headlight replacement 2008

On my new 2008 Cayman , I do not have HID, I just have base halogen bulbs like the rest of the world...I think. So, without me having to pull the lights out and worry about screwing something up, can someone tell me what part #'s I need (looking at silverstar or hoen xenon match for that HID look with min. expense)? Thanks, Joe Clark

this might help you out. This is a post in Caymanclub http://www.planet-9.com/members/kanemaki-6265.html enjoy

The manual tells you how to change bulbs and what bulbs to use. For the low beam you need a Halogen H7 55 watt. For the high beam you need a Halogen H9 65 watt. I like a PIAA Xtreme White Plus but there are other good brands out there. Just get the same bulb number and wattage and you will be fine.

Hey jrcmlc, Here is the link for my article series on exterior light makeover : My Articles - Exterior Light Makeover - Part 1 - Powered by ReviewPost This first article lists the specifications of each bulb that you will need for a Bi-Xenon-equipped Cayman. Since yours does not have HID, you may need the follow the manual for the low- and high-beam bulbs. Note that the 2006 and 2007 owner's manuals contained several errors regarding the bulb specifications. I do not know if this was corrected in the 2008 version. Regards.

This is a good read as well. It will give you a good idea of what a to look for while shopping for a bulb. I think quite a few members here have used this site to upgrade. I'm in the process of doing it right now. Daniel Stern Lighting Consultancy and Supply

Excellent stuff! Thanks for posting. But help me through some confusion. Those of us who do not have Bi-Xenon-equipped cars do have and need halogen bulbs. We just need to replace the stock halogen bulbs with the same number/wattage after-market halogen bulb. Is that correct? (At least that's what I have done on my motorcycles with very good results.) For us with standard headlights we would need to replace four halogen bulbs - two high beam and two low beam?

Actually you can install aftermarket HID kit into the non BiXenon car. Just make sure you get the H7 size for the low beam.

I've spoken with Daniel Stern and he's suggested some bulbs that I've never heard of, or seen, and there are no pictures available showing the differences. I'm hesitant as they are significantly more expensive than something like the HOEN or others, but if they are as bright as he claims, they'd be worth it I suppose. He also suggested leaving the high beams alone...just replacing the fogs and lows, I suggested that the lights wouldn't all match, to which he replied that nobody would care. Joe Clark

Spoke with Daniel today as well. Which bulb did he suggest to you? He told me these were the best for our application, he seems to be the expert, but I'm a bit concerned about them being 65w instead of the stock 55w. My handyman weak spot is electrical bits, so I'm not sure my worries are valid. H7 rallye+65 (Osram only): 65w, 2100 lumens, 500 hours

For those who do not have the Litronic option on your Cayman , I strongly recommend investing in an HID conversion kit. Several members have done this successfully, and have posted their experience. Compared to my Boxster with halogen headlights , the light output of the HID headlights on my CS is on a completely different level. This leads to safer nighttime driving, and also a more refined look (IMHO). To answer your question, gfspencer, if you have halogen headlights , you do need to change 4 halogen bulbs (2 for low- and 2 for high-beam). For the Litronic headlights , it is also necessary to change 4 bulbs - 2 HID bulbs for the high/low-beam and 2 halogen bulbs for the additional high-beam. Regards !

Those are the same bulbs he advised to me, 65W, 2100 lumens and expensive, comparatively. I'd not worry about the extra 10W, but without knowing how much better they'll be, I have a hard time buying in. Joe Clark

As another note on this subject, I've decided that I will be buying the bulbs recommended by Daniel Stern. However, in another conversation about bulb replacement in my 2008 GMC Sierra 2500 Daniel WOULD NOT give me a replacement part # for the fogs, he indicated that they were useless and weren't worth replacing with anything. After asking again, a different way, he said that any replacement would be unsafe for other drivers and I shouldn't do it. LOL. Joe Clark