Installed projector foglights
#1
Installed projector foglights
Finally got around to install these Hella projector foglights...I had this idea for long and bought the lights and had them laying around for months... I wanted projector lights and a more OEM look so I used the fog covers and fitted the lights in them, the fit actually looks better than I had originally anticipated (at least from at least 2ft distance)
A little bit different from what we've been seeing.... I realize it's not for everyone, but please be nice with your comments I wired it so that it can be triggered by the corner lights, and there a switch which I installed next the the VSA switch that can turn it off all together.
I'm still trying to figure out if I like it or not esp since it looks smaller than I would like it to appear when fitted onto the car, I was considering painting the silver housing to a graphite color or something close to the body color....suggestions?
A little bit different from what we've been seeing.... I realize it's not for everyone, but please be nice with your comments I wired it so that it can be triggered by the corner lights, and there a switch which I installed next the the VSA switch that can turn it off all together.
I'm still trying to figure out if I like it or not esp since it looks smaller than I would like it to appear when fitted onto the car, I was considering painting the silver housing to a graphite color or something close to the body color....suggestions?
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Supraken... the install looks good and really clean! I was thinking of something like that, too, but opted for the OEMs. How'd you fit them into the covers? My only concern for you is that the covers are made of plastic, and could melt from the extreme heat of the projectors - that was the problem I encountered when I tried to do that to my old Accord with PIAA projectors. Did you "insulate" or wrap them in anything on the back end?
#9
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good work! looks clean! if u dont mind. got a couple questions.. im a car electronics idiot.. good with comptuer but not this..
1) how long did it take you to install it? and should i just seek professional help if i were to buy one?
2) aiming of the fog light.. how did u aim them so they are both uniform height? ... and i had a pair of PIAAs 10 years ago on my integra. and they just will not stay uniform height one would always drop lower than the other one make my fog light look uneven... does anyone or u have that trouble?....with OEM or JDM fog lights.... thanks!
1) how long did it take you to install it? and should i just seek professional help if i were to buy one?
2) aiming of the fog light.. how did u aim them so they are both uniform height? ... and i had a pair of PIAAs 10 years ago on my integra. and they just will not stay uniform height one would always drop lower than the other one make my fog light look uneven... does anyone or u have that trouble?....with OEM or JDM fog lights.... thanks!
#10
Originally Posted by amadeus303
Supraken... the install looks good and really clean! I was thinking of something like that, too, but opted for the OEMs. How'd you fit them into the covers? My only concern for you is that the covers are made of plastic, and could melt from the extreme heat of the projectors - that was the problem I encountered when I tried to do that to my old Accord with PIAA projectors. Did you "insulate" or wrap them in anything on the back end?
Thanks guys!
You are right about the heat, and was something I hadn't thought of until I first tested it after the install.
This install is pretty experimental. At first I was going to secure the foglights onto the bumper and then carve a hold in the fog covers, but it would be really tough to get the placement right and the foglight cover would have a larger hole, yielding gaps around the fog light. Also, the covers are fitted onto the car at an angle, it makes it even harder to fit it. However, it actually works out that way, now the fog lights are pretty much just fitted into the covers, since the covers are fitted onto the car at an angle, the hole carved is also at an angle. The depth of the cover allows it to be carve in such a way so that it can be curved and hold the fogs in place. At the back of the lights are also brackets that keeps them from falling out.
I don't have any insulation on the lights. I've had them on for almost a week and so far, the heat doesn't seem to be a problem. The plastic used on the fog covers seems to be able to hold up to the heat of the foglights (if you notice, a lot of cars have foglights that are directly attached to some plastic cover). Then again, I'll have to wait and see.
#11
Originally Posted by Howard911s
good work! looks clean! if u dont mind. got a couple questions.. im a car electronics idiot.. good with comptuer but not this..
1) how long did it take you to install it? and should i just seek professional help if i were to buy one?
2) aiming of the fog light.. how did u aim them so they are both uniform height? ... and i had a pair of PIAAs 10 years ago on my integra. and they just will not stay uniform height one would always drop lower than the other one make my fog light look uneven... does anyone or u have that trouble?....with OEM or JDM fog lights.... thanks!
1) how long did it take you to install it? and should i just seek professional help if i were to buy one?
2) aiming of the fog light.. how did u aim them so they are both uniform height? ... and i had a pair of PIAAs 10 years ago on my integra. and they just will not stay uniform height one would always drop lower than the other one make my fog light look uneven... does anyone or u have that trouble?....with OEM or JDM fog lights.... thanks!
For me, the wiring took about 2.5 hours total to wire up and give it a cleaner look (I think it could be done a lot quicker), the hardest part for me was finding the source to the corner lights (used for trigger on the relay), I couldn't locate it in the fuse box, I'm guessing it was on the underside, so I just tapped into the wire directly. The other part was mounting the switch so that it doesn't look ghetto. Then it took about 3 hours for slowly carving the fog covers and fitting the lights into them. The housing of the lights are actually oval so the covers had to be carved little by little, and the lights need to come out of the covers at an angle, which makes it even tougher.
Aiming of the foglights.... the foglights came with brackets you can adjust like all the aftermarket ones, the seem to hold pretty tight. However, if you read my post just above, I fitted the foglights directly into the covers (btw, part of the reason is, if I decide to ditch the lights, I can just replace the fog covers), and the fitment allows for some amount of play so the lights can be rotated. The aiming is less than perfect, but it can be done and secured (a quick fix would be hot glue ). Then again, they are mainly for aesthetics, and for me, I use them when it's cloudy but not dark enough to turn on the headlights so others can see me, not really to light up the road.... so the aiming doesn't really matter to me as long as they're within reasonable limits and not blinding others.
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Originally Posted by supraken
For me, the wiring took about 2.5 hours total to wire up and give it a cleaner look (I think it could be done a lot quicker), the hardest part for me was finding the source to the corner lights (used for trigger on the relay), I couldn't locate it in the fuse box, I'm guessing it was on the underside, so I just tapped into the wire directly. The other part was mounting the switch so that it doesn't look ghetto. Then it took about 3 hours for slowly carving the fog covers and fitting the lights into them. The housing of the lights are actually oval so the covers had to be carved little by little, and the lights need to come out of the covers at an angle, which makes it even tougher.
Aiming of the foglights.... the foglights came with brackets you can adjust like all the aftermarket ones, the seem to hold pretty tight. However, if you read my post just above, I fitted the foglights directly into the covers (btw, part of the reason is, if I decide to ditch the lights, I can just replace the fog covers), and the fitment allows for some amount of play so the lights can be rotated. The aiming is less than perfect, but it can be done and secured (a quick fix would be hot glue ). Then again, they are mainly for aesthetics, and for me, I use them when it's cloudy but not dark enough to turn on the headlights so others can see me, not really to light up the road.... so the aiming doesn't really matter to me as long as they're within reasonable limits and not blinding others.
Aiming of the foglights.... the foglights came with brackets you can adjust like all the aftermarket ones, the seem to hold pretty tight. However, if you read my post just above, I fitted the foglights directly into the covers (btw, part of the reason is, if I decide to ditch the lights, I can just replace the fog covers), and the fitment allows for some amount of play so the lights can be rotated. The aiming is less than perfect, but it can be done and secured (a quick fix would be hot glue ). Then again, they are mainly for aesthetics, and for me, I use them when it's cloudy but not dark enough to turn on the headlights so others can see me, not really to light up the road.... so the aiming doesn't really matter to me as long as they're within reasonable limits and not blinding others.
thanks man! good info! ill also look into how much local shop would charge to install for me
#17
Engineer
any try HID fogs?
does anyone make them and how much?
does anyone make them and how much?
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Looks great man! Does it actually improve the lighting? I'd protect those with an additional Lexan lens plate if I were you.
Those projectors have the capability of receiving D2R/D2S bulbs right?
Those projectors have the capability of receiving D2R/D2S bulbs right?
#19
Thanks for the feedback guys!
I don't think it actually improves the lighting much, but they're about a little dimmer than the headlights on my '93 Civic. I think the lense is not bad for the price but the projectors uses H3 bulbs (which imo is the least bright out of all the types of halogen bulbs), I don't think D2R/D2S bulbs will be a direct fit.
One thing I like about the projectors is that the glass is a lot thicker than the glass on the OEM foglights, plus they're curved (vs. flat on the OEMs) so they're not as easy to crack. Plus, they cost about 1/8 of what the OEM's cost
Night time pics to follow.
I don't think it actually improves the lighting much, but they're about a little dimmer than the headlights on my '93 Civic. I think the lense is not bad for the price but the projectors uses H3 bulbs (which imo is the least bright out of all the types of halogen bulbs), I don't think D2R/D2S bulbs will be a direct fit.
One thing I like about the projectors is that the glass is a lot thicker than the glass on the OEM foglights, plus they're curved (vs. flat on the OEMs) so they're not as easy to crack. Plus, they cost about 1/8 of what the OEM's cost
Night time pics to follow.
#20
Here are the night time pics, the foglights actually show up a lot whiter than it really is in the first and thirdpicture, and brighter than what it really is in the 3rd pic, imho. I think the lighting is playing tricks on me, the foglights' color is closer to the second pic in person (just regular halogens)
Just the foglights:
With HIDs on (these are the stock bulbs, not sure why it looks like they're 8000K or something supraken=camera dummy):
Just the foglights:
With HIDs on (these are the stock bulbs, not sure why it looks like they're 8000K or something supraken=camera dummy):
#21
i was wondering if anyone can post pics of the switch
does anyone know how i can get a clean OEM look?
i dont like the big aftermarket switches sticking out of the dash
does anyone know how i can get a clean OEM look?
i dont like the big aftermarket switches sticking out of the dash
#22
Here are some pics of the switch, I'm using the ghetto switch that it came with with the big "LED" printed on it.... I managed to cut up the housing to fit it into the empty slot next to the moonroof and VSA switches. I was going to fit the button directly into the covers of the empty slots, but the IC board of the switch was too big for it.
I'm waiting to find a good deal on a foglight switch from the US Accord for a perfect factory look (just like the ones that comes with JDM Accord (CL9/CL7) foglights).
It's not pefect, but since I purposely put it in the rightmost slot, most of the time the steering wheel is blocking direct view to it anyway. It actually is not as noticeable in person, the camera flash is showing the glossy (but scratched) surface of the switch.
LED.....wow...
This is close to what you would see in person:
I'm waiting to find a good deal on a foglight switch from the US Accord for a perfect factory look (just like the ones that comes with JDM Accord (CL9/CL7) foglights).
It's not pefect, but since I purposely put it in the rightmost slot, most of the time the steering wheel is blocking direct view to it anyway. It actually is not as noticeable in person, the camera flash is showing the glossy (but scratched) surface of the switch.
LED.....wow...
This is close to what you would see in person:
#23
Originally Posted by TacoBellSauce
i was wondering if anyone can post pics of the switch
does anyone know how i can get a clean OEM look?
i dont like the big aftermarket switches sticking out of the dash
does anyone know how i can get a clean OEM look?
i dont like the big aftermarket switches sticking out of the dash
You were too quick for me I agree with you, you can get the US Accord foglight switch, but I think it costs about $25-30 at the dealer. Try to find one at the local junkyard.
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