981 Boxster Headlight replacement advise please

[wingate]

Hi Guys and Gals,

I purchased a 2012 981 'S' back in July and have been extremely pleased with it. Unfortunately one of the headlamps is suffering with the 'dreaded' delamination issue. I have argued my case with Porsche but as expected they are not in the slightest bit interested.

I have resorted to trying to find a 'good' secondhand replacement. I have been looking for months and have just found one, unfortunately it has come off a 2015 Cayman and although it looks identical the part number is different to mine. I have spoken to 2 dealerships and neither could find the code which is rather strange? Do you think it would be a huge gamble, is there any real differences between a Boxster or Cayman lens?

The code for my Boxster 'S' is 981.631.224.08

The code for the Cayman is 981. 631.134.14

Both vehicles are Xenon's.

Any help/advice would be greatly appreciated.

Thank you. Kevin.

[andygo]

Have you tried wet sanding the headlight lens and applying spray lacquer afterwards.

Lots of kits online and videos.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UG54xt56uZo

Google: restore porsche 981 headlamp

https://www.3m.co.uk/3M/en_GB/p/d/b40069623/

You have very little to lose IMHO! Good luck.

[wingate]

Hi Andy,

Thanks for the reply. I have looked at several videos but to be honest I wouldn't be that confident! I'd rather just live with the cracking around the edge of the lens, I could end up buggering it entirely and have to fork out £1100 which I haven't got at the moment.

Thanks again for taking the time to reply though.

Regards,

Kevin.

[esotericar]

It's surely exactly the same headlight units on Boxster and Cayman and with the same part numbers.

There are obviously different versions of the headlights - standard incandescent, xenon, PDLS etc. But they will be the same whether Boxster or Cayman. You just need to get the right spec unit for your car.

[wingate]

The headlamp in question is a 'Xenon' the same as mine. My only concern is if it was also a PDLS version. Mine isn't and I'm not sure how that would work out? Unfortunately the seller is selling on behalf of an uncle who no longer owns the car doh.

[esotericar]

If your car isn't PDLS, don't buy a PDLS unit!

[wingate]

Fair comment, should have seen that coming haha.

[andygo]

wingate said:

Hi Andy,

Thanks for the reply. I have looked at several videos but to be honest I wouldn't be that confident! I'd rather just live with the cracking around the edge of the lens, I could end up buggering it entirely and have to fork out £1100 which I haven't got at the moment.

Thanks again for taking the time to reply though.

Regards,

Kevin.

I appreciate its a bit of a leap of faith to take sandpaper to a healight, but it's actually ok and easy to do. If it all goes downhill, just buy the headlamp unit as you were going to do.

I did the restoration on a Golf GTI hedlamp a few years ago a few years ago and its literally a poiece of cake! Try it on just a little bit first.

[Orangecurry]

...sorry to drop in as I don't have a 981... but are these headlamps 'plastic'? If so can you post up a photo of your headlight?

I have polished out the yellowing/scratches on various different car 'plastic' headlights using a DAS polisher.

As you are a Wessussexian I would be happy to have a go on your P&J. What could possibly go wrong?

[Fnumber1user]

There are companies that will breathe life back in to your headlights. Might be worth a try, and certainly is IMHO rather than forking out £1100...

[ATM]

Fnumber1user said:

There are companies that will breathe life back in to your headlights. Might be worth a try, and certainly is IMHO rather than forking out £1100...

This

Absolutely no need to buy a replacement headlight just because the lense needs some fettling.

Edited by ATM on Thursday 10th November 22:40

[julian987R]

Fnumber1user said:

There are companies that will breathe life back in to your headlights. Might be worth a try, and certainly is IMHO rather than forking out £1100...

Apply Arm and Hammer toothpaste with a toothbrush to the headlight, and agitate. Leave it to solidify overnight. Wash away, good a new.

[wingate]

Thanks for all the comments chaps!

Not sure it would be possible to polish out cracks that are 'inside' the plastic opposed to 'outside' the lens. Attached a picture of the offending headlight, please note that the cracks you can see 'are not' on the surface, the surface is smooth to the touch.

[ATM]

wingate said:

Thanks for all the comments chaps!

Not sure it would be possible to polish out cracks that are 'inside' the plastic opposed to 'outside' the lens. Attached a picture of the offending headlight, please note that the cracks you can see 'are not' on the surface, the surface is smooth to the touch.

Bizarre

If that is smooth to touch then I am confused. Looks like some form of failure at the join where the lense or cover attaches to the rest of the light. Lots of people remove these covers using heat to soften the bond and then applying pressure. Once removed you could try to affect a repair to the inside edge. I would just leave it as is but my OCD is a lot more palatable with stuff like this than other Porsche owners.

[wingate]

Correct the cracking is inside the lens itself and NOT on the outside. It is completely smooth on the surface, furthermore there is no evidence that the lens has been hit by a foreign object as the surrounding bodywork is perfect. I may just have to live with it and hope it doesn't get any worse, unfortunately my OCD may get the better of me before then.

For a so called premium brand Porsche's attitude to what clearly is a manufacturing issue is appalling quite honestly. Never had this problem with my previous 987 owned for six years.

[ATM]

Maybe if the glue or bonding has been breached by a tiny bit of moisture then this is freezing and causing havoc to the seal itself. It could just be the sealant we see there ripping or breaking down or coming away. You could go and see a reputable OCD type car detailing outfit who might be willing to split the lens from the light and then affect a repair to it. I can't understand how it can be cracking. Why would the inside of the lens just start cracking all by itself. This makes no sense.

[wingate]

This issue is quite common in the states, if you google it you will find examples on various websites. A few examples of other unfortunate 981 owners below.

[wingate]

According to Porsche, common reasons for this occurring range from changes in temperature to using incorrect cleaning products on the lens. If truth be known they do not have a clue or more likely they DO but will not own up to the fact it is a fault with their manufacturer of the lens.

[Orangecurry]

no.... that's not going to polish out.

And we presume the other side lamp is perfect?

[TTmonkey]

How much is the one you’ve found?