Check this out from eBay
 

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&rd=1&category=33711&item=79 87853815

I'm just trying to poll on what you guys think about this mod.

Thanks

Thumbs Down for me...

I like the colour the way it is, and I am not a fan of removing the gauge cluster in any car...

Mike

I like the original color...that one looks good, but I'm a fan of the amber. I really like how Audi does their interiors with the amber/reddish lights. Different strokes for different folks though.

Dash lights
 

This is for Randall, who can tolerate too-long posts. Everyone else probably will want to just skip ahead.

The question of what color, and how bright, the car instrument dials should be at night is a question of safety more than aesthetics.

The cones of our eyes don’t work as well in the dark as in daylight, and some colors are easier to see at night than others. In very dim light, we are most sensitive to green-yellow color. That's why you've perhaps noticed some European fire suits with horrid lime-green stripes. Even some fire trucks have switched from the traditional red to lime green.

But the question is more complicated than just the color in the spectrum, it also has to do with the brightness of that color. Red used to be the choice for night-vision goggles and HUDs, but the military has more recently switched over to green. But whether green is easier to see than red depends on the light intensity. The amount of illumination is a stronger deciding factor than the color itself.

Because our eyes are more sensitive to green, it is easier to see green at very low light levels than red. But the instument dials of the cars at night are not set for the dimmest light, but rather something brighter, so that there needn't be too much readjustment from looking through the dashboard as looking down at the instruments.

How bright to set the instrument dial is decided first, for that reason. The brighter the light, the more harsh effect on our vision and the longer it takes to get back to normal night vision.

Therefore, you don't want to have a light that is brighter than the intended purpose, including the relative adjustment the eye needs to make between looking through the windshield and looking down at the dials. If the light is brighter than it needs to be, and the wrong color, then the impact on our eyes is undesirable. Based on our relative sensitivity, a too-bright green light will be harsher than a too-bright red light.

Given the relative amount of illumination desired, a reddish light is usually preferred over a greenish light. Blue light is at the wrong end of the spectrum and is not optimal for dashboard illumination at night. White light also is not optimal, given the desired level of relative illumination.

So, a reddish-amber light is usually selected for night instrument illumination. At the desired level of illumination, it is easiest to see and least harsh on the eyes, and requires the least amount of adjustment when looking down at the dials and back up through the windshield.

But why did Porsche select amber? Probably because they thought it was pretty.

I prefer the original color.

I'm with you guys on that! I like the original color as well.

To me it's like comparing "older" headlights to those super bright ones. I personally prefer the kit if it really works. My biggest problem is that the instrument panel isn't going to match the stereo/climate control amber color. That's no good.

To me, this kit looks like someone is trying to rice up the Porsche to look like a riced up Honda.

This is for Randall, who can tolerate too-long posts. Everyone else probably will want to just skip ahead.

Doh! Sorry to type out such long posts! Didn't know I was getting a reputation as being long-winded. I'm just a writer by trade and enjoy everyone here A LOT! I'll try to keep them shorter from now on.

:dance:

PS - Saw the colored lamps on Ebay. Not gonna go there. Wouldn't be prudent.

(short enough?) :chicken:

I like it. And not just because I think it looks pretty. I've got similar colors in my Jetta (kind of a violet backlighting) and I find that it's easy to read at night and doesn't tire my eyes. I had red in my RSX and thought it was so-so, relaxing on the eyes but not as easy to read. I am not a fan of amber, or green for that matter, because it reminds me of a mainframe terminal screen from the 80s (read cheap POS).

I might even spring for this and see if I like it. I wonder if the mod is destrctive in any way? It'd probably match aftermarket stereo units better too!

i guess you guys know this is only taking out the instrument cluster and replacing it with a 30 dollar led. i read a hack on this on some website. personally i'd save the 30 bucks towards a cayman.

good call...save the 30 dollars, put it in the bank and then in 125 years you can purchase a Cayman.

I think it looks good, but I suppose it's unnecessary.

The 987 has white illumination, so I can see why there's some allure to switching to white. I agree that amber is the proper color for car dash illumination, but since most modern cars are getting away from that, it's reasonably non-ricey for one to make that change.

Now, if you wanted to go to BLUE illumination, I'd shake my head. :)

You misunderstand me. I like the detail of your posts.