(15-03-2012 10:04pm)BobM Wrote: I will start by saying dont try this on your own unless you have a resonably good mechanical knowledge and a set of smallish Torx bits - oh and patience and thin arms and a large vocabulary of swear words (I only have the last attribute).
I was one of those who, in the mad rush to order my car, didnt notice the car didnt come with - then didnt have time to add - front fog lights.
The car arrived and the silver plastic fog light shaped inserts were not doing anything for me or IMHO the front 'look'of the car. I managed to get a set of fog lights off Ebay and was happy once again
Boy was I in for a shock. I will take this opportunity to apologise for not having any photos of the job as it progressed but if I had to do that as well I probably wouldnt be able to write this as there is apparently very little movement in a straightjacket.
I decided to do this the easy way (Oh really!!) and not completely remove the front bumper. I really only wanted the fog lights for 'show' and didnt intend to ever wire them up. On my Pure (Think Dynamic is the same) start by pulling firmly on the black semi circular arch trim. It will pop off and can be easily refitted. There is one of those push in type plastic fixings which holds the arch liner to the front wing (the wings on our really expensive cars are plastic by the way !). Both sides are the same. The arch liner can be teased out from behind the wing and is flexible enough to get a thin arm (or a fat arm - if you can stand the pain and the after-look which resembled a serious self-harm effort) into the gap, pop out the upper and lower black plastic trim pieces and unscrew the 3 Torx screws (size 25 I think).
You will find that if you start on the nearside there is nothing much in the space and the plastic insert can be removed reasonably easily. The fog light can be manipulated through the same gap as your arm and is fiddly but can be screwed in with a bit of patience.
The offside is a whole other ball game. Fixings/arch trim are the same but the windscreen washer reservoir takes up most of the area behind the fog-light. Had to release the single fixing holding the reservoir to the chassis and the support on the bonnet slam panel but still had to hacksaw off the lower fixing on the silver trim panel before I could get it out. I then took the green screw fixers off the bumper and transferred them onto the fog light which can with a bit of gentle forcing, lots of swear words for lubrication and patience (you wont have any left by this time) will eventually go back in and the screws were re-attached from the outside rather than the inside.
Took about 2 hours - looks great - but I filled the swear jar and both forearms looked like Id had a serious go at self harm.
(26-01-2016 07:50pm)NHOJ Wrote:
RETRO-FITTING RANGE ROVER EVOQUE FRONT FOG LAMPS
I have recently fitted fog lamps to my wife's Evoque and whilst sourcing parts on the Net, I came across all sorts of comment to do with these lamps. Many owners have struggled to physically fit the lamps and none appear to have actually wired them up. On one site there was quite a debate on how confusing the switch was to use as it is not illuminated and hides behind the steering wheel on a stick with the light switch, indicators and head light dip/flasher switch. I must agree here as I feel Ford and the VW Group have got it right with a rotating light switch on the dashboard for the lights that when pulled operates the front and rear fogs. This switch requires no fancy electronics and retails at a fraction of the price of that fitted by JLR. Perhaps JLR should have a fresh look at the ergonomics. That aside, the Evoque is a very nice well made vehicle.
To retro-fit the lamps to JLR's spec. would not only be very expensive, but would involve a major strip down of the dashboard, as none of the wiring is in place. Wiring the lamps through a separate switch mounted next to the tailgate release on the driver's knee-bolster air bag panel is the obvious way forward. So as not to get any interaction with the vehicle can-system a separate 10 amp fused supply is required, taken directly off the battery through a control box mounted behind the said air bag unit. The box being fitted with three mini single pole relays (2amp contacts), one double pole relay (10amp contacts) and a further 1amp fuse to protect the control circuit. The three position single pole switch (momentary/off/momentary) is fitted with two illuminated windows. Top being an amber lens for 'on', and the bottom being a green front fog light lens for night time illumination. The system behaves in the same way as JLR's in that the fog lamps are cancelled and the circuit reset if the ignition or side lights are turned off. Transistors could be used instead of the three mini relays but I feel they would not be as reliable.
The hole lot looks and is the 'biz' and for £140 all in and a weekend tatting (day one to build up control box plus harness and day two to fit). I would highly recommend it.
For those wishing to do the installation , read on. The following information is detailed to give you a trouble free fit:-
BITS REQUIRED. You may have access to some of the bits like I had, but the following list is complete giving prices from four suppliers. Wiring colours are for guidance only.
Pair of lamps - £30 each. This is the going rate from a Land Rover specialist breakers and not £100 each as regularly sighted on e'bay. Find one local to you.
Vehicle Wiring Products are on the Net.
Switch - £19-06 from Vehicle Wiring Products prod. code SW78612
Switch connector - £5.40 from Vehicle Wiring Products prod. code 79350
Front fog warning lens - £1.20 from Vehicle Wiring Products prod. code 79208
Plain amber warning lens - £1.20 from Vehicle Wiring Products prod. Code 79190
2 way mini-connector – £0.73 from Vehicle Wiring Products prod. Code MNC2 (fitted between control box and ignition / lights connection)
3 way multi-connector – £0.97 from Vehicle Wiring Products prod. Code MC3 (fitted between control box and 10amp supply/feed to fog lights.
Blade fuse holder + 10 amp fuse (red) - £0.71 from Vehicle Wiring Products prod. Codes FHA14 + FB10 (supply from battery).
Glass cartridge 30mm fuse (1 amp) - £0.19 from Vehicle Wiring Products prod. Codes FG2 (for control box).
P&P for Vehicle Wiring Products - £4.74
Maplins are on the High Street.
Panel mounted fuse holder - £1.00 From Maplins prod. Code SJ91V (for control box).
Three single pole miniature relays (12v coil/2amp contacts) - £7.00 From Maplins prod. Code N15AW (for control box). Maplins stock a single pole relay with two common contacts that is ideal, ask in store as this is not shown on their web site.
Double pole relay (12v coil/10amp contacts) - £5.29 From Maplins prod. Code N08AW (for control box).
Project box - £4.05 From Maplins prod. Code N14GC (control box).
P.C.B. - £2.99 From Maplins prod. Code A65RL (for control box).
Simtek UK. are on the Net.
Two 2 way light connectors - £8.64. From Simtek UK prod. code CON-117 (as fitted by JLR)
7m. red/yellow cable 1sqmm. 16Amp. - £2.94 From Simtek UK prod. Code CABM-004 (feed to light).
3m. red cable 1sqmm. 16Amp. - £1.26 From Simtek UK prod. Code CABM-004 (supply from battery)
2m. brown cable 1sqmm. 16Amp. - £0.84 From Simtek UK prod. Code CABM-004 (earth from lights to body and control box to earth))
1m. red/black cable 0.2sqmm. 1.4Amp.- £0.30. From Simtek UK prod. Code CAB-001 (supply from lighting to control box)
1m. blue cable 0.2sqmm. 1.4Amp.- £0.30. From Simtek UK prod. Code CAB-001 (supply from ignition to control box)
1m. red cable 0.2sqmm. 1.4Amp.- £0.30. From Simtek UK prod. Code CAB-001 (supply from control box to switch)
1m. yellow cable 0.2sqmm. 1.4Amp.- £0.30. From Simtek UK prod. Code CAB-001 (supply from control box to switch)
1m. white cable 0.2sqmm. 1.4Amp.- £0.30.. From Simtek UK prod. Code CAB-001 (supply from control box to switch)
1m. brown cable 0.2sqmm. 1.4Amp.- £0.30. From Simtek UK prod. Code CAB-001 (supply from control box to switch).
3m. PVC sleeve 6mm. - £1.26. From Simtek UK. prod. Code CPV-004 (from control box into off side wheel arch, from off side. wheel arch to battery housing and from control box to switch.
3m. PVC sleeve 4mm. - £0.93. From Simtek UK. prod. Code CPV-002 (from battery housing to near side light, from off side wheel arch to off side light and from control box to tailgate release wiring).
P&P for Simtek UK. - £6.48.
Plus a few cable ties, ring terminals (for earths), female blade connectors and grommets.
ASSEMBLY OF BOX, SWITCH AND HARNESS. (Approx. 1 day)
I advise all connections are soldered and the insulation crimped as allowed for on the connectors. Cut and fit the sleeving as you go. The fly lead from box to switch need to be about 500mm lg. The same for ignition signal wire, lights signal wire and earth lead.
Drill 4 holes in the long edge of the box for cable entries.
Hole 1. - for 16amp red/yellow cable, 16amp red cable, 500mm of 16amp brown cable plus 6mm sleeve and grommet.
Hole 2. - for 1.4amp red/black cable, 1.4amp white cable, plus 4mm sleeve and grommet.
Hole 3. - for 1.4amp brown, red, blue and yellow cables, plus 4mm sleeve and grommet.
Hole 4. - for panel mounted fuse holder. (alternatively this can be fitted to the lower dashboard on a fly lead.
Cut PCB to fit box. Drill box and PCB so PCB can be fitted to the rear of box later. Drill PCB to take an earthing terminal (3mm bolt). Enlarge several of the matrix holes to thread the cables through to lock them off (so there will be no pulling load on the soldered connections).
Space the relays out on the PCB. The 3 small relays slot though the PCB and the large relay fitted with cable ties or glued on it's side. Relay 1/ is for ignition, relay 2/ for lights, relay 3 for unlatching relay 4 and relay 4 for a 10amp supply to the lights.
The following is a list of the wiring connections to be made. You may wish to read it first and sketch the wiring diagram out on a piece of paper so you can visualize the circuit.
Connect one terminal of each relay coil to the 3mm earth terminal using the 1.4amp brown cable. The remaining length of this cable should be connected from the 3mm earth terminal to the illumination bulbs terminal on the switch connector. Connect to the one bulb terminal and bridge over to the other bulb terminal. A connection diagram is supplied with the switch. From the same 3mm earth terminal run a 600mm length of brown 16amp cable so the control box can be earthed to the bulkhead later. The remainder of the brown 16amp cable will be required later for the two fog lamps earths.
Connect the 1.4amp white cable to the remaining coil terminal of relay 1/. The other end will later be connected to the vehicle ignition system via the 2 way mini-connector.
Connect the 1.4amp red/black cable to the common terminal of relay 1/ The other end will later be connected to the vehicle lighting system via the 2 way mini-connector. Make a further connection from the normally open terminal of relay 1/ to the remaining coil terminal of relay 2/ using a short piece of the red/black cable. Cut the white and red/black cable about 100mm outside the box and fit the 2 way mini-connector. This completes the signal wiring from the ignition and lights.
Connect a 200mm length of the 16amp red/yellow cable to one of the normally open terminals of relay 4/. The other end should be connected to one terminal of the 3 way multi-connector (male) and looped to a second terminal. The remaining length of the red/yellow cable should be connected to the 3 way multi-connector (female) making a loop. The connections corresponding to the male connector. The loop will later be cut to get the correct lengths to fit to the lamp connectors.
Connect a 200mm length of the16amp red cable to the common terminal of relay 4/ that marries up with the red/yellow cable. The other end should be connected to the remaining terminal of the 3 way multi-connector (male). Connect the remaining length to the remaining terminal of the 3 way multi-connector (female).The other end will later be connected to the 10amp fuse holder and battery.
From the same common terminal (16amp red cable), make a further connection to the 1 amp. fuse holder using the 1.4amp red cable. Then from the fuse holder to the common terminal of relay 2/. A further connection from normally open terminal of relay 2/ to the common terminal of relay 3/. From the same common terminal of relay 3/ make a further connection to the common terminal of the light switch connector and then bridge this connection over to the lower bulb terminal. All using the 1.4amp red cable. This then completes the power supply to the switch.
Using the 1.4amp yellow cable make connections between the remaining normally open terminal of relay 4/ to it's free coil terminal and then from the coil terminal to one normally open terminal of the light switch connector (the terminal should be the one which connects to the red common terminal when the lower part of the switch is pressed). This then completes the power supply to the 10amp relay 4/.
Using the 1.4amp blue cable make connections between the remaining normally open terminal of the light switch connector (the terminal should be the one which connects to the red common terminal when the upper part of the switch is pressed) and the free coil terminal of relay 3/.
Finally, connect between the normally closed terminal of relay 3/ to the remaining unused common terminal of relay 4/. This then completes the unlatching circuit (switching the lamps off).
TESTING THE HARNESS.
Using the Evoques battery make temporary connections with the 16amp red cable, the 1.4amp red/black cable and the 1.4amp white cable to the positive and the 16amp brown cable to the negative. The Front fog warning lens should illuminate.
Press the switch lower rocker. The amber lens should also illuminate and a 12volt supply should be present at all the 16amp red/yellow cable terminals.
Press the switch upper rocker. The amber lens illumination and the 12volt supply to the 16amp red/yellow cable terminals should cease. The test is complete. When you are satisfied all is well, 'glue' the exiting cables from the box to the PCB using silicon sealer or no-nail.
At this point, make temporary connections to each lamp to identify the positive and negative terminals (they are not marked) and mark accordingly.
INSTALLATION (Approx. 1 day)
To fit the lamps the inner front wheel arches require removing. Support the front of the Evoque and remove wheels. The arches are in two pieces and are easily removed by removing a few plastic nuts and trim fasteners. But note, one fastener is hiding under the front section of the wheel arch trim. So carefully lift the one end of the trim using a spatula or similar tool to gain access. The near side lamp is a straight forwards swap for the 'dummy' lamp using the existing three screws. The off side lamp is similar but the washer bottle needs to be manoeuvred a centimetre or so to get the lamp in. This can be done by removing the one obvious retaining screw from the bottle and the screw fixing the bottle filler neck to the bodywork, accessed from under the bonnet. This hole process, including lifting the vehicle, should only take about an hour.
To fit the control box and switch the driver's knee-bolster air bag panel requires removing. It should take about half an hour to remove the air bag panel. The battery will eventually need disconnected but not at this stage. Switch off all lights. Do not unplug the air bag until instructed.
Remove the foot shield from the air bag panel by removing the three trim fasteners (squeeze the heads and pull out). This gives access to the air bag panel lower retaining screws. Pull off the door seal local to the dashboard end cap and remove cap using a spatula. Remove the screw securing the air bag panel to the door frame (this screw is different to the rest so keep separate). Remove the screw, in the end of the dashboard, securing the soft leather dashboard panel to the dashboard. Using a spatula lift the lower right hand edge of the black hard plastic trim that fits between the steering column and the instrument panel/message centre. Lift sufficient to gain access to the second retaining screw securing the soft leather panel. Manoeuvre the panel off noting it's location tabs for reassembly later. This then gives access to the air bag panel upper retaining screws. Again using a spatula, lift off the narrow panel trim between the left hand edge of the air bag panel and the steering column. This gives access to the final two air bag panel retaining screws. Note that the top left corner of the air bag panel fits under the central soft leather dashboard panel. Manoeuvre the air bag panel off. Unplug the wiring harness from tailgate release unit to give more manoeuvrability and if necessary also detach the air bag wiring harness support clip from the side of the air bag panel rear steel pressing. Do not unplug the air bag. Support the panel on the drivers seat so as not to put stress on the air bag plug. Using a multimeter identify the ignition and lighting wires in the tailgate release unit wiring harness. Note that some of the wires have the same colour but not the same function. After testing make sure the ignition and lights are turned off.
Disconnect the battery. Wait fifteen minutes for any residual current to die await (ideal time for a coffee break). Touch a good earth point on the vehicle with your hands to remove any static from your body. It is now safe to unplug the air bag. Unplugging is achieved by easing out and removing the small orange plastic retainer and then detaching the plug from the unit.
Handle the air bag panel with respect when on a work bench. It's advised rapping it in an old towel or sheet to work on. Apply masking tape to the panel and mark the the position for the switch hole (44mm x 22mm). The best visual position is immediately to the left of the tailgate switch so that the top of the fog lamp switch is level with the top of the tailgate switch recess (remember that the panel is viewed at an angle by the driver). Carefully drill a small hole in the corners of the 44mm x 22mm rectangle through the plastic only. When viewed from the rear the drilled holes will indicate where the clearance hole needs to be in the steel pressing. The steel pressing is profiled with a hole to assist assembly of the unit during manufacture and this hole helps in the hand cutting of a clearance hole for the switch using tin snips or a manual sheet metal cutter. After cutting the clearance hole, using a junior hacksaw blade, neatly cut the hole in the front plastic panel and mount the switch.
Bolt/screw the control box to a piece of sheet metal or plastic and then 'glue' the assembly using silicon sealer or no-nail to the air bag panel rear steel pressing. This will allow the box to be easily separated from the air bag panel if required at some future date.
Plug the switch connector to the switch.
Support air bag panel on drivers seat and make the earth connection at a suitable point on the dashboard structure or offside wheel arch.
Make the ignition and light connections by breaking through the insulation of the two previously identified cables in the tailgate switch harness. Soldier the connections, insulate and sleeve the connections with tape for support.
The red and red/yellow cables need to be rooted forwards of the bulkhead. As the bulkhead is double skinned with a space between there is no easy route, except that the skins come together just to the right of the accelerator pedal. Drill a hole through into the wheel arch to take the cables, sleeve and grommet. Seal around the grommet with sealer and rout the cables to the top of the wheel arch using cable ties fixed to the vehicles existing wiring harness. Separate one loop of the red/yellow cable and root it down to the lamp, again supporting with cable ties. Before cutting the loop and fitting to the lamp connector check that the remaining part of the loop will reach to the other lamp following the root given below.
Root the remaining two cable up through the large profiled hole between the outer and inner wheel arches, just in front of the suspension strut, then across the engine bay to the battery box tying them to the back of the strut brace. Fit the fuse holder to the end of the red cable and a ringed terminal for battery connection. Continue with the red/yellow cable, through the large profiled hole between the outer and inner wheel arches, as on the offside. Leave some slack in the battery box so that the cable can be moved aside for battery removal at a future date. Again, using cable ties, support the cable along the inside of the nearside wheel arch, down to the lamp. Fit lamp connectors. Split the remaining spare length of the brown 16amp cable and earth both lamps (from lamp connectors to a suitable points in the wheel arches.
Refit the air bag plug after first touching a suitable earthing point on the vehicle to remove static from your body. Refit the air bag wiring harness support clip. Reconnect battery and connect the red power cable. Test lamps.
The air bag panel can now be manoeuvrings into place, noting that the top left corner fixing is under the central dashboard unit. Make sure all location tabs are fully home.
The remaining reassembly is the reverse of stripping out.
You may need to reprogram the windows following the information in the drivers handbook. Radio /Sat-nav and any other equipment should all work.
Happy motoring.
Retro Fitting Front Fog Lights - Pure/Dynamic
