Installing auxiliary lights using factory fog light switch

[Bionic_Scorpion]

Clean look. Are your smoked turn signals and marker lights from Depo?

Yes, I got them from amazon but now they're out of stock.

 

[LONGJP2]

Anything more than one set of fog lights really needs to be on a separate switch. Otherwise, you won't be able to turn them on (legally on the street).

And I'll never understand smoked out lights.

 

[LONGJP2]

The fog lights already have a relay.

That relay is for turning them off when the brights are on, not for isolating the current from the switch.

 

[Bionic_Scorpion]

Anything more than one set of fog lights really needs to be on a separate switch. Otherwise, you won't be able to turn them on (legally on the street).

And I'll never understand smoked out lights.

I've got LED headlights so these fog lights are nothing more than offroad lights which is why I want them on the same switch.

The reason for smoked out lights are for aesthetics obviously. They are no less visible than the factory lights.

 

[TJScott]

If I were trying to get both sets on simultaneously, I would connect a relay to the fog light wiring, then the switch on the stalk will run the relay. Then run a heavier gauge wire to handle the power needs of the lights as others have said. The only thing that fog light switch will be doing is flipping on and off that relay. Significantly less load to the switch than even the original lights.

 

[Bionic_Scorpion]

If I were trying to get both sets on simultaneously, I would connect a relay to the fog light wiring, then the switch on the stalk will run the relay. Then run a heavier gauge wire to handle the power needs of the lights as others have said. The only thing that fog light switch will be doing is flipping on and off that relay. Significantly less load to the switch than even the original lights.

That is what I'd like to do, install a larger fuse, relay and heavier wire hooked up to the factory switch to control both sets of lights. I also want to use water proof plugs on the lights so they can be replaced or if I need to remove the bumper for any reason. The only problem is, I'm not sure on how to wire up the factory switch to the relay. I've seen wiring kits on Amazon that come with the wire, relay and fuse but it comes with an aftermarket switch to be installed on your dash. Not sure if I can cut the aftermarket switch off and wire it to the factory switch. The factory switch has a plug in the back that has 4 wires connected to it. Not sure how many wires are leading to the aftermarket switch on the wiring harness and if there are 4 wires, how do I figure out which wires to hook up to which wires on the factory plug.

I ended up going with this bumper.

I installed the factory fog lights temporarily until I decide on what I want to do which is why I didn't run the wires through the tubing. I believe I'm gonna go with 7" round LED lights like one of these sets.

And then install these inside the bumper in the lower mounts.

 

[LONGJP2]

IThey are no less visible than the factory lights.

Are you sure?

Depo disclaimer -
8.) 99% OF THE PRODUCTS WE SELL ARE INTENDED FOR SHOW CARS AND OFF-ROAD USE ONLY, UNLESS SPECIFIED OTHERWISE IN THE ITEM DESCRIPTION. PLEASE MAKE SURE YOU CHECK WITH YOUR LOCAL LAW ENFORCEMENT FOR THE USAGE.

 

[Bionic_Scorpion]

Are you sure?

Depo disclaimer -
8.) 99% OF THE PRODUCTS WE SELL ARE INTENDED FOR SHOW CARS AND OFF-ROAD USE ONLY, UNLESS SPECIFIED OTHERWISE IN THE ITEM DESCRIPTION. PLEASE MAKE SURE YOU CHECK WITH YOUR LOCAL LAW ENFORCEMENT FOR THE USAGE.

I'm as sure now as I was when standing there judging them after installation comparing them to the factory lights.

 

[3lt4v0]

Use the the factory foglight switch to power a relay and that will allow you to run whatever lights you want

Can you explain how to do this?

 

[SubLime]

Can you explain how to do this?

basically, you stick a relay under the hood, use the old foglight harness at the bumper to feed the trigger of the relay and then the output of the relay feeds the new set of lights. this is the simplified version, i am ignoring grounding the relay and hooking it to the battery.

 

[jkosten]

Whichever direction you go, I used this pigtail adapter on my 02 to use with the factory harness. I prefer to not cut OEM harnesses if possible.

MOTOALL Fog Light Wire Pigtail Harness Connector Plug for Jeep Wrangler TJ LJ 1997-2004 https://www.amazon.com/dp/B09YD611J2/?tag=wranglerorg-20

 

[frank1]

I use the old school Lightforce with yellow covers, wired to the stock fog light switch.

 

[Steel City 06]

Can you explain how to do this?

Here's a more complicated version, though the principle is the same.

Essentially the old fog light harness feeds the bottom two relays, turning them on. Each relay is connected to a single fog light, each fused to 10 amps. You can usually get away with one relay and one fuse for both lights.

When I turn on the switch in the cabin, the old circuit energizes the coil in the relay, providing a new 12V connection through the Bussman from the battery to the lights. I could theoretically uprate either of these circuits as large as 30A, but in this application it is not necessary.

Instead of having a birds' nest of loose relays and fuses and a jumble of wires, I elected to install a bussmann as shown in the link:
https://wranglertjforum.com/threads/bussmann-auxiliary-fuse-and-relay-module-installation.19796/

The Bussmann is entirely unnecessary, but vastly simplifies future work. KC Hilites makes a decent plug and play fuse and relay kit that would work well for one set of lights.