems they sell high quality products and offer (at least for me via emails) good customer service, their return policy, in my humble opinion, is not competitive with other companies selling similar products. There are far too many variables associated with HID headlights, support accessories, and installation options. A quality company puts that responsibility of fitment and operation on their reputation via a customer-focused return policy. Other companies put those variables and responsibilities on the customer.

That's what's holding me back as well, to be honest. I plopped in a $50 set of HIDs and one ballast went out after three weeks and I was able to return it and switch back to Philips halogens. I don't see many people talking about a positive return experience here with TRS equipment, which is odd because there are a lot of 'These are amazing!' posts. For the price point on what is in general a high fail item it seems kind of risky. Just my two cents.

Hi. It has been a few years since you did this upgrade, I see, but was hoping you have some advice! I am shopping around for globes for my 2007 Cayman My first Porsche!) Stumbled upon the new Morimoto's. https://www.theretrofitsource.com/h7-led-headlight-bulbs-morimoto-2stroke-LED-2STROKE-H7?quantity=1 They seem to be an upgrade of the ones you have. Do you think these are worth it, how are yours performing? I note your lack of support from these guys. Will probably go to Amazon when I buy!

Hi, welcome to the Friendly Porsche Forum.. I rather doubt if he'll see your query since the last time he visited us was 5 years ago, chances are he's moved on to another vehicle.. and doesn't actively monitor his threads here. In general - while LED's sound like a good idea - they do not provide a good beam quality due to the physical difference between the shape of the filament in a halogen bulb and the location of the two LEDs in these inserts. While they may initially appear brighter than the old halogen bulb they replace - LEDs often age rather quickly (output dims) and a brand new halogen bulb will often produce 2X the lumens that one with several hundred hours on it will. The advantage might seem to be the "whiter" output, but the eye doesn't use 6000 Kelvin light as well as it does some lower color (say 3,200-4,200K,) So - what to do? I have LED's in my '09. I've been thinking of replacing them with a new set of high output halogen bulbs. These ARE brighter (if bought from the right source), but shorter lived than a standard output bulb (there is no free lunch, to be brighter the filament is run hotter, and that causes earlier failure..) Some of the "plus" bulbs sold in the US are actually manufactured here in the US, and their output really is no brighter than a standard bulb. Specifically - Osram. Made by Sylvania in the US (Osram owns them), the EURO Osram is brighter. Powerbulbs in the UK is a good source (price and shipping) for real euro spec "plus" bulbs. That's the path I'll probably be following. Meanwhile - might I ask that you visit New Member Introductions and tell us about yourself and your car? Welcome again!

Will this light be sufficient when driving at night? It seems to me that the light is pretty weak, and you won't see everything you need to see. I have LED headlights installed in my car, which do a great job. I don't know much about cars so every time I need something repaired in the car I turn to professionals for help. I recently bought Vont Smart Car Light Strip for my car's interior lights and enlisted the help of auto service for proper installation. Now the interior of my car is much more attractive.

Which is "this light" ?? This thread was started 5 years ago, and a number of lights and types of lights (HID, LED) have been discussed. In general, the chances of a light discussed here still being available is unlikely. It's a fast-moving field, with little real technical info, a lot of blather and false claims, and no regulation. Without knowing which light you're referring to we really can't answer your question (and even if we do know, we may not be able to answer your question..) How about visiting New Member Introductions and telling us about yourself and bragging a bit on your Porsche (pictures are a good thing..) so we get to know you a bit. Welcome to Planet-9, the Friendly Porsche Forum.