rbreeze

The refreshed 2016 RDX has full LED lighting now at both the front and rear ends of the vehicle (which is great).. HOWEVER on the top Advance/Elite model - the only model/package now that comes with factory-applied Fog Lights - the lamps/bulbs in those fog light housings are halogen, not LED. So what's up with that? No doubt there will be a color temperature mismatch between the fog lights and everything else up front. In the '16 RDX U.S. accessory catalog Acura list "LED Fog Lights" for the price of $842! Surely there must be a cheaper way to have "LED" fog lights on the '16 RDX Advance/Elite! Has anyone here converted from halogen to LED bulbs for their fog lights on their 2013-2015 RDX w/ Tech Pkg?

andysinnh

If you look at cars with LED fog lamps, it's more than just a bulb replacement, but rather a complete housing change typically with multiple LED's that are optimized for a fog pattern. My speculation is that since that cost is high, they opted for the previous iteration of fog lamps when done at the factory, and the significant cost of the upgrade to LED is because even for those factory installed w/fogs, the whole housing changes. It's less for those since the wiring harness is already there (thus the price difference between models).

I've not yet seen an in-person LED_fog equipped 2016, so this is speculation. But I'm guessing this is the scenario based on things like the LED fogs they put in the Mini Coopers (as an example).

andy

bzb123

I plan on changing out the fog lights to LED on my '16 Advance at some point. No urgency since I rarely will use them- I'm willing to wait for a good deal on the actual Acura part.
What I would like to do sooner is put LED lights on the license plate. Hate they used incandesents there. Not to high jack your thread, but does anyone have a recommendation on a source for LED's for the license plate light?

rbreeze

^ Andy - thanks, you're absolutely right - when it comes to LED fog lights (and headlights) it really is more than just a bulb replacement; the overall projection system/housing has to be appropriately modified/optimized to achieve the desired result in terms of light intensity and projection. I'd guess that Acura engineers originally developed the new LED Fog Lights for factory application to '16 RDX top models/packages, however the cost of including them probably proved prohibitive (would excessively impact vehicle pricing). As a result the LED fogs are available only as an accessory option.. and a rather expensive one I might add.

As opposed to buying the pricey LED Fog Light accessory kit, another option would be to replace the factory OEM halogen bulbs with so-called "super white xenon" halogen bulbs; I've installed this version of halogen bulb in fog light housings with great effect on a couple of my vehicles equipped with HID xenon headlamps.

/richard

rbreeze

^ BZB - in my experience.. and I've purchased from several vendors over the years.. the best source for LEDs for the license plate lamps is superbrightleds.com. The LED license plate bulbs that I purchased last year and installed into my luxury sport sedan are "194 LED Bulb - 10 SMD LED Wedge Base Tower" - Part No. WLED-WHP10. The current price is $9.95 (per bulb) plus shipping.
Great specs on this model LED bulb including 6000K (cool white) color temperature, 177 Lumen light output, operating voltage range of 10~30 VDC and non-polarity sensitive.
Here's a link to their specifications webpage for the bulb: https://www.superbrightleds.com/more...Specifications
Edit: FYI - I just discovered they're having a special 10% off Memorial Day sale this weekend - if you decide to order from them use promo code MEM15.

Joe Las Vegas

If you just want the bulbs, auto zone has a great selection, and I don't see why you wouldn't just be able to change the bulbs themselves, check what it is and look online, the have h11..., at least it will be whiter and brighter, no need to break the bank changing everything, after all they're only fog lights.

Roger23

Joe, could you provide more details on the H11 bulbs, so i know what to ask the parts store for ? Thanks..

Joe Las Vegas

I said look online, if you have a computer you don't need me, I don't even what bulbs are in the RDX fog lights, search online for the bulbs you need.

Comfy

Joe is right. The RDX fog lamps use H11 bulbs. you can buy any of the superbright bulbs which offer a marginal color difference (4300- whiter) instead of the OEM (3600K). Those should be user replaceable and would not void any warranty and are perfectly legal.

jimgraf

My wife just got the 2016 Advance Package and I too was disappointed with the non-LED fog lights. I bought these on Amazon ($28) and they work and look great.

JDM ASTAR 1200 Lumens Extremely Bright 144-EX Chipsets H11 H8 LED Bulbs with Projector for DRL or Fog Lights, Xenon White

giovane

If you want OEM quality led bulbs you have to go with Morimoto Type S.

Thanks to carbonTSEX for the DIY, see links below.

https://acurazine.com/forums/diy-faq...lights-931832/

Morimoto XB LED Fog lights

5 Acuras

iTrader: (1)

LEDriving bulbs by Philips for license plate lights.

RSX_Takashi

Thanks so much.

Comfy

This looks like something that could be tried on my 14 RDX as well. Thanks Giovane.