I have a 2000 accord coupe v6 and i just bought an OEM foglight kit on this website http://handaaccessories.com/accext00.html i was just looking over the instructions for the install and noted two things:

1. How do you wire it up so that the fogs can turn on anytime by pressing the fog light switch? (as apposed to being limited to being on only when the low beams are switched on)

2. Does anyone have a pictures of where you cut the bumber? (instructions are not the greastest) but can be found here http://handaaccessories.com/ac...6.pdf

Thanks in advance! -jon-

 

There are 2 different ways to re-wire the fogs... The first way would be so that you can turn the fogs on once the parking lights are on. The second way would allow you to turn the fogs on even with all the lights off.

(Disclaimer: The following info is based on the wiring diagrams from a Haynes manual. Who knows how accurate their diagrams are...)

1. You should see a blue wire going to the switch. Cut this wire a couple inches from the fog light switch. Strip the end of the blue wire that is still connected to the switch, and tap into the red/black wire (which also leads to the switch). Your fogs should now turn on once the parking lights are on.

2. Follow the same procedure as above, but instead of tapping the red/black wire, rewire the blue wire to a power source that is hot only when the ignition is in the "ON" position. Use a circuit tester to find such a source in the driver's side fuse panel. (Connecting to a source that is always hot would allow the fogs to be on at all times, even with the key removed from the ignition. This could obviously allow the fogs to be left on by accident after parking the car and thus drain your battery.)

I recommend the first way...

 

any idea on the elctrical draw from the switch? would the remote wire from the radio be sufcient and safe to operate the second method you mentioned?

Also would you happen to have any pictures of the install? (just the lights themselves)

 

I wouldn't use the remote wire simply because if you turn your radio off for any reason, you wouldn't be able to turn the fogs on. There are multiple fuses that you can use in the driver's side fuse box...

I couldn't tell you exactly, but the electrical draw from the switch is small. And sorry, I don't have any pictures. (I don't have fogs on my car.)

 

i wouldn't use the remote wire because you'll blow it out instantly. its only a tinnnnny bit of current, its nothing at all. you can't turn on more than 2 amps with it, so don't expect to be taping into it.


but you could use a relay, which is what i did for my fogs. i grabbed power off one of the lights in there, i forget which now.

 

alright, i wasnt sure if the wire that philadd was refering to was a hot wire, or simpy a low current wire going to a relay.

but do you think i would be safe have the remote wire turn on a low to "higher" current relay?

 

People have hooked up a variety of things to the remote wire, but I've never considered it a good idea.

 

no. im telling you, your going to blow it out instantly. theres hardly any current going thru it, its just better to grab it off a wire that has a fuse, which your remote wire does not. if you take too much power from it, you'll just burn up the board inside the headunit.

 

I wasn't arguing with you. I've done stereo installs for years, I know the risks and what may happen. Depending on what you hook up to it, it will not "blow instantly", I can assure you. Six amps hooked up to one remote wire? Been there, done that, multiple times. Safe? Yes, because I triple checked the amount of current vs the specs from the deck. Would I do it with any deck? No, not a chance in hell.

 

haha, i wasn't talking to you. i was talking to the OP.

and amps are much different than fog lights

 

alright the remote wire is out, so are there any fused wires that you would sugest tapping into? my electronic skills are good, just my knowlege of my cars isnt.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by sony224422 &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">haha, i wasn't talking to you. i was talking to the OP.

and amps are much different than fog lights</TD></TR></TABLE>

Oops, sorry. The subtitle suggested your repsonse was to me. And yes, you're right... amps are different from fog lights, but current draw is current draw.

skingfreak, I'll take a look at my driver's side fuse box when I get a chance and let you know which fuses will work.

 

np. i just think that fogs will draw wayyy too much for the remote. but i guess you could use it to zap the relay if you get power from somewhere else

 

i guess i should clarify my question and my statement to make sure were on the same page.

<U>My question:</U> Is the foglight switch used to swtich on a relay? or is the switch taking the full curent draw of the foglights?

<U>My previous statement:</U> If i were to use the remote wire (or some fused wire) to switch on a relay, would this be ok?

 

switch lets the current thru it, so yes all the current goes thru it.


you could use the remote wire on a relay as long as you aren't trying to take the full power from it, and are just using it to switch the relay

 

okay cool, i will most likely just hook up a relay than.

i figured the switch would just turn on a relay, but we can all be suprised lol. thanks for the good info

 

relays the safest way anyways, it doesn't grab all the power at once, so your switch won't get a power surge

 

how big of a relay do you think i would need?

 

Whoa, whoa, whoa... slow down here boys. There's some wrong info here.

The switch activates a relay, and it is this relay that supplies power to the fog lights. The switch never sees very much power. You can use virtually any fused wire you feel like.

 

oooo ok. see as i previously said i thought it was odd that the switch would see the whole current load of the fog lights. so thanks for clarifying that. (that the switch doesnt see the whole load)

one question i still have is, what are some appropriate fused wires to "hack" into? that are like the remote wire in the sense that there only on when the car is on?

 

uh.. yeah they do if theres no relay involved. Think about that. how could you complete a circut but not have all the power go thru it?

 

We're not talking about other fog light kits, we're talking about this one. Even if we were, I've never seen a fog light kit that didn't use relays. It's all besides the point, since the fog light kit in question DOES have relays and the switch does NOT see a large amount of current.

 

so any sugestions for wires to tap into to triger the relay? (to hook up to the blue wire coming from the switch)

 

If you look on your driver's side fuse box, you'll see the fuse labels on the panel. There's the ACC relay, ignition coil, and fuel pump that you could use. I don't like the idea of using the ignition coil or fuel pump fuses, because if your fog lights popped the fuse for some reason your car wouldn't run anymore. The ACC relay should turn on once the you turn the key to ACC, but I haven't confirmed it. You should really just go in there with a test light.

The absolute easiest way is still the 1st way, which would be tapping into the red/black wire right there by the switch.

 

i agree, that does seem to be easy and convient, but im forgetfull when it comes to leaving those lights on, (even tho they turn off after a minute). I will look around and try n find a fused wire that will fit my needs. THanks for the help. just received them in the mail, cant wait to put them in