TLC FAQ

Fog Light Switch Rewire for High Beam Use

Apr 3

Electrical, How-To, How-To Electrical, Lighting

Article by: RobRed

Applicable Models: 1998 – 2007 / 100 Series Land Cruiser or Lx 470

There are times when you just want it your way. Maybe you want to run your fog lights in conjunction with your high beams. Maybe you removed your fog lights and installed a nice aftermarket LED light bar or some nice 8″ brighter than the sun bombdigities and now you need a switch to control the relay. The Fog Light Switch in the DS steering column is a perfect way to do this.

First let me say that you should have your aftermarket lights wired to the battery via an appropriate relay and fusing. I would not recommend tapping the fog light circuit for your lights main power source. It is a 15A circuit and it’s possible to use the factory wiring for many LED applications but be safe.

Before you begin any modification to your vehicle you should fully understand what you are doing and make sure you have the skills to complete the job. TLCFAQ nor it’s authors, commentors or contributors accept any responsibility, or liability for any mishap or problems from any materials posted on the website. Any and all of this can cause serious damage to you or your vehicle. Always consult a qualified professional. I’m Serious. Do this at your own risk.

1. Remove the Cluster Finish Panel by pulling straight out. it’s held by clips. Be careful as the dash illumination dimmer is on the left side and needs to be unplugged

2. Remove both upper and lower steering column covers (clamshell)

One gold phillips screw (underneath the steering wheel)
Turn the wheel left and right to reveal two more black phillips screws
Then pull apart at the halves of the Column Covers trim, separating them
BE CAREFUL – There is a steel plate that runs under the drivers kick panel that will scratch the lower portion or the cover. I inserted a thin rag between the plastic panel and steel support, to prevent scratching the lower cover

3. Locate the white multi-pin plug on the left side of the steering wheel that plugs into Combi-switch, it is referred to as “C-16” in the Toyota EWD

Locate pin 17, it is a Red / Blue wire. The other end of this connection loops back to pin 10 in the same connector so be certain you have pin 17. Pin 17 is in the corner where my thumb is in the photo below

4. Carefully remove pin #17 from the harness connector. A very small flat head screwdriver will work by carefully prying up on the pin retainer and gently tugging the wire free
5. Now that you have freed the wire for position 17 it needs to be grounded to the chassis. You have many choices for this but here are 2 ideas. I’m sure you can think of many more

Option 1 – Strip a piece of 18ga wire on one end and wrap it around the pin. Use Super33 tape or shrink tube to secure the wrap. Strip the other end and attach it to an available ground point in the dash area. This keeps the pin on the factory wire intact to restore it’s functionality in the future.
Option 2 – The wire is long enough that you could crimp on a small ring terminal to it, then attach it to the metal tab that the gold phillips screw (you removed earlier) screws into