Fogs on with high beam?

[HETPE3B]

Nobody is willing to use high beam in the fog
low beams + front and rear fog lights only in fog.

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[EXP Jawa]

Nobody is willing to use high beam in the fog
low beams + front and rear fog lights only in fog.

I wouldn't say nobody - just nobody sane. :headbonk:

There have been many times during rallies where I've had to do exactly that. Mind you, there were very specific conditions - it was lighter fog, not thick pea soup fog. Turned off the long-range driving lights, used high beam only, because lows & fogs just didn't throw light far enough for the speed and terrain. A sensible person would argue that under said conditions, you're going too fast for conditions. But OTOH, one's rally codriver would counter argue that you're still down on time...

There are some specific conditions where you can get sort of used to looking through the back-glare from the lights on the fog. It goes back to what I'd mentioned earlier - there is less eye strain looking through the glare then it is when trying to see with insufficient light. YMMV, but if you compete in night time winter rallies long enough, you deal with driving - briskly - through all sorts of weather and visibility conditions.

At the end of the day, if your goal is really getting more light on the road for improved visibility at night, the only choice is the improve long range lighting. Turning the fogs on is counterproductive. Assuming there are no legitimate upgrades that can be done with the high beams themselves, you need to add driving lights, like on the Toyota pictured above. I've done this on nearly every car I've owned, save for my Mustang (which I don't really drive after dark much). I'm waiting for the aftermarket to provide an S197 GT style grill for the S550, so that mounting lights in the grill work is straight forward.

 

[Walt1120]

How come everyone just attacked the question instead of letting someone answer it? Id honestly like to have my foglights on with the highbeams as well. Not because I plan on flying through fog with them but simply for the fact that its an annoyance when switching between high/low beams at night due to oncoming traffic and the fog lights switch on and off as well.

And why does it matter if its illegal, you guys realize how many aftermarket parts are technically "illegal" right lol. Any cone filter cold air intake kit is illegal in a state which follows cali spec emissions (which is pretty much the west coast states and the northeast), yet no one seems to mention that when someone asks about one . More than half the cars I see on the road drive with their fog lights on at night regardless of weather conditions and ive never heard of anyone getting ticketed over it.. at least around here

 

[Texican1911]

I've often wondered why mine turn off, but here you go, from the TX Transportation code:

Sec. 547.302. DUTY TO DISPLAY LIGHTS. (a) A vehicle shall display each lighted lamp and illuminating device required by this chapter to be on the vehicle:
(1) at nighttime; and
(2) when light is insufficient or atmospheric conditions are unfavorable so that a person or vehicle on the highway is not clearly discernible at a distance of 1,000 feet ahead.
(b) A signaling device, including a stoplamp or a turn signal lamp, shall be lighted as prescribed by this chapter.
(c) At least one lighted lamp shall be displayed on each side of the front of a motor vehicle.
(d) Not more than four of the following may be lighted at one time on the front of a motor vehicle:
(1) a headlamp required by this chapter; or
(2) a lamp, including an auxiliary lamp or spotlamp, that projects a beam with an intensity brighter than 300 candlepower.

So if you have low and high beam bulbs, fogs would make 6. That said, the Mustang has projectors and only 2 beams when the highs are on, so having fogs on would not be illegal in TX.

edit: and also, the notes say TX Transportation code is the same as the federal code 49 C.F.R. Section 571.108

 

[hawkbox]

oye, ok back to the technical portion of this question - barring the arguments of whether you should or shouldn't, legality, pain and suffering, lights so bright they signal aliens, and mad cow disease..... :headbonk:;)
For those of us who use these as a tool for our safety and driving requirements, has anyone found how to do this in software like I was able to do on my Audi?

 

[HETPE3B]

oye, ok back to the technical portion of this question - barring the arguments of whether you should or shouldn't, legality, pain and suffering, lights so bright they signal aliens, and mad cow disease..... :headbonk:;)
For those of us who use these as a tool for our safety and driving requirements, has anyone found how to do this in software like I was able to do on my Audi?

It would be interesting to find out what kind of software Ford is using for coding

 

[ThreePedal]

I really thought this would be an easy question and process. Other cars I've done and seen done have been powering the fog relay so it has power all the time instead of just when the lows are on.

 

[HETPE3B]

I really thought this would be an easy question and process. Other cars I've done and seen done have been powering the fog relay so it has power all the time instead of just when the lows are on.

Relays for powering - this is the old school most of the modern cars are using the light control modules what are in real small computers and depending on the settings they allow or deny something. Nowadays it is a matter of simply coding it in a right way.

 

[madweazl]

Nobody is willing to use high beam in the fog
low beams + front and rear fog lights only in fog.

Having spent many years in the mountains of southern CA that get extremely foggy, having any lights on with the fog lights completely negates the benefits of having them at all. Fog lights with the parking lights on the other hand does provide benefits (and parking lights alone are often very effective as well).

 

[HETPE3B]

Having spent many years in the mountains of southern CA that get extremely foggy, having any lights on with the fog lights completely negates the benefits of having them at all. Fog lights with the parking lights on the other hand does provide benefits (and parking lights alone are often very effective as well).

Right, but I guess we talk here about using the fog lights with a high beam when there is no fog on the road, right?

 

[ThreePedal]

Right, but I guess we talk here about using the fog lights with a high beam when there is no fog on the road, right?

Having the option of fogs on anytime, even by themselves is desirable for some.

 

[HETPE3B]

Having the option of fogs on anytime, even by themselves is desirable for some.

I guess there is no proper option to have the fogs to be on by themselves unless the fogs are set up to work as DRL. Otherwise parking lights are must be on to have the fogs to be on.

 

[MurderPony]

The Fog lights on the 15 GT make a huge difference filling in the gaps on the sides of the light pattern and the High Beams obviously make a huge difference especially with the height of the beam.

I was detoured down on a small very twisty one lane narrow service road to avoid a brush fire the other day with very steep up and down hills and very tight turns. The High Beams helped illuminate the upcoming higher peaks of the road allowing me to avoid scraping while the Fogs helped illuminate the edges of the road when making tight turns.

I switched back and forth 100+ times and I wish I could have had them both on at the same time!

 

[HETPE3B]

The Fog lights on the 15 GT make a huge difference filling in the gaps on the sides of the light pattern and the High Beams obviously make a huge difference especially with the height of the beam.

I was detoured down on a small very twisty one lane narrow service road to avoid a brush fire the other day with very steep up and down hills and very tight turns. The High Beams helped illuminate the upcoming higher peaks of the road allowing me to avoid scraping while the Fogs helped illuminate the edges of the road when making tight turns.

I switched back and forth 100+ times and I wish I could have had them both on at the same time!

This is what I'm talking about. The thing is it's only in the US you cannot have fogs with the high beam. The rest of the world lives perfectly fine with that, and most of them even cannot imagine (unless they have US spec car) that fogs cannot work with high beam for some weird reason

 

[Walt1120]

Regardless if fog lights may interfere with your eyes ability to see as far as compared to just high beams, driving is a 360 degree task. I agree fog lights offer more side lighting on the extreme near left and right than high or low beams, especially on this car. And I often find myself using them even on a clear night just for the added side lighting.

Imo, the eye focus issue when using fogs and the high beams wouldn't be an issue as I (and probably most) are using high beams to just see past the range of low beams, not see as far as possible. Things like immediate guardrails, road signs, and road lines would be much more visible with the fogs and highs vs just highs and it would be very much practical for me to still have things on my near sides and near front clearly visible while still having the added lighting distance of high beams

I would bet that fogs and high beams would provide superior lighting on a hilly dark road if compared to fogs and lows or just highs

Personally id like to make the fogs independent, sort of like a aftermarket kit. This way I could have just the 3 fins and fogs on if I want during the day or dusk/dawn and also be able to have fogs on with both highs and lows

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