Help installing replacement foglight wiring!

[AKLGT]

I'm trying to replace my foglights with new ones and i don't know how to do the wiring. i'm not changing the lights, but the actually casing and wiring. i'd like to use as much as the same wiring from the oem units, but want to have a separate switch to turn them on and off . anyone do this already or have an idea how to wire it up?thanks guys!

[joatmon]

So, you're not replacing the light bulbs, but the whole fog light assembly (bulb, housing, lens, all that stuff), right?The fog lights each have two wires running to them, a red (+12V) and a white wire with a black stripe (ground).I am not sure why you would want to put in a new switch instead of continuing to use the one on the turn signal lever. How to wire it depends on how you want it to behave.-Foglights at any time ignoring headlight or ignition status.-Foglights ignoring headlight satus only when car is running.-foglights only when headlights are on low beam (the way it is now)-Foglights only when headlights OR high beams are on.One nice thing about the factory set up is that the fogs are tied in to the headlights, so if you use auto headlights, the fogs go off when you turn off the car, and if you use the headlight switch, then you get the warning chime to remind you to not leave the lights on and run the battery down.If you want to be able to turn the foglamps on anytime anywhere, probably the easiest mod is find the DRL module, locate the wire that is Green with an Orange stripe, cut it, and ground the side that goes away from the DRL module (and cover up the end that goes to the DRL module so it doesn't short out). This would still use the stock fog light switch. You could also wire this grounding of the wire through a switch so that foglights would normally behave as stock, but have a switch to ground the wire to provide a "foglight only on low beam" override.So, how do you want it to work?Also, what alternative fog lamps are you going to put in, and why do you want to do this? OR, are you going to be installing an additional set of foglamps in addition to the stock foglamps?(That's how, what and why. guess who, where, and when don't apply )

[AKLGT]

thanks, joatman. no, i'm replacing the oem foglight assemblies completely. a couple months ago a rock blew out my drivers foglight and toasted it. the replacement was $150! so i decided, i'd look for alternate routes. i settled on replacement units instead but want to use the existing wiring. silver so kindly sent me the foglight wiring schematics, but i need to know where the headlight switch is to reroute the power and ground.... or something like that. my dad is taking care of that part. i want the fogs to come on independant of the headlights but only when the car is on or the acc is on.

[joatmon]

The headlight switch is built into the turn signal lever, the wires to it would be in the steering column somewhere, I haven't dug into that to see how accessible they are. You can always do it in stages,replace the foglamp aseemblies and leave the internal wiring intact, just to make sure that it will all work and be happy like stock, and then pursue the foglamps anytime separately.If it was me, I would cut into the existing wiring between the DRL module and the foglamp switch, because I can easily find that. The problem is that the way you want it to work, you need to replace the signal that normally comes out of the DRL module with a ground that is only there when the ignition is on. Unfortunately, usually turning the ignition on switches 12V to places instead of ground, and I haven't found a signal that becomes ground only when the ignition is on.You could get another relay, and wire it up like in this pic. sorry my artowrk is so bad. If you have the drawing from the service manual, you should be able to see where this ties in. This shows a new relay, controlled by an ignition or accessory voltage picked up from somewhere. The new relay replaces the signal coming from the DRL module. When the key is on, the relay would close and put a ground to the fog lamp switch, which would then let the existing switch turn the foglamps on and off. You could also use wiring connectors that would make it easy to restore it to stock if you get rid of the car sometime.There are probably a lot of other ways to do this, I don't claim that this is the only or the best way. For example, another way would be to just ground the input to the fog lamp switch, and then rewire the underhood fuse block so that the FR FOG fuse was powered by ACC or IGN voltage instead of unswitched battery. That would keep you from needing a new relay. I'm not sure how hard it would be to rewire the underhood fuse block though.But remember, whatever you do, we need pics of the mods, the lights, and your dad

Attached files

[AKLGT]

thanks again! i think what we'll have to do is get the fogs working first. with all that wiring trouble, it'll be easier just to rewire it then try and use the existing wiring.

[AKLGT]

well, i got the fogs replaced, but still working out a solution for the wiring issue. they look pretty cool, except they are smaller then the oem. it leaves a bit of space around the new assemblies. good thing, it my cai filter won't jam up against the rear of the foglight and it allows more cold air (and junk) to get to it. i'm going to put some mesh behind it to keep the rocks and bugs out. thot about doing something in front of the fogs, but that may take more work than needed. i'll post pics as soon as i get them up...

[AKLGT]

ok, here are some pics of the new fogs: