Interior light swap possible?
 

The interior light in the overhead cluster on my '99 is loose. Instead of replacing it (looks like a cheap VW part, like the ones I had on my 944), I'm thinking of getting the facelift cluster; the one with the orientation light.

Question: will the orientation light work on my pre-facelift model? Is there an electrical hookup/relay that needs to be added?

I'm interested in this too!

104 views and no suggestions? Am I in the right section of the forum?

I have no idea what you're talking about...the interior "dome" light? :confused:

You know the interior light between the sun visors? There were two versions of this for the 986.

The question is, will the later version fit a car with the earlier version installed.

I see. You may have to take the plunge and answer that question yourself. ;)

So, as particlewave said, I can answer the question myself.

No, the two are not compatible.

First, they have different plugs. This was not hard to get around - just a little cutting and soldering.

Second, the orientation light doesn't light up with the ignition. It appears there must have been a re-design of the electronics along with the facelift.

Does it physically fit, though? The electronics part is easy enough.

Yes, it physically fits.

The electronics would have to be redone probably at the relay. It seems that in the post-facelift lamp, the orientation light LED constantly draws power from the +12V going to the lamp and is switched off with a time-out after locking the car. I'm guessing here as I don't have access to a post-facelift car.

Any recent updates on this topic? I've been searching, but haven't found any other threads.
Thanks

I did a little more searching and found this
 

http://986forum.com/forums/general-discussions/58525-dome-light-swap-97-04-type-possible.html

I had been searching on "interior light." When I searched on "dome light" I found what I needed.

It looks like the swap is possible with a little electrical work. The plastic tabs on my light broke when I pulled it out to replace the bulb. (I was careful, but I guess 17-year old plastic just gets brittle.)

I found a 2004 assembly for $28 shipped on Ebay, so I might as well give this a shot. If anyone has any additional tips or links, please share them.