Baja Design Fog Light Replacement

  • HTML tutorial

Ben Kim

Rank V
Member
Investor

Traveler III

1,715
Centennial, CO, USA
First Name
Ben
Last Name
Kim
Member #

12236

Ham/GMRS Callsign
KE0YZW
I recently installed the Baja Design Fog Light Replacement kit on my 2018 4runner. Went super smooth and it was a fun install. The Baja Design Squadron-R Sport Amber Wide Fog Lights are such a great upgrade over the stock. I purchased the kit (included the lights and the installation brackets) from Rago Fabrication. They shipped it quick and it was nice that it was all in a single kit. This kit also came with the correct front bezels. The Amazon kit sometimes doesn't come with these so that's why I didn't order from Amazon.

For the install I used this guide on Trail4Runner.com. It was a huge help and made the installation much easier for me. Another thing that helped was turning the tires to give me a bit more space to work. It was a bit tough to get the fender liner unclipped (without breaking any of the clips) and moving it out of the way. It's a tight space behind the fender so the more room you can make for yourself the easier it will all go.

I'm new to working on cars so even a straightforward installation like this is probably more challenging for me than for others. But I'm very happy with the results, the new lights fit like a glove and the upgrade in visibility at night and overall lighting is so worth it.

Before Installation - stock fog lights (gross!)
IMG_1145.jpg
Half way point - Stock fog light on the passenger side and new Baja Design fog light on the driver's side
IMG_1153(Edited).jpg
Finished! - Such a big improvement!
IMG_1154(Edited).jpg
 

Ben Kim

Rank V
Member
Investor

Traveler III

1,715
Centennial, CO, USA
First Name
Ben
Last Name
Kim
Member #

12236

Ham/GMRS Callsign
KE0YZW
That’s probably what I should have done. I did the exact same upgrade, but the Squadron-R Pro lamps. At more than double the output, they are way too bright for anything but off road use.
Yea it was a tough decision. The Pro's are real nice and definitely quality and worth the price. I wasn't sure if the Sports were going to be a good tradeoff but also keep reading on how more and more people regretted the "too bright" Pro's and were switching to the Sports and using the Pro's as ditch lights or rear lights. Coming from stock to the sports is a huge difference. I can't imagine how bright the Pro's are haha.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Steve

Wawa Skittletits

Local Expert East Region USA
Staff member
Launch Member
Member

Expedition Master I

5,079
Wilkes-Barre, PA, USA
First Name
Drew
Last Name
Hawley
Member #

1537

Ham/GMRS Callsign
WRBZ674
Service Branch
USN veteran
Awesome swap! I run the same lights in my OE location and love them. Since I’m running them as OE replacements I went with the ‘sport’ over the ‘pro’.

3B6E6780-AC93-4D2C-B072-17795330A62E.jpeg
 
  • Like
Reactions: Chadlyb and Ben Kim

Passe-Partout

Rank I
Launch Member

Traveler I

271
5466 Ashleigh Road, Fairfax, VA
First Name
Claude
Last Name
Imbt
Member #

13005

I got a little carried away....View attachment 61615
I have them connected to an Spod controller which adds strobe, flash, and dimming capability. The dimming capability enables you to control the intensity of the light needed for different types of terrain. Strobe/flash are great ways to signal in an emergency. Strobe/Flash can be combined with dimming to control the brightness of the strobe/flash if broken down along the side of the road. The Spod is also controllable from a smart phone with the optional blue tooth capability. This is very handy while setting up camp or if you need to light up camp in the middle of night without getting out of the tent.
 

True North

Rank V
Launch Member

Enthusiast III

1,721
Bay Area, California
Member #

14046

@Ben Kim Nice rig! Do you have a photo of the light output from inside your car? I'm going to do this mod soon but was leaning towards the driving/combo light. Curious what the cornering lights look like when on.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Ben Kim

Ben Kim

Rank V
Member
Investor

Traveler III

1,715
Centennial, CO, USA
First Name
Ben
Last Name
Kim
Member #

12236

Ham/GMRS Callsign
KE0YZW
@Ben Kim Nice rig! Do you have a photo of the light output from inside your car? I'm going to do this mod soon but was leaning towards the driving/combo light. Curious what the cornering lights look like when on.
Here are se pretty rough night photos. Haven’t had much time to do anything proper. These aren’t great but gives you an idea of the spread and amber coloring.
With just LED low beams on (auxbeam’s)
IMG_1322.JPG
With fogs on
IMG_1323.JPG
With just LED low beams on (auxbeam’s)
IMG_1325.JPG
With fogs on
IMG_1327.JPG
 

True North

Rank V
Launch Member

Enthusiast III

1,721
Bay Area, California
Member #

14046

  • Like
Reactions: Ben Kim

True North

Rank V
Launch Member

Enthusiast III

1,721
Bay Area, California
Member #

14046

Just installed the BD sports WC and wow are these things bright. They're so bright I'm almost wondering if I accidentally got sent the pros.

Regardless, these are awesome so far, and a huge difference from the oem fogs!
 
  • Like
Reactions: Ben Kim

vegasjeepguy

Rank V
Launch Member

Advocate II

2,566
Gravette, AR, USA
Member #

1130

That’s probably what I should have done. I did the exact same upgrade, but the Squadron-R Pro lamps. At more than double the output, they are way too bright for anything but off road use.
You’ve answered my question. I’m looking for supplemental off-road lighting and was wondering if this was an option.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Steve

Corbet

Rank V
Launch Member

Pathfinder I

2,055
Durango, CO
First Name
Corbet
Last Name
Hoover
Member #

1204

I did the fog light kit on my wife’s 2017 Impreza last summer. Even the squadron sports are too bright for oncoming traffic IMHO. In many ways there are brighter than the Impreza’s high beams. But perfect for spotting deer or other animals on our county roads. They were a great upgrade especially considering how useless the OEM Subaru fogs always are.

592EC861-34B7-40BD-8E73-6467F13CBA21.jpeg

My truck got BD LP9’s

9F4B8A8F-3991-4369-8FBE-9C3EA8916AB8.jpeg
 
Last edited:

mylilpwny

Rank V
Launch Member

Pathfinder I

Just got a set of fogs for my truck. 2 spots and 2 floods for 4 total. They are the bd squad sports. Man what an improvement and install was stupid easy. Previous owner had all 4 wired to one switch and not a fan of that. I am awaiting my switch-pros, mount for it and some amber rock covers for the floods. A sneak peek of the install. Once every thing is completed I will write it up in my build thread. IMG_20180915_170445.jpeg
 
  • Like
Reactions: Ben Kim