i have found a mod on club froniter that will allow you to have your fog lights on with your parking lights!!!!! im not going to post a link to it cause it is on another forum but as soon as i do it i wil post a how to do it !!!!!! unless you want to go to club frointer and search fog light by-pass...... the only thing bad about it is you cant turn off the lights..... but i always run with the fog's on so that wont be a problem for me........

Would you PM me the link if you get time. Thanks, Alex

hey anthony can i post the link on the thread or not?????? yes i will pm u with it.....

Haha, yes post the link! There is a REALLY good write up on this over at XOC, by a member there who is an electronic engineer or something.

If you can find that one, post it also!

here is the one for club frontier

http://www.clubfrontier.org/forums/showthread.php?t=2991&highlight=light+by-pass

and i cpuldnt find one for xoc just someone trying to find fog lights for his back in 05 but i will keep looking

ok so i went to auto-zone and bought a add-a-fuse then i trimed a blade fuse, crimped it together. then tried to do the mod.... it didnt work on my 00 se, so when the weather clears up i will try to find out another way to wire it up.... anyone else have a way to do it????? i have searched most of the nissan sites and cant find another way other than pulling the sterring column apart.....

ok so i figured it out, all i need for someone to tell me which is the power wire going to the parking lights!!!!! what i did is i pulled the relay under the hood for the fog's and put extentions on the relay so i could run one wire to another power source other than the factory power for the relay, do to the fact it only got power when the headlights are on!!! so right now the switch for the fogs works... i have the power running from the fuse panel under the dash, it is hooked up to the cig fuse using the LITTELFUSE ADD-A-CIRCUIT FUSEHOLDER (so i didnt waste any money yet) the fogs only come on when i turn the key..... until i find the right wire going to the parking lights..... right now it is tacky but when i get the right connectors and remount the relay i will post pics.....

i'm interested in doing this too. i'd like for them to be independant from the headlights

Hold on, this is gonna be a long post!

The following is all copied/quoted from another board, not my info.

2000 Xterra:

Power Source
A convenient place to get unswitched power on a 2000 X is at the power socket relay. This relay is light blue and can be found just above where the parking brake shaft enters the dash. Tap off of the red/white striped wire right at the relay socket. An insulation displacement connector like Radio Shack #64-3052 will work. That red/white wire is fused for 20 amps. The fuse is in the relay box just behind the battery.

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Replacing A Relay
The fog light relay in a 2000 is in a small box near the hood hinge on the passenger side. It's the relay closest to the front of the box.
There is one locking tab on the original relay socket. It's on the side of the relay socket facing the engine. I believe that you push the tab away from the relay.

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Fix the fog light switch so that you can turn on that wiring system without having the headlights on
The 2000 is an easier mod. No changes to the wiring harness are necessary. A modified relay gets plugged in where the stock fog light relay was. The lights will then come on whenever the fog light switch is on.
1. First get a 4-pin Bosch type relay that comes apart. Some do and some don't. Radio Shack #275-226 seems to work well if you cut the mounting tab off.

2. Remove the relay cover.

3. On the inside of the relay solder a jumper from pin 86 to pin 87. It doesn't need to be heavy wire.

4. Reinstall the relay cover.

5. The last step is to remove pin 86 from the outside of the relay. Just bend it back and forth until it snaps off. This last step is important to isolate the low beam and fog light circuits.

2001 Xterra

The 2001 is different (from the 00) because the modified relay fix the '00 doesn't work on the '01.
Based on feedback from others the differences seem to be:

1, In the '00 (your diagram) one side of the fog light relay coil is connected to +12V through the low beam switch.

2. The other side of the relay coil is connected to ground through the fog light switch.

3. In the '01 it seems that one side of the fog light relay coil is grounded.

4. The other side gets +12V through the low beam switch and the fog light switch in series. In a way this makes more sense for Nissan because there is one less wire passing through the firewall using this method.

5. On the two wire connector the red/black wire is hot when the lights (low beam) are on .... fog lights off.

6. On the eight wire connector there is a red and a red/black wire at the bottom of the connector.

_________________

At last I think I can help all of the 2001 X owners who don't like the way their factory fog lights work. You can have the option of running the fog lights anytime OR only when the parking lights are on.

First the disclaimers-
1) I have a 2000 X so I haven't tried this. I do believe that it will work correctly.
2) The modification will involve cutting into the factory wiring harness. If this bothers you DON'T DO IT.

You will need:
1 butt splice, 18-22AWG, typically red, Radio Shack #64-3108 or equivalent.
1 "tap" connector, 14-18AWG, typically blue, Radio Shack #64-3052 or equivalent.
1 6" piece of 18AWG stranded wire, color matched to your X
electrical tape

1. The first step is to remove the 5 philips head screws from the bottom of the steering column cover. The two halves will snap apart and the top half can be removed. The cover that gets removed is the gray plastic "clamshell" cover that surrounds the ignition switch and the steering column. Don't mess with the actual steering wheel cover (where the horn switch is) because the air bag is in there too.

(note) There are 3 connectors for the turn signal/headlight/foglight switch. We're interested in the one with 2 wires and the one with 8 wires.

2. On the 2-wire connector harness, cut back the tubing to reveal a couple inches of the wires. They are red/black and red/something else.

3. Cut the red/black wire leaving both ends long enough to work on.

4. Tape up the end that is still connected to the truck harness.

5. Using the butt splice connect one end of the 6" jumper wire to the stub of red/black wire at the 2-wire connector.

Here is where you need to choose how you want your lights to operate:

To turn on the fog lights anytime:
1. Connect the 6" jumper wire to the purple wire in the 8-pin connector harness using the tap connector.

(note) The headlight warning system will NOT remind you to turn the fogs off if you choose this option.

To use the fog lights whenever the parking lights are on:
1. Connect the 6" jumper wire to the blue/red wire in the 8-pin connector harness using the tap connector.
(note) In this case the headlight warning system will let you know if you leave the fogs on

2002 Xterra:

The fog lights from the 02's and 03's are the same..If your pre-wired then all you have to do is get the fogs,relay,fuse and tree..the hardest part (which isn't really hard at all) is changing out the tree.and thats basically just undoing your steering column and unplugging your excisting tree and replacing it with the new one that has the fog light switch on it and then from there it's putting the fogs in and throwing the relay and fuse in..

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Q: Is the factory switch placement in the stem with the rest of the light controls?

A: Yes, the factory switch for fogs will be a rotary switch on the lighting control stalk. It will be just inside (towards the steering column) of the rotary switch for the parking and headlights on•off.

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Q: I have an 02 and its prewired for fog lights, but my problem is i really like the looks of the PIAA 510 lights, and they are only offered for the non-prewired X's. Is this a problem? can i still buy them? I also, dont want to wire them through a relay so they only come on when my headlights are on, i would like to be able to turn them off and on as i please. Any help, or pictures of your set-up or suggestions is greatly appreciated.

A: If it is wired you can hook em up to the wiring.
1. Clip the plug, connect black to black

2. Then the Black/Orange to what should be the white one.

Using that you can use the pre existing switch on the lever.

(note) Check the AMPS, do not over load the fuses.

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Wiring Diagram from Xterraparts
Wiring fog lights independent from headlights
http://www.xterraparts.com/Merchant2/graphics/00000001/pg10.html

2003
The fog lights from the 02's and 03's are the same..If your pre-wired then all you have to do is get the fogs,relay,fuse and tree..the hardest part (which isn't really hard at all) is changing out the tree.and thats basically just undoing your steering column and unplugging your excisting tree and replacing it with the new one that has the fog light switch on it and then from there it's putting the fogs in and throwing the relay and fuse in..

____________

Q: Can I just butt-splice the wires , off of whatever lights I get , right into the wires for the parking lights so they come on whenever the parking lights are on?

A: You need to splice into the wires that come off of the switches on the steering colum.....whether they be the headlight wires, the parking light wires, or the high beam wires.

I personally spliced into the parking lights wires....never blew a fuse yet, and highly doubt I will..

If you're driving a relay coil from the parking light circuit you'll be fine. If you're driving the bulbs directly you won't.

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Q: Who can help me find a clean place to wire in the switched line to my runing lights on my 2003 X. I want the option of having the lights on with high and low beams, but don't want to forget the fogs on. I already pulled the swich and wire through the fire wall, just need a good location to finish the installation.

A: The blue/red wire on the headlight switch is a good choice. It runs the parking lights and will give you the option to run the fogs any time the parking lights are on.

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I chose the side marker light so that i could run the lights with low beams and hi beams....and also so they would shut off when i turned off the lights completely
I did a little more searching and found the following link:
[URL=http://www.xterraownersclub.com/ubb/ultimatebb.php?ubb=get_topic;f=38;t=000182#000000]http://www.xterraownersclub.com/ubb/ultimatebb.php?ubb=get_topic;f=38;t=000182#000000[/UR L]

It basically says to not match the black OEM wire to the black wire from the aftermarket fog lights. The link references a green (2000 X) wire which I am assuming is the same as the blue wire on my 2003 X. Is this still the correct way to wire the fogs??

A: No answer posted.

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Q: I would like to have the option of running my fog lights whenever the parking lights are on.

A: 1. Remove the steering column cover. It is held together by screws from the bottom.

2. On the headlight switch side of the column is a mess of wires. Within the mess you'll see 3 connectors that we care about at the moment.
- One has 7 wires, one of them being red with a black stripe.
- There is a 4 wire connector with a blue/red striped wire
- There is a 2-wire connector with a red/black striped wire. The red/ black wire should be running between the 7 and 2 wire connectors.

3. Disconnect the red/black wire from the 7-wire connector, close to the connector.
It should now be connected only at the 2-wire connector end.

4. Connect the free end of the red/black wire to the blue/red wire in the 4-wire connector using one of the many available tap connectors (Radio Shack #64-3052 for example).

5. Tape up the remaining stub of the red/black wire.

6. Reassemble the column.

____________

I went ahead and performed the fog-light mod on my 2003 X today. The fog-lights can be used if desired (fog-light switch still works) whenever the parking lights are on.

(note) Somewhere in the middle of 2002 the wiring for the lights switched a little. The 2003 seems to have the same wiring reported for some 2002 models. It is possible that other 2003 Xs will be different (the 2003 service manual indicates different wiring than I have: see ElectroKen’s instructions for the 2003 based on the service manual wiring diagrams, above in thread).

Instructions for my 2003 X:

Remove the steering column cover:

1. Remove 3 of the 5 screws on the bottom of the steering column. These are the two at the front corners (at the edge, near the wheel) and the one at the back (near the dash on the door side) corner. You should then be able to simply remove the top plastic portion of the steering wheel cover (just a few snaps that require a slight tug).

2. Confirm your wiring is similar:

On the light-switch side of the steering column you’ll see 3 quick-connectors:

2 Wire connector:
1 – red/green-stripe
1 – red/black-stripe

4 Wire connector:
1-purple
1-yellow/black-stripe
1-red/black-stripe
1-blue/red

7 Wire connector:
1-green/yellow-stripe
1-green
1-yellow/green-stripe
1-red/white-stripe
1-red/green-stripe
1-green/red-stripe
1-red

Connect new power source to fog-lights:

3. The red/black-stripe wire attached to the 2-wire connector disappears into the wiring harness along with all of the other wires.
I cut this wire (red/black-stripe) close to where it disappears into the bundle of wires in the harness
(note) This leaves some room to play with on the end that is still attached to the 2-wire connector.

4. Using a tap connection (you don’t need to cut the blue/red-striped wire) connect the longer portion of the red/black-striped wire (portion attached to the 2-wire connector) to the blue/red-striped wire leaving the 4-wire connector

5. Cover up the unused end of red/black-striped wire (the end coming out of the bundle of wires) with some electrical tape.

6. Check light function and reinstall steering column cover.

This worked for me, and I believe another person [forgive me whoever you are] also used this technique for a 2003 Frontier. The fog-lights will not work unless the parking-lights are on. If the parking-lights are on (including low-beam and high-beam modes), the fog-lights can be turned on or off using the fog-light switch. Note (as OffroadX has pointed out) that it is illegal to drive with high-beam and fog-lights on. That said; take extra care to avoid blinding oncoming traffic when the temptation is too much for you

MISC

Xterraparts - double pole single throw switch

Q: Switch is in and installed, but shouldnt the light go on? Does it need to be grounded? Sorry it's the fog light switch for the off road lights. I bought the switch from xterra parts.com
I see it has a little green light, but it does not light. In the directions it asks to hook up the parking light tap to pin 1 the light relay to pin 2 and a 12volt source to pin 4 what is the last pin on the switch for? It is number 6. I know from wiring other lighted switches they need a ground to make them light up is pin 6 the ground?

A: It looks to me to be a double pole single throw switch or a dpst switch. After looking at the diagram it appears that the internal LED is wired pin 1 as + and pin 2 is relay + pin 4 is ground or - since this a DC circuit. The - of the LED is most likely wired internally to pin 4 so pin 3 is not used. Using a switch to refrence ground to me seems to be a stupid idea but I didn't make the switch. It's not like you have to use their switch but if your going for that factory look then I guess you have no choice. Don't fret that extra pin it doesn't do anything nor would I try to use for anything.

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MISC:

About Relays
Q: I installed a set of 100 Watt LightForce driving lights connected as follows...

12V switch from the factory fog lamp hot wire at the light connector.

To a 30A relay connected to the battery and out to the lights.

W/ this wiring my installed relay is inline w/ the factory fog relay and everything seems to be working fine since I figure my relay is the one taking the 100w draw from the lights.

My question is, would the factory relay, since it's still in line for the 12v switch, be changing any amperage (or voltage, or whatever) going to the installed relay that could cause any long term damage or reducing any wattage potential I could be sending to the lights?
I'm not a wiring guru, I knew enough to make the lights come on but I'm not sure if this setup is adequate (I know it's not necessarily ideal) for what I have running.

A: A relay and a solenoid are the same thing. Bolth use an electromagnet to pull in a set of contacts (hence forth the click)conecting your power source, which should be your battery. or you may have conected it too the in side of your "power distrubution block" as I've named it (same thing as the battery). The draw of power the little electro magnet takes is minimal. and as long as you installed the in line fuse that should have come with the kit you should be Ok. You wont see any affects.

the connector on the back of the parking light housing is a 3 wire which one out of the 3 is the power wire for the parking light

my 02 does not have fog lights but the recessed holes are in the front for them with plastic grilles or louvres in them. Each side has wires hanging right behind those holes but there is no switch for fog lights inside . can I get lights to fit there and how would I turn them on ?

you would need to get the stalk switch and then you would be able to turn them on... or you could isolate the right wires and run them to a new switch on the dash and run them that way...

no, if there were fog lights from the factory, the truck is NOT pre-wired for them, you will need to run the circuit yourself

Hello,

Has anyone every installed an aftermarket automatic light switch sensor on a 1st generation X? In the last few months I have drained my battery 4 times because I left the lights on. The warning chime is not loud enough anymore so I was thinking, rather than replace the chime it would be cool to install an automatic sensor on the lights. My wife's volvo came with one and it is awesome not to have to remember to turn on and off your lights.

So far it looks like there are two types available on ebay from a UK retailer. I would prefer to buy one in the states if anyone has any thoughts on where I can find one please let me know.

Regarding the installation, if anyone has a wiring diagram of the 1st Gen Xterra headlights and switch assembly that would be great if you could post it or send a link of if anyone has installed one and could share some advuse that would be even better.

Anyway, if you think I am lazy and I should just remember to turn my lights off or you think the automatic light route is a good idea let me know as well.

Thanks

Mine wont let me use the key fob to lock my doors if my lights are on..not the same as an auto light switch but still pretty cool.

So far it looks like there are two types available on ebay from a UK retailer. I would prefer to buy one in the states if anyone has any thoughts on where I can find one please let me know.

s

dont pay much for one cause its basically just a relay. You could make your own fairly easily/cheaply.

Let me see if I'm understanding this correctly:

Q: I would like to have the option of running my fog lights whenever the parking lights are on.

A: 1. Remove the steering column cover. It is held together by screws from the bottom.

2. On the headlight switch side of the column is a mess of wires. Within the mess you'll see 3 connectors that we care about at the moment.
- One has 7 wires, one of them being red with a black stripe.
- There is a 4 wire connector with a blue/red striped wire
- There is a 2-wire connector with a red/black striped wire. The red/ black wire should be running between the 7 and 2 wire connectors.

3. Disconnect the red/black wire from the 7-wire connector, close to the connector.
It should now be connected only at the 2-wire connector end.

4. Connect the free end of the red/black wire to the blue/red wire in the 4-wire connector using one of the many available tap connectors (Radio Shack #64-3052 for example).

5. Tape up the remaining stub of the red/black wire.

6. Reassemble the column.

So all that needs to be done is one wire needs to be cut and tapped into a different wire?

pretty much, all the switch does is send a small power signal to the relay to say ok you can be on. The way the switch is designed though it only gets sent when the low beams are on. Your just tricking it into getting the on signal from another source.

I installed a set of hellas (2) up front and replaced the stock clips and tapped into the stock fog light wiring, now I flip a switch and all 4 will come on with my running lights or without, now to pass inspection I flip the switch off and when I turn the factory headlight/ fog light switch my head lights and fogs all come on (6 lights total) when I hit the brights, fogs go off and hi beams are on, but I can also have the brights on and flip the "3rd party" switch and have my brights and the 4 fogs on... I enjoy this set up a lot

just be careful.. many states it's illegal to have the fogs on with the high beams, and in fact won't pass inspection if they check. (I forget what the limit for candle power is in PA, but I know the fogs can only be on with low beams, just as the factories are wired).

^^^ not sure if in response to my post, however, My lights when I do not have the "3rd party" switch ON, do still go off with the high beams on because they're all being run through the factory relay