Fog lights replaced with $40 ebay versions. (1 Viewer)

[skshepherd]

After years of polishing etc, they still turn cloudy and yellow. Passenger side started getting water inside and the reflective coating was damaged.

Before

After

Old vs New

Worried that the new units might leak I provided extra sealant that I had used to repair my Lexus rx350 headlight housings that were getting water in them. I coated it around the lens and body gap and filled the tabs as well. Smoothed with my fingers.

Notice that the new foglights do not have a glare guard like the OEM ones. I'm not sure how this will affect the pattern and or how much light output I will get. I know other car club (300zx) members modify their fogs and remove theirs to yield more light output.

Comparison

Ebay lights came with bulbs, and also harness and switch which was not needed.

I will provide updates on how they perform and hold up.

 

[Greenbean]

I'm so tempted to get some!

Please let us know how they look at night, really I'm just curious if the beam pattern is about the same.

For that price a set a year i worth doing if they leak or whatever.

 

[skshepherd]

Ill try and grab some pictures tonight. I already have ddm tuning hid in for the low beams so that may influence the pictures but I should be able to tell you if I see any difference good or bad.

 

[RootMeanSqr]

Maybe a dumb question, but can't water/moisture get in where the bulb mounts, as well as the actual vent itself? Wouldn't sealing the lens keep water from draining out?

 

[YodatheLC]

After years of polishing etc, they still turn cloudy and yellow. Passenger side started getting water inside and the reflective coating was damaged.

Before

After

Old vs New

Worried that the new units might leak I provided extra sealant that I had used to repair my Lexus rx350 headlight housings that were getting water in them. I coated it around the lens and body gap and filled the tabs as well. Smoothed with my fingers.

Notice that the new foglights do not have a glare guard like the OEM ones. I'm not sure how this will affect the pattern and or how much light output I will get. I know other car club (300zx) members modify their fogs and remove theirs to yield more light output.

Comparison

Ebay lights came with bulbs, and also harness and switch which was not needed.

I will provide updates on how they perform and hold up.

Do they fit well?

 

[skshepherd]

Yes they fit just like the OEM. As far as the moisture, yes, if you forded a creek then water could get in from the vent just like the originals. The bulb has a rubber gasket seal so it shouldn't get in from there.

The problem is with some of these made in China aftermarket plastic housings the seal between the lens and the shell may have gaps where they didn't have a proper seal so rain etc can come in. If you do a search on Lexus rx350's water in the headlight you will find this similar problem. After every car wash the housing would get water in it. I was able to solve that problem by adding to the seal. So I figured it wouldn't hurt to do some preventative sealing on the fogs.

 

[reznunt]

Maybe a dumb question, but can't water/moisture get in where the bulb mounts, as well as the actual vent itself? Wouldn't sealing the lens keep water from draining out?

I got the same ebay fogs and my first splash through a moderate sized muddy water hole and the fogs were filled with mud lol. I siliconed them also but they leaked in at the points you mentioned.

 

[skshepherd]

I got the same ebay fogs and my first splash through a moderate sized muddy water hole and the fogs were filled with mud lol. I siliconed them also but they leaked in at the points you mentioned.

Well, thats what I was afraid of but thought for $40 I'd give them a try. The vent on the OEM is bigger but the aftermarket has two smaller vents. My old OEM ones had water in them from the rain and from car washes.

 

[skshepherd]

The fog lights came with generic no name 9006 bulbs. The OEM fog lights had 9005 bulbs modified to fit in the housing. The new fog lights with the lesser bulb puts out more light than the previous setup IMO.

From the front

With fogs off

With fogs on

[/IMG]

 

[Cannon88]

Heck yeah, well worth the price it seems!

 

[ranma21]

I will have 20 sets great quality DEPO fog lamp and glass headlamp in about 8 weeks time in the next shipment. =)

 

[yotasavg]

These OEM units may be a good option for me. I'm currently running block-off fog light plates I made out of ABS sheet lol, actually looks pretty good. Free harness too haha.

I will have 20 sets great quality DEPO fog lamp and glass headlamp in about 8 weeks time in the next shipment. =)

FYI, for anyone considering the DEPO fogs, definitely seal them better before install. I ruined mine on the first trip out with some really nice red mud.

 

[ranma21]

These OEM units may be a good option for me. I'm currently running block-off fog light plates I made out of ABS sheet lol, actually looks pretty good. Free harness too haha.


FYI, for anyone considering the DEPO fogs, definitely seal them better before install. I ruined mine on the first trip out with some really nice red mud.

The one coming is different than the one you bought. This is just the regular factory replacement type. How are yours doing now? Is your headlamp hold up good?

 

[yotasavg]

The one coming is different than the one you bought. This is just the regular factory replacement type. How are yours doing now? Is your headlamp hold up good?

Ah gotcha, ok I'd trust that more than the LED aftermarket style. Still wish those would have been better, they looked killer. I threw them away though, didn't feel like it was worth the effort to repair the fogs. The headlights though, they're perfect. I even opened mine up to install projectors and they still went back together like OEM units.

 

[skshepherd]

Ok, update for today. After a ton of rain and a lot of standing rain and puddles on the road, the drive into town and back resulted in a small visible drop of water in each housing. I am going to try and take apart the backing that has three screws where the lamp goes and see if there are any gaps to seal there. That is the only other place I can think of where it is getting in. The vents are smaller and have an extra curve to them compared to OEM so I don't think that is where it is but I will see. If I can seal them up with the $6 tube of rtv then I would still be satisfied.

Once the rain stops I will take them back out and unscrew the 3 screws that hold the mounting ring to the housing and seal that area up and try again.

 

[skshepherd]

I will have 20 sets great quality DEPO fog lamp and glass headlamp in about 8 weeks time in the next shipment. =)

If these don't work out for me I may get a pair from you.

 

[Pahizzl]

I pulled the trigger on some eBay replacement lights when I first got mine as well. Wish I sealed mine off like you did...here's mine after only 6 months. Reflector paint turned completely white.

What's funny is that the other side looks as good as the day I put them on.

 

[skshepherd]

I took them out today and turned them over. Water came out around the rubber gasket/shield and also from around the adjustment screw.
I noticed that the rubber gasket/shield just slid off when I unscrewed the three screws and the plastic collar. I found that the OEM gasket/shield fit much tighter. So I put a thin coat of RTV around it and slid the gasket on, then put a bead of RTV around the edges and around the adjustment screw. We'll see if this fixes the problem. It was a definite weak point.

OEM tight fit on top Cheapo loose fit on bottom

Back of housing covered in RTV LOL! I smoothed it out more before replacing.

 

[El Cid]

knocked out my passenger side long ago, good idea and thanks for the linke!

 

[bctlex]

These OEM units may be a good option for me. I'm currently running block-off fog light plates I made out of ABS sheet lol, actually looks pretty good. .

Do you have a picture of what you did? How do you mount the ABS sheet into the bumper? My fog lights are not in greatest shape. Leaving it off with empty hole is not an option - wife do not approve.