Has anyone added the new led rear tail-lights to 996?

[brapp]

Just wondering how hard it would be to swap out the old rear tail lights and install new leds for the do it yourselfer? All literature says must use professional installer...Thanks.

[wyovino]

There are two types of aftermarket led tails currently on the market. The ones from Taiwan that are sold by many vendors on ebay and amazon, and the more costly ones from Europe that resemble 997 lights. The Asian ones may need modification (adding resistors) depending on the model year of your car. Even then, people have said that there is one connection that shouldn't be used or you'll blow a fuse, but unfortunately they come with no instructions. The European lights, made by Dectane, are truly plug and play, and are said to be better made. I believe that the Dectanes are about $500 vs $350 for the others.

There are several active threads about this issue on 6speedonline.

Edited April 23, 2012 by wyovino

[white99c2]

Buy the ones made by Spyder on eBay, they are a perfect fit and finish. Plug and play, no resistors, it took me 20 minutes to install both and they make the rear of the car look so much more modern. I paid $275 on eBay and I had them in 2 days, here is his email.

evosport11@gmail.com

[wyovino]

@brapp - What year is your car? With the Ebay lights, MK2 cars require resistors to avoid error codes and problems with ABS, Cruise Control, and more. If your car is MK1 ( earlier than 2002), then you won't need resistors, but you still have to make sure not to connect the extra wire.

@White99c2 - I've never seen them that low. Is that a special deal outside of Ebay? From the photos that I've seen, I like both the Asian and European lights, but people who have had both tell me that the European ones are much nicer and better made.

Edited April 24, 2012 by wyovino

[white99c2]

I wrote to the seller and asked if he would sell me the Spyder Brand lights he had listed. He replied with $275 and free shipping. My car is a '99 and they were true plug and play. As I wrote above they make the back of the car look brand new. I sold the stock lights on eBay for $140.

Write to the guy and ask if he'll give you the same deal he gave me, my bet he'll say yes. I had them delivered by FedEx 2 days later.

Ebay Store: evolutionautopartsusa

evosport11@gmail.com

Here is my car with the new tail lights, I took it with my iPhone, not the best image:

Edited April 24, 2012 by white99c2

[brapp]

Thanks a lot guys, that is some awesome information i will look tonight. My car is a 2002 Cabriolet..but being a Cab shouldn't matter. That seams weird that earlier cars than 02 need no resistors...

Love the pic white99c2...

[balefire]

On my dectane LED 997 tail light for my 996 mk2 car, the install took 5 min total. One 10mm bolt. One connector each side. Truly plug and play. No CELs despite multiple LED lights throughout. Unfortunately, the cost is prohibitive. Carlightpro is the official distributor of dectane in the US and they charge $850. I saved $250 by getting mine from Pitlane which is an overseas european company which exported the lights to me over a 1 month process. Still, thats a lot more than the Asian older style LED lights, but to me the quality and look was worth it.

[Porsche Pilot]

I too ave the EBay LEDs and they truly were plug and play in my 2000 996 with no hyper flashing. The only wire to not plug in is the long skinny one or you will blow the fuse.

[brapp]

Help??? I purchased the Spyder leds and am trying to put them on. Either i am a spaze or these are not plug and play. i watched their video and my color connected lights are different and seem to be rearranged and i do not want to blow a fuse if i can help it.

I have a 2002 996 Cabriolet and my lenses only have 2 actual led plugs sockets that came with it and seem to only fit the white/clear socket and black socket. my orange i would leave with orange bulb(i guess) and then my other white/clear came off the car with no bulb in it and a little bulb on the end which i think i should plug into the little led connector or just leave off...not sure.

Am i doing this correctly.. any one have this much trouble or have a similar experience???Any help would be greatly appreciated....Thank you in advance!!!!!!!

[brapp]

i was pretty sure that the connectors were supposed to go one way because that is how the bulbs fit, i just wanted to be sure given there were no instructions. i figured it out...

[slaskowski]

brapp - Any buyers remorse? I am thinking of doing the same for my Black 2004 Cabriolet

Thanks - Steve

[brapp]

no, not yet. I was a little concerned in the begining being that they were the asian kind of led and the connections are a little funky but they make the car look awesome above the old style. I too have a black cabriolet but mine is 2002 and either set would make the car look great.

I was going to get the dectane lights which i thought are a little better looking but i had already purchased the Spyder ones and for me spending another $270.00 and waiting a month before i could get them i just figured i would keep the ones that i got.

Purchased them from Amazon so any problems and i'll send right back...

[Eddmac]

Hi brapp,

Did you get your lights fitted and working?

Any chance of getting pictures up as I would like to see how this looks!

[brapp]

it basically looks the same as one of the previous posts to this thread. i think they look awesome on my black car and except for a little hicup in the begining( no instructions) they were perfect fit with no problems of any kind.

[VolkerS]

I bought my Spyder rear LED lights from Amazon for $299.

I also blew a 7.5A fuse on connecting the small side marker lights.

When I first installed them I left them unconnected, and everything seemed to work fine.( following the hint of several forums members )

After a few days I couldn't leave well enough alone, and tried to see what happened - hyperflash plus blown fuse.

Tonight I worked out what was wrong: if you look very carefully you will see this small connector is color coded - there is a white mark on the side for the white wire and a red one for the corresponding red cable on the harness.The plug can connect either way so you will have a 50% chance of inserting it the wrong way!

After connecting it correctly ( and a new fuse ;-) everything now works perfectly - all wires plugged in and no hyperflashing.

The Spyder lights already have a built in resistor in the housing.

A four line instruction manual would have saved a lot of trouble!

I really love the new look - and they quality is as good as OEM. :thumbup:

[1dmurrray]

So is it posible to identify the correct way to insert the small connector without blowing the fuse, or is it just a matter of luck on each side? I just ordered a euro smoke set that should look great on my '01 C4.

Edited November 22, 2012 by 1dmurrray

[Makulu]

FWIW I had the Spyder LED's, got em from Amazon (great return policy) they were not plug n play, they reused my factory harness, and they needed a resistor. They did fit well. I kept gettng the readed ABS & PSM light however. I resturned em to Amazon and ordered the Dectane 997 style lights from Evolution Motorsports, had em in less than a week. Not only do the Dectanes fit great, they have their own wiring harness with a resistor, they are truly plug n play. They are more expensive than the Spyders, but I did not have to reuse my factory harness or buy another one, and I did not have to install my own resistor.

[911 Jack]

Does anyone have the DEPO/Dectane style of lights installed? I have only seen a few, but they look awesome... They really bring the rear end up to date... I'd love to see some pics as I am in the market for an upgrade.

[zee]

I have them installed. Look amazing. Check link below:

http://www.6speedonline.com/forums/996/271507-pics-dectane-997-styled-led-tail-lights-installed-my-mk2-996-a.html

[zee]

The following are the lighting upgrades for my black 996 that I have done. I will post pictures later.

1-LED Headlights (Chrome/Clear)

2-6000K Slim Canbus HID Kit for Low Beam

3-6000K Slim Canbus HID Kit for High Beam

4-6000K Slim Canbus HID Kit for Fog Light

5-LED Trunk 3rd Brake Light (Smoked)

6-LED Wing 3rd Brake Light (Smoked)

7-LED Dectane Taillights (Red/Clear)

8-Crystal Clear Side Markers (Clear like the 997s)

9-LED Bulbs for the Side Markers (Amber when on and Clear/White when off)

10-LED License Plate Lights

Here are some useful links:

http://www.6speedonl...-installed.html

http://www.6speedonl...de-markers.html

Edited November 27, 2012 by zee

[brapp]

i just ordered the led side marker bulbs and led drls(Phillips 8) but am concerned about hooking them up. Someone said that there are instructions that come in the box to connect up to the battery and that it is easy, was it easy for you?

I too have a black 996 cab and love it and find myself adding more and more mods to it...its adicting..would love to see your pics of all your lighting upgrades..

[1dmurrray]

I just completed installation of the made in Taiwan smoke lenses on my MY01 C4. Details and more pictures are posted in the DIY 996 C2 Tail Light Tutorial Support Topic.

[brapp]

They came out great looking...

[1dmurrray]

I added arctic silver painted bumperettes from bumperplugs.com to complete the rear end remodel. Love the color on this car; it's filthy and still looks great.

[thewelshone]

Hi I thought I would reply to this post, I bought and installed a set of Dectane LED rears for my 996 911 yesterday evening. Install was incredibly straight forward, one bolt removes the light and you simply insert and slide into place the replacement unit.

Both were installed within in 15 minutes including testing time. Please see below the pictures of my 996 before and after, the lights really freshen up the appearance of the rear of the car.

Only one issue I have and that is that only one fog light illuminates on the right hand side rear light. Im not sure if this is normal and expected or if the left light is faulty. Ill up date this post when I get some feedback from Dectane.

Hope the images are useful.

Edited January 11, 2013 by thewelshone