fog light assemblies rusting through - any aftermarket upgrades?

[sehaare]

While I was under the 98 xlt sohc working on the front suspension I noticed that both fog light assemblies are rusting through. I can find OEM type replacement but the OEM fog lights never were that good, has anyone found some aftermarket fog lights that are pretty much plug and play?

Thanks

 

[Flash]

Pretty much any LED light would be better than the stockers.
As plug and play, cut the pigtails off the old lights and solder them to the light wires.

 

[sehaare]

Pretty much any LED light would be better than the stockers.
As plug and play, cut the pigtails off the old lights and solder them to the light wires.

Thanks, I agree.

I bought the XLT new back in 98 and while the fog lights always sucked, it wasn't worth the time or money to upgrade.

But now that they are rusting out and I have to replace them anyway, I figured I'd see if anyone had come up with aftermarket alternatives.

I'm guessing that there were hundreds of thousands of these sold world wide between 1995-2001 and someone might have figured out that the fogs sucked and could make $$ by coming up with a vehicle specific replacement (or someone here had already done the legwork and found a good alternative).

Steve

 

[Flash]

The '98 has round fogs doesn't it?
How about 2 or 3 inch his projectors?

You could have high and low beam so if you ever do use them in fog you can drop the beam.

I had H7 HIDs in the low beam reflectors in my Mondeo (Contour) and I was surprised just how good they were in fog.

 

[Glacier Explorer]

My '98 XLT has the rectangular fog lights, and I have been thinking of replacing them with a set of PIAA 2100 Series fogs. From what I found, these are some of the only ones that will fit, match the OEM fog light style, and be bright enough to be useful.

 

[elevatorguy925]

My '98 XLT has the rectangular fog lights, and I have been thinking of replacing them with a set of PIAA 2100 Series fogs. From what I found, these are some of the only ones that will fit, match the OEM fog light style, and be bright enough to be useful.

I had the same issue on my 98, I made new brackets and mounted some driving lamps I had bought for another vehicle, not a perfect fit but much better than the stock units.

 

[sehaare]

I think that I want real fog lights instead of driving lights.

I've upgraded the bulbs in the original head lights and found a kit online that puts in relays so that the headlights get their voltage directly from the battery which combined with the new bulbs fixed the horrible OEM headlights. Now I just need something good for crappy weather.

And for the EDIT the 98 is too old for show, now it's all about go, so no fancy HID or LEDs. I'm putting bucks into it to just turn it into a winter beast for the Chicago snow.

 

[Flash]

And for the EDIT the 98 is too old for show, now it's all about go, so no fancy HID or LEDs.

I don't consider my HIDs and LEDs to be for show, they work for a living.
If they weren't superior to OEM they wouldn't be there.

I've found my HID low beams to be better in fog than any fog light I've ever used including OEM BMW, Ford and SAAB as well as Hella.

 

[Flash]

I had the same issue on my 98, I made new brackets and mounted some driving lamps I had bought for another vehicle, not a perfect fit but much better than the stock units.

That's a neat fitment. Do you get a good spread of light from the light bar?

 

[elevatorguy925]

That's a neat fitment. Do you get a good spread of light from the light bar?

The light bar throws a lot of bright light, the spread is pretty good. It was a pretty cheap unit but I am pleased with it, worth the 30 bucks.
I was advertised as fog/flood. I will try to get some pictures at night.

 

[sehaare]

I don't consider my HIDs and LEDs to be for show, they work for a living.
If they weren't superior to OEM they wouldn't be there.

I've found my HID low beams to be better in fog than any fog light I've ever used including OEM BMW, Ford and SAAB as well as Hella.

let me rephrase that I little, there are cheap HID and LED set ups out there that are cheap and are more for looks - take a look at some of the crap on ebay. A good quality HID or LED set up cost more than I want to send on a car this old when I was able to greatly improve the lighting with just better bulbs and wiring. I will (and did) put a lot of money into the things that will keep the car going, tires, suspension, regular maintenance and soon to be new O2 sensors. Didn't mean to imply that the new high tech lighting was a waste of money, just that the cheap stuff that would have been in the price range that I'm looking at.

Steve

 

[Flash]

let me rephrase that I little, there are cheap HID and LED set ups out there that are cheap and are more for looks - take a look at some of the crap on ebay. A good quality HID or LED set up cost more than I want to send on a car this old when I was able to greatly improve the lighting with just better bulbs and wiring. I will (and did) put a lot of money into the things that will keep the car going, tires, suspension, regular maintenance and soon to be new O2 sensors. Did mean to imply that the new high tech lighting was a waste of money, just that the cheap stuff.

Steve

No worries, mate.

You should consider HIDs for fog lights, they work great.