afzan

yes

Car Analogy

The P car guys that update for a more current look, are tbey using aftermarket parts, or oem parts for a newer year?

Lighting is a very research and design intensive endeavor. The oems spend a lot of r&d effort making them work safely and effectively.

Aftermarket just throw something together and call it a light. It may look good, but its not putting out the same quantity and quality and pattern of light as oem. Even just trying to copy oem design its easy to get something slightly off and have an ineffective light and not even know it. They don't test their finished product the way oem does. So even an attempt at exact copy almost certainly won't be, and since they don't test them they won't know in what ways their copy fell short.

Just say No to aftermarket lighting...

Shadow993

Yes and yes. Some upgrade to newer porsche, but that requires a bumper change, modules, wiring. Most use Depo tail lights. There is only one option for the headlight 997.

Again.. the aftermarket s2000 light uses the ORIGINAL HID/xenon/ ballast and a H1 bulb for high beams.

My 2004 with 68k miles had micro cracks , faded and yellowed beyond repair.

I don't know if they are bad long term, but light output is the same... actually better since mine had issues.

Say Chi Sin Lo

What does that have to do with output? The Honda S2000 has the best output from a HID projector, just because an aftermarket uses original HID FITMENT base, it has nothing with how the actual projector handle the output. That's like saying a $20 chair is going to be just as comfortable as a $800 chair just because they both use the same nuts and bolts.

The Honda S2000 has better output than
1) ALL HID based projectors
2) Rivals and are still better than current model cars with LED based projectors

Do you really think an aftermarket's R&D and manufacturing precision can come close to that of Toyota, Honda, Nissan, Volkswagen Auto Group, BMW, Mercedes Benz, and etc.? If you look around the HID retrofitting scene, there's a reason why Honda S2000's projector guts are highly desirable and the guts themselves are close to $300 a pair.

https://www.theretrofitsource.com/bl...id-projectors/

No, start with OEM, stick with OEM, and end with OEM.

Shadow993

[quote=Say Chi Sin Lo]What does that have to do with output? The Honda S2000 has the best output from a HID projector, just because an aftermarket uses original HID FITMENT base, it has nothing with how the actual projector handle the output. That's like saying a $20 chair is going to be just as comfortable as a $800 chair just because they both use the same nuts and bolts.

The Honda S2000 has better output than
1) ALL HID based projectors
2) Rivals and are still better than current model cars with LED based projectors

Uh... there is a diy on swapping the projector in this forum.😁.

Ok.. so the average s2000 sells for $10,000 and your drop $1,000 for new oem headlights?!? That makes total sense.

Do I think they are 100% equal? No. But are they 90% .. yup. Are you driving in 24 hour Le Mans?


Ok.. so porsche spent all this money on taillights... do I think I Depot LED's are better and brighter than 2007 stock.... hell yes.

It's a Honda S2000, not a 65 Shelby Cobra😂😂.

S2000 owners are more serious than Porsche owners. It's a car, and it depreciates. Save your old crusty lights and give them to the new owner.

BTW... S2000 projectors on eBay for $150.

Say Chi Sin Lo

@Shadow993 Go on hidplanet forums, and ask if people give two shits about Porsche's lighting systems.

And then go on hidplanet and make a thread about S2000 projectors, and tell them you instead opt'd to use aftermarket headlights. Make sure you link us the thread so we can see the kinds of responses you get.

Really, Depot lights? You're going to compared taillights, to headlights? You're going to compared tailights when they're designed to alert others. We're talking headlights here, designed to illuminate. But hey, I bet because they use the same base and sized bulbs, must be just a good, right?

Manga_Spawn

Have to agree just because you use the OEM bulb and ballast there is a lot more that effects the overall function of the headlight. Majestic still lists both AP1 and AP2 headlights as orderable so they seem to be available. They are expensive to buy new but there is plenty of used sets out there as well.

dirtybird222

Auto Manufacturers don't put that much R&D into lighting and it's why so many cars have such terrible ratings with the IIHS. Subaru still sells 2020 models with terrible H11 headlights that seem to have less power than a keychain LED flashlight. That's an exaggeration; but, most auto manf are lazy when it comes to this part of the vehicle.

The stock S2000 projectors are amazing and there's a reason they were so highly sought after for retrofits for so many years (same with the TSX). My stock lenses were past the point of being able to be saved and I purchased some AP2 knockoffs from Amazon for $189. While the D2S bulbs mounts right up into a very similar looking projector, the output is not the same at all. The throw was off, the lighting was dim, etc. I'm currently in the process of just doing a lens swap so I'll retain the factory back portion of the headlight with an aftermarket lens.

manystyles

Eh to each their own. A lot of new owners are younger who buy the S thinking it's a cheap car. Mint CRs and low mileage cars are selling for 30-60k.

The S will be a future classic, and I'd rather put quality parts on it and think long term.

Go used OEM route. I bought brand new and sold my old to recouped some of the costs.

Say Chi Sin Lo

Young owners and idiots are not the same thing