lighting questions

I am not an electrician, I have 2 Hella 500s and a factory fog light switch. Can anyone give me detailed instructions on how to do this? Or should I go about it a different way? Im not getting power to the connectors under the bumper.

Thanks

Mike

First off if you hooked them direct even briefly you probably cooked the switch.
I would check for power at the switch first (in and out).
If you have power there then follow back from the connector under the bumper and look for a relay (small black box).
Test for power there.
I'll check back on this thread and see what you come up with.

First off if you hooked them direct even briefly you probably cooked the switch.
I would check for power at the switch first (in and out).
If you have power there then follow back from the connector under the bumper and look for a relay (small black box).
Test for power there.
I'll check back on this thread and see what you come up with.

crummy double post

A few years ago I installed Hella 500's and had a heck of a time getting them to work. I checked all of my connections and rechecked. Eventually, out of frustration I hit the relay box (with the switch in the 'on' position and my high-beams on) and bam! The lights worked.

Also, what did you hook your switch wire up to? (e.g. high-beam, parking lights?) If it is a fused circuit, check the fuse. My Hella's stopped working one day and I could have sworn it was the relay; however, my left headlight did not work on high (which is where I made the relay/switch connection). I replaced the fuse in the panel in the passenger footwell and it worked.

I've upgraded to IPF's now and haven't looked back one bit, the quality of components is x10 better IMHO. Hella 500's aren't too shabby though...

Hope you can trace the problem and get to enjoying your lights!

P.S. I did not use the factory fog switch, I used the included Hella one.

You need to use the included switch to trigger a relay and use the relay to supply power to the lights. Several diagrams have been posted up on here before showing how to do this. If you can't find them PM me and I will send you one.

I got just the lights and 2 wires running from the housings from a friend that was moving and was going to trash them. thats all I have, I tested for power at the connectors under the bumper under the assumption that if it had the switch inside it should be hooked up! Guess I was way wrong on that! Thats all I have to go on.

Thanks

Mike

Utilizing the factory wiring can sometimes cause more grief than its worth ... especially for beginners.

Much better to make up extra wiring that can be easily removed / disconnected in case of later issues ... without disrupting the factory wiring too much.

The factory foglight wiring is a bit like the factory headlight wiring - barely adequate for the loads of the lamps.

The factory fog light switch is also known to fail regularly too ... probably because just as with the headlight switch ... It carries all the power for the lights instead of just switching a relay.

The factory foglights do use a relay ... but in a back the front method.

Heres a link with a good diagram showing how to upgrade the factory fog wiring. There is probably similiar info here on .

http://www.jeepforum.com/forum/f11/fog-light-wiring-upgrade-653022/#post6198660


Some alternatives.

Forget the factory switch ... and splice into the Lo-Beam wire with a connection to pin #85 on the relay. Hellas are on when Lo-Beam selected ... and go off when Hi-Beam selected.

Alternatively .... splice into the Hi-Beam wire with a connection to pin #85 and the hellas become driving lights .... On when Hi-Beam selected and off when Lo-Beam selected.

If you want ... you can extend the length of the spliced connection so it it goes to a simple on/off over-ride switch on the dash and back to pin #85 ... That way you can turn the hellas off if not needed when the headlights are on.

You can also use an on/off/on switch to to have more turn on options.

Something like in this link --> http://www.autoelectrical.info/drvlites.jpg


Some relay info.

http://www.traxide.com.au/Relay_Info.html
http://www.bcae1.com/relays.htm#demo

Just ensure the relay you buy is correct for the job. Most of the XJ relays have two outputs ... pin #87 ... and pin #87a ... They do different jobs ... One is off when the other is on.

You want to use just pin #87. The two light power wires can be connected to pin #87 ... or better still - a relay with two pin #87 let you connect one light per pin.