2012 Fog Light HID Retrofit Ideas or Experience?

Now that I have committed to the FX-R GB, I am pretty sure my OEM fogs won't be able to keep up. I am not aware (or didn't search enough) of any 2012 OEM fog lamp housing HID retrofits. So I would appreciate any inputs on my preliminary idea to retrofit the following kit from TRS:

Matchbox projectors, (H1) 3000k bulbs, H11 relay, and TBD ballast.

Since I want the lights to retain their foul-weather function, would a yellow Lamin-X layer (on the housing lens) help diffuse the light, reduce glare, and create a more "effective" deeper yellow? Any thoughts or ideas would be awesome!

 

Yellow covers just block light. They dont diffuse.

 

Correct, they block the rest of the visible spectrum and allow the yellow to pass through. What I meant by "help" diffuse is, since there are now two layers of material interrupting the transmitted light, both with reflective properties, and both made with different material; will this scatter the light particles enough to prevent the "wall of light" that some drivers encounter when their HID beams encounter fog, rain, etc at close range?

 

As I stated... no it will not. It will be yellow in color and dimmer with the exact same beam pattern if used with 4300-500K. Not much difference with 3000K bulbs. If you want rugged and something to match your HID color output and a sharper upper cut off than stock have you looked into JW Speaker 4.5" fogs? They will take a custom mounting solution. They will work as fogs as opposed to just running a quad projector set up without any fogs but with laminex they might be acceptable... barely. The 3000K color means you will still be passing most of that light as opposed to laminex over 5000K. The matchbox is far too bright for use as real fogs IMO. They would be used as a quad projector for more light on top of your headlight output. The yellow color is not as big a deal as overall brightness, lamp height, and beam pattern when looking at fogs. Of course if you insist on yellow the JW Speaker LED fog is out of the question.

 

I agree with you about the Lamin-X, it is not needed and will do nothing for you. Get 3000K HID bulbs, that will give you the yellow light you need.

As far as the matchbox being too bright for fogs, I would disagree. As long as they have a nice, crisp cutoff, they will be fine for fogs. I'm running the Blazer projectors for fog lights and they are great.

 

Over 5000 lumens of light of any color in heavy fog is going to throw back a lot of light. Then again, Im not a fog guy who is sensitive to glare. I dont even use fogs as intended in fog.

 

You can't make that general of a statement... lumens have nothing to do with how the light is aimed. If the beam pattern is correct for the conditions, lumen count is more or less irrelevant.

 

Isn't yeller easy to spot in fog also for oncoming vehicles?

In a sea of white, wouldn't yellow be a nice way to be noticed and make it evident that there's a vehicle coming?

 

^^^Yes. And safety is a big consideration of mine. Essentially, my goal is to increase my light output and retain foul weather capability, while not being a danger to others on the road.

My OEM fog lamp assemblies have a 2.75" D. This is the only piece I want to cut into, so this limits me to projectors that are smaller. I think cutting into the 2012+ shrouds would be a PITA, when I can just cut a hole in the back of the housing itself. And I refuse to cut or put holes in my bumper.

I do want the tight cut-off and intense beam that 3000k HIDs would get and the matchboxes are the right size. But I've recently stumbled onto another candidate: 2010+ Ford Fusion fog light projectors.

They share the H11 bulb as my OEM and don't have any moving parts (like the Matchbox's solenoid). Also, there is a foreground limiter (upper shield) that you can remove to get some good foreground fill. Apparently, they produce a much wider beam than the Blazers, as well. With a 1.75" lens, this may fit the bill!

And the best part: They're sealed!

 

Hey, I get a lot of fog up here in Northern New England and started researching new fog beams that would be better than stock and came up with the Nokya Hyper Yellows. They don't deliver a wall of light and so far, work great with the existing stock housings. Compare to PIAA.

 

used them here too, great results IMHO.

just forget to reuse the O-rings from the stock bulbs instead of the ones that come with the Nokyas, if the bulbs dont fit right.

They are usually slightly different and the improper O-ring may lead to water/condensation/alignment issues POSSIBLY.

Its a very old tip I picked up back in the day when ppl were swapping bulbs.

 

i was looking into the ford fusion as well. any idea how to install those? i'm trying to find threads with people that have done it but i'm coming up short

 

I too want to have some high quality HID projectors in my fogs, mostly for more light period. I talked to TRS and they recommended the Matchboxs. I'd love to see a post by someone who's done this.

Are you still liking the Ford Fusion fogs? Any other progress?

I was thinking of matching my FX-Rs 5000K.

 

This seems relevant: http://www.tacomaworld.com/forum/lighting/171829-blazer-fogs-factory-fog-housing.html

 

Are the Blazers an old model? I don't see them anywhere on TRS. Are the Matchbox the Blazer replacements? Why is this such a PITA??

 

The Blazers are an older projector that TRS used to sell. You might still be able to find them either on Ebay or some other websites but they have been discontinued. The Matchbox is TRS's recommended replacement since they are the only projectors small enough to fit the fog light housing. It's such a PITA because the fogs aren't made like the headlights meaning you can't just bake them and pull them apart. FWIW, I used the Blazers in my fog lights and they're nice

 

so, the blazers are also halogen projectors out of the box and require an HID kit if HIDs are desired? The Matchbox are HID out of the box with the added solenoid (bi-xenon). Any write ups on Matchbox in Tacoma fogs- I'm guessing not? Any thoughts on the Matchbox in my fogs? Just wire them up on the lo beam?

 

I have all the supplies (including the Fusion fogs). Just really slow in starting. I have an oscillating tool, but it's too big and cumbersome. So, I need to buy a Dremel...

 

No, the Blazers are an HID projector out of the box but they do not have the solenoid built in, they are low beam only meaning the cutoff shield is fixed. If you were to put the Matchbox projectors in your fog lights, you could just clip the solenoid wires since you wouldn't need the high beam function. If I were you, I'd do wire the fogs using your parking lights as the trigger. If you wire them up to your low beams, every time you cycle the high beams, the fogs have to shut off. HID's don't like to be cycled quickly, it burns out the ballast. When I put the Blazers and HID's in my fogs, I did the fog light anytime mod just for that very reason. If you want to get fancy, you could always have the Matchbox high beams hooked up so when you hit your high beams, your fog lights go to high beam also.