[Clutch Cargo]

Do these things have any real function? Or are they just for show? I always thought "fogs" were the amber lights that you could switch on to make yourself more visible to other cars, in fog or evening dusk.

[ant]

My understanding (and I could be well wide here ) is that the idea of front fogs is to provide light lower down than normal headlights.

If you put high beam on when driving in fog, it tends to have the same effect as driving with a mirror in fromt of you.

The low-down light does not reflect back at you, and may also "cut through" the fog lower down as well.

At least that's what I think.



(bracing myself for being shot down in flames now )

[BruceK]

Quote:

Originally posted by ant
My understanding (and I could be well wide here ) is that the idea of front fogs is to provide light lower down than normal headlights.

If you put high beam on when driving in fog, it tends to have the same effect as driving with a mirror in fromt of you.

The low-down light does not reflect back at you, and may also "cut through" the fog lower down as well.

At least that's what I think.

(bracing myself for being shot down in flames now )

That's exactly right. Front fog lamps are supposed to cut through the fog to enable you to see the road and drive without reflecting back off of the fog itself. At one point, some manufacturers thought yellow, instead of white, light helped out more in fog. That seems to have been a fad. Front fog lamps have a different pattern from front driving lights which are designed to supplement the headlights in clear weather (not really needed these days with modern headlight technology). Of course the cheap front fog lamps (think K-mart) are mostly for looks and don't really provide help in fog.

Clutch Cargo, it's the rear fog lamps (bright red in color)that are there to mark the position of the car so other cars can see you. Unfortunately, rear fog lamps are only well known in Europe and 99% of cars in the US don't have them. Of the 1% that do, most owners/dealers are clueless of their existance and purpose.

[Fallschirmjeager]

... nothing either irks me more or makes me laugh at how clueless we sometimes are than when I see some guy driving down GA-400 in the hot, dry, summer in his (insert expensive euroname here) with both front and rear fog lights going full blast.

If I remember correctly, I think I used the fogs on my old Audi maybe twice a year when I owned it.

[Sejanus]

I'm not sure how much of a difference they make, but since I practically live on a river bottom and we get days and days of really thick fog here in the winter I'll take any edge I can get no matter how slim. Since I may end up with a prespecced car, does anyone know how hard it would be to add front fogs on a MINI that didn't come with them? I assume it would be really simple.

The only good reason to get fog lights is because they look cool. Or additional headlights ala Italian Job.

Ricardo
www.pileofgarbage.com

[Paul]

Quote:

Originally posted by ricardop
The only good reason to get fog lights is because they look cool. Or additional headlights ala Italian Job.

That and the fact they help you see in the fog, if you live by or drive on country roads in the morning/evening especially in the winter a lot, fog lights (front and rear) are a real good safety feature.

When it's not foggy they become the opposite!

[PIT]

@ ricardop:
What does look "cool" against a Mini2 without foglights ??
If they´re switched off, You can´t see them.

But: Driving on a cornered landroad at night..
I won´t miss their brightness.

[DavidB]

The primary reason for having fog lights on a MINI is so you don’t have an empty switch hole in the dash.

Dave

[-vk-]

Hmmm, quite interesting. I didn’t know that rear fogs are nearly unknown in the US of A. Here in Germany the front fogs are optional, so it can’t be a big deal to have them fitted later.
And yes, they really do help in sh.... weather!

[ScottyHP]

Im with DavidB on this one, they look cool and avoid a missing switch in the centre console

On a serious note they are invaluble down un-lit country lanes and for there main reason in fog (and even severe rain conditions to improve visability)

Only my very first car didn't have them so I suppose Im just used to having them.