944 Turbo and 944 S2 Dual Pop Up High Performance Headlight Conversion

Introduction: History of Pop Up Headlights

The Porsche 944 Turbo (951) and 944 S2 have been with us since 1985 (951) respectively 1989 (S2) and in the fast paced automotive industry 30 years can be looked upon as a lifetime of product evolution and performance leaving our cars headlights both aesthetically ugly in appearance but most importantly heavily out classed in performance by today’s vehicles headlight standards.

In 1998 we saw the last cars in the world to roll off production lines with the so called ‘pop-up’ headlight design. This was fundamentally taken as a step to meet the ever stricter international safety legislation to help enforce pedestrian safety during frontal collisions. The last cars to be produced with the ‘pop-up’ headlights associated with all Porsche models 924, 944, 944S2, 951/952 and 968 include many automotive legends – Ferrari 355, Lamborghini Diablo, Honda NSX and the Mazda RX-7, to name only a few.

Over the years, the traditional pop-up headlight design became both smaller and performance enhanced. When the BMW 8-Series (850) was introduced with pop-up light units, they addressed the aerodynamical problem using an elongated rectangular light setup which allowed for the headlights to only raise up half the distance of the single ‘round’ type lights of old. The same was true during the development of the Honda NSX and its rival of the time, the Ferrari 348.

The development of the RSR9 high-performance dual headlight kit upgrade

In our view and in the eyes of most Porsche owners and enthusiasts alike, the pop-up headlight design forms part of the character of the Porsche 924, 944, 944S2, 951/952 cars so we set to address all of the above associated problems with pop-up headlights ... This lead to the development of the well known product now produced by RSR 9 – The ‘Deutsch Nine Dual Headlight Conversion’.

Firstly we set about addressing the light unit projection problem and looked at various different lens units finally opting for a twin or dual setup consisting of projector style units. During our rigorous development testing we found that this combination offered double the light projector performance compared to the single Porsche OEM light lens whilst also halving the raised profile height allowing for less wind resistance during use when the lights are in up-right position.

The second area to be addressed was to develop carriers and a case which would fit flush with the original design ‘rear plastic bucket’ and lid covers and also match in the same satin black colour and finish so we started the development of the moulding using FRP (Fibreglass reinforced plastic) including a design which would perfectly complement the original design of the car and it’s period.

Upon completion of the new covers, adjustable light settings, wiring loom and lens mounting brackets, the final task involved re-engineering the OEM light lift bar which connects both headlights to the single lift motor. This proved to be the most challenging part of the development as the ‘lights up’ throw is different to the ‘lights down’ throw but after many calculations and test development bars the finish product was achieved and also incorporates fully adjustable rose-joints for fine tuning of each unit.

Dual High Performance Pop Up Headlight Kit product specifications

The RSR9 kit is shipped completely ready to fit and includes the following parts:

• Both near and offside front light covers finished and painted in satin black ready to fit
• 2 x projector lights (similar as used on the TVR Tuscan and other models)
• 2 x dip & main beam lights
• fixings and screws
• Pre-fabricated brackets for mounting the light units and 4x light rings and adjuster plates
• New headlight lift bar and rods to replace standard bar (the one that connects the 2 lights together)
• wiring loom to connect the 2 additional lights
• Available for both LHD and RHD Porsche models

Production lead time (if not in stock) is approx. 10 working days from payment.