Fog lights keep blowing.
 

Last year I did the fog light rewire. Soon after I changed my bulbs to Putco Pure Jet Yellow 3000k.

Within 6 months the left side light bulb went out. I brought them back the the store to have them replaced under 1 year warranty. They were both pretty ugly and burnt/melted looking. So I decided at that time to upgrade quality as well.

I got Piaa Xtreme White Plus 4000k. Now, about 2 months later, the right one has blown out.

I was very careful about installing them and didn't touch the lenses.

I keep the fogs on all the time as driving lights. However I only drive the car on the weekends at most. Sometimes every other weekend. Collectively the Piaas have about 10 hours on them. That seems too soon to be blowing them.

When you did the rewire did you do it correctly? Meaning you only supplied the foglight relay power side with a constant 12V instead of the stock wiring which only applied 12V when the low beams are on. If yes than you retain the foglight fuse and if you are not blowing that fuse thanthe bulbs are to blame. If you did another method that does not retain the fuse then you probably are shorting the bulbs somewhere and with no fuse to protect, pop goes your filaments.

I followed this DIY step for step using the "Omicron's Method" https://www.rx8club.com/series-ii-di...ion%5D-211242/

I believe the fuse is still in use. Saturday I plan to take them back out again. Ill see what they look like then.

Yes that is the same bypass that I have wire'd into my 8. It retains the factory fuse so I would just suspect bad bulbs. Another possibility is bad charging system or battery. but i doubt that considering it would effect many more aspects than your fog lights. I use HiD's in my fog lights so i cannot tell how other bulbs hold up to prolonged use.

I was talking to somebody else about it. He said it may be caused by the initial shock of them flashing on,then off, then back on again during start-up. Putting more strain on the filaments or something. I usually leave the switch on all the time.

When I turn the key on, the lights turn on. When I twist the key to the start position, The lights turn off while cranking, then back on again once engine is started.

That seems like a stretch, many cars with auto lights or DRL do the same thing at startup but don't have any issues.

Yeah, don't do that. Especially if you have HID headlights. It's bad for them. It's not that bloody hard to remember to shut off the headlights when you get out of the car.

DRLs run at reduced power, which limits the shock during startup. Also, most DRLs don't turn on until the e-brake is released and/or the shifter is moved out of Park, so the DRLs don't flash at all when the engine starts.

I don't know why I wrote DRL's I meant auto headlights, my truck had them an they flash every time I got from ignition to start back to ignition. 5yrs still same bulbs no problems, most DRL'S run on a pulsed DC output, hence the lower power. But because of that when upgrading to an HID a 4700micro fared capacitor must be installed partial the HID. But regardless none of this has anything to do with your problem.

I would say get new bulbs or upgrad to HiD from EFX(only place I buy mine from) they have any color you want and I have never had one of there products fail

I hate to ask, but how long do 100% stock, non-fancy fog light bulbs last in your car as it currently is?

I would bet its the "quality" of your aftermarket part failing early by trying to make more light using the same electricity, and then with the constant use you are putting it through (its designed to be an occasional use fog light, not a full time driving light, after all), it overheats from the small area its inside of, and burns out.

Oh, and stop using your fog lights 100% of the time.
Wrong bulbs to use, as they aren't designed for that type of duty cycle.
There's a reason why Mazda used different bulbs on the car as the daylight running lights in Canada.

BC.

Why are we talking HID's when he has clearly mentioned two halogen bulbs?

IMO those "JDM" (usually those enclosures are littered with JDM all over lol) bulbs are the problem. In the past I have used the PIAA bulbs (most PIAA bulbs online are knockoffs fyi) and other "jdm style" (those bulbs that come in those clear plastic enclosures) bulbs and they have almost always failed on me.

It's all relative to wattage, not electricity.

Our cars have an operating voltage from 12-14.5V, fog lights are fused at 15A.
Meaning our fog light circuit can support power ranging from 180-217.5 watts total giving an average around 200W for both foglights or 100W per foglight.
Lumins is determine by candlepower witch is derived from wattage hence higher wattage bulb the brighter it is.

99% of bulbs are 35W most upgrade to 55W regardless our cars will not notice a difference. As bulbs warm up the filament expands increasing resistance which in turn decrease current which decreases you'r nominal power output so a 55W bulb actually operates slightly under 50W. Regardless there are no aftermarket lights that draw more power than Our system can support. The only word of caution is heat, higher wattage generatesore heat and could very well
Melt your fog light housing.

Duty cycles is irrelevant as bulbs are rated at life per hours, and most electricians will argue it is better to leave a light on constantly than to keep turning it on and off as you then limit arching and the amount of times the bulb will see an inrush current which is what will damage the filament.

DRL'S and fog lights are irrelevant fog lights do not operate and DRL anywhere only your parking lights get turned on in a DRL car.


Most people just like the appearance fog lights give I have had my foglights for 6,000 miles of which they are on 99% of the time.

Just buy better quality bulbs

To answer a few questions...

I feel like there are plenty of cars that use 9006 bulbs as auto on all the time. I certainly cant name any right now because I'm not an encyclopedia, but Its not exactly an exotic thing were dealing with.

I like the idea of being seen at any given moment. Any thing that helps is a positive in my book. Maybe its the motorcycle rider in me, But I'm a strong advocate for day time running lights. I think its stupid that Mazda didn't work them into the design of the lighting system.

That being said, In my daily driven Subaru, I leave the lights on all the time, (they turn off with the key) And several cars before I have wired the switches into the fuse box to cut power when the key is off so that I can leave them on.

Ive never gone through bulbs quickly like I have on the 8. I did the rewire to the fogs as DRLs,
1: because there was a convenient DIY thread about it, And
2: because I didn't want to wire in the HIDs to be on all the time.

About wattage: The OEM Sylvania bulbs are 51w. Both the Putco bulbs and the PIAA bulbs I used are 51w. The fog light housings are designed to withstand the heat of the 51w bulbs. No worries there.

About quality: I have not yet put back in the OEM bulbs. I think that will be my next move to see how long they last. However I personally don't regard Sylvania as being superior in any way. I see no reason why they should last longer than any other run-of-the-mill bulb.

The Putco bulbs,I admit, may not be the finest of quality. But I recognized that off the bat and why I upgraded the the PIAA.

Neither the Putco, nor the PIAAs had the "super fly" JDM writing on the packages. I totally understand what you mean though Paimon, Ive seen them before. I was told years ago to stay away from those and have ever since.

I got them from B&B Performance in Branford CT. No shady internet site. Its a very well respected speed shop in my area that has been around forever. I trust that he is buying them from the proper wholesale outlets. Just to prove my point I put in a couple pics of the packaging.

Attachment 229601

This second picture shows the rated wattage on the back of the box of the PIAAs for 51w
Attachment 229602

Attachment 229603

This is the OEM 51w Sylvania that came out of the car originally.
Attachment 229604

In regards to quality, What is the next step above PIAAs? For now I'm just going to put the OEM bulbs back in and replace the PIAAs under warranty. See how long they last.

For that price, why not go with a good set of Hid's longer lasting, brighter(typically) and they draw less current due to the inverters.

I have yet to change any lightbulbs in my Rx8 Gt 04. I do have only 67,000 miles on it only, as I don't drive it all the time and I don't drive it during winter time. Its park right now, Fyi

Got any pics of your setup?. Are your low beams HID?

HID lights are impossible to focus using optics designed for halogen bulbs. The electrical arc inside the HID bulb curves upward, unlike the metal filament in a halogen bulb, so the light emitted from the electrical arc is in the wrong spot to focus properly. HID retrofits are ALWAYS super-obvious because of the intense glare they produce. I can spot them from hundreds of feet away. It's obnoxious. Don't do it.

If those PIAA bulbs are supposed to be brighter than the OEM bulbs, but they use the same power, then the filaments must be getting hotter to produce more light. More heat will wear out the filaments faster. No way to avoid that.

Nothing personal, but perception is not reality.

I like PIAA windshield wipers because they're made of silicone and they last forever. The PIAA wipers on my car are three years old, and all I've ever had to do is wipe the blades with alcohol from time to time to remove grime. However, headlight bulbs are not windshield wipers, and if PIAA designs their bulbs to run hotter than normal to produce more light, they WILL burn out faster, and I won't be spending my money on them regardless of the brand name.

You won't find higher-quality bulbs than Philips or OSRAM/Sylvania. Brighter, probably, but not higher-quality.

The absolute best bulbs I've heard of are Philips Xtreme Power and OSRAM Night Breaker.

I use the same brand of EFX Hid's in all my vehicles, the picture doesn't show it but in my 8 i have low, hi, and fog lights done in red. Gets a ton of attention from just my lights

The Philips Xtreme power boast 80% brighter light (brighter than what? they dont say) at 55w

The Night Breaker boast 90% brighter at 51w.

The Phillips I can understand making the claim to be brighter because it has the higher wattage to back it up. Whereas the Night Breaker seems to be in the same boat at the PIAA. Making brighter claims,yet using the same wattage.

So if I understand correctly, to make a filament brighter it needs to be hotter. And if you are making it hotter without increasing the wattage, What are they doing to make it hotter? My guess is a thinner more fragile filament.

Now whos to say Phillips isn't also using a super thin fillament? 80% brighter is a pretty large claim based only on 4w gain, assuming they are basing it on my stock 51w.

Someone mentioned earlier that most bulbs are at 35w. That would be a significant gain when compared to the Phillips 55w. However when doing a google search for "9006 35w" The only results are xenon hid. Therefore I assume all 9006 bulbs are in the 50watt range.

Conversely, The Sylvania Silver Star Ultra boast 50% brighter at 55w. Once again 50% more than what?...

But does it actually help you see? That *is* the primary purpose of headlights.

I don't know what methods Philips and OSRAM use to produce more light. Perhaps they use a stronger proprietary tungsten alloy in their filaments; perhaps they support the filament against vibration better; perhaps their quartz bulb shells are better quality so they're less likely to develop gas leaks over time. I dunno. I'm just saying that I've heard good things about them from both a brightness and reliability standpoint, whereas I've heard nothing about PIAA bulbs' reliability.

Actually, the answer to that question is usually a used bulb, at 50% or more of its rated life.

So if the Bulb has a rated life of 2000 hours, they will run it for 1000 hours, measure the various specs, and then compare their brand new bulb to it. Any difference is where they come up with the 50% better claims.

You can usually find this information on their websites somewhere, buried.

BC.