Caveman

Hi Everyone,

No affiliation, etc. A Hong Kong company is offering a copy of the TechArt fog light/air duct with clear indicator lights for £129.00 That's dead cheap! They are using what looks to be the correct Hella side light and have posted a picture that shows the sidelight bulb correctly placed in the fog light. This was missing when they last posted. These could be a good bargain?

To be honest for the UK users, £129 is not much more than you would pay for the two Hella light units alone (ask me how I know...).

Cheers,

David

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Porsche-993-cl...QQcmdZViewItem

epj993

I think the picture of the light installed in the white 993 is a real TechArt. But, look at the pics of their pieces - there's no bulb in the light.

Caveman

I thought they had posted the last picture to indicate that they had now done that bit of the kit? If I hadn't already bought new Hella units to replace mine I would buy this just to get them plus the other bits...

TheOtherEric

If you look at the parts pics, they did NOT add the sidelight bulb to the fog lights. They just stole a pic of a car with actual Techart fogs/ducts. So you'll lose your positioning lights with this setup.

Second, they're not using original Hella fog lights (from the euro Golf MkIII), but instead Chinese-made substitutes. Probably by Depot. I've owned both, and the Chinese aren't bad, but the glass is thicker (so it's not as flush) and the overall shape doesn't match up to the brake ducts as well.

Third, I've heard that this guy's setup requires a bit of work, and just don't fit up that great. But OTOH, it sure is cheap!

p.s. David- you can get these Chinese-made fog lights separately on ebay for about US$100 for the pair. They're equivalent to the Euro VW Golf MkIII fogs.

mbpa

I bought a set. Couldn't resist the price for the look I wanted. They arrived last night. Look solid, but I haven't fitted them yet. I'll report back in a few days.

Caveman

Let's see what Michael comes up with. I can provide photos of the originals if you want to compare.

Cheers,

David

Surj-993C2S

I have 2 sets of MA Shaw Ducts with 35w positioning lights if anyone wants to make me an offer - both sets are located in England...

mbpa

Btw, I bought mine for $199+$38 which is about 130 pounds total (incl shipping). You should check out the seller's US listing. Even if you don't win the bid, he'll give you a second chance offer at your offer price, so don't go above the minimum. He relists weekly.

It comes bundled with white Euro signals. I figure I'll be able to sell those for about $60+.

Lets just hope they fit...

mbpa

And the verdict is ... complete crap. I am so that I wasted $240 on this *&%$. Here are the details:

- Out of the box, the two pieces feel reasonable solid.

- Fitting the flog light assembly onto the air duct, I notice that they are not even close to a match. It's clear that someone tried to carve a piece out of the air duct for the fog light assembly to fit into, but it not enough. This is a problem because the air duct is keeping the fog light assembly in place, and vice versa. I use my dremmel to finish what they'd started. So far, not too bad.

- Next I put the air duct into the bumper and notice that it's about 1/4 - 1/2 inch too thinck. Two options: 1) cut out the back of the bumper to make room for the air duct or 2) cut out the back of the air duct. I know better than doing 1), so I try 2. The piece is hollow fiberglass. I finally cleared enough for it to fit (in principle) into the bumper. The tab at the end still need to be made narrower. Also, the back needs to be filled in a bit again to hold the fog light stead. But I gave up...

I think that with some work (like filling in the back of the air dunct - note everthing I cut down is on the back side and is not seen from the front) and some more sanding all around, I could get this thing to fit. Don't know if I'll find the time and patience to try again though. I might just write this one off and buy better quality instead.

If anyone wants to give it a try, I'd be happy to get rid of them for, say, $75.

donsacto

Michael:

I purchased the same set and got mine to work. It requires a lot of modification . You and Dremel will be best friends if you want to get it to work. Basically, you'll need to sand down the ducts. No need to cut the bumper.

Caveman

Hi Everyone,

Sorry to hear that these are not very good. TechArt modify the fog light with an L-shaped bracket and a tab on the other side of the light that both holds the sidelight bulb and locates the light into the duct. I've attached a few pictures - not very pretty I'm afraid but it might help you with fixings. I can provide more pictures if you need them.

Cheers,

David

LuftKopf

mpba. re: pm.

have a great trip and speak to you when you're back.

Wreck Me Otter

I installed a set of Techart ducts/lights and it to was a PITA that required some cutting of the backside of the bumper and some creative shaving of the parts to get it even close to lining up. Very disappointing for such expensive parts. Plus the brake duct only blows air into the wheel wel...uselessl. You have to make your own adapter to run the air to the rotor itself...

TheOtherEric

Michael,
Take heart that your experience isn't too different from installing a genuine Techart kit in a U.S. car. They fit euro cars well, but not U.S. You have to grind down a lot of material off the back (Dremel router bit!), and also cut a little strip inside your bumper cover (for the brake hose) to get the Techart to fit. Use white shoe polish or paint to help identify areas of interference. However, the genuine Hella light mates up perfectly with the Techart duct. Your mating problem is likely caused by the chinese light, which I know doesn't mate up as well since the glass is too thick and the outline is slightly misshapen.

donsacto

Michael:

If you want photos of my sanded out duct, I can take some pics so u can get an idea what to sand down.