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DRL or Fog lights


defgh1

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One complaint you will hear about the 2004R is the HID high beam needs improvement because of the way it spreads the light out too much and does not provide the lighting distance needed for high speed driving on dark roads. I did a little experiment last night on evaluating the DRL and Fog lights as supplemental lighting to the HID High Beam. I also upgraded to SilverStar bulbs to see what benefit they would add. I was able to have the DRL's activate at night by setting a florescent shop light over the light sensor in the base of the Center console. One thing that is obvious to me is the DRL, in their current configuration, will add very little as a supplemental light source even with an upgraded bulb. The light from the DRL is greatly diffused and falls off sharply. I believe a reflector and a focused lens will be needed in order to make any use of the DRL as a High Beam supplement. It was interesting to note, the DRL with the SilverStar appears to provide less light than stock bulbs even though it is a whiter light. ;) The fogs with the SilverStars bulbs looks very promising as a fill in source for the High Beams but they too begin to fall off after 75 feet. As a point of reference I set up a reflector at the bottom of the driveway approximately 75 feet away and the fog lights are at their maxim upward adjustment. The reflector is difficult to see with the DRL only. I plan to try adding a circuit to have the fogs active when the high beams are on. I will post results when done.

Doug H

DRL ONLY STOCK BULB

DRLstock.jpg

DRL ONLY SILVERSTAR BULB

DRLStar.jpg

FOG ONLY STOCK BULB

Fogstock.jpg

FOG ONLY SILVERSTAR BULB

FogStar.jpg

HID Low beam and SilverStar Fogs

HIDFogStar.jpg

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Test number 2. I wired the relays so the Fog Lights will be active whenever the High Beams are turned on. IMO the fogs perform very well filling in for the HID High Beam lower cut off. Another advantage of this hook-up is when you flash your High Beams the Fogs Flash also. :lol: To quote my son who walked to the end of the driveway after the mod, "It's like looking into the Sun!"

Doug H

NORMAL HID HIGH BEAM

HighBeam.jpg

HID HIGH BEAM and SILVERSTAR FOGS

HighBeamFog.jpg

THE SUN B)

FrontHF.jpg

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Hey, Dan, just want to give you a shout out for the picture in "Rolling." Nice, but just third place? What did they have that you didn't have? I've lost track of everything that you've done to your R, but I'm sure it's coming out well.

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Hey, Dan, just want to give you a shout out for the picture in "Rolling." Nice, but just third place? What did they have that you didn't have? I've lost track of everything that you've done to your R, but I'm sure it's coming out well.

Dan? You can call me Doug. :lol: Have not got the new Rolling yet. Considering the car only had 2000 miles on it at the time of the meet, 3rd place wasn't bad for a completely stock car.

Doug H

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Below is the information to rewire the Fog lights on the 2004R to provide supplemental lighting to the HID High Beam. Basically, all you need to do is to cut the (pink) wire going to the Fog Light and wire them according the Relay diagram. You then use the Main (purple) Wire to activate the relay and provide voltage for the Fog Lights when in the High Bean setting. With this configuration the Fog Lights will activate anytime the High Beams are turned on. The circuit does not affect the Fog Light operation in the Low Beam setting. To increase the additional lighting more you can replace the Stock Fog bulbs with SilverStar Bulbs. In the Relay wiring, I added an 7.5A In-Line fuse as a Safety measure and to allow you to easily disable the Circuit any time you take your car in for Service. You have to implement this circuit twice, one for each Fog Light. The first photo is the wiring diagram and the second photo shows all the components needed for the rewire. I will be working a detailed parts list and approximate prices in a few days. Let me know if you are interested or have any questions on the actual wiring.

Doug H

RelayWire.jpg

FogModKit.jpg

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Doug,

MY parents have a farm in central PA accessed by very small, twisty roads. Perfect for very bright light yes, but you'd be surprised how fast oncoming traffic appears, even when one consciously looks out for them. I think there would be a safety issue with me blinding them with the SUN!!!

Russ

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Doug,

MY parents have a farm in central PA accessed by very small, twisty roads. Perfect for very bright light yes, but you'd be surprised how fast oncoming traffic appears, even when one consciously looks out for them. I think there would be a safety issue with me blinding them with the SUN!!!

Russ

Russ,

Won't make any difference to on-coming drivers since the HID high beam will hit them before the additional fogs. On a very small, Dark twisty road the fogs fill in the near-in lighting much more effectively because when the HIDs high beam are switched on there is a very noticeable low end cut off of lighting. Without the fogs it is actually dark directly in front off the car when the High Beams are on. Try it tonight and take notice of the light in front of the car when you switch to high beam. The darker the location you can try this the better.

Doug H

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