Intro and headlights

[Mdkrp1]

Hello
I wanted to introduce myself and my new to me '87 3.2 Coupe.
It has 117k miles and I am in the process of getting it smogged in AZ; have to switch out the cat bypass/sport muffler to stock set up and change out the SW 93 octane chip to 91 and then I hope to have some fun with it.
Having never driven this era car, it is really a learning experience but thus far it has been very fun! I have noticed that the headlights are not as bright as I am used to (currently have LED) so am trying to figure out what to do. I think current set up is H4 but not sure. Any thoughts are much appreciated!
here are a few pics of her:

[Justin@Athens]

Welcome! Nice looking ride you have there, paint looks great! I hate to steer you to another forum right off the bat, but a Rennlister just recently posted about his experience with a LED headlight upgrade. Headlight upgrade: Flat6 Illumination - Rennlist Discussion Forums

Good luck with your car. I am glad I am exempt from emissions here, I cannot believe they expect these 30 year old cars to pass smog.

[Jack Stands]

I think your car came with H5 headlights from the factory. While not the most popular option for headlights, you might try adding some headlight relaysto see if getting a full voltage directly from the battery may satisfy you.

[faverymi]

Mmmm. H5s from 1987 are probably foggy inside and pitted on the outside.

If you want better headlights shop around and get something new.

OEM
John Audette's
Guy in Montreal

Nice car. Enjoy

[Cook&Dunning]

Great looking car, congrats. I have H5's too, and have been through a couple of headlight options. I would suggest to not upgrade to higher wattage halogen bulbs - the heat can melt the plastic parts of headlight buckets and attaching rings. I went with aftermarket led bulbs - some here love and some hate, but definitely brighter. If you go led, you do not need to add relays. Search the forum for some led options - plenty of opinions! Might be worth pulling headlights, cleaning insides and maybe replacing/ checking desiccant packs if they are foggy.

[JordanPryce]

I'm going to be contrary and say get used to the dim, vintage light. Night is for cruising.

[tdw28210]

Welcome a-board! (that NEVER gets old). What took you so long to post pics? You joined in 2013! Anyway, the car looks great. Congrats.

[darrin]

Meant to post this a lot earlier and prior posts cover some of what I wrote below. However, don't think posting it now necessarily hurts . . .

'87 and newer 911s came with h5 headlights from the factory -- these "look" better than the earlier sealed beam sugar scoops but suffer from the same poor lighting/focus. Although h5 headlights look similar to the european H4 headlights, they lack the sharp upward cut-off and beam focus that more recent us-legal headlights now provide. Easiest way to confirm whether you have h5 headlights is to look for aiming tips on the headlights (I believe I see them in your pictures -- NICE car btw), us-spec headlights were required to have these, while european spec headlights weren't.

Few avenues for you to consider --

1) make sure your current h5 headlights are fully "dialed in" -- specifically, properly aimed, cleane reflectors and lenses, good grounds, etc. While this (and the installation of a headlight relay, a preferable update in any situation -- as built, all headlight current passes through the turn signal, adding relays can both increase the amount of power going to your headlights and extend the life of your turn signal, which tend to melt from the headlights' heat/current over time) can incrementally help, the primary constraint with the h5s is their beam pattern, which can't be fixed, only replaced, leading to

2) convert over to european H4 halogen headlights -- you'd need to splice in a different connector to power the headlights and would need to get a trim ring painted to match your car (or rock chrome trim) -- this would give you (especially in conjunction with high watt bulbs) MUCH better lighting once properly aimed, as the h4 headlights have the same well-defined beam cut-off as modern headlights and really put a LOT of light onto the road.

3) look into other aftermarket options being offered -- on this board and elsewhere. Keep in mind that HID lights (one of the options available) require a brief period of time to warm up, which can be an issue if you like to flash your headlights a lot. Further, while there are a few interesting LED powered options, some folks find their more modern appearance to not "fit" with the classic 911's lines.

[hoss4659]

If you insure the car as a "collector car" in Arizona the insurer notifies the Motor Vehicle Dept and you can be exempt from smog inspections. Do not know what happens if you try for this exemption after first registering the car and later getting the insurance. I got the insurance first, before registration and there was no problem.

[rothaus]

For the headlight you can replace the complete H5 with a set of LED, like these.





Just need to replace the plug in the headlight housing, other then that plug and play.

Cheers
Engelbert

[Cook&Dunning]

When it comes to adding relays - be careful with the H5's - the headlight assemblies are plastic, not metal like H4's and H1's. Lots of melted H5's out there - I know, I have used bought H5 buckets here on pelican that were deformed from heat, and un-useable. (be careful buying used H5 assemblies)

[darrin]

Originally Posted by Cook&Dunning

When it comes to adding relays - be careful with the H5's - the headlight assemblies are plastic, not metal like H4's and H1's. Lots of melted H5's out there - I know, I have used bought H5 buckets here on pelican that were deformed from heat, and un-useable. (be careful buying used H5 assemblies)

Seems to me that this would only occur if higher wattage (significantly hotter) bulbs were added along with relays. Unless something else is not right, simply adding relays shouldn't cause a marked increase in heat/light.

[Barrpete]

I'd recommend adding headlight relays regardless of what upgrade you decide to go with. The factory setup has all of the headlight current running through the turn signal/high beam switch. With relays power can be sent directly to the headlights which will also make them somewhat brighter.

[rothaus]

Originally Posted by Barrpete

I'd recommend adding headlight relays regardless of what upgrade you decide to go with. The factory setup has all of the headlight current running through the turn signal/high beam switch. With relays power can be sent directly to the headlights which will also make them somewhat brighter.

Agree, a set is only $26 and takes about 15 minutes to install.

Cheers
Engelbert

[dicklague]

I would definitely us LED H4 bulbs. That is what I have in my 1973 and I love them.

I am not into big trick reflectors and $1000 set ups. Not needed in my mind. Leds last a long time, run cool, draw like 20 Watts and are very bright.

Shop around and get good ones. Should cost less than $100.

[NikosF]

I've got John Audette's with the Trucklite LEDs - works great. On a par with the bi-xenons on my 997

[darrin]

Originally Posted by dicklague

I would definitely us LED H4 bulbs. That is what I have in my 1973 and I love them.

I am not into big trick reflectors and $1000 set ups. Not needed in my mind. Leds last a long time, run cool, draw like 20 Watts and are very bright.

Shop around and get good ones. Should cost less than $100.

As a point of clarification for the OP, one would need buy h4 light assemblies to use H4 led bulbs -- As a counterpoint, I've heard that many LED h4 bulbs have issues with cut-off accuracy due to the differences between incandescent (halogen) and led light generation/dispersion.

I find my 911's halogen H4 headlights (with 80 watt bulbs) to be on par with (or better than) the hid headlights in my '04 touarg --

[Cook&Dunning]

Again - an option for the OP - just add led bulbs to your H5 assemblies. Perhaps a good time to clean the insides. No relays, not messing around. Much better look and performance than the stock POS yellow look. Easy Peasy. Down the road, look at the spendy options if you want.

[Mdkrp1]

Originally Posted by hoss4659

If you insure the car as a "collector car" in Arizona the insurer notifies the Motor Vehicle Dept and you can be exempt from smog inspections. Do not know what happens if you try for this exemption after first registering the car and later getting the insurance. I got the insurance first, before registration and there was no problem.

Thanks for this tip Hoss!
Indeed, I have collector car insurance and was able to register the car without having to pass emissions. Guess I will just store the cat/stock muffler for now. Just awaiting Steve Wong's 91 performance chip to drop into the DME and then have some fun.

[Mdkrp1]

Originally Posted by Cook&Dunning

Again - an option for the OP - just add led bulbs to your H5 assemblies. Perhaps a good time to clean the insides. No relays, not messing around. Much better look and performance than the stock POS yellow look. Easy Peasy. Down the road, look at the spendy options if you want.

This makes the most sense for now; I will put in a headlight relay as recommended by others. I do like CarMagic's dash LEDs as well.
If I do add the LED bulbs, are they typically plug and play?