DIY: How To: Fog Light Modification

[SMTRDSPORT]

Alrighty... I didn't have a EDIT option on the original post. so I thought I'd just repost the entire thread.. If a moderator finds this, feel free to move this to the first post to this thread.. Hopefully the pictures will pop up this time.. If not.. here's a direct link to them all.

smtrdsport/FOG LIGHT MOD - Photobucket - Video and Image Hosting


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How-To: 2005-06 Fog Light Modification

Read all of these install instructions prior to attempting this fog light modification. I cannot be held responsible for any damages or personal harm resulting from this modification…Hopefully this small article will help you as well as others feel more confident about tackling this relatively simple modification... This is only intended as a guide for others, so please treat it as such. I'll be adding more “How-To” article later on in the near future as I make modifications to my truck. My intensions are to create articles that guide one through the entire project turning every nut and bolt, etc... Enjoy the article! COMING SOON: FABTECH'S 6" SUSPENSION LIFT.

Detailed step by step instructions for this How-To: 2005-06 Fog Light Modification coming soon... I'm working on all the steps, arranging all the pictures in order, etc... at the moment... I should have this thread 100% complete by this evening. Thanks for your patience in the mean time!


Well my fog light mod is complete and here is the final picture result... I've done a step by step photo of this process from every nut and bolt, to wire and tap so a extremely detailed write up will be posted soon... I base my write ups towards someone thats completely retarded (no offense intended) to be able to complete the task. If your 5 year old child who's never seen a car before can't follow my write up instructions, then I haven't written them good enough... Anyhow, I’m gonna break this mod down into three separate ways to do this. The first one is the way I personally completed this mod which is definitely the most time consuming of the three, the following two show easier methods of completing this modification. The second way is basically the exact same as the first, though a top view of doing things. Finally the third way is another option towards completing this mod, however I’ve heard that in some cases if the fog light button is left on, your fog lights will sometime have a tendency to flicker on/off after 4-6 hours of sitting… strange I know… Personally, Option #2 is the best/easiest way to complete this modification, however Option #1 (the way I personally did mine) is the cleanest of them all.

SO LETS GET STARTED, OPTION #1: (Clicking on each image will enlarge them for more detail)


Parts/Tools that you will need:
- Ratchet
- 10mm Socket
- 12mm Socket
- Optional: Long Extension
- Flat Head Screwdriver
- Pliers
- Wire Strippers
- (1) Male Butt Connector
- (1) Female Splice Connector
- Optional: Extra Wire (I didn’t use any personally)


STEP #1

Remove battery… To do this, you’ll need to remove the single 10mm nut that’s closest to the front of the truck. The two battery terminals (both positive (+) wire and ground wire (-) require a 10mm socket as well to remove. WARNING: DO NOT TOUCH THE POSITIVE (+) AND NEGATIVE (-) CABLES TOGETHER…THEY WILL SHOCK YOU BELIEVE IT OR NOT). Once you’ve removed the bracket nut, and have the the positive and negative battery cables moved a side, remove the battery bracket and pull the battery out. You honestly don’t need to remove the battery though it will made the job easier when it comes to reaching certain bolts, moving around the fuse block, etc..





STEP #2

Remove the fuse panel cover so you can see all your individual fuses. There is a clip on the firewall (right) side of the black cover that you’ll need to pry back to get the cover off.



STEP #3

Remove the (3) 10mm nuts that hold the actual fuse panel in place.



STEP #4

Unplug the three plugs at the top of the box… there are (2) plugs that are about a inch long or so, and a smaller 6 pin pug that’s roughly a half inch wide… Note where this plug is. There is a SOLID LIGHT GREEN wire on this plug that we’ll be concentrating later on..



STEP #5

Once the three plugs are removed, you’ll want to release a piece on the top of the box that the those three plugs come through… to do this, there are two tabs, one on each side that you’ll have to pull outward… once you have both tabs pulled outward you’ll be able to slide that section of the box upward to move it out of the way….



STEP #6

Remove the 12mm nut located on the top left side of the box. Once this is removed, you should be able to slide the 3 plugs completely out of the way.



STEP #7

Now the harder part…. Be patient with this one because this is by far the hardest, most frustrating part of the entire modification. Now that all plugs are unplugged and moved away from the fuse panel, you’ll have to use your flat head screw driver and wedge the tabs located around the entire fuse panel. While wedging the tabs, you’ll want to wiggle/slide the entire fuse panel upward. The fun part is, the fuse panel won’t slide easily so you’ll have to use your favorite curse words several times until you have the panel released..



STEP #8

Once you have the panel slid up where you can see all the wires underneath (you’ll have to jimmy the entire panel around using a decent amount of force), you’ll want to find a thin SOLID RED WIRE WITH BLACK STRIPE that leads to where the upper right pin location from the actual blue fog light relay. This particular wire is located sorta near the right edge of the panel and runs upward near the location of the 3 larger plugs we removed in step #4.



STEP #9

Once you’ve found the correct RED WIRE WITH BLACK STRIPE you’ll want to find roughly the middle of the wire and cut it in half… You’ll cap off the side of the wire that leads to the top portion of the fuse box and the other half we’ll be using to slice into a light green wire but we’ll come back to that in a second.



STEP #10

Find the SOLID GREEN WIRE… to do this you might want to scroll back up to step #4 and see where the Plug/Pin location is so you’ll have a reference point. Looking under the fuse panel, the SOLID LIGHT GREEN wire will be located pretty much in the middle of the upper portion of the entire panel… By noting Step #4 and where the plug/pins should be, you’ll be able to find this wire fairly easily.



STEP #11

Once you’ve found the LIGHT GREEN WIRE and you have the RED WITH BLACK SPRIPED wire cut in half, you’ll want to follow the green down to roughly its half way spot where you’ll be adding a female butt connector to… Make sure if you’re not using any extra wire, that your red wire will be able to reach where you’re putting your female connector on the green wire.



STEP #12

Now put your Male butt connector on the end of the red/black wire that leads to where the fog light relay will be plugged into.



STEP #13

Once you have both your connectors attached, plug the red wire into the green wire… Now your wiring job is complete and you’ll be ready to start putting everything back in its original condition.

STEP #14

Tuck your all your wires back in and you can start sliding your fuse panel back into its box. Once you have your fuse panel snapped back into its box, I personally plugged in everything (remember to attach the cable to the 12mm nut location from step #6), attached the cables to the battery and started the truck just to make sure everything worked correctly…

STEP #15

Once you’ve double checked that everything is working properly, the fog lights indeed are turning on and off, you can remove your battery again and start reversing these steps until all your bolts are tightened down, your battery is back in its correct location with all the cables attached and plugged in properly… Now you’re done with this mod, your fuse panel still looks untouched and your fog lights can now remain on as long as the ignition hey is turned on and the fog light butting is engaged.

OPTION #1: FINAL PRODUCT/LOOK




NOW TO OPTION #2 (Same as #1, only the from above):


Parts/Tools that you will need:

- Wire Strippers
- (1) Male Butt Connector
- (1) Female Butt Connector
- (1) Female Splice Connector
- Approximately 1 Foot of wire (pretty much any gauge wire will work, doesn’t have to be anything crazy thick… 16-20 gauge is just fine)
- Small drill bit and power/cordless drill

STEPS #1-5

Basically what you’re doing here is removing the light blue fog light relay which is located in the center/right side of the fuse panel under the 1”x1” light gray relay. Once you’ve found the correct light blue relay, remove it and bend over the TOP RIGHT PIN of the replay. Add a female butt connector to the end of your spare wire and plug it into the pin that you’ve bent over from your relay… Plug your relay back into its location. Now, run your wire up towards the top of the fuse panel. You’ll notice you’ll have to go through a thin wall of black plastic to gain access into the location of the three plugs. Drill your small hole so you can continue to run your wire to the 6-pin small white plug that we’re aiming for. Once you’ve got your wire up near the 6-pin plug, locate the SOLID GREEN WIRE which is the top left corner of the actual plug. Use your female splice connector/male butt connector to splice your additional wire into the SOLID GREEN WIRE. Now you’re finished with the fog light modification. Place your fuse panels cover back on and enjoy your new free mod.

OPTION #2: FINAL PRODUCT/LOOK



Original image taken from Indigo Taco05 from Toyota Nation.



NOW TO OPTION #3:


Parts/Tools that you will need:

- Wire Strippers
- (3) Female Butt Connector
- Approximately 6 inches of wire (pretty much any gauge wire will work, doesn’t have to be anything crazy thick… 16-20 gauge is just fine)

STEPS #1-5

Find your light blue fog light relay, remove the relay and bend the top right pin from the relay to the side pointing outward, Attach a female butt connector to the bent relay pin. The other end of this wire will run to one side of a 5A fuse. Once you have your wire running from the relay to one end of the fuse, now run a wire from the other side of the fuse to the red 10A fuse that’s located directly to the right of the relays location.. Now you’ve completed this modification. Something you might note doing this modification this way, I’ve heard that in some cases if the fog light button is left on, your fog lights will sometime have a tendency to flicker on/off after 4-6 hours of sitting. The fog lights evidentially will come on for a minute or so then turn off repeating this process every 4-6 hours…

OPTION #3: FINAL PRODUCT/LOOK

Original image taken from Pb2theMax from Toyota Nation.


Hope you enjoyed the article!! Comments, additions, etc.. are always welcome.

[SMTRDSPORT]

I actually have a bonus freebee mod that I'll be writing up once I configure the easiest way to explain the mod... This mod will for sure seperate the men from the boys..lol

So what is it you ask? Well, I've had quite a few emails wondering if there's any way to make the fog like switch illuminate ONLY when the fog lights are actually on... Yes theres a way, but I have something 100x better... Ever notice the "GREEN LIGHT" that illuminates when your headlights are on located on the lower left hand corner of your gauge bezel? Well once I figure out the best way to explain the modification, I'll have a write up explaining how to make that dash light come on ONLY when the FOG LIGHTS are on, rather than the headlights... This additional mod will be superior for those of you that have completed the "2005-06 Fog Light Modification."

[KorovaB2]

That is an excellent write up, SMTRDSPORT.

Especially the fact that you covered the three different ways to do it.

I added it to my favorites and will more than likely perform the mod when I get a chance.

[stugotz]

Excellent write up....do you or anyone else know if it will work on an '05 Tundra DC w/DRLs?

[je3169]

Great write up hows that write up on the dash light coming.

John

[SMTRDSPORT]

Originally Posted by je3169

Great write up hows that write up on the dash light coming.

John

slowly but surely... been really busy lately so I haven't had too much extra time to tinker with anything as of yet.

[lockportmarc]

What does this mod do? I am sorry I didn't catch it in the write up. Very thorough steps. Keep it up.

[paulhw69]

I've done this mod and it works great! The only thing that you need to be aware of is that... If the foglight switch is left on, the foglights will come on about 5 hours (almost to the minute) after you turn the Truck off. They only stay on for a minute (however I did have on instant where I left the switch on and was out side to see the lights stay on for over 3-4 minutes). I'm pretty sure this has to do with the fuel filter purge (or whatever it is that happens after 5 hours after the truck is turned off).

[viet2100]

I did the 2nd mod... and I must say I'm very satisfied with the results. Thanks for the tutorial, much appreciated. I was so pissed when I found out the fogs could only be on when the heads were on. Hoping to accomplish more mods like this in the future. Thanks again!

[mandzach]

Does this mod work on a 05+ with DRL's?

[viet2100]

Originally Posted by mandzach

Does this mod work on a 05+ with DRL's?

I'm pretty sure it does. The DRLs don't really interfere with the fogs.

[George06TRD]

Someone needs to add what exactly this mod DOES. I can't find what the purpose of this is.

[livin4thesummer1]

tacomas will not allow the fog lights to be on unless the headlamps are. this mod makes it so that when the fog light button is pushed, they will come on reguardless of the headlamps.

[SMTRDSPORT]

Originally Posted by mandzach

Does this mod work on a 05+ with DRL's?

Yes, my truck that I wrote the write up on does indeed have the DRL option and this mod DOES NOT interfer with the running lights.

Originally Posted by George06TRD

Someone needs to add what exactly this mod DOES. I can't find what the purpose of this is.

Meantioned above... With out this mod, the fog lights will only work while the low beam headlights are on. The foglights will automatically turn off during high beam operation. This modification allows the fog lights to be turned on/off using the fog light button as long as the ignition key is turned to the ACC or START UP position. Hense, you have the option of having your foglights ON during low beam use, high beam use, or just foglights only (DRL's will still operate as normal if your truck is equiped with that feature).

[stugotz]

I see you have a Tacoma, will it work on an 05 TUNDRA???