Rear Fog Lights

[bahnstormer]

http://www.bmwe34.net/e34main/upgrade/rear_foglight.htm

so while in germany this past month i picked up 2 rear fog
light switches.

turns out im not wired for rear fogs, so id like to install em myself

does anyone have some more details on that setup there?
or any other ways of going about it?
thanks folks!

[M.Wenzel]

http://www.bmwe34.net/e34main/upgrade/rear_foglight.htm

so while in germany this past month i picked up 2 rear fog
light switches.

turns out im not wired for rear fogs, so id like to install em myself

does anyone have some more details on that setup there?
or any other ways of going about it?
thanks folks!

Why rear fog lights???

[Jay 535i]

Why rear fog lights???

To be seen.

I thought those weren't legal in North America.

[shogun]

Funny Question, why rear fog lights?

Have you ever followed someone at 200 kmh in a dark, rainy and foggy night, where everyone in Europe still drives full speed?
For sure you would appreciated if you could "see the wall in front of you" a bit earlier.
Might be crazy, but that is life in Germany.
And they usually follow the rules, drive to the right side to let you pass immy when they see you approaching with higher speed.
I HATE these people who never change the lane back to the right after passing and never look into the rear mirror.
Deadly mistake in Europe sometimes.
I am often in Europe, mainly Germany, and I know how to drive there. Especially foreigners do make the big mistakes there which are not used to the high speeds.

[pundit]

Funny Question, why rear fog lights?

Have you ever followed someone at 200 kmh in a dark, rainy and foggy night, where everyone in Europe still drives full speed?
For sure you would appreciated if you could "see the wall in front of you" a bit earlier.
Might be crazy, but that is life in Germany.
And they usually follow the rules, drive to the right side to let you pass immy when they see you approaching with higher speed.
I HATE these people who never change the lane back to the right after passing and never look into the rear mirror.
Deadly mistake in Europe sometimes.
I am often in Europe, mainly Germany, and I know how to drive there. Especially foreigners do make the big mistakes there which are not used to the high speeds.
It is similar in parts of Italy. The fast lane is for overtaking. The police will book you for just sitting in the fast lane... if you haven't already been rear ended by a Lambo doing 260km/h.

I think generally Eurpean drivers are good, but if you are not familar with the driving styles in countries where high speeds are allowed on some roads, then it pays to have a local enlighten you first before you head out on your own!

[Paul in NZ]

what sort of info do you want bahnstormer.....

[bahnstormer]

just the wiring =]
heheh

my harness doesnt have that extra plug and those
instructions look good, jw if anyone has any other
ideas on how to do it -

[Zeuk in Oz]

Why rear fog lights???
Even here in Oz where we don't get the fogs of Europe nor do we drive at 200 km/h it is more important, IMHO, to have rear fog lights than front fog lights.
Interesting to note that my '88 525i has rear fog lights but no front fog lights. Fine by me - I have never found front foglights very effective, except to drive with on all the time and blind oncoming motorists ! :D
Using front foglights when there isnt any is the fastest growing fad in Oz - despite it supposedly being illegal, at least in NSW.

[stx133]

my 95 //m540i (94 build) has "rear" fog lights, they are basically extra bright tail lights as i understand it. with them on i can see the back of signs as i am driving past them in the dark. use them as a good way of 'suggesting' to drivers following that they dip their high beams. had a 100W floodligkt mounted under the rear of my old mazda RX4 on a hidden switch for the same purpose. it was a reversing light if the cops were asking.....

[Paul in NZ]

and in my opinion the use of rear fog lights is more dangerous in clear weather than the over use of front fog lights...Its absolutely blinding on a dark road

[Paul in NZ]

bahnstormer tell me how many wires you have going up the trunk hinge......

[bahnstormer]

up teh trunk hinge? hmmm ill have to look under the carpet stuff...


btw rear fog light on my dads 95 S320 was stock (just one side light)
cant remeber if it was on our 01 ML55
but its standard on our 05 LR3 (discovery 3 outside of usa)

[Omega]

I think generally Eurpean drivers are good,

oops. Sweeping generalisation.

In the UK rear fogs are legal and even in light misty rain many drivers turn on the rear fogs. They then forget to switch them back off. Ever. It's a real p.i.t.a. following someone on a nice summers evening with their rear fogs on.

Also we have the middle-lane hogs who gladly sit at 65mph when the inside lane is empty for mile after mile and won't move over. It's illegal to undertake here so you have to change 2 lanes to overtake and then go back to the inside lane. Undertaking is classified as "dangerous driving" however riding in the middle lane goes unpunished.

Believe me, driving in the UK isn't a dream-come-true for many motorists. :D

[SharkmanBMW]

legal in Canada, that is one of the reasons I hate volvos! they all have them turned on, it seems volvo drivers just don't know how to operate the vehicle, or know when to switch lanes! Good car for dumbasses!
Great for b ad weather, but too many leave them on, feeling they are COOL and euro, NOT!

[Paul in NZ]

up teh trunk hinge? hmmm ill have to look under the carpet stuff...

the rear fog lights ARE on the trunk lid after all....

[Javier]

in non LKM vehicles.

http://www.carsoft.ru/avtorepair/bmw_e34/6312.0/index.html

Javier

[shragon]

here's mine:

http://img379.imageshack.us/img379/9375/xyz7lt.jpg

i decided to only do it on the left side, since i thought it'd look a lil less like i'm pressing the brake the whole time.

i basically followed the directions on bmwe34.net. didn't bother wiring it up to the gauge cluster (front fog indicator bulb is burnt out anyway). got the euro fog light switch from bma.

[Jay 535i]

here's mine:

http://img379.imageshack.us/img379/9375/xyz7lt.jpg

i decided to only do it on the left side, since i thought it'd look a lil less like i'm pressing the brake the whole time.

i basically followed the directions on bmwe34.net. didn't bother wiring it up to the gauge cluster (front fog indicator bulb is burnt out anyway). got the euro fog light switch from bma.

Cool. Having the fog light on just one side is cooler and more Euro, IMHO, although everyone you meet will accuse you of having a busted tail light.

Your car looks awesome, BTW.

[shragon]

thanks!

i had it on one morning when we had some heavy fog in the winter. one of my coworkers said, "just wanted to let you know that one of your bulbs is out on your right tail." hahaha.