Steve 96C4S

For me, I'm going to keep the crummy positioning lights as they are. I'm not a fan of the blue hue on the front of a 993 in that lower, foglight position when the lights aren't even on. I like the generic, stock white color best.

I have to wonder, why do you need really intense fog lights if you already have HID's? My HID's are so bright, I never even thought of using my fog lights but maybe once or twice in 4 years of ownership of my 993.



Steve R

md11plt

What causes the "stock" running lights on the Porsche ducts to come on? Is it with the headlights? I can't recall now if the S has the fog light switch. I can't imagine they would run those 5W lights to their own switch.

Butzi

Fog lights are judged not merely on brightness, it's their low position that acts as an aid when driving through the stuff. This is especially true for "Valley Fog" (convective?) which originates very low to the ground and is stagnant. In San Francisco, we have a different type of fog, it moves in off of the ocean, it's windy, cold, and sometimes can be as thick as your momma's pea soup (<--not a "yo momma" joke, I'm sure yo momma made great pea soup, once she figured out how to split them, lol).

In fact, brighter is not necessarily better because fog tends to reflect the light back into the driver's eyes (like in a bad snow storm) making almost impossible to see... So a low position along with a more "soothing" tint might be beneficial.

Steve 96C4S

Thanks for posting that, Jeff. Very interesting info.

Steve R

Butzi

Just doing my part.

FlatSix911

The Turbo S ducts can easily be retrofitted to accommodate a set of PIAA driving lights - the higher wattage is a big plus and the color complements the HID headlights.

For the retrofit, I used a 2 inch ID O-ring to provide a seal around the outside of the light that fits flush against the inside of the duct. A bit of clear silicone sealant on the O-ring and a small screw on the mounting bracket was all that was needed for a clean and secure installation.

993_Pilot

This is called Radiation fog.

The really tick stuff that rolls off of the water in San Francisco is called Advection Fog.

I only corrected you because you put the question mark in, so hopefully, no offense. Meteorology lesson over. You are right that the low position of the lights is beneficial. High and bright lights will reflect right back in your face.

993_Pilot

Ted,
I just bought some empty 'S' ducts to install and was planning to do this very mod because I wanted driving lights. Did you use the brackets that came with the lights and just put a screw through one of the mounting tabs/hooks that are on the ducts? Also, where did you buy the lights? Thanks for the help.

Butzi

Actually, that's exactly why I put the question mark

I majored in Atmospheric Sciences for only one-year, that was 17 years ago...I couldn't remember & was too lazy to research, thanks.

Mike J

I posted about updating my Turbo ducts last year...here is the thread reference for a different approach :

Duct Updates

Here is the jist of the DIY for future reference:

-------------------------------------
I went a bit futher...I did not like the PIAA lights because of their shape and their beam spread so I used Hella driving lights...really focused since they are pretty deep and have good glass lenses....I am pretty happy with the results:

The reason I updated the ducts is when I took them apart to get them painted and I was astounded by the crappy lens and reflector that are in these lights....no wonder people have been complaining..



So.....after some web searching for the smallest fog light I settled on these Hellas. The hole in the turbo duct is 1 7/8" which is pretty small. The smallest one is the Hella DE Micro Fog light...very nice unit and about $49 each. They are about 2 1/4" at the nose...but there is a trim ring. I ordered them figuring that I could do something about the trim ring. Oh, you don't need the whole kit because it includes relays and switches. Check out Hella Light for more information.



Nice looking light eh? Very nice lens, proper mount for the build, magnesium case for the heat, etc. I like the lens pattern...and it turns out that the old lens was from a Hella design as well so the oval shape was almost a perfect match...



So how to I manage to get these mounted? Well, the first problem is that the light is too large for the duct so some creative "carving" has to occur...this is the light bottomed out on the fixture. The trim ring on the light is in the way as well as the mount for the old lens...





So lets get carving. I used a square bottomed cutter on my trusty air tool and carved out the mounts at the bottom of the duct. The mounts were to hold the hold lens in. Keep carving the mount until you can see the joint between the case and the shell.



Ok, hold your breath for the next part. The trim ring on the lights has to be removed. Its glued on so I could not take it off in one piece so I, well, broke it off in bits..



Almost done, I smoothed out the rubber seal using a very sharp knife and then reapplied some urethane to make an nice seal...I did not take a picture after it was sealed....leave it as an excercise fo the student...



The old reflector was a bit smaller than this new Hella so I had to trim out the mounting hole a bit...sorry about the poor picture.



The lights out of the box are not threaded...I tapped some 6mm threads (heh, we have to remain metrica after all)....



I used some Stainless allen head bolts but these were a bit long... ;-)



OK, they are all trimmed and fit nicely.



Ok, tricky stuff. In order to get the clearance for the inside mounting bolt I needed to drill an access hole across the cool air duct with across. If you are good with a drill its no problem but take carefull aim (in three dimensions..).



Now you can see why I did this...I needed to thread the bolt in from the side. There just is not enough space between the duct and the light to fit it in so I used this method...worked fine and you can always use some rubber plugs for the duct..



Ok, here is the light mounted on the duct..its a good solid mount. The lights can be adjusted a bit using the slop in the screws...

Front view...



The bulb mount is much better on these lights..the wire connection on the ground is a bit flimsy but it seems to work fine...



The light with the rubber boot on the end...nice design.



I do not like to mickey mouse the connectors but do it properly. I solded all the exposed wires after mounting the spades...



Okay, I will get flack for this...I actually CUT the old connector off the car to replace it. I figured I can always put another connector on that one in case I take the ducts out...which is unlikely to happen.

**SNIP** !



Putting the connector on the car side...



And the finished connector with water sealing on the cables and the connector housings....nice and reliable and much better than trying to jam some spade connectors into the factory connector...



And the final test...what do their patterns look like....here you go!



I think this "upgrade" to the original turbo ducts is worth it...it takes a bit of carefull work but it gives a better light and better maintenance.

The Hella Micro DE also comes in a driving light for those who are light challenged if if you want to spend lots of money you can get a Xenon version!!!

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Cheers,

Mike

AOW162435

When installing the factory turbo S ducts (as we did to Steve's 993) the positioning lamp plugs directly into the existing harness plug that went to a similar bulb in the factory "fog light" unit. So they come on with the parking lamp setting. The fog light switch is no longer used.

Andreas

atan888

thanks for the info will try to do the same. ....wish me luck

atan888

thank you to this thread and flatsix911 . I used the same hella lights as well.

Paddy

^^ drool. Your car is simply bad ***

It's funny these duct threads popped back up. I just installed the TechArt ducts, hoses, and the little fender liner scoops the other night.

jda407

DPS sells a clear blinker light for non bumperette bumpers. Can you simply remove your bumperettes and use these lights or do you have to change out the front bumper to one that is designed without the bumperettes

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eB...6625&rd=1&rd=1

Love the look of the ducts but would like to get rid of the bumperettes too. Didn't know if it could be done this way or if I need to buy a new bumper

Thanks