Go Back   986 Forum - The Community for Porsche Boxster & Cayman Owners > Porsche Boxster & Cayman Forums > Boxster General Discussions

Post Reply
 
LinkBack Thread Tools Display Modes
Old 09-16-2006, 07:57 PM   #1
Registered User
 
Join Date: Apr 2006
Location: North Jersey
Posts: 23
Halogen vs Xenons

People on here with halogens, do you regret not getting xenons or are you happy with the halogen's performance? Xenon=Litronic? Sorry, newbie here. Is it possible to retrofit? If so, how much? Thanks much!

red_wagen is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 09-17-2006, 04:02 AM   #2
Registered User
 
Join Date: May 2006
Location: Northeast USA
Posts: 910
Happy with halogens here. Never really understood the xenons hoopla. Seems to me most people get them for looks but I fail to see what they really do for the car esthetically. In terms of safety, they (especially if they are even slightly misadjusted) seem to blind oncoming traffic much more than halogens. Beats me how that helps safety for everyone. Just IMHO.
Z.
__________________
'06 Boxster S, 6sp, triple-black
http://i153.photobucket.com/albums/s...05_IMGcrop.jpg
z12358 is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 09-17-2006, 04:53 AM   #3
Registered User
 
Join Date: Sep 2005
Location: MARLTON, NJ
Posts: 539
Z, if you have an 06', the halogens are far better than that of the 986. Yours, if I am correct, are projector beam halogens. Older 986s have standard halogen sealed beam lamps. These are not as good performance wise as the new halogens. I would have regretted buying a non-xenon Box. I think porsches xenons are one of the better lighting setups out there. They are definately a crisp white and fill out the driving field nicely. Also if you are facing an oncomming car, the center of your beam is the brightest part and wont blind traffic but still illuminate the sides of the road. I live in an area with alot of deer. More than a few times, I was able to spot those eyes on the edge of the trees much sooner than I used to due to the lights.

Ok, last reason for the xenons is that they do look pretty cool. I have to say, that I definately prefer the look of a vehicle with xenons vs non. IMOH this says that you are driving a car with todays best technology. Also, I believe the non xenon 986s have amber in them instead of all clear? Plus, I noticed when buying my car, xenon equipped cars were slightly more expensive.

Just a question, if you retro-fit a car with litronics, will the self leveling feature work or not?

Best of luck!
__________________
Joe DiMonte
2001 Boxster S
Triple Black
AUDIOGUY is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 09-17-2006, 08:37 AM   #4
bmussatti
Guest
 
Posts: n/a
Quote:
Originally Posted by AUDIOGUY
Ok, last reason for the xenons is that they do look pretty cool. I have to say, that I definately prefer the look of a vehicle with xenons vs non. IMOH this says that you are driving a car with todays best technology.
I agree with this. I selected the Xenons for the "Cool Factor". Like how many people here test drove the Xenon cars at night to really see if they were better than Halogens?
  Reply With Quote
Old 09-17-2006, 09:04 AM   #5
Registered User
 
Join Date: Jan 2005
Location: Dallas, TX
Posts: 1,460
Quote:
Originally Posted by AUDIOGUY
Just a question, if you retro-fit a car with litronics, will the self leveling feature work or not?
No.

(this post must be at least 10 characters)
__________________
.
1997 Honda Accord | V6
2004 BMW 330i | ZHP | SOLD
2000 Porsche Boxster | SOLD | http://www.986forum.com/forums/showthread.php?t=9114

http://www.kryzak.com/storage/986sig12.jpg

http://kryzak.tumblr.com
Jeph is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 09-17-2006, 09:33 AM   #6
Registered User
 
Join Date: Mar 2004
Location: Chester, England
Posts: 87
I bought a xenon kit to replace the stock halogen bulbs - originally fitted it to the 986 where it made a BIG difference), then removed and fitted into my current 06 987S, where it makes a difference but not so great as in the 986.

Idon't have self levelling or the washers, but i've never had an issue with oncoming traffic or when following other cars.


986 Comparison..
Before..


After..


987 Installed..
UKBXSTR is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 09-18-2006, 11:30 AM   #7
Registered User
 
Join Date: Jul 2006
Location: mid-Michigan
Posts: 562
Haha

Quote:
Originally Posted by red_wagen
People on here with halogens, do you regret not getting xenons or are you happy with the halogen's performance? Xenon=Litronic? Sorry, newbie here. Is it possible to retrofit? If so, how much? Thanks much!
______________________


HAppy with HAlogens
__________________
2000 Arctic Silver Boxster
SPQR
Senatus Populusque BoxsterRomanus
jeffsquire is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 09-18-2006, 12:48 PM   #8
Registered User
 
Perfectlap's Avatar
 
Join Date: Nov 2004
Location: New Jersey
Posts: 8,709
Lots o' mods on my BoxsterS. Some cheap some not so cheap.
The best bang for the buck mod was adding side skirts. Completely
changes the look. Well worth the $1000.00 clams.

Now as for lowest bang for the buck that the Litronics.
$1100 clams and my Boxster doesn't really look any different then when I had the
the clear halogen set (no amber). I rarely drive in dark rural areas and
Halogen vs. Litronic (zenon, HID, etc) is barely a difference in terms of
lighting up already well lit streets and highways. From my point of view its a strictly cosmetic upgrade that give you a cool euro look. I see why clear halogens are so valuable. The amber-free look without spending $1K+
$1000 would have been better spent on replica 5 spoke Carreras and made a world of difference.

Litronics are definitely a bottom of the list upgrade on the 986
__________________
GT3 Recaro Seats - Boxster Red
GT3 Aero / Carrera 18" 5 spoke / Potenza RE-11
Fabspeed Headers & Noise Maker
BORN: March 2000 - FINLAND
IMS#1 REPLACED: April 2010 - NEW JERSEY -- LNE DUAL ROW
Perfectlap is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 09-18-2006, 07:44 PM   #9
Registered User
 
Join Date: Apr 2006
Location: North Jersey
Posts: 23
So as I thought, xenons are not a big step up from halogens performance wise. Plus they prolly cost an arm and a leg when they burn out and have to be replaced. But they look so cool...
red_wagen is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 09-19-2006, 09:11 AM   #10
Registered User
 
Join Date: Jul 2004
Location: Houston, Texas
Posts: 7,243
I guess I'm the odd guy here on this topic... I've had base halogens on my 1997 and upgraded to the litronics... huge difference in lighting brightness and color. The car is far more fun to drive at night now because I can see the road ahead and animals on the road (both with paws and drivers of cars).

I'm of the mindset that if you enjoy driving fast, and you plan on doing even freeway speeds in your Boxster at night, litronics make it safer and that's a good thing one can't put a price tag on.
RandallNeighbour is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 09-19-2006, 10:05 AM   #11
Registered User
 
Join Date: Jun 2005
Location: San Diego, California
Posts: 874
So as I thought, xenons are not a big step up from halogens performance wise. Plus they prolly cost an arm and a leg when they burn out and have to be replaced. But they look so cool...

Most xenon lamp bulbs are "lifetime". The chart below quantifies the difference between halogen and xenon in the 987. However, as Audioguy notes, the halogens in the 987 are excellent, the 986 halogens...not so much, which explains peoples reactions to performing the upgrade in the different models. (I've owned a 987 with each). It's a universal violation (in countries with a standard vehicular code) to run HIDs without self-levelling and washers, but I suspect most folks don't give a rat's ass.

Interesting bit of 987 xenon trivia, the washers actually route the water spray in the direction that the vehicle is moving. So instead of deflecting the water spray, the air flow actually increases its speed of delivery.
__________________
http://i7.tinypic.com/24ovngk.jpghttp://i7.tinypic.com/24ow0id.jpg

06 987S- Sold
Carrara White / Black / Black/Stone Grey Two-tone

05 987 5-speed - Sold
Midnight Blue Metallic / Metropol Blue / Sand Beige

06 MB SLK350- Lease escapee
Iridium Silver Metallic / Black

We've heard that a million monkeys at a million keyboards could produce the complete works of Shakespeare; now, thanks to the Internet, we know that is not true. - Robert Wilensky
SD987 is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 09-19-2006, 11:53 AM   #12
07 Carrera S Cab
 
Boxtaboy's Avatar
 
Join Date: Nov 2005
Location: New Jersey
Posts: 2,273
Garage
I got my Litronics for free when a friend of mine sold his 986s

He let me swap out my halogens for his litronics, so here's my impressions after putting them in my 01 Boxster-

Pros: To me, the halogens did not provide enough lighting in low beam mode so I always drove with my fog lights on in conjunction with my low beam halogens in order to get more fill on the road. With the litronics, I no longer need to turn on the fogs.

I prefer the white/blue lighting, and understand that the litronic bulbs themselves will last up to 10 times longer than halogen bulbs while also drawing approx. 30% less power from the battery than standard halogens.

Other car makes (ie. Nissan, Acura, etc.) are including Xenons as standard in their cars these days, and to me, it is almost embarrasing to pull up at a light next to a Toyota Prius or Mini Cooper with xenons on their car when you're crusing in a Porsche with the old tech halogens, regardless of whether or not you've got the 987 improved projector beam halogens. I've noticed other folks, both pedestrians in the street and drivers on the road take notice of the car more than when I had the halogens in them too, so they definitely garner more attention to your car than the halogens. To me, it says that you are riding in a car with the most recent technological advances. IMO, Porsche should put these lights standard in all their cars from the get go. JMHO. YMMV and all that good stuff.

Cons: I'm wary of where I park my car now due to all the stories of people getting their xenons stolen.

Cheers
Boxtaboy is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 09-19-2006, 06:23 PM   #13
Registered User
 
Join Date: Sep 2006
Location: Chandler, AZ
Posts: 5
I don't know if it was mentioned, but the color of the light emitted by the xenons is closer to natural light and reduces eye fatigue if you drive a lot at night. I wouldn't be caught dead without them on a road trip but I have regular halogens on my truck that sees in town driving and primarily during the day so no concern there. If you plan to do some after work drives out of the city or drive with some frequency at night it is money well spent IMO.

.net rulez!
Douge is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 09-19-2006, 07:30 PM   #14
Registered User
 
Join Date: Jan 2005
Location: Dallas, TX
Posts: 1,460
I'm a fan of the Litronics. I firmly believe to get the full effect of them, they must be properly aligned (which is a more difficult task then just using the adjusters).

WARNING: Once you go xenon, you'll never want a car without it.

php rulez!
__________________
.
1997 Honda Accord | V6
2004 BMW 330i | ZHP | SOLD
2000 Porsche Boxster | SOLD | http://www.986forum.com/forums/showthread.php?t=9114

http://www.kryzak.com/storage/986sig12.jpg

http://kryzak.tumblr.com
Jeph is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 09-19-2006, 07:32 PM   #15
Registered User
 
Join Date: Sep 2005
Location: Minneapolis/St. Paul, Minnesota, USA
Posts: 3,308
Hi,

Practically speaking, I think it's all about the aesthetic. The Xenons are indeed brighter and whiter, so what? My wife's Jag S-Type has xenons, and they're nice, but not $1300 worth of nice. So what if they're Lifetime? At $7/H7 Halogen bulb, it's not a big deal to change them every 4-5 years when they burn out

If you're in the city, the ambient light is usually sufficient to drive by alone. And, if you're in a rural area without any competing light sources, the halogens light everything up just fine (when have we heard of a Boxster crashing because their lights weren't bright enough?).

So far as eye fatigue, how much sleep did you get last night? How good is your diet? General Health? Smoker? Caffein drinker? Under a deadline or other stress? These things have a much greater effect on eye fatigue than whether you're driving with xenons or not.

I'm staying with the Halogens (a quantum leap over the old tungsten filaments), and saving my dough for an RMS, Oil Seperator, Intermediate Shaft Failure, cracked Coolant Reservoir, broken motor mounts, faulty Fuel Cap, faulty Coolant Cap, and the like...

Happy Motoring!... Jim'99

Last edited by MNBoxster; 09-19-2006 at 07:39 PM.
MNBoxster is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 09-19-2006, 07:36 PM   #16
Porscheectomy
 
Join Date: Mar 2006
Location: Seattle Area
Posts: 3,011
There's a good article on this in the October issue of Excellence. Check out page 161.

blue2000s is offline   Reply With Quote
Post Reply


Thread Tools
Display Modes

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is On
Trackbacks are On
Pingbacks are On
Refbacks are On




All times are GMT -8. The time now is 11:51 AM.


Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.8.7
Copyright ©2000 - 2024, vBulletin Solutions, Inc.
Content Relevant URLs by vBSEO 3.6.0
Copyright 2024 Pelican Parts, LLC - Posts may be archived for display on the Pelican Parts Website -    DMCA Registered Agent Contact Page