driving lights question

96terrano · 12-08-2013, 23:26

Just wondering, is it legal to have a set of spotlights wired in so they come on with the high beams? No problem if not, just thinking of how ill sort out the switch gear for my Hyundai's lighting as I wanted to have the yellow ones on a separate fog light switch to everything else

Lazy-Ferret · 12-08-2013, 23:32

You must get the names right...

Spot lights, must only come on with main beam, and can have an isolator switch, so you can switch them off.

Front Fog lights, can only come on with parking lights and/or dipped beam, must not come on with main, or no other lights.

Driving lights, are technically not legal, as most police will call them fog lights, and stop you if you have them on when it is not foggy.

Then there are Day Light running lights, which can be on during the day with no other lights, but must either drop to a low power, or go off completely when you turn the lights on.

96terrano · 13-08-2013, 00:08

Right, ill explain with the pic, basically see those lights in the middle on the grill, well I was wanting those to come on with the main beams, and go off with the dip beam, and have the yellow lights witch will fit in those blanks in the bumper, have those on a switch seprate to everything else

Would this be ok?

Lazy-Ferret · 13-08-2013, 00:16

Yep, the ones up by the Grill, are spot lights, so must only come on when the main beam is on.

The lower ones are Fog Lights, there are limits on the hight from the ground a fog light can be, where as Spots want to be up higher to enable the beam to travel further. Fogs should be wired up so they can only come on when you have the parking lights on, or via the dipped beam.

96terrano · 13-08-2013, 00:30

Quote:

Originally Posted by Lazy-Ferret

Yep, the ones up by the Grill, are spot lights, so must only come on when the main beam is on.

The lower ones are Fog Lights, there are limits on the hight from the ground a fog light can be, where as Spots want to be up higher to enable the beam to travel further. Fogs should be wired up so they can only come on when you have the parking lights on, or via the dipped beam.

Ahh thanks for that, just now the spots are wired in via a relay and switch, but will be easy enough to change them to run off the main beam

My Hyundai doesn't have the parking lights, so could I just have the fogs on a seprate switch?

Lazy-Ferret · 13-08-2013, 00:48

Quote:

Originally Posted by 96terrano

Ahh thanks for that, just now the spots are wired in via a relay and switch, but will be easy enough to change them to run off the main beam

My Hyundai doesn't have the parking lights, so could I just have the fogs on a seprate switch?

You must have parking lights... they are a legal requirement when parking a car on many roads at night.. Some oldies, still refer to them as "Side lights", but when they changed the law to make it illegal to drive in just those lights many years ago, they were re-classified as parking lights. You should know this, as you would have read it in your highway code...

briggie · 13-08-2013, 13:43

driving lamps are generally lower wattage than fog lamps , the problem arises when people use fog lamps as driving lamps .

12-08-2013, 23:26	#1
96terrano Senior Member Join Date: Jun 2010 Location: Dumfries and Galloway, Scotland Vehicle: Nissan Terrano 2.7TD LWB Posts: 8,024	driving lights question Just wondering, is it legal to have a set of spotlights wired in so they come on with the high beams? No problem if not, just thinking of how ill sort out the switch gear for my Hyundai's lighting as I wanted to have the yellow ones on a separate fog light switch to everything else

12-08-2013, 23:32	#2
Lazy-Ferret Senior Member Join Date: Jun 2012 Location: Sevenoaks, Kent Vehicle: Terrano 2.7TDi SE Touring Posts: 5,221	You must get the names right... Spot lights, must only come on with main beam, and can have an isolator switch, so you can switch them off. Front Fog lights, can only come on with parking lights and/or dipped beam, must not come on with main, or no other lights. Driving lights, are technically not legal, as most police will call them fog lights, and stop you if you have them on when it is not foggy. Then there are Day Light running lights, which can be on during the day with no other lights, but must either drop to a low power, or go off completely when you turn the lights on.

13-08-2013, 00:08	#3
96terrano Senior Member Join Date: Jun 2010 Location: Dumfries and Galloway, Scotland Vehicle: Nissan Terrano 2.7TD LWB Posts: 8,024	Right, ill explain with the pic, basically see those lights in the middle on the grill, well I was wanting those to come on with the main beams, and go off with the dip beam, and have the yellow lights witch will fit in those blanks in the bumper, have those on a switch seprate to everything else Would this be ok?

13-08-2013, 00:16	#4
Lazy-Ferret Senior Member Join Date: Jun 2012 Location: Sevenoaks, Kent Vehicle: Terrano 2.7TDi SE Touring Posts: 5,221	Yep, the ones up by the Grill, are spot lights, so must only come on when the main beam is on. The lower ones are Fog Lights, there are limits on the hight from the ground a fog light can be, where as Spots want to be up higher to enable the beam to travel further. Fogs should be wired up so they can only come on when you have the parking lights on, or via the dipped beam.

13-08-2013, 13:43	#7
briggie Senior Member Join Date: Mar 2010 Location: peoples democratic republic of west yorkshire Vehicle: " alice " Posts: 10,473	driving lamps are generally lower wattage than fog lamps , the problem arises when people use fog lamps as driving lamps .