# LED fogs installed



## OEM Dubber (Apr 18, 2008)

Well today was a great day!!!! 

With all the posts about the foglights being so poor and off colour, it reminded me I had a set that I took off my 2011 VW GTI before trading it in. 

Low and behold they are the same bulb as my new Atlas!! I installed the Philips LED bulbs and they are a perfect match to the headlights. 

Easy install not even 5mins a side and they were plug and play.

These were originally purchased from www.xenondepot.com. 

This set is a few years used and completely problem free. Another option for the folks considering the LED foglights upgrade.


----------



## MGPVW (Jun 2, 2017)

What bulbs exactly are they? I'm interested if they are plug and play. I'd rather not have to install a kit, as I've done that in the past and at one point or another they seem to malfunction.

Thanks!


----------



## OEM Dubber (Apr 18, 2008)

The bulbs I bought are these exact ones:

http://www.xenondepot.com/h11-h8-h16-philips-Ultinon-LED-Bulb-p/12834unix2-h11.htm


They are designated H8/H11/H16. The bulbs have a small box built into the wiring and were completely plug and play. No resistors, extra wiring or reprogramming required. 

Swap bulbs and good to go.


----------



## MGPVW (Jun 2, 2017)

There was enough room for the small box in the housing? Or did that have to be installed on the exterior?


----------



## OEM Dubber (Apr 18, 2008)

The small box doesn't get mounted inside the housing. 

It's built in line with the wiring. It just lives behind the bulb and is protected by the bumper and fenderliner.


----------



## stick30 (Jun 23, 2017)

Do you have instructions on how you get to the housing? 5 min a side seems like it would be simple. thx


----------



## CanadianJetta2.0T (Sep 14, 2006)

stick30 said:


> Do you have instructions on how you get to the housing? 5 min a side seems like it would be simple. thx


I got the same one, bought from amazon on sale black friday for 100 CAD$. Very good light and plug and play, no codes.
For the install, driver side is accessible from the wheel well, turning the wheels to the right and unscrewing a couple bolts until you can move the liners with medium force. On the passenger side, you can access from the top easily.

Currently on sale on amazon.com for you guys in USA, https://www.amazon.com/Philips-X-tr...1515854180&sr=8-1&keywords=philips+h8+h16+led


----------



## NoDubJustYet (Mar 25, 2002)

CanadianJetta2.0T said:


> I got the same one, bought from amazon on sale black friday for 100 CAD$. Very good light and plug and play, no codes.
> For the install, driver side is accessible from the wheel well, turning the wheels to the right and unscrewing a couple bolts until you can move the liners with medium force. On the passenger side, you can access from the top easily.
> 
> Currently on sale on amazon.com for you guys in USA, https://www.amazon.com/Philips-X-tr...1515854180&sr=8-1&keywords=philips+h8+h16+led


It's nice to see that Amazon offers "expert installation" for the low price of $400. :facepalm:


----------



## ritwiu (Jun 13, 2017)

I did research on Amazon customer reviews, most people said Bright , Bright, Bright, but no one mentioned whether they illuminate down the road very well and further enough to see. 
Can you tell me please ! 
Right now, I have replaced my H8 (35W) Fog lights with H11 (55W) Halogen lights and they illuminate well and further enough down the road especially during sunset time, as you know OEM LED headlights are useless during that time of the day. 
Thanks


----------



## CanadianJetta2.0T (Sep 14, 2006)

ritwiu said:


> I did research on Amazon customer reviews, most people said Bright , Bright, Bright, but no one mentioned whether they illuminate down the road very well and further enough to see.
> Can you tell me please !
> Right now, I have replaced my H8 (35W) Fog lights with H11 (55W) Halogen lights and they illuminate well and further enough down the road especially during sunset time, as you know OEM LED headlights are useless during that time of the day.
> Thanks


They do not project that much more than the OEM bulb... however, it could be more a limitation of the reflector than the bulb.


----------



## j.champ (Nov 4, 2017)

CanadianJetta2.0T said:


> I got the same one, bought from amazon on sale black friday for 100 CAD$. Very good light and plug and play, no codes.
> For the install, driver side is accessible from the wheel well, turning the wheels to the right and unscrewing a couple bolts until you can move the liners with medium force. On the passenger side, you can access from the top easily.
> 
> Currently on sale on amazon.com for you guys in USA, https://www.amazon.com/Philips-X-tr...1515854180&sr=8-1&keywords=philips+h8+h16+led


That's strange...all I had to do was pull the plastic frame cover thingy around the lamp, pull one torx screw and the fog lamp housing slipped right out. Not the same in the CA models?

More info...the torx screw is hidden behind the plastic cover surrounding the light housing. The small opening next to the fog light is for adjustments only.


----------



## MGPVW (Jun 2, 2017)

how easy was it to take off the plastic cover? It seems to overhang the housing. Did you simply pull from the edges or use a pry tool?

Just ordered a set of bulbs, install this weekend hopefully.

Still can't believe that these weren't LED to begin with.


----------



## j.champ (Nov 4, 2017)

MGPVW said:


> how easy was it to take off the plastic cover? It seems to overhang the housing. Did you simply pull from the edges or use a pry tool?
> 
> Just ordered a set of bulbs, install this weekend hopefully.
> 
> Still can't believe that these weren't LED to begin with.


The plastic cover has plastic tabs all around (tabs attach to the bumper around the fog housing)... carefully pry off on the top and bottom edges and it should pop forward.


----------



## bajan01 (Nov 26, 2001)

> Still can't believe that these weren't LED to begin with.


I noticed that the other day too on my wife’s Atlas...time to order a set myself.


----------



## OEM Dubber (Apr 18, 2008)

I installed via the fender liner. No chance of breaking any tabs. Removed 5 screws and you are done. Honestly took me 5 mins a side not even. 

In answer to some of the other questions, for me i wanted them to match the headlight color which they do, perfectly. I wasn't as concerned with them projecting any further then stock.


----------



## bajan01 (Nov 26, 2001)

stick30 said:


> Do you have instructions on how you get to the housing? 5 min a side seems like it would be simple. thx


The easiest way is to pry from the inside of the cover, slowly going around the inside against the glass. Do this on the top and bottom and to the grill side. There are two tabs on the wheel side so if you pull from the grill side you don’t have to mess with those two tabs. There is nothing to break here as this outer cover is not attached very securely to begin with. 



















Next remove the single T25 Torx screw.










Similarly, the fog light housing itself also has two tabs securing it to the bumper on the wheel side. Once the Torx screw is removed the entire housing can pivot out.























































Installation is the reverse of removal. For the outer cover, install the two tabs on the wheel side first and then make sure that the remaining seven tabs fit on the outside of the fog light housing and it will easily snap back in...difficult to see in the below pic but it won’t go on otherwise. If you are forcing the cover on then you don’t have the tabs on the outside and may break or bend them.










** No bulbs were harmed or replaced in the pictorial. **


----------



## Randawg (Jan 20, 2018)

*LED Fog/Driving lights*

Thanks for the pictures, well worth posting. I started to remove the wheel well liner and gave up, I had removed 7-8 screws and it wasn't going anywhere. Much easier to gain access via removing the trim. Funny thing, your trim piece is different, the adjustment screw hole is part of the trim on mine and not on yours. I have an R-Line assuming that is the difference. I bought the deAuto LED's and thus far work flawlessly. Thanks again for the pics!


----------



## MGPVW (Jun 2, 2017)

Thanks for all the posts and tips everyone. I ordered mine off Amazon and installed them today. I did it by removing the trim rings and it was so simple. Less than 5 minutes for both sides!

I find them to be brighter than the stock halogen bulbs, giving the fogs a greater field of light on the road. If nothing else, they certainly look much better than the halogen bulbs... can't believe VW didn't do this at the factory... especially on the Execline models.


----------



## KarstGeo (Jan 19, 2018)

Ordered. Will have to see if I want to do yellow vinyl covers.


----------



## KarstGeo (Jan 19, 2018)

Installed. ~$107 on the Amazon. Ordered some trim tools as well....no idea why I never had those before! Whole job took 15 min. Removed the trim rings...they are very pliable and you won't snap them off. Like above, work from inside to outside. Remove torx. Remove bulb, install LED, reinstall light. Done. Very happy. Matches the headlights well. GT Yellow Headlight Armor on the way. The trim is somewhat hard to get back on as you have to stretch it a bit to get the tabs to go in the right area. Enjoy.


----------



## Touring05 (Nov 12, 2017)

Has anyone changed their fog lights on a R-Line? If so what’s the best way to do this?


----------



## KarstGeo (Jan 19, 2018)

Ok, first drive...p. side out. The connections are not tight and it wiggled loose. Easy fix....I just electrical taped the connection to make it secure...all fixed. I would do this if you are installing these. Second time took 5 min. total both sides.


----------



## matsavol (Jul 26, 2015)

I did quick experiment how to remove the trim pieces... Mine come off very easily without using any tools. Just pull with 2-3 fingers at the inside corner towards the middle of the car... Kind of sliding them off. They come off with so little effort that I'm now worried that they might come off by themselves someday...


----------



## Ryan E. (Oct 1, 2002)

Randawg said:


> Thanks for the pictures, well worth posting. I started to remove the wheel well liner and gave up, I had removed 7-8 screws and it wasn't going anywhere. Much easier to gain access via removing the trim. Funny thing, your trim piece is different, the adjustment screw hole is part of the trim on mine and not on yours. I have an R-Line assuming that is the difference. I bought the deAuto LED's and thus far work flawlessly. Thanks again for the pics!


Thanks for the tip, I have an R Line too. I have some LED’s coming for front and rear.


----------



## TiGeo (Apr 7, 2008)

Disregard last post. I'm a [email protected] You really have to push the connectors together HARD for them to seat..hahaha...on the flip side I'm REALLY good at removing and installing the fogs..5 min tops.

Sent from my SM-G950U using Tapatalk


----------



## CanadianJetta2.0T (Sep 14, 2006)

CanadianJetta2.0T said:


> They do not project that much more than the OEM bulb... however, it could be more a limitation of the reflector than the bulb.


Figured out that the fogs were aligned completely downward.... it is much better now


----------



## KarstGeo (Jan 19, 2018)

CanadianJetta2.0T said:


> Figured out that the fogs were aligned completely downward.... it is much better now


Which bulbs?


----------



## MonoSki (Apr 18, 2002)

love the side by side shot. very helpful thanks!


----------



## dgleeds (Jun 29, 2013)

*Access to bulbs*

I believe access to bulbs can be obtained from the underside of vehicle. I don't think you have to pry out fog light to replace.

I was looking at some technical manuals and other Atlas sites. I will be swapping mine out at some point and am not prying fog assembly out(possibly damaging) if not needed.


----------



## KarstGeo (Jan 19, 2018)

dgleeds said:


> I believe access to bulbs can be obtained from the underside of vehicle. I don't think you have to pry out fog light to replace.
> 
> I was looking at some technical manuals and other Atlas sites. I will be swapping mine out at some point and am not prying fog assembly out(possibly damaging) if not needed.


Interested to hear back on this, removing the front bezel wasn't particularly hard and you won't damage it...it's pliable and only held in with pressure (no tabs locked together to pry apart).


----------



## CobaltSky (Jan 16, 2018)

With these photos, this would make a good DIY / Lighting section thread. Please add it. I looked at a lot of misinformation (like going in through wheel wells or using ramps to raise the front and accessing screws etc) before I found this way to change the fogs in less than 5 minutes.

Thanks for the info!


----------



## bajan01 (Nov 26, 2001)

Word...


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


----------



## KarstGeo (Jan 19, 2018)

CanadianJetta2.0T said:


> Figured out that the fogs were aligned completely downward.... it is much better now


I didn't realize there was a choice of how the Phillips ones get installed in terms of the orientation?


----------



## KarstGeo (Jan 19, 2018)

The fogs should only be able to go one way (to me). On the Phillips bulbs the LEDs are located on two sides and these face left/right which is what looks correct based on the reflector orientation. The deAuto one can be turned 360 degrees which may be interesting to play with but for fogs, they really should be aimed low and wide which is what mine look like.


----------



## kendrer (Dec 12, 2017)

*finally did it!*

I purchased the phillips bulbs you recommended about 6 weeks ago, and finally got around to installing them! Others who have asked on this thread: I am a 41-year old stay at home mom of 3 kids and I was able to do it SO easily. If I can do it in my driveway by myself than I'm pretty sure anyone can =)

My only question is: after I installed them, I realized there were a couple of small zip ties included with the phillips bulbs. The wiring is definitely longer than the OEM bulbs. Did anyone use the zip ties to bind the longer wiring? I guess the wires are just "hanging out" behind the casing, but they seem well enough insulated that any flopping around won't cause damage???

Wish I could drag and drop images i took of my Atlas with 1 light installed and then both, but can't seem to figure out how.


----------



## bajan01 (Nov 26, 2001)

kendrer said:


> ...Did anyone use the zip ties to bind the longer wiring?


I zip tied the wires to minimize the slack.


----------



## KarstGeo (Jan 19, 2018)

I didn't mess with the extra slack, it just sits back there and didn't seem to be in danger of getting damaged.


----------



## Bmgt17ap (Jan 17, 2019)

*2018 VW Atlas: deAuto LED Fog Lights*

Anyone have any experience installing deAutoLED fog lamps on a 2018 VW Atlas. A YouTube makes the install look pretty simple, however my local VW dealership is saying installing aftermarket fog lights could give a error message due to body computer seeing a different voltage or message?

I imagine the deAutoLED ballast looks after this?

Also, any thoughts as to why VW would put none LED fog lights, when the mains are super bright LED's?. (looks a little silly on a brand new 2018 car).


----------



## bajan01 (Nov 26, 2001)

*2018 VW Atlas: deAuto LED Fog Lights*

I’ve been running deAutoLED bulbs for about a year now in both my Atlas and SQ5 without any issues.

Regarding the Atlas fog lights, check out post #16 in the following link:

https://forums.vwvortex.com/showthread.php?8990657-LED-fogs-installed&


----------



## KarstGeo (Jan 19, 2018)

I have been running them about a year, no issues. Easy install (go from the front and just use a trim tool to pry off the out bezel). They are VERY bright. I use yellow overlays from Headlight Armor.


----------



## ADC1 (Sep 25, 2018)

*LED Fog lights*

I also use the deAuto fog lights with no error codes.


----------



## Hfqkhal (Oct 14, 2018)

Earlier this month I installed the deauto fogs. I also bought the adapters which I have not used as so far I get no flicker or bulb error. They work great. As to the install it is easy but the frame gave me a bit of hard time. The video was not as complete as it should be. To put the fog frame I needed to make sure that the wide area is in all the way then had to do a bit off bending to get the left thin part in then presssed the center into position, and that was it. All have been perfect. The fogs set I got was the white/yellow/halogen yellow. I was not a big fan of the strob version


----------



## burntoc (Oct 9, 2020)

> *LED Fog/Driving lights*
> 
> Thanks for the pictures, well worth posting. I started to remove the wheel well liner and gave up, I had removed 7-8 screws and it wasn't going anywhere. Much easier to gain access via removing the trim. Funny thing, your trim piece is different, the adjustment screw hole is part of the trim on mine and not on yours. I have an R-Line assuming that is the difference. I bought the deAuto LED's and thus far work flawlessly. Thanks again for the pics!


Hey there - I have a R-Line as well, and the fog light trim piece doesn't want to come off easily so I just thought I'd confirm. The screw hole on the grill side of our trim is for adjustment only, and the trim piece should come off without messing with that. Right?


----------

