Aidjusting fog lamps on 1989 Carrera 911

[Michael T]

One of my fog lamps is aiming too high. i did some searches, but could not find an answer to how I adjust the height of my fog lamps. The later Carreras like mine have the integrated fog lamps that are somewhat recessed into the front lower valiance.

Any help would be appreciated.

[rnln]

if I remember right, grab the hole light hosing and bend it up or down. You will have to loose the but nut/bolt on the back a little to do so.

[Arne2]

Do you really use them? I have no idea how mine are aimed, I doubt I have turned them on in 2 or 3 years. Worthless things, really, don't help vision at all. May go clubs port style when I paint the car someday.

[jeffbottman]

There is an obvious bolt to loosen, then move up/down to suit. I leave mine on always along with the headlights to 'improve' my visibility to the other s>>>>y drivers here in Seattle.

[JJ 911SC]

Originally Posted by Arne2

... I have no idea how mine are aimed...

Generic but it should work: How to Aim Fog Lights | eHow

[wwest]

Originally Posted by jeffbottman

There is an obvious bolt to loosen, then move up/down to suit. I leave mine on always along with the headlights to 'improve' my visibility to the other s>>>>y drivers here in Seattle.

Fog lights have a LOW and Wide, close in, beam pattern, which is why the high beam bulb at reduced power was mostly used in the early days of DRLs.

[porschenut]

I just had my valance and fogs off a couple weeks ago. IIRC, there is no up/down adjustment with the way it's mounted, only side to side. The factory aimed them properly, so it's likely that something impacted one of your fogs and it's out of kilter now. To fix it involves removal of the valance and some bending.

[wrxnofx]

There is a nut that you can reach behind the valance, I want to say it's 17 or 19mm. Loosen it, pull the front of the light down, and put downward pressure on it while re-tightening the nut. My driver's side one was totally out of whack when I bought my '87. The valance limits how much downward travel you can get.

You can also remove the black cover and aim the light a little further down, but then you might not get the black cover back on, as it will interfere with the valance.

[Arne2]

Originally Posted by jeffbottman

There is an obvious bolt to loosen, then move up/down to suit. I leave mine on always along with the headlights to 'improve' my visibility to the other s>>>>y drivers here in Seattle.

That is s actually illegal here in Oregon, fog lights are not supposed to be used except in conditions of impaired visibility.

Obviously, that is frequently ignored by law enforcement. And if you are going to use them for any reason, thank you for caring about having them properly aimed.

[wwest]

Originally Posted by Arne2

That is s actually illegal here in Oregon, fog lights are not supposed to be used except in conditions of impaired visibility.

Obviously, that is frequently ignored by law enforcement. And if you are going to use them for any reason, thank you for caring about having them properly aimed.

More to the point...

Almost all states REQUIRE that the headlights be used, ON, from 30 minutes post sunset to 30 minutes prior to sunrise. It should be pretty obvious that fog lights can have NO positive effects when headlights are on.

So, the only time fog lights can be effective is in foggy (smokey?) conditions in daylight hours and at DEAD SLOW SPEEDS so as to not over-run your shortened distance vision resulting from the low and wide fog light beam pattern.

Even here in Seattle that happens maybe once or twice a year.

Fog lights on modern vehicles are more of a decorative, styling, aspect since they cannot be powered with low beams off.

[jeffbottman]

In my view fog lights are not for MY visibility, they are to make me more visible to other drivers. Every little bit helps. Aimed properly they don't blind anyone. Also improves chances that the 55 mph left lane driver will do the right thing and MOVE OVER.

[detailed 911]

Originally Posted by wwest

Fog lights on modern vehicles are more of a decorative, styling, aspect since they cannot be powered with low beams off.

Hmm, IIRC the fog lights on my 87 operate independent of my headlights.

[wwest]

Originally Posted by detailed 911

Hmm, IIRC the fog lights on my 87 operate independent of my headlights.

Yes, agreed, the statement pertained to more modern cars....

[wwest]

Originally Posted by jeffbottman

In my view fog lights are not for MY visibility, they are to make me more visible to other drivers. Every little bit helps. Aimed properly they don't blind anyone. Also improves chances that the 55 mph left lane driver will do the right thing and MOVE OVER.

Since the fog light beam pattern is low and wide by design then they will not serve well as DRLs. Certainly not as well as the high beam bulb at low power.

[Jesse16]

They really are useless, I removed them and had the valance welded shut when I painted my car.
You'd never convince me they help others "see me" when they are below my high wattage H4's blazing away, they work great! Don't worry about alignment, no-one will know. If you think its aimed high, bend it back lower so it "looks" OK.

[porschenut]

The purpose of fog lights is to illuminate the lane markings and side of the road, so that you don't drive off a cliff in the fog. That's why the beam pattern is wide and low.

I've only needed mine about 5 times in nearly 30 years in Colorado. I think most drivers use them just because they look cool.