b'Eight'

I have the Sport model with no OEM fogs. I don't want the OEM fogs but have considering going with a universal projector fog light with an HID kit. My questions:

1) Even though I don't have the OEM fog lights installed, is the harness and connectors already there and in place?

2) I think my preference is to run a new and separate switch to turn on the HID fogs if I install them. How would I have to wire the ballast boxes? I assume I need to run a wire to power them. How do I run the switch? Basically I am clueless on the wiring. Some pointers in advance would help.

3) The bulb I want to use is an H3. I understand the OEM fog light takes a different bulb. Since I don't have an OEM fog light installed, are there any issues I need to be aware of?

Any and all helpful information appreciated.

04RX8man

well the connectors i'm not sure about but i'm guessing the connectors and everything are NOT there.

Wiring you need to put a switch in all u do is run power from somwhere(battery or something) to a switch inside the car wherever u want it then power wire from the other side of the switch to the bulbs. Wire the bulbs in paralell and u should probable put an inline fuse inbefore the switch from power to b safe!

You should not have any problem with installing the blulbs just b sure to use heavy enough wire and a fuse and a switch that can handle the power...yeah its not going to b alot of Current flowing through but you dont' want small wire!

ShellDude

iTrader: (12)

This is a big stretch... possibly even OT... so forewarned is forearmed.

Car makers will often times build everything for add-ons up to the point of a couple missing pieces. For example, my old 1990 Plymouth Laser didn't have foglights but everything except the lights themselves and a relay in the fusebox was there.

I ended up doing something very similar to what the OP is asking in that car and the only thing I needed to source from the dealer was the $60 relay and $70 switch.

You should be able to visually inspect your car to determine whether the harness is there. Pop open your fuse box under the hood and see if the flog light relay is there (it probably isn't). While you're in there consider doing the fog light / running light mod.

There may even be a thread in the DIY section for sports like you.

04RX8man

^ yeah i knew for some things everythign is there like ABS on some cars except the relay basically but i was not sure about fogs if that's the case i may buy fogs!

ShellDude

iTrader: (12)

On my 1990 Laser (Mitsubishi Eclipse) The fog light switch simply popped into the switch cluster... It was pretty much stand-alone in that regard.

On our cars the fog light switch is integrated into the steering wheel harness and this is why I say take my advice with a grain of salt.

You may be better off doing all your own wiring.

04RX8man

yeah it prob would b easier to inall an aftermarket switch and run you own wiring!!!

b'Eight'

Ok, if I add my own switch and run my own wiring, how do I do this?

1) What gauge wire do I use?

2) How do I run the wires? I mean, to what source? Through the fuse box?

3) Were do I enter the wiring into the car for the switch? I heard behind the washer bottle I can get wiring into the car. True?

4) How do I wire the HID ballast boxes in parallel? Do I just wire them together?

Any other pointers? I have a friend who is more experienced than I am going to wire the fogs for me but I don't think he is familiar with HID fogs so any info anyone has is greatly appreciated.

BBQdDude

The wiring is already there. I have a 2004 sport with no fogs. I added OEM ones after the fact. For the switch you can get the steering column light arm/switch, again all wiring is there for that.

I am not sure if the wiring and steering column piece are compatible for aftermarket or not.

Take care,

Brian

RotaryP7

You can get some on ebay for $60 brand new OEM fogs for the 8. They also bring the switch you need for the fogs.

RIWWP

iTrader: (2)

Edit: I see some others noted that the wiring is there. Use that I am leaving my original post below in case it still helps.

I struggled through much of the same questions in one of my previous cars. (keep in mind I have not done any of this on the 8, though the concepts should be similar)

1) do you have a pair of wire cutters/strippers? if not, get some, you will need them anway for this. You can use the stripping part to easily measure the width of existing light wires. Then compare sizes at RadioShack (or where ever), read the gauge, and you have your gauge number for the connectors and such. If you have trouble with the wire sizes still, guess on the larger size, not smaller. Wires too small can cause problems, such as fires.

2) If you want to do it so that it looks professional, spend some time in your engine bay (above and below), tracing the wires from the headlights. Ideally you should piggyback the fog wires along these lines, since wires hanging around is not a good idea.
- If you are willing to spend the time to learn it, then running the wires to the fuse box, putting in a fuse and relay is the best method. This can take a while to figure out I also highly recommend that you do some googling for basic electrical wiring practices and terms. It will really help.

4) "In Series" means you would have your power running to one light, then leaving that light and going to the second light. Generally not useful, since if your first light burnt out, you could lose power to your 2nd light, depending on how they are designed.
- "In Parallel" means you have the power splitting at some point, and going to each light seperately. When I did mine, i split the power just before the first light.


A few other things you should consider:
- If the 8's wiring harness is completely sealed, opening it may cause warranty trouble later on. Not saying it will void your warranty on electrical components, but your dealer will look at it suspiciously, and depending on what the issue is, may deem it owner "tampering" if it doesn't look professional enough. I secured my wiring to the stock harness with tiny zip-ties, and left the stock harness alone.
- Always give yourself an extra few inches more than you think you need for any splicing. Especially around the lights themselves. I had to replace several pieces the first time due to cutting wires too short, and during trimming the edges and stripping the wires, I pulled the wires completely out of the lights. I wouldn't mess with any wires closer than 6 inches away from your lights, farther if you can.
- Any wiring splicing or connection you do, will need to be completely protected from the elements. And that means more than just electrical tap folded around it. Electrical tape is decent for alot of stuff, but not in your engine bay. Fluctuating temperatures and moisture can destroy the tape's adhesiveness fairly quickly. I highly recommend using shrink-tubing for any connection that you intend on remaining permanent. Get extras for spares, and practice a few times on wires no connected to anything, to get the hang of it. Cutting off an inch of the already too short wire in your engine bay because you messed up the shrink tubing is a pain.
-Secure all loose wiring with zip-ties, you can get a pack of 50 tiny black zip ties for a couple bucks, and worth every penny.

04RX8man

wel the guage of wire all depends on the wattage of the wire (for example a 10,000 watt bulb using 28 AWG wire very small will burn up) I would guess standard 10 or 12 AWG would work..

You can get power from anywhere you want it all depends on what u are looking to do if you want to b able to sit in a parking lot or someting with the car off and still have the lights on wire it to the battery with a switch if you only want to run them when the car is on or in acc wire them to something that's on but i would recommend the battery just for safety procedures especailly for fogs that will need quite a bit of power!

In paraless means you have a sepreate ground and Positive wire going and coming from each light. For example say a wire from ur battery to the switch, after the switch split that wire into to one going to each bulb.. after the bulb a ground wire coming out of each bulb and connected together and one wire to ground or a seperate ground for each bulb does not matter that's paralell!

b'Eight'

Okay, suppose I go by the assumption that the OEM wiring is there which somebody already confirmed and I go buy the OEM fog light switch. The universal projector fog I am interested in uses an H3 bulb. The stock RX-8 bulb is an H11.

1) Are the HID ballast boxes going to care which bulb I use?

2) How do I confirm the relay is in the fuse box already or not? What exactly where and what am I to look for?

Everyone's help has so far been appreciated. Thanks.

04RX8man

the ballast itself will not care but it really depends on the type of kit you got to make sure everyting wires up to a diff bulb...if you don't have fogs its not in there but to check just open jp the fuse box under the hood and ther should b a spot that says fog lights or something like that and it should b empty

A relay is a square plastic thing usually like black, brown, white or grey can't see in them just plastic!

Neil

I got a question relating to this thread, I purchased a xenon kit for my RX8 a while back which included the electrical boxes/bulbs/wires/etc.

The manual made it sound easy but I actually cant figure out how to get the head lights off my RX-8, I un done the obvious looking bolts but nothing came off and I cant work out how to get them off and change them for the new kit.

The current bulbs are the hallogen type.

extremsprt86

iTrader: (2)

i have an extra light switch for rx8 with the foglight switch built in. it will go in place of the turn signal/headlight arm on your steering column, and has the factory fog light switch on it. lemme know if ur interested.

04RX8man

the easiest way that i have found to get to the headlights it take of the front tires and remove teh inner fender and there is an opening in the fender to get right to the low beam bulbs alot easier than removing the bumper or lights themselves...someone might have and easier way but when i did mine it only took about 10 min a side to remove inner plastic fender wire up and get it back together

kainis2k

Much easier and more roomy to just remove the front bumper. No heavy lifting involved either, no jacking up the car which takes extra time. takes about 15 mins to take the bumper off and another 10 to put it back on. i made some videos that show exactly how to do it just search in the DIY section. Reaching through the wheel well is cramped and causes you to half *** some things. Could even break an H7 clip like my brother did when we were doing mine through the fender. Take off the front bumper and headlight assembly, get your alignment right the first time and don't risk breaking anything that way. Anyone who tells you that taking the front bumper off is hard obviously hasn't done it before.

v3rlon

Ok, related question.

I got the fog lights and the switch and put everything on the car. I found the wires that certainly appear to be the ones that would go to the fog lights. However, the connectors on those wires do not fit the 9006 bulbs that came in the factory fog lights.

Is there a ballast box in the factory version of the lights I need to track down? Some other missing component?