Water in Fog light

[WI_4Runner]

Live and drive my 4R in the Great Pacific NorthWET and noticed one fog light has a good bit of water inside it now. About a year or two ago, I noticed MINOR condensation and thanks to another post on this board http://www.toyota-4runner.org/4th-gen-t4rs/191775-anyone-else-getting-water-their-fog-lights.html I was able to remedy the solution as that tubing fix would allow the small amount of moisture to air out.

Fast forward to present and I have about an ounce or so of water in my fog light and it's becoming something I need to address.

I should point out that I am using aftermarket (XenonDepot) HID which I've read can melt some of the seal on the housing.

Does anyone have this problem/know how to diagnose/what steps I should take?

 

[riceandpho]

you can pop out the whole fog light housing, take the bulb out and get the water out. then put the bulb back in and reinstall the housing in the bumper. but check for leaks before the install.


i had a bad seal on my headlight and apparently it held alot of water with the rain going on, took the lights out and drain the water, then pop my whole lights in the oven to reseal the lens and dried the inside, hasnt fogged up yet. i think i had atleast 4 oz of water came out.

 

[Steve Theodore]

you can pop out the whole fog light housing, take the bulb out and get the water out. then put the bulb back in and reinstall the housing in the bumper. but check for leaks before the install.


i had a bad seal on my headlight and apparently it held alot of water with the rain going on, took the lights out and drain the water, then pop my whole lights in the oven to reseal the lens and dried the inside, hasnt fogged up yet. i think i had atleast 4 oz of water came out.

Just wanted to confirm...can you remove the entire fog light housing without removing the front bumper? I'm trying to figure this out on mine right now. Mine is an 08 Sport. Thanks!

 

[riceandpho]

Just wanted to confirm...can you remove the entire fog light housing without removing the front bumper? I'm trying to figure this out on mine right now. Mine is an 08 Sport. Thanks!

Yes you can.
Just make sure to pop loose the adjuster that clips behind the light. There's also clips on each side of the light too.

 

[Steve Theodore]

Yes you can.
Just make sure to pop loose the adjuster that clips behind the light. There's also clips on each side of the light too.

Thank you very much!

 

[ZO Runner]

Had the same issue except with my headlights fogging up. Kept having to take them off and dry them. Got fed up and just replaced them.

 

[Steve Theodore]

Sorry guys and gals but I completely forgot to stop by and post how I dealt with this. I was super frustrated at the idea of removing my bumper to perform a housing repair so I took the chance and just bought some LED bulbs to replace them. I kid you guys not it's a full two years later right now and I still have the same LED bulbs in there working perfectly. I believe it cost me about $12 shipped off eBay.

So, despite being super late with my update...it was a useful easy fix and the water leak into my housing doesn't really phase the new LED bulbs. :cheers:

 

[briholt]

So, you do have to remove the bumper?

Sorry guys and gals but I completely forgot to stop by and post how I dealt with this. I was super frustrated at the idea of removing my bumper to perform a housing repair so I took the chance and just bought some LED bulbs to replace them. I kid you guys not it's a full two years later right now and I still have the same LED bulbs in there working perfectly. I believe it cost me about $12 shipped off eBay.

So, despite being super late with my update...it was a useful easy fix and the water leak into my housing doesn't really phase the new LED bulbs. :cheers:

So, I have about an inch worth of water in my driver side fog light, and found this thread, above riceandPho suggested you didn't have to take the bumper off, did you try that route?

Or did you in fact discover that oh, no, you do have to remove the front bumper assembly to get the fog light housing out? :cheers:

 

[Steve Theodore]

So, I have about an inch worth of water in my driver side fog light, and found this thread, above riceandPho suggested you didn't have to take the bumper off, did you try that route?

Or did you in fact discover that oh, no, you do have to remove the front bumper assembly to get the fog light housing out? :cheers:

I was told by a couple of friends who both work at dealerships that the front bumper had to come off to do the proper fix/replacement. I've heard rumors that it can be done without taking off the bumper cover, but the official repair instructions do call for its removal.

I decided to try my 'cheap LED bulb' fix instead of removing the bumper cover and here I am 2+ years later with the same fix holding up. So, I can tell you that LED bulbs changed the whole dynamic of the repair for me. I hope this helps! :yo:

 

[briholt]

Yeah, that's what I thought. How did you get the water out though?

 

[CookieRoe]

Commenting based on experience.

To remove the headlights, you do not need to remove the bumper.
To remove the foglights, you do not need to remove the bumper.

 

[Steve Theodore]

Yeah, that's what I thought. How did you get the water out though?

I didn't do anything and it seems ultimately pretty dry, meaning I don't really notice water in there. To be fair, I don't pay particularly close attention to it so I guess it's possible that water still gets trapped in there from time to time, just doesn't slow me down as the LED powered foglight continues to work normally.

 

[Steve Theodore]

Commenting based on experience.

To remove the headlights, you do not need to remove the bumper.
To remove the foglights, you do not need to remove the bumper.

Do you happen to have any links to a write-up for that? I'm mainly concerned with the fog light, and I'd like to know how it's done. I was unable to find anything 2 years ago, and obviously chose a different path. Thanks!

 

[briholt]

Do you happen to have any links to a write-up for that? I'm mainly concerned with the fog light, and I'd like to know how it's done. I was unable to find anything 2 years ago, and obviously chose a different path. Thanks!

Yes, I would too.

 

[CookieRoe]

Those asking have a 2006+ model, so.........

Disassemble:

Reassemble:

Hope this helps

 

[Steve Theodore]

Thanks for the links and photos, but it very clearly talks about removing the front bumper cover and then reinstalling it near the end. Are you sure it can be done without removal?

Again, I've never done it...so I'm not trying to be argumentative.

 

[briholt]

See step #2:

"remove front bumper assembly. "

That's the bumper

 

[Steve Theodore]

So I guess for those still saying that this can be done without removing the front bumper cover, I'm still hoping to see how that works. Thanks again.