OEM fog lights out - bulbs and relay are good - ideas?

[wbp24runner]

Hi guys,

I recently failed the safety inspection because my fog lights were out (these are the standard fog lights on a 2000 Toyota 4Runner Limited Edition model).

I thought, "This is an easy do-it-yourself (DIY) project". Well, I bought two new H3 55-watt bulbs and installed them, but no lights. So I got a multimeter and confirmed that no voltage was being supplied to either fog light. After reading a few posts here on the forum, I switched out the fog-relay with another identical relay, but still, no lights.

Any ideas?

I'm pretty sure the driver-side and passenger-side fog light wiring is in parallel because (1) I've had only one fog light go out before and (2) I didn't see +12V on either side when I checked with the multimeter. The lack of +12V makes me think there is a common problem somewhere else in supplying voltage to both fog lights.

Also, just to be thorough in my post, the driver-side housing must have gotten water in it, because it was very corroded inside.

So to sum up: The bulbs are good and the relay under the hood appears good; the wiring on the driver-side looks good, but could be suspect because of some corrosion. I don't know what else to check. Any ideas?

 

[LSUMBA]

Why would they even care about your fog lights for an inspection? Not every car has them, so why is this a requirement? As long as your headlights work, I cannot see why they would care about fog lights.

 

[keylay31]

My left front fog light isnt working either. Havent had a chance to check it out, but its only 1 year old vehicle, don't know what the problem is. Is this covered under warranty? If it is, I'll let the dealer worry about it.

 

[sharp4runr]

Why would they even care about your fog lights for an inspection? Not every car has them, so why is this a requirement? As long as your headlights work, I cannot see why they would care about fog lights.

As far as I know, any equipped light MUST work.

 

[drmorbius]

I would look at the fuses under the hood (same box as the relays). I'm sure that circuit is fuse protected.

 

[SP Jon M3]

Have you checked the fuse?

 

[drmorbius]

My left front fog light isnt working either. Havent had a chance to check it out, but its only 1 year old vehicle, don't know what the problem is. Is this covered under warranty? If it is, I'll let the dealer worry about it.

I would bet that you have a burned out bulb. I don't think thats covered but hey give it a try!

 

[wbp24runner]

Hi guys,

Yes, I have replaced both bulbs (so they are good), and I have checked all the fuses (which all are good, including those that are unrelated to my fog lights), and I tried swapping out the relay (with an identical part), but that didn't seem to help (see below).

I measured the voltage at the relay (the battery side), and it was getting the required +12V. I could probably try getting some leads pushed down with the relay contact so that I could measure the fog light side, but as I said, I don't believe the relay is the problem. The tail lights use the same relay as the fog lights, and when I swapped them, my tail lights still worked.

So, once again, I am out of ideas. Is there anything "downstream" from the relay to the fog lights that could have gone bad? Does anyone have any wiring diagrams? I really don't want to try to trace them down to the fog lights.

Regarding the inspection, Virginia is very strict on all things related to traffic, so I would agree with the previous post - if there is a light, they expect it to work.

 

[drmorbius]

Hi guys,

Yes, I have replaced both bulbs (so they are good), and I have checked all the fuses (which all are good, including those that are unrelated to my fog lights), and I tried swapping out the relay (with an identical part), but that didn't seem to help (see below).

I measured the voltage at the relay (the battery side), and it was getting the required +12V. I could probably try getting some leads pushed down with the relay contact so that I could measure the fog light side, but as I said, I don't believe the relay is the problem. The tail lights use the same relay as the fog lights, and when I swapped them, my tail lights still worked.

So, once again, I am out of ideas. Is there anything "downstream" from the relay to the fog lights that could have gone bad? Does anyone have any wiring diagrams? I really don't want to try to trace them down to the fog lights.

Regarding the inspection, Virginia is very strict on all things related to traffic, so I would agree with the previous post - if there is a light, they expect it to work.

I guess I'd look at the switch first and then the wiring. From what you say it sounds like water got in to that one light and if you turned it on like that its a dead short so anywhere in the supply to the lights. But it's funny it didn't blow the fuse. Good luck.

 

[sharp4runr]

Yeah the switch would be a major fail point to look at since you already replaced the relay. Have you verified the sockets themselves are functional? Maybe try to wire the light up directly to the battery to verify the lights fire.

 

[wbp24runner]

Hi guys,

Thank you for the help, but I am an idiot (smile). First, the fog light switch must be turned on (its the inner rotating switch on your light switch)! and then you have to have your low beams on. After that, the magical +12V appears. Sheesh. Problem solved.

 

[wbp24runner]

Just to re-iterate some of my troubleshooting steps (prior to solving the "no fog lights" problem)...

1) installed new bulbs (but no light)
2) pulled relay and measured +12V on battery side.
3) turned on lights and measured +12V on solenoid side (relay still out)
4) swapped tail-light relay with fog-light relay (they are identical parts) to verify that the relay worked
5) verified connectivity from battery-side contact to the light
6) turned on the fog lights and put lights on low beams and...voila!... Let there be light...and there was.

The two contacts in the relay slot farthest from the driver seat are for the solenoid. The two contacts closest to the driver seat are used to power the fog lights. When you turn on the fog lights, +12V is supplied to the solenoid, which "switches" on the other two contacts, allowing juice to flow to the fog lights.

Anyway, hope this helps someone else. But the moral of the story is, "Turn the device ON."

Sheesh.

 

[truckhigh]

hahahahha

that was funny!!!:biggrin2:

 

[bill B]

2001 fog lights

Hello All, my fog lights do not come on. I have read the posts and have only one light switch, which is the left side, light /directional. Am I missing something in this switch and activating and turning on my fog lights?
I have checked and have only one switch on this light switch directional assemblys shown on page 84 of the owners manual. The switch shown on page 86 (with the on/off) of the manual is not installed in my vehicle.

 

[kaizer427]

Assuming you have a forth gen, it should be on the left side of the steering wheel on the turn signal lever. It is a small collar that rotates, I believe rotating it towards the front of the car is on.

 

[nysimonsez]

I actually just got the exact problem. I started up my car last night and all of the sudden both fogs didn't work. I had worked the night before. I switched out the relay and didn't work. Then I checked the fuse and it's fine. I will check the bulbs next but I don't think it would be the issue, I would be surprised if both are blown at the same time. Can the light switch stalk be the issue? how can I check that?

thanks

 

[Sifrk]

Sister is in town. She bought my 05 4runner SE just over four months ago. Noticed last night her fog lights weren't working. Fuse is fine, haven't checked the relay hence the question. On the panel cover it is labeled "J/B" according to a pic of the fuse box from another post. Hoping someone is still watching this thread. Thanks.

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-N920A using Tapatalk

 

[riceandpho]

Sister is in town. She bought my 05 4runner SE just over four months ago. Noticed last night her fog lights weren't working. Fuse is fine, haven't checked the relay hence the question. On the panel cover it is labeled "J/B" according to a pic of the fuse box from another post. Hoping someone is still watching this thread. Thanks.

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-N920A using Tapatalk

make sure the stalk is not in high beam mode?