Planet 9

Hello Gatornapper,

You are right when you say that the 2009-2012 have horizontal LEDs. Please oblige me and read the following (excerpt from post #158 above):

From the first moment I saw the front end of a 2006 Cayman, the spars looked as though they were pulled from a Mazda. No disrespect intended to Mazda, but in my opinion the look simply wasn't becoming to a Porsche.

This is not an indictment on Porsche design, after all Porsche design and styling is legendary. What it is, is an example of Porsche's marketing prowess. I firmly belief that Porsche strategically designed the Cayman's front end to look a bit dowdy so as to not upstage their most profitable franchise, the 911. This same anti-cannibalistic philosophy is evident in the Cayman's performance vis-a-vis gearing ratios and power restricting embodiments as well.

Next, consider the 2009+ Caymans (Generation 2). Porsche had to throw the Cayman a bone. After all, the entire 911 line up (20+ derivatives) had dumped the obsolete and outmoded fog-lights in exchange for elegantly integrated LEDs in one form or another (except the Turbo which retained the vestige fog-lights however positioned well distanced from their LEDs).

In my opinion, and apparently all other leading automotive stylists (for Audi, Bugatti, Ferrari, Lamborghini, McLaren, Mercedes and etc.), LEDs are the preferred source for additional front-end illumination/marking. So why would Porsche position a non-functional fog-light adjacent to an awkwardly small 4" LED array? It's a design oxymoron! The old aesthetic in direct conflict and clashing with the state-of the art!

To me the answer is obvious. Porsche had to update the Cayman into the LED league but again couldn't allow it to steal any 997 and 991 thunder. Cayman owners sporting the dated looking 2006-2008 body-color painted spars could "move up" (sic) to a 2009+ Cayman. I appreciate Porsche's elimination of the body-colored spar as a design evolution in the right direction. But LEDs tandem to non-functional fog-lights...shame on Porsche!

So anyways, please forgive my rambling however this is my perspective on the Caymans design evolution and what brought me to my design. A design that I like to think leapfrogs the 2009+ design, landing it right on target with the next generation of Cayman front end aesthetic. Also, the sporty looking and protective benefit of the additional radiator/AC condenser protection shouldn't be overlooked!


More evidence of the trend is exemplified on the new 2012 Boxter with its full evolution to the LED, and the new Cayman may follow suit!

So, I believe many 2009-2012 owners would prefer the cleaner, minimalist design of my LED Spars and the integrated radiator protection. However, I just don't know if there will be enough to offset the costs to develop.

Best regards,

Joe

Joe - read post 158 but so long ago it was forgotten..so thanks for the review.....

All makes sense......thanks!

__________________
gatornapper
'08 Cayman w/Short Shift, Bi-Xenons, Bose, PSM, '09 Lexus GS350 AWD, '09 Harley CVO "Screamin' Eagle" Road Glide, '97 Harley Wide Glide, highly customized by moi; '71 Triumph Trophy 500 T100C, '72 Triumph Bonneville T120V, '73 Triumph Trident T150V

Ah! I feel silly. My brain was locked into the headlight washers and not the windshield washers. Awesome! Does anyone have pictures & a description of where to find those wires under the frunk?

Hello GatorPhD,

After removing the battery access panel look for the windshield washer nozzles. The wires you are looking for go directly to the nozzles.

You'll need to establish the hot (+) from the ground (-) because unlike incandescent bulbs, LEDs are polarity specific. A simple 12-volt test light will do the job if you don't have a meter.

Best regards,

Joe

[QUOTE=josephsdesimone;613123]Hello GatorPhD,


You'll need to establish the hot (+) from the ground (-) because unlike incandescent bulbs, LEDs are polarity specific.



Can you blow the LEDs if you get + and - mixed up?

I will be posting photos of the DRL wiring as soon as I get the spars. However if you can't wait, there are two wires to the washer heaters: black with brown stripe, black with orange stripe. The orange one is +ve, the brown -ve.

[QUOTE=AJK;613174]Hello AJK,

Good question! They won't be damaged, they just won't light until you reverse the connection.

Best regards,

Joe

I pre-ran the wiring today in anticipation of these LED's which I don't have yet haha. I went a little overboard though. I took off the bumper and ran wiring from the left side to the right side where I merged the wires. The remaining single (+ and -) wires were run through the gasket on the front wall of the front tub into the trunk and along the inside of the right side of the tub. I then ran them through the rear tub wall gasket into the battery tray area and tapped them into the right side windshield washer squirter with an inline fuse on the positive wire just for some extra protection.

Rsg: I admire your excess... Since I have also pre-wired my DRLs, I award you the Oscar for going totally over the top! Since the heater circuit is already fused, another fuse seems a little unnecessary, and I am able to deliver the power wires to the spars without removing the bumper. And they sit nicely under the plastic that surrounds the frunk and don't run through it. I'm interested to see photos of your layout! Just proves there are many ways to skin the proverbial cat.

Thanks Joe, I have registered, pls keep me posted if this is a go... Thanks again for the reply.

I am so excited!!

I changed my 07 tail lights to the 09+ LED ones.
I changed all my interior lights to LEDs
I changed my oem halogens to HID

Just need these LED spars and I will consider my car a gen 3 CS

Looking forward to getting these...
I was an early Feb order, forgot to write down my number...any word on when I should expect them?

I will definitely post pictures of how I did it when I get the spars ready for installation. The only reason I chose an inline fuse is because the wire was already there from my previous Philips LED drl installation so I just cut it and used it for my pre-wire on this project. I spent 1.5 hours doing it, but it was therapeutic to be able to take the car cover off and do some work on her while she is still in storage.

I have also cut the connectors off the city lights to attach to the wires I ran for the led spars so that if I ever need to take the bumper off I can disconnect the spars from the connector so I am not stuck in a hard wired situation having to cut or remove the wires should the situation arise.

rsg: can you confirm my observation in post 366 above, that the polarity of the heater wires is black/orange (+), black/brown (-)?

Phil

Here is mine. I love them!

Attached Thumbnails

 

Looks great!! How bright are they during the day?

Dropped my car off at Green Motorsport for the install. I know it's a simple DIY'er but I don't have any time this week to do it and I really did not want to wait another week to install them. Anyway here are some pics. They told me they finished in 15 minutes and very simple to do

__________________
Richard

^^ now that IS bright! congrats

Congrats gentlemen. I'm thrilled to see the pictures. Although, I am a bit sad that I am no longer the only guards red CS rocking these puppies! Keep the pics coming all!

__________________
2006 Guards Red Cayman S / TPC Stage 2 Turbo / TPC and Accumoto Track Packs / Mantis Deep Sump / Mantis Underdrive Pulley / X51 LWFW and Clutch / 19" Champion RS-98 Rims / LED Spars w/ Radiator Guards / Boothe Chrome Lug Bolts / B&M Short Shifter / HIP Engine Cover / PCM 2.1 / Chrono / Sport Seats /

Saw mine were delivered when I was leaving the house this morning.
Come tonight I'll add another guards red Cayman to the list