fog lights

Attila,

Thanks for taking the time to try "just plugging the diode in." So, we know that doesn't work.

I've got a few other ideas.. Aerometer and I will be getting together next weekend to do this on his. I'll post what works to see if we can find an easy work around without having to drop the junction box...

Cheers,

 

Thanks in advance Bob. Can't wait. I just got a diode today from Radio Shack. See you.

 

DONE!

Thank you Danman for the directions & thank you BobC for performing the mod! Everything works out in the exact way that I want it to. Sorry for taking up so much of your time Bob.

 

OK got it!

Thanks to Areometer for allowing me to do the modification to his car!

I was able to the modification by only having to remove the lower dash trim panel (and left-hand register). Didn't have to disconnect and drop the junction box as when I did it on my own car.

I've written it up in the Knowledge Base but here's the short version:

Used two wire taps:
http://www.priuschat.com/forums/album_pic....php?pic_id=1275

and used these to attach the diode to the requisite sky blue and yellow wires plugged into the B5 Body ECU.

The main problem has been the lack of working room behind the junction box, as Attila can attest to. There's only room for one hand back there...

It was a snap once I did three things: Wrapped the diode lead with electrical tape so that the diode fit snug in the channel of the tap-in (One less thing to hold in place). Popped the tap-in onto the wires and spun it so it's on the top-side of the wire and let gravity hold it in place. And, once it looked good, pressed the metal blade in with my fingers so that I could let go of it and reach down for the pliers to finish pushing the blade in and making the connections.

Check out the Knowledge Base for the details.

I think this is the cleanest and easiest solution so far. And, it's totally reversible.

Thanks to Areometer for letting me try this on his car and putting up with me mumbling while under the dash...

FYI, after the mod, it's pretty sad how little light the OEM fog lights put out. Plan on getting new bulbs. I had bought my aftermarket bulbs earlier from Areometer and they are way better...

And, we grounded out the blue wire (#16) on the combination switch allowing Areometer's fogs to still be on even if the high beams are on.

Thanks again to all for getting us up to this point where more people can perform this modification without having to rip their cars apart.

Cheers,

-bob

 

OK I am "electronics" challenged but really want to make my fogs illuminate with just the parking lights and also stay on when I switch to high beam. The diode thing seems like the easiest way to go on page 4 by Bob (I think) but if I am going to tackle this, I would need some pretty good photos to guide me through this. Can anyone post that complete modification with good photos for the car wiring challenged?

Oh and what bulbs did you install to make the lights brighter?

Thanks a lot.

 

Hi Cairo,

As for detailed instructions with photos, they're posted right here under 'Knowledge Base':

http://www.priuschat.com/forums/kb.php?mod...a2fceef639ee063

As for the lights, I picked up a pair of HIR's which are Halogen Infrared bulbs. But query Areometer as he can get ahold of other types and there may be more info under the 'Commercial" section of this site.

As for having the fog lights stay on when you switch to high beam, you need to access the light control switch in the steering column. Here's some instructions for that:

1) Remove the steering column height adjustment handle
2) Remove the cowling on the bottom of the steering column. It's held in place by 3 screws: One underneath and two right behind the steering wheel. By turning the wheel, you'll see and have access to these two screws. The cowling has a couple of clips that hold it in place but it will just pop off.
3) The wires and harness that plugs into the light control switch at the base of the light switch arm will be readily visible. You need to connect the blue wire in pin #16 to the green wire in pin #12. Looking closely at the harness, you'll see that each slot/pin is numbered so you can confirm that you've got the right wires..


The first photo is taken from below. To help in orientation, the big blue arrow points to the steering wheel, the smaller blue arrow points to the arm that adjusts the hieght of the steering column. The metal cylinder in the photo is the steering column.

Let me know how it goes for you and whether the instructions in the Knowledge Base need tweaking.

Cheers,

 

I just updated my Commercial post to include the newer IPF HIR bulbs.

http://priuschat.com/forums/viewtopic.php?...p?p=66212#66212

I looked at BobC's HIR fogs, now mine looks like X'mas tree ornamental lights.

 

Another thought to make this task a little easier. I installed leads on the wire taps (about 8 inches long) so I could attach the diode last. The diode I got was rather large compared to radio shack and I could crimp a male spade right to the diode. Female spades on the end of the leads and plug in was easy.

 

Does anyone know of any better taps to use for this fog mod? The red radio shack ones suggested in this post and in the knowledge base dont seem to throughly cut the insulation of the wires deep enough...however if the red ones are the only ones that work, are there any tips (perhaps pre-cutting the wires) to make the red taps more effective? Thanks

 

Well still haven't had time to tackle the re-wire for the fog lights to stay on with the high-beams or just w/parking lights. But I did order a set of the new bulbs from the link above. I will see how they look once installed and will post some pictures showing stock on one side and new on the other.

 

I was about to have a off-road shop do the same fog light mod for me, they were going to order a $100 relay and install it. Then I saw this on PC.

So today I went ahead and did the mod myself. It took me about 2 hours because I had to extract a diode out of an old computer power supply. I also used a FD (floppy drive) power connector out of the very same power supply to plug the diode into, making it easy to then tap the wires. I have pictures but I can't find my USB connector or my card reader!

I didn't have to remove any dash or anything, it was a bit tricky getting it done in such a tight space.

Thanks to everyone who has gone before me to make this mod possible!

 

Hi all,

I bought my Prius in the US (HID lights) but have now moved to Canada where daytime running lights are mandatory. I went to a Toyota dealer here and they tried putting in the regular DRL kit but it didn't work. So far, the situation is still unresolved. So here I am to find an answer.

I saw and read (but did not understand!) bobc's post on "How to Turn Fog Lights on Independently"
(http://www.priuschat.com/forums/kb.php?mode=article&k=29&sid=b3c9151a4d4569677a2fceef639ee063) (sorry, have forgotten how to link -- does the href a anchor work here?)
and within the KB article found a link to a procedure that allows one to "use the 'foglights' as Daytime Running Lights" (http://www.vassfamily.net/ToyotaPrius/FogLights/FogMod.html). My question is whether the foglights are ever turn-off-able in either of these two cases? I can't tell just by reading since I have no clue about what's going on. But if the foglights can be turned off, then I think I'll fail the inspection (not DRL).

Second question is whether these two are the best/easiest/least-harmful-to-mess-up methods. In trying to read the posts and replies, I can't tell if a post is a modification of a procedure in a previous post, or a new procedure. And if the former, which part of a procedure it is a modification of! (hope that made sense).

Another question: Do the automatic headlights system still work (i.e., if lights are on, turning off power will extinguish lights and will lights automatically turn back on when turning on engine again)?

Finally, despairing that I'll ever convert my car to DRL, I have came across mention of Angel Eyes headlights which, according to one seller, can also be hooked up to be used as DRL. But I am unsure whether these lights are sold/installed as a bulb, or whether it's a modification of an existing bulb. I'm guessing former but I thought you all might know and whether they were indeed good to use as DRLs (and whether one could buy them for the prius -- the site I saw made them from corolla and one other toyota car (not prius) but I forget which).

Any advice would be appreciated! Thanks.

Viv

 

1st question - Both of the mods you read about can be turned off. These mods eliminate the need to have low beam headlights on to use the fog lights. They still require parking lights to be on and will turn off if parking lights are turned off or if high beams are turned on. I don't know what the requirements are for DRL but if it requires the lights to come on and stay on whenever the car is powered up and ready to drive I don't believe this would qualify.

2nd question - I think the way I did it may be a "better/easier/less-harmful-to-mess-up method" of accomplishing the mod.

1. Remove the two wires referenced in the above methods from the connector. The wires are held in the connector by a retainer similar to the one shown here in efusco's EV mod instructions. The retainer must be pried up as shown to unlock the pins.
2. Place the two contacts side by side and wrap them together with a small piece of bare wire.
3. Cover the connection with heat shrink or electrical tape.

Since the wires are no longer connected to the ECU there is no need for a diode or wire taps. To reverse the mod simply seperate the contacts an re-insert them into their original positions in the plug.

3rd question - Yes the lights will still go off when the car is turned off and come back on when it is powered up again, as long as the parking lights and fog lamp switches are still in the on position.

 

does anyone have pictures for these mods that they can share? . it all sounds confusing to me and none of the links seem to be working anymore

 

Resurrecting an old thread, is there anyone who has clear or photographic instructions on modding the "fog lights" to work independently of the headlights? I don't care if they turn off with high beams, but I do want to use them independently of the headlights.

All citations here are gone and I can't find anything else that's fruitful with the search.

~ dan ~