I remember a topic about the rear fog light or lights, can both offside and nearside rear fog lights be made to work together, but I can not find an answer if this can be done or not ?

Or can someone show me the link if this can be done, as only one fog light, up on the Isle of Skye on a dark and very fogy night is not really adequate.

I remember a topic about the rear fog light or lights, can both offside and nearside rear fog lights be made to work together, but I can not find an answer if this can be done or not ?

Or can someone show me the link if this can be done, as only one fog light, up on the Isle of Skye on a dark and very fogy night is not really adequate.

If I remember the old thread right, thene there is no bulb in the other fog ligt housing, and the CPU won't light it if you put one in.

But then my memory is not what it used to be........ :no:

If I remember the old thread right, thene there is no bulb in the other fog ligt housing, and the CPU won't light it if you put one in.

But then my memory is not what it used to be........ :no:

as above.....fraid your stuck with 1

Thank for the very quick reply, but brand new Yeti has bulb in the rear cluster can both lights be activated do you know

With most VAG cars the bulb holder is still fitted but no bulb, so fit a bulb and run a single wire from the working fog lamp to the corresponding terminal on the non working side. Simple really, just find the right terminal and scotchlok the new wire to it. No extra earth required as these are commoned up.

With my 2005 Fabia VRS hot wired offside rear fog-light (which worked) to nearside rear foglight (that did not work).

Fittings and a double-filament bulb already in place from manufacture, just had to put small spade live feed onto contact back of light cluster.

Did put in-line fuse as a precaution.

Works a treat.

SUGGEST - - - -

Check both sides for light set-up, type of bulb filament and wiring.

May just need a bit of improvisation here and there, nothing ventured nothing gained. ??

As brake lights use their own lens and bulb sockets, can't understand any confusion, to the driver following.

There are loads of cars with two fog-lights working at the same time, the model Octavia is just an example.

If you read the following reports, of just one light working and the baloney given is laughable and debatable.

Edited 7 January, 201115 yr by giandougl

The second fog light is a setting changed with VCDS, get your dealer to activate it at next service,

DO NOT WIRE IT UP AS SUGGESTED

Only one is activated from the factory so it doesn't detract from the brake lights, to help prevent accidents. If you want the other one turned on, just ask the dealer, it doesn't take 2 minutes in the workshop.

Edited 6 July, 201016 yr by rich17865

DO NOT WIRE IT UP AS SUGGESTED

Agreed! There is already a bulb fitted in the holder which appears to be fully wired up, so do not attempt to link through to the other side.

My dealer (Claybank Skoda, Manchester) has refused point blank to activate the other lamp. He's happy to swap sides if I'm going abroad, as long as I get him to swap back upon my return. However, he says that SUK have instructed dealers that they must not activate both lamps at the same time as the vehicle then doesn't comply with conditions & use regs. (confusion with brake lights). I tried SUK's help line, but all they'll say is "only one lamp is permitted to be activated in the UK".

I cant find anything in the Motor Vehicle lighting regs that restricts you to just one lamp, in fact the regs actually say that two lamps can be used

"12. Other requirements-

Where two rear fog lamps are fitted to a motor vehicle first used on or after 1st April 1986 or to a trailer manufactured on or after 1st October 1985 they shall form a matched pair. " and that the only other relevant requirement is that there is 100mm separation from the brake lights.

I wanted both to work as I use the car as safety car in motorsport and I needed both lamps to illuminate together when out on the race circuit. I dont want to fit additional rear lights for this purpose, or to modify the existing lamp units.

Does anyone have any more info about whether dealers can or cannot activate the second lamp, or more to the point, has anyone had it done?

Edited 6 July, 201016 yr by speedsport

It may be that when Skoda submitted the car for Type Approval in the UK they only had the off-side rear fog light activated, therefore activating the other one tecnically would be illegal under the C & U Regs, however I doubt any Policeman would know this. I'm sure there are dealers who would be willing to do it "unofficially" especially if you explained why.

Perhaps one of the more sporting garages? Afterall, there is one dealer who sponsers a stage rally.

Just for the record had an AUDI, 2010, with British plates, passed me with his/her 2 foglights on ?? so much for legislation and garage refusal.

Whats good enough for a car costing at least £25,000+ and 5 years younger, is good enough for me to copy. !!!

Edited 8 July, 201016 yr by giandougl

Re: Rear Fog Light/s I have just had an e-mail back from my dealer and this was the answer from them.

Quote As far as I am aware this is not possible with later systems. I have checked possible codes and adoptions and can find no option for this. So would say this wasn't possible or recommended.

Still as Rich says does enyone now different, or more over what is the problem of linking the two of them from the live fog light?

Edited 9 July, 201016 yr by steve49

Hello steve49

There must be bulb fittings for a double-filament bulb - - Brake & Fog operation.

Remove rear of light cluster where bulbs are replaced and compare (near-side to off-side).

Outside red lens must look the same (compare off-side to near-side).

If both sides identical apart from being wired-up, then it will be possible to get light working as explained above. (giandougl)

It's worth mentioning Fabia VRS set-up is identical for off-side & near-side apart from the wiring up, which made the job so much easier.

The high intensity bulb element operates when braking, with the lower intensity bulb element operated when using fog-light operation.

Edited 10 July, 201016 yr by giandougl

Hello steve49

There must be bulb fittings for a double-filament bulb - - Brake & Fog operation.

Remove rear of light cluster where bulbs are replaced and compare (near-side to off-side).

Outside red lens must look the same (compare off-side to near-side).

If both sides identical apart from being wired-up, then it will be possible to get light working as explained above. (giandougl)

It's worth mentioning Fabia VRS set-up is identical for off-side & near-side apart from the wiring up, which made the job so much easier.

The high intensity bulb element operates when braking, with the lower intensity bulb element operated when using fog-light operation.

Thanks giandougl

I think the Yeti must be diferent to Fabia as the fog light is just a single element P21W bulb but thank for the info the misses has got a Fabia

Thanks giandougl

I think the Yeti must be diferent to Fabia as the fog light is just a single element P21W bulb but thank for the info the misses has got a Fabia

Got to ask, what is in the position on the near-side that has no fog-light.

Is is just blanked off??

Forgive my rudeness, but you are looking at the foglight area and not the tail-light position?? which may also has a single element 21W bulb.

Hello steve49

There must be bulb fittings for a double-filament bulb - - Brake & Fog operation.

Remove rear of light cluster where bulbs are replaced and compare (near-side to off-side).

Outside red lens must look the same (compare off-side to near-side).

If both sides identical apart from being wired-up, then it will be possible to get light working as explained above. (giandougl)

It's worth mentioning Fabia VRS set-up is identical for off-side & near-side apart from the wiring up, which made the job so much easier.

The high intensity bulb element operates when braking, with the lower intensity bulb element operated when using fog-light operation.

It is clear from the Owner's Manual that the Rear Foglight is a single element bulb.

Reversing lights, brake lights and rear fog light P21W (from the Owner's Manual)

Hello Terfyn

What is actually in the nearside foglight position as regards to anything, or is it just blanked off?? with nothing there??

Got to ask, what is in the position on the near-side that has no fog-light. Is is just blanked off??

Forgive my rudeness, but you are looking at the foglight area and not the tail-light position?? which may also has a single element 21W bulb.

Hello Terfyn

What is actually in the nearside foglight position as regards to anything, or is it just blanked off?? with nothing there??

As I said in post #9, on the Nearside, "There is already a bulb fitted in the holder which appears to be fully wired up"

ie both light clusters are identical, each has a fog light lens, each is fitted with a bulb holder and each has a 21w bulb in it. It's just that the nearside one is not programed (somehow) to work. My dealer says that he is supposed to be able to re-program the system to swap them over if I'm going to the continent (and will swap them back on my return) but cannot make both work at the same time . (I've no idea if this is correct, as he hasn't actually done one yet!) :wonder:

Edited 11 July, 201015 yr by speedsport

Thanks for all your info 'speedsport'.

So you can have fog-lights both sides operating at the same time if you wish.

A case of wiring-up yourself !! as I wired my Fabia VRS.

Up to the car owner to be happy with one, or have the two working.

The new 2010 Skoda Octavia has both rear fog-lights working, I recently read on this site, can't see why the YETI is omitted from this safety feature??

[quote name='giandougl' date='11 July 2010 - 19:38' timestamp='1278873509' post='2039520'

The new 2010 Skoda Octavia has both rear fog-lights working, I recently read on this site, can't see why the YETI is omitted from this safety feature??

Because the Law only requires the light on the off-side to work, and that is presumably how Skoda sent it for Type Approval.

Looks as though we are going round in a circle here!

We have established that the LH light cluster has the bulb holder and bulb installed, and presumably connected to something, otherwise the dealers wouldn't be able to simply reprogram the car so that they can change the side of the car that has the operative lamp.

An earlier contributor said (I suspect entirely correctly) that you should not attempt to make the near-side lamp work merely by wiring it into the off-side lamp cluster. Presumably, as both lamps are connected to a central control unit, you could risk damage to the control module by connecting them up in this way.

Does anyone know if the rear lights work on a can-bus system, or is there a separate wire in the loom from the front of the vehicle to each lamp within the cluster? If it's a can-bus system, then almost certainly it's best to leave it well alone!

(As I understand it, in a can-bus system, power is supplied constantly by a "ring main" to every lamp. When a particular lamp is required to illuminate, a high frequency signal is sent down the wire to a receiver located just before each bulb that tells the bulb to illuminate. On a traditional sysyem, each lamp has its own wire from the switch or relay, or control unit, and that wire is only supplied with power when the bulb is required to light up)

Edited 12 July, 201015 yr by speedsport

Rear lights are controlled by the BCM / J-519 ecu. There are no CAN(controller area network)-BUS wires that run from the BCM controller and to the light clusters. BUT, some of the bulbs are powered by PWM (pulse width modulation) signals, and all the bulbs are checked by the BCM.

The PWM signals make it possible to use a 21W single filament bulb as both taillight and brakelight by changing the pulses to the bulb.

EEK! That's getting pretty technical... so does that mean that when the servicing agent says he can "program the car to swap the active fog light from nearside to offside" he's actually reprogramming the BCM (does that stand for bulb control module by any chance?). Does that therefore mean that it should be possible to program the BCM to select both lamps at the same time? Or is the only option likey to be either N/S or O/S?

Think I'm getting out of my depth here!!!

Edited 12 July, 201015 yr by speedsport

My reading of it is that the BCM only allows ONE light to be lit, and that is set by the dealer when he sets the country status.