Luftundwasser

Picked up my 88 Turbo S last week, and the headlights are very dim. I unplugged the passenger side bulb and found the ground plug had scorched (see pic)

When I checked the drivers side, I had the headlights on, I was holding the H4 bulb in my hand. I saw it go bright (and then go back to the original dim) and then I saw smoke coming from the plug, so I pulled the bulb from the plug which was burnt even worse (see 2nd pic).




I will need to order 2 new pigtails for the lights. In the meantime, before I get the new ones in,

* Does know the reason why this happened? It was the ground socket on each bulb that scorched.

Since picking it up last week, I've driven at night for over an hour with the headlights on, and it stayed dim, with no other issues or smoking that I noticed.

Frank@Work

Wiring getting old. Replace the entire headlight wiring before your car burns to the ground. See for example https://944online.com/h4-headlight-upgrade-harness.html

931guru

You are drawing too much current through that wire, heating it up and eventually burning it. Go back to stock bulbs.

Luftundwasser

Thanks - I will likely install relays. I found the instructions to make my own set:

https://forums.pelicanparts.com/pors...g-harness.html

(I saw another option is to install LED H4 compatible bulbs with a much lower current-draw.)

I just picked up the car last week and I'm finding plenty of previous owner neglect that needs to be fixed. (eg: I took a right-hand corner a little fast and the seat tipped left b/c there were no bolts in the R seat rail!).

wildcat077

You can buy ceramic connectors / plugs on Ebay that you splice in ,i replaced the plastic ones on my 89 911 with ceramic connectors as the 30 year old plastic ones were looking pretty
rough and brittle.

Cheers
Phil

Luftundwasser

Thanks - I actually thought of that and ordered (then canceled) an Amazon order for the ceramic plugs last night. I thought overheating on the ground lug meant there's high-resistance in the circuit. I was concerned that this would just push the problem to the next weakest link in the system.

slivel

I addition to replacing the damaged connectors, I recommend inspecting and cleaning every ground point on the car and inspecting the battery cables.

mwc951

Go with LED's.
No relays necessary.

wildcat077

Loose and corroded terminals will cause problems with your headlight circuit … cut off an inch or two of your existing wiring and solder in and shrink wrap the new ceramic plugs/ sockets, if i remember correctly the wiring on the ceramic sockets is 14 gauge and it’s plenty long enough that you can easily take a few inches of the existing wiring !
It’s cheap insurance …

Cheers
Phil