Hi there! Installed after market fog lights to my Toyota Hiace van. I
used a 30 amp relay and switch mounted in the dash. Not sure of the
gauge of wire that came with the kit to attach to the battery, but it
seemed like it was 15 amp, with a 15 amp fuse. Tapped a wire into the
park lights etc...
However when I flicked the switch, park lights came on, but no fog
lights. Checked everything, all the connections on the relay seemed to
be in the right place. Can anybody give me advice on where I may have
gone wrong as I am a novice.
Thanks!
JoeSpareBedroom - 20 Jun 2007 13:50 GMT
> Hi there! Installed after market fog lights to my Toyota Hiace van. I
> used a 30 amp relay and switch mounted in the dash. Not sure of the
[quoted text clipped - 8 lines]
>
> Thanks!
OK - I see an error right away, either in your installation concept, or your
explanation. You said that when you flick "the switch", the park lights
work, but the fog lights do not. This suggests that you WANT them to
activate simultaneously, which is wrong. Fog lights should function
independently from your normal car lights for more than one reason. They are
a driving tool for certain driving situations. They are not cool. They
should not be on at all times, especially since most home-brewed
installations result in their being aligned incorrectly, which makes other
drivers want to kill you.
Disconnect all components and start over again. If the instructions tell you
to mingle the wiring with that of the park light system, the instructions
are wrong. What do they really say?
bazooka01 - 21 Jun 2007 11:55 GMT
> > Hi there! Installed after market fog lights to my Toyota Hiace van. I
> > used a 30 amp relay and switch mounted in the dash. Not sure of the
[quoted text clipped - 22 lines]
> to mingle the wiring with that of the park light system, the instructions
> are wrong. What do they really say?
Thanks for your opinion. But I have a wiring problem, not an image
problem.
bazooka01 - 21 Jun 2007 12:10 GMT
> > Hi there! Installed after market fog lights to my Toyota Hiace van. I
> > used a 30 amp relay and switch mounted in the dash. Not sure of the
[quoted text clipped - 22 lines]
> to mingle the wiring with that of the park light system, the instructions
> are wrong. What do they really say?
Joe! The switch I was referring to is an independent switch to the
relay. This switch turned on the park lights ,(don't know what you
call them in the states), independently, so that I don't have to have
them on all the time. I am a courier in Wellington NZ and visibility
is very important in gloomy weather for my type of work. It keeps me
safe and more importantly, keeps pedestrians and other traffic fully
aware of my presence. We have similar regulations here, and are
strictly monitored by the authorities. I DO NOT WANT TO BE COOL, JUST
SAFE!
Thanks for your suggestions people. I'll let you know how I get on...
Any more ideas let me know!
Cheers!
JoeSpareBedroom - 21 Jun 2007 13:48 GMT
>> > Hi there! Installed after market fog lights to my Toyota Hiace van. I
>> > used a 30 amp relay and switch mounted in the dash. Not sure of the
[quoted text clipped - 41 lines]
>
> Cheers!
OK - so when you turn on the independent switch, the park lights come on.
(We call them parking lights). Sounds like you got your power from the
parking light circuit. The switch should not get its power from any
"crucial" circuit - any accessory that MUST work in order to drive safely.
In my Tacoma, I have two cigarette lighter plugs in the dash, although I
think they're now called accessory plugs, since less people smoke and more
people have cell phone chargers and things like that. Those two plugs turn
off with the key, and although I haven't consulted the manual because it's
pouring rain outside, I believe they have nothing else on the same circuit
except the dome light. If I were installing fog lights, that would be a
circuit I'd consider using for power.
What brand & model are your fog lights?
GO Mavs - 21 Jun 2007 20:29 GMT
>> > Hi there! Installed after market fog lights to my Toyota Hiace van. I
>> > used a 30 amp relay and switch mounted in the dash. Not sure of the
[quoted text clipped - 36 lines]
> strictly monitored by the authorities. I DO NOT WANT TO BE COOL, JUST
> SAFE!
DONT WASTE YOUR TIME WITH JOE. HE IS THE NEWSGROUP D_CKFACE!
JoeSpareBedroom - 21 Jun 2007 20:33 GMT
>>> > Hi there! Installed after market fog lights to my Toyota Hiace van. I
>>> > used a 30 amp relay and switch mounted in the dash. Not sure of the
[quoted text clipped - 39 lines]
>
> DONT WASTE YOUR TIME WITH JOE. HE IS THE NEWSGROUP D_CKFACE!
Got any good ideas for solving the OP's problem, air head?
Mark - 20 Jun 2007 14:03 GMT
You should listen to Joe, he knows absolutely nothing about cars but
he *is* very accustomed to other drivers (in fact, practically
*everyone* around him) wanting to kill him.
> Hi there! Installed after market fog lights to my Toyota Hiace van. I
> used a 30 amp relay and switch mounted in the dash. Not sure of the
[quoted text clipped - 8 lines]
>
> Thanks!
JoeSpareBedroom - 20 Jun 2007 14:06 GMT
> You should listen to Joe, he knows absolutely nothing about cars but
> he *is* very accustomed to other drivers (in fact, practically
> *everyone* around him) wanting to kill him.
Got any better suggestions for the OP, Mark? I've installed probably two
dozen sets of fog & driving lights. How about you?
Mark - 20 Jun 2007 14:30 GMT
It must have been your extensive installation experience that prompted
you to supply this gem - "Disconnect all components and start over
again."
Wow Joe, I can't believe you recalled such an obscure tip from your
obvious wealth of knowledge of all things automotive. When Ray goes
on vacation we now know who will step in and answer all the tough
questions...
> Got any better suggestions for the OP, Mark? I've installed probably two
> dozen sets of fog & driving lights. How about you?
JoeSpareBedroom - 20 Jun 2007 14:37 GMT
> It must have been your extensive installation experience that prompted
> you to supply this gem - "Disconnect all components and start over
> again."
The suggestion is perfect. Got any better advice? If not, don't clutter the
discussion.
GO Mavs - 21 Jun 2007 04:08 GMT
> You should listen to Joe, he knows absolutely nothing about cars but
> he *is* very accustomed to other drivers (in fact, practically
> *everyone* around him) wanting to kill him.
I put that dick lick on ignore. He is a complete and utter assface...
jor - 20 Jun 2007 15:14 GMT
> Hi there! Installed after market fog lights to my Toyota Hiace van. I
> used a 30 amp relay and switch mounted in the dash. Not sure of the
[quoted text clipped - 8 lines]
>
> Thanks!
A bad ground is often the culprit in electrical problems. An easy way
to test your ground is to use a 12v test light. Good luck.
jor
Ray O - 20 Jun 2007 18:07 GMT
> Hi there! Installed after market fog lights to my Toyota Hiace van. I
> used a 30 amp relay and switch mounted in the dash. Not sure of the
[quoted text clipped - 8 lines]
>
> Thanks!
Judging from your address, I assume you are in New Zealand, and I am not
aware of the regulations regarding the use of fog lights there. In the
U.S., Toyotas are wired so that the fog lights can only be activated with
the low beam headlights on, and are de-activated when the high beam
headlights are in use.
If you have a 12 volt test light or volt meter, check to see if power is
coming to the fog light sockets. If power is coming to the sockets, check
the ground for the sockets and the bulbs themselves.
As far as how you have wired your lights, assuming that you want a simple
setup that is independent of the operation of the other lights, the easiest
way to wire would be to have power coming from the fused side of a switched
power source in the fuse box to the switch, and then from the switch to the
relay, and then wire the switched side of the relay directly to the battery.

Signature
Ray O
(correct punctuation to reply)
JeB - 21 Jun 2007 01:13 GMT
>Hi there! Installed after market fog lights to my Toyota Hiace van. I
>used a 30 amp relay and switch mounted in the dash. Not sure of the
[quoted text clipped - 6 lines]
>be in the right place. Can anybody give me advice on where I may have
>gone wrong as I am a novice.
a budget multi-meter would be helpful but I can testify and blush
about a problem I had. The switch was one of the lighted type and I
picked the wrong terminals running the power to the driving lites
thru the light in the switch ... which doesn't work. You might try
starting with that if a lighted switch.
Hachiroku ハチロク - 21 Jun 2007 03:15 GMT
> Hi there! Installed after market fog lights to my Toyota Hiace van. I used
> a 30 amp relay and switch mounted in the dash. Not sure of the gauge of
[quoted text clipped - 8 lines]
>
> Thanks!
Check that you have a good ground. If possible, ground them to the same
point as the relay.
ron - 21 Jun 2007 03:50 GMT
have you a positve ground? It sounds to me like you might only have one
wire and mount is to a plastic part? ie no current flow.
Nick Bourne - 21 Jun 2007 14:02 GMT
> Hi there! Installed after market fog lights to my Toyota Hiace van. I
> used a 30 amp relay and switch mounted in the dash. Not sure of the
[quoted text clipped - 8 lines]
>
> Thanks!
I assume you mean the park lights come on normally but you can't get the
fog lights to work.
For the switch you want the following.
Wire from the park light to the switch then to terminal 85 of the relay,
then from terminal 86 to earth.
For the lights.
Wire from the battery positive to a fuse, to terminal 30 of the relay,
then from terminal 87 to the lights, the from the lights to the earth.
If you have any problems I would look at earth points as these need to
be bare metal connections to work properly.