I know what the literature says and all but man, I always thought that fog lights shot out a low, flat beam of bright light and were mounted fairly low on the car to avoid glare from the moisture in the air.

The lights on the GT's are centrally mounted, the same height as the headlights and while I've never driven in the fog with a GT, when I turned them on while test driving the Sonic Blue automatic at night, the light thrown out from them did not seem to be that of a "fog" light. And, their positioning lends the interpretation that they are actually "driving lights"; the kind that usually (and I said "usually") project a long, narrow beam of light ahead of where your headlights normally end their flood range.

So, what are those two lights on the GT that are mounted in the grille? Fogs? Or Driving Lights?

How do you like them?

 

everyone is saying fog lights, and I agree they are fog lights. The beams from them don't really seem to make anything brighter except 5 ft in front of you

 

Their good for daytime driving lights. I'm changing them soon. Will post pics.

 

I think they are mostly for looks. Darn good lookin too ! B)

On the serious side, I don't think they will cut much fog at their given height. I'm not a lumen scientist - but my instincts tell me that a white colored light will reflect well when it hits a fog mist, making visibility not so good. Come to think of it, I have not really met a fog light that really cuts through a thick fog.

 

Well, I definitely agree that they are gorgeous and they add a lot to the overall character of the GT. Were the ones on the old Shelby's fogs or driving lights?

Anyone know?

Either way, the front end of the GT is one of the reasons that the car looks so good and it's all because of the extra two lights, IMO.

 

The Shelby's were considered driving lights. As such, I would also consider these to be driving lights.




Sorry, had to borrow some of your pics Brad.

 

Nice one Dan.

 

Hey I think they look great too, but on the Thruway last night I had two or three people flash there lights after I passed them. I must of been riding behind them and they assumed 4 bulbs = high beams. Frustrating situsation because to pull behind them and flash my high beams would just tick them off. Until enough people see our cars I'm going to run into this.

 

I don't think they are too high to be fog lights, look at how high off the ground fogs are for SUVs and full size trucks. The fogs are to assist with your low beams on as well. It's the high beams that will reflect off the water droplets in the air.

 

I used them with my regular lights all the time. But they also worked great on the back roads in the dense fog we were having a couple of weeks ago. And the fog was BAD. I know of at least three people, including me who almost didn't see a red light in time.

I only got flashed once. I flashed my brights at the person to prove those fogs weren't my brights.

 

I use them a lot in the morning. I don't care what kind of lights they are...I like them.

 

I think they are demi-fog lights mounted where driving lights out to be mounted. Primarily, they are more for style than pure function. I do wonder how easy it would be to replace them with some true driving lights (some nice 130watt H4 Hellas would be sweet on a long, dark stretch of road).

Question: are they pretty much a Ford only design or something more generic that would better lend themselves to aftermarket replacement?

 

They are fog lights by deffinition... of which I don't have available to cut & paste... due to their lens. The ribs in the lens help to deflect light left & right. -Believe me, they help on back roads to light up deer eyes beyond the shoulder of the road.

Driving lights will have clear lens or have a smooth surface on the inside of the lens.

 

We've had a lot of fog and crappy weather here. I drive with my fog lights on whenever I have lights on. I tried turning the fog lights off when I was driving in fog, just to see the difference and found them to be a real asset to the regular lights. And, I've only had a couple of people flash me yet. Of course I flash the brights at them and then they see that the fog lights are not the brights. I love my fog lights. They make my GT look great and increase my visibility as well as the visibility of my car to others. Anything that will help decrease my risk of being hit is good to me!! (especially after I got rear-ended yesterday. maybe I need more lights in the back?) :angry:

 

per PIAA:

Fog Light - A lighting device providing illumination forward of the vehicle that enhances visibility in fog, rain, snow, or dust. Fog lights are intended to be used in conjunction with standard headlamp low beams.

Driving Light - A lighting device mounted to provide illumination forward of the vehicle and intended to supplement the high beam of a standard headlamp system. It is not intended for use alone or with the low beam of a standard headlamp system.

 

Also from PIAA:

"Traditional fog lights are usually mounted under the front bumper about 10-24 inches from the ground. There are two important issues to address when installing fog lights, the first is to minimize the amount of return glare into the driver's eyes, and the other is to minimize glare into oncoming driver's eyes. Both must be accomplished while putting as much light as possible on the road. "

The 05's fog lights, while helping in the fog, will not function as well as fog lights mounted close to the ground as more of the light will be reflected by water particles in the air.

 

How high are they off the ground, has anyone measured?

 

They are fog lamps, pure and simple.

They have a flow flat beam that supplements lower light coverage (i.e. not above the low beams).

It's BS that fog lamps should always be mounted low. I've had them low (87 and 88 Mustang GTs) and they can stink down low too. Why? Because they have to run more parallel to the ground (less of an angle in order to shine out far enough). Ever drive in the hills? Your fog lamps end up pointing into the sky half the time.

Mounted up higher (but not too high), they help by having a steeper angle (they point more towards the ground). When you go up over a crest, you don't end up lighting up the sky with them.

Lot's of internet speculation and stuff going on here... I have them, I've driven in fog, they are better than any factory fog lamp I have ever had.

And they are NOT driving lights. Driving lights have a pattern like a high-beam, lighting up the distant road.

 

Glad to hear they work well.

Since the purpose of fog lights is to illuminate the ground, to me it would make more sense that the same foglights would function better closer to the ground. Less moisture to pass through to reach the ground.

I'm not sure how you get the fog lights shooting over the hill. They would have to be pointed above the horizontal (ie. not correct placement). The grade of a hill would be far greater than would be caused by the fog light angle so shooting over the hill can't really happen unless you are at the crest. At least that is my logic.

I'm sure fog lights up higher can be made to work well, like the 05, but there is also a reason most cars have fog lights mounted in their lower valences.

I'm all for more scientific explainations if anyone has one.

 

Fog or driving who really cares they look great on the Gt night or day, I burn mine anytime the lights are on.