Anyone an expert on 997 headlights?

[S1MMA]

Hello everyone,

I have a LHD 997 GT3 (2007 gen 1) being imported from the middle east to the UK arriving soon, and I wanted to ask if anyone knows:

1) can I adjust my LHD Xenon headlights to pass an IVA test, or do they need to be replaced?
2) I believe they need to be replaced, so if so can I buy a set of complete RHD halogen headlights and just plug them in, or does the car need coding etc? Is the wiring different for halogen?
3) If I can find a set of Xenon headlight lenses only (just the headlight unit, no bulbs/ballasts etc...) will my bulbs and ballasts fit inside them and give the correct beam pattern? Or will I have to modify etc?

Anything else I should know for this? I believe the foglight is changed via Porsche diagnostic, just an option in the menu for it, wiring etc should be pre done I believe.

Thanks

[V8_GWA]

I converted a RHD 'Litronic' 997 C2S to LHD for living in British Forces Germany for a couple of years. I had to buy new headlamps which included the ballasts, but the xenon bulbs themselves were swapped over from one set to the next. I did find it a bit strange that ballasts weren't swapped over, unlike on the Ford I converted at the same time, but that probably explained why the headlamps were 750 quid each retail! The rear fog light needed some extra wiring and a bulb put on to convert it; not sure on the details as the OPC kindly did it for me gratis. I now have a fog light on both sides, which causes no problems with an MOT, but having a single foglight on the 'wrong' side for Germany would have been a drama.

[S1MMA]

V8_GWA said:

I converted a RHD 'Litronic' 997 C2S to LHD for living in British Forces Germany for a couple of years. I had to buy new headlamps which included the ballasts, but the xenon bulbs themselves were swapped over from one set to the next. I did find it a bit strange that ballasts weren't swapped over, unlike on the Ford I converted at the same time, but that probably explained why the headlamps were 750 quid each retail! The rear fog light needed some extra wiring and a bulb put on to convert it; not sure on the details as the OPC kindly did it for me gratis. I now have a fog light on both sides, which causes no problems with an MOT, but having a single foglight on the 'wrong' side for Germany would have been a drama.

Thanks for the comment, can anyone else let me know their thoughts?

[hornbaek]

On my LHD GT3 RS 4.0 I only had to change the rear light clusters as the rear fog light is on the wrong side of the car. The headlights can be adjusted manually to RHD/LHD and a copy of the manual how to do this should suffice. You also have to show that you have a digital read out where you can get mileage instead of kilometers.

[thegoose]

The car shouldn't need anything other than an MOT test if you can get a European Certificate of Conformity for it from Porsche AG (maybe £75) - if you haven't already asked for one I'd suggest doing so ASAP.

If it only has one rear foglight you'll need the other one connecting and the headlamps swapping over to RHD.

[S1MMA]

hornbaek said:

On my LHD GT3 RS 4.0 I only had to change the rear light clusters as the rear fog light is on the wrong side of the car. The headlights can be adjusted manually to RHD/LHD and a copy of the manual how to do this should suffice. You also have to show that you have a digital read out where you can get mileage instead of kilometers.

Hi, did you get your car IVA tested? And it passed with just an adjusted LHD headlights? I've been told both ways, some people say an adjusted light will pass, some say it needs new headlights, I'm not sure who is right!

[S1MMA]

thegoose said:

The car shouldn't need anything other than an MOT test if you can get a European Certificate of Conformity for it from Porsche AG (maybe £75) - if you haven't already asked for one I'd suggest doing so ASAP.

If it only has one rear foglight you'll need the other one connecting and the headlamps swapping over to RHD.

I already tried to get a certificate of conformity from Porsche head office - they said that because the car wasn't destined for an EC market when new, that a certificate of conformity isn't available for my car. So therefor I need the full IVA test etc...

[Magic919]

If you download the M1 vehicle IVA document, you can see the requirements for headlamps. It says you can adjust the headlamp to get the correct alignment. You don't need the kick-up that UK cars tend to have.

Look at page 191 onwards. They need to be E marked as far as I can see though. Are yours?

[S1MMA]

Magic919 said:

If you download the M1 vehicle IVA document, you can see the requirements for headlamps. It says you can adjust the headlamp to get the correct alignment. You don't need the kick-up that UK cars tend to have.

Look at page 191 onwards. They need to be E marked as far as I can see though. Are yours?

Hi, thanks for that - I'm looking through the document now.

I'm not sure if they are E marked, I will check this when the car arrives. Would I just need to change the bulbs if there is no E mark? Would the ballasts need to be E marked also?

[Magic919]

I expect that lamp unit, bulb and ballast need to be E marked.

[hornbaek]

thegoose said:

The car shouldn't need anything other than an MOT test if you can get a European Certificate of Conformity for it from Porsche AG (maybe £75) - if you haven't already asked for one I'd suggest doing so ASAP.

If it only has one rear foglight you'll need the other one connecting and the headlamps swapping over to RHD.

At least on the RS 4.0 the rear light clusters are sealed units so you cannot just activate the other rear fog light - hence the requirement for a new light cluster. And "yes" i did get it IVA approved and it was a bit of a bureaucratic hassle (but not difficult) You very much need the C of Conformity otherwise it is uphill. You also need an official letter from Porsche regarding the changes and that they have been carried out. Again, there is nothing difficult about it but various clerks at the IVA have different requirements and it is a bit down to luck to get someone who is not too difficult. They might also want to inspect the vehicle, which they wanted in my case and which can be difficult if you are not allowed to drive it as it has not been registered. Also the insurance cannot be obtained if not registered so you can either do that on the chassis number (if possible) or you have to purchase a private numberplate and insure it on that. Good luck.

[Steve carter]

hornbaek said:

On my LHD GT3 RS 4.0 I only had to change the rear light clusters as the rear fog light is on the wrong side of the car. The headlights can be adjusted manually to RHD/LHD and a copy of the manual how to do this should suffice. You also have to show that you have a digital read out where you can get mileage instead of kilometers.

Hi I have just importeda gen 2 997 GT3 if you could point me in the right direction for rear fog lamp wiring (I have a new lamp) that would be great thanks steve

[S1MMA]

Just saw this thread pop back up.

To update what happened on my car, I didn't want to risk an IVA fail (hassle etc) so I got hold of some RHD xenons and got Porsche to swap them over, as well as wire up the foglight on the other side. Car passed MOT and then IVA first time no problems.

Just a note on the above post on driving to and from an IVA test and insurance: firstly Admiral will insure an unregistered car on the VIN, but only for a temporary amount of time (month or so) before they require it to be registered. Secondly, you can legally drive to and from an IVA test with no numberplates, which is exactly what I did. This is not widely known outside of the kit car community. I also informed the local police that I was going to do that (white GT3 with no numberplates wouldn't exactly be inconspicuous!) and they accepted my notification and I didn't get pulled over so they must have notified the local patrols.

Been on the road over a year now and just passed it's 2nd MOT, so far so good.