Nonamedude Posted January 9, 2020 Share Posted January 9, 2020 So I have an 08 OBXT, which unfortunately has a very specific front end. That said, I get stuck in major snow storms something like once a year. It's not going to stop so I'd like to make it better. Aside from doing independent fog lights (haven't gotten to it yet) I'd like better fog lights. Usable not just aesthetic ones. Found a good write up on Tacoma world comparing a bunch but was wondering if anyone had experience with anything drop in. Thought about getting bars for the lower bumper slot but wasn't sure how much airflow I'll ultimately block to the radiator. Trs sells some morimotos that fit the legacy. Piaa, rigid, hella, kc all have sae approved fog lights ranging from 200-450 but it's hard to find good info on them. Tl;Dr drop in usable foglight upgrades for snow storms on the 08 outback. Don't care about bulb type. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fedaykin Posted January 13, 2020 Share Posted January 13, 2020 I have morimotos. They have a nice beam, but all it does is add a bit of light in front of the bumper and onto the sides, can barely tell they are on. I have OEM HIDs. Off topic: Do a retrofit of your headlights, much better result. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nonamedude Posted January 13, 2020 Author Share Posted January 13, 2020 I was looking at those but saw some reviews of ice build up in foul weather. Fogs should only shoot out about 50ft and really you shouldn't have them on if you're driving over 40mph. If I was just looking for an aesthetic light I'd get those. I plan to do his eventually. Likely just the mini h1 retro but I don't have money for that any time soon. And if it's snowing so bad you need fogs, having your low beams on only makes it worse. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fedaykin Posted January 15, 2020 Share Posted January 15, 2020 Ice build up inside the fog housing? If it's outside, wouldn't you just brush it away before driving (after clearing your windows, headlights, taillights, etc.)? I can't say I've driven in snow much (only once actually). Our "snowy mountains" area just got hit with bushfires. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nonamedude Posted January 15, 2020 Author Share Posted January 15, 2020 Ice build up inside the fog housing? If it's outside, wouldn't you just brush it away before driving (after clearing your windows, headlights, taillights, etc.)? I can't say I've driven in snow much (only once actually). Our "snowy mountains" area just got hit with bushfires. Haha yes you would. Bad snow storms will build up as you drive. Halogen lamps put off enough heat to melt the snow. As so some led lamps like the big ones made by rigid. The worst storm I've been in was a white out in North Carolina. The snow there is real wet so it would hit the windshield and melt then refreeze from the wind chill on the edges of the windshield and work it's way towards the center as well as build up on the wipers. The first hour was OK but by hour 3 we had to get out every fifteen minutes or so and scrape the windowshield and wiper blades off. 1.5-2hr drive was about 4hrs. I'm happy the outback has heated windshield wipers. Obviously that's an extreme and actual white out blizzard that we didn't intend to get stuck in. More typical is last year driving back from Nevada in February and got stuck in a big storm in Southern Utah. Was passing semis who had slid off the road as we apparently were out in front of the plows. Stopped for a restroom break and had to cut it short so we didn't get snowed in out in the middle of nowhere. I was able to maintain about 40mph so fogs wouldn't do much but the 4 hour drive took 8. Sucks to hear about the wildfires though. We've gotten 6 feet in the mountains in the last week. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nonamedude Posted January 15, 2020 Author Share Posted January 15, 2020 For relevance to the thread though. My current plan is to take some measurements and see what will fit. I'm likely to try fabbing some brackets to use the kc lights g4 but I haven't gotten measurements yet to know if it'll fit. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nevets27 Posted January 15, 2020 Share Posted January 15, 2020 (edited) Ford projector fogs. Requires retrofitting. I'll get a link to my build thread. I don't think I have an output shot but they have a usable beam for bad weather. https://legacygt.com/forums/showpost.php?p=5751854&postcount=18 There is output shots of those projectors out there if you would like to see how they look. Not sure if the Outback has a different mount but these can be retrofitted in a different way if need be. Edited January 15, 2020 by nevets27 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nonamedude Posted January 15, 2020 Author Share Posted January 15, 2020 A thorough and excellent post. I'll have to look into that some more as I'm not opposed to projector style fogs. For a long time I had looked at the hella DE but I think they aren't really considered that great anymore. Unfortunately the outback has a completely different and more old school set up. I think the back of the bumper may be similar to the legacy, but the light is like a 5" circular halogen reflector with no real cover or bezel. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
outahere Posted January 19, 2020 Share Posted January 19, 2020 FYI, there is no such thing as "SAE approved" or "DOT approved" automotive lighting. https://www.truck-lite.com/content/news/sae-vs-dot-truth-about-lighting-regulations https://www.candlepowerforums.com/vb/showthread.php?437738-Recommendation-for-a-DOT-legal-LED-driving-or-fog-light&highlight=fog ...There is no such thing as "DOT approved" or "SAE approved" lights. Neither DOT nor SAE approve lights. An SAE or DOT lens marking is put there by the maker of the lamp, and it's their own certification that the lamp meets whichever SAE standard or aspect of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard 108 applies to that lamp. There is no pre-testing by DOT or SAE or any assigned lab, etc; you have to trust the maker is telling the truth. The reputable companies do tell the truth, but the fast-buck artists don't... Look for foglights that conform to the latest SAE J583 F3 specification. https://www.candlepowerforums.com/vb/showthread.php?456564-Rigid-DOT-selective-yellow-Fog-Lamps&highlight=fog ...SAE J583 contains two fog lamp specifications. The old "F" specification and the newer "F3" specification which requires much higher performance in terms of light output and distribution as well as control of glare and stray light.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nonamedude Posted January 19, 2020 Author Share Posted January 19, 2020 Eh wordings. I meant compliant. The stuff from rigid and kc are at least designed to sae j583 standards. Idk about the f vs f3. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nonamedude Posted January 19, 2020 Author Share Posted January 19, 2020 I also don't get caught up in independent testing. I work for a company that makes medical devices and fda has been on site all week. But no one outside our company tests our products. We do the testing and publish the info and auditors come and check every now and then and we get massive fines if the paper work isn't in order. Since I'm planning to avoid unknown stuff, I figure if hella, kc, rigid, piaa claim sae j583 that's likely good enough. My current fogs are 100% useless anyway Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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