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Fog lights and ditch lights with backlighting, switches, and canbus integrated controls

Runaway Tractor

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Ford F-150 Lightning Fog lights and ditch lights with backlighting, switches, and canbus integrated controls Front night all on


Ford F-150 Lightning Fog lights and ditch lights with backlighting, switches, and canbus integrated controls Front night fogs and backlightin


Ford F-150 Lightning Fog lights and ditch lights with backlighting, switches, and canbus integrated controls Road lit u


Finally mostly finished enough to post some pics. Added fog lights and ditch lights, with switches and control integrated into the truck's ignition, high beams and parking lights. I'm using a CanM8 canbus interface to read the status of ignition, high beam, and parking lights. There's a canbus wire behind the driver's footwell trim that it's connected to. Those 3 outputs are used through the switches to drive relays. I don't want to push buttons constantly while driving. I want things to just turn on and off with the high beams or parking lights so I do not need to push extra buttons. But I want the switches to override or disable if I feel the need. The canbus and relays are in a waterproof box next to the battery. Switches are on the empty little panel under the steering wheel.

Ford F-150 Lightning Fog lights and ditch lights with backlighting, switches, and canbus integrated controls Electronics counter


Ford F-150 Lightning Fog lights and ditch lights with backlighting, switches, and canbus integrated controls Electronics in box


Ford F-150 Lightning Fog lights and ditch lights with backlighting, switches, and canbus integrated controls Electronics closed u



The fog lights are Diode Dynamics SSC2 Pros in yellow SAE Fog beam with amber backlight. In automatic mode, they come on with the parking lights. I'd rather it be tied to low beams that would require the 8-output canbus interface and is way more expensive. I really love these lights. They're mounted to the air intake grid and wiring was fished up and around which was a major pain in the ass. The SAE fog pattern is great, puts the light right where it belongs. The yellow makes it way less in-your-face and is more effective in actual inclement weather. These are almost always set for automatic. If I have them off, the amber backlighting comes on with the parking lights instead which looks nice at night too.

Ford F-150 Lightning Fog lights and ditch lights with backlighting, switches, and canbus integrated controls Front day fogs


Ford F-150 Lightning Fog lights and ditch lights with backlighting, switches, and canbus integrated controls Fog close u


Ford F-150 Lightning Fog lights and ditch lights with backlighting, switches, and canbus integrated controls Front night fogs portrait


Ford F-150 Lightning Fog lights and ditch lights with backlighting, switches, and canbus integrated controls Fogs install 1



The ditch lights are Diode Dynamics SSC2 Pro in white SAE Driving beam with amber backlight. In automatic mode, they come on with the high beams. If I have them off, the amber backlighting comes on with the parking lights instead which also looks nice at night. Using Diode Dynamics ditch lights brackets since they put the lights outboard instead of inboard. This gets them out of the way of the antenna, and doesn't flood the hood with light. The SAE driving beam pattern is great. It puts the light way out front, not spilling all over the hood. The beam actually almost perfectly matches the truck's high beam pattern.

Note: I have enabled the glare free matrix high beams in Forscan. When that is enabled in the Sync menu for lighting, I can't use the automatic mode on the ditch lights since they'd stay on. The truck's high beams are actually really great by themselves. The glare free matrix automatic high beams is amazing, works great, and love it. It's honestly debatable whether I prefer normal high beams with the ditch lights, or just enjoy the automatic glare-free matrix lighting. On the highway, matrix for sure. On the back roads, normal with ditch lights seems best.

Ford F-150 Lightning Fog lights and ditch lights with backlighting, switches, and canbus integrated controls Ditch bracket left side


Ford F-150 Lightning Fog lights and ditch lights with backlighting, switches, and canbus integrated controls Ditch bracket right backlit


Ford F-150 Lightning Fog lights and ditch lights with backlighting, switches, and canbus integrated controls Front day all on bright portrait


The switches are 3 position on-off-on. Down is automatic, center off, up is manual on. All of this only operates with the ignition is on, so there's not pissing the BMS off leaving the lights on with the truck turned off. The third switch is for future use since I was drilling holes and running wires. I also pulled several extra wires through the firewall while I was at it. It is a pain and I didn't want to have to do it more than once. I used a piece of Cat6 for the switches since it is just contact closure and not flowing high current. So much easier than pulling a bunch of pointless higher gauge wire.

Ford F-150 Lightning Fog lights and ditch lights with backlighting, switches, and canbus integrated controls Switches wirin


Ford F-150 Lightning Fog lights and ditch lights with backlighting, switches, and canbus integrated controls Switches complete


I have set of Diode Dynamics SSC1 pods to put somewhere. My original plan was alley lights pointing sideways off the ditch lights. But it would be kind of ugly. Might put them in the back. facing backwards or sideways.
 
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Runaway Tractor

Runaway Tractor

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There's a large gromet in the footwell. It is a huge PITA to get through. In other vehicles, I could simply poke through with a coat hanger or knife. This thing required a of work to get a hole through for the wires. The little panel under the steering wheel pops right off, just plastic clips.
 

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Effonefiddy Lightning

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There's a large gromet in the footwell. It is a huge PITA to get through. In other vehicles, I could simply poke through with a coat hanger or knife. This thing required a of work to get a hole through for the wires. The little panel under the steering wheel pops right off, just plastic clips.
PITA, you ain't kindling. I drilled a hole and installed my own grommet.
 

V8BoatBuilder

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Great work - thanks for sharing!
 

XENOILPHOBE

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Love the quality of the products you picked, very sweet install, would love more info on your CANBUS box (schematic, BOM, etc). I plan to install this exact setup, however plan to make a custom bracket to the left and right of the air intake, will require some Dremel cutting, but should be fairly easy and black JB weld is your friend for these types of custom installs. Also may add rear fogs (red) cause we get a lot of fog down in the marshy areas at the beach.
 
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bordner42

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Love the quality of the products you picked, very sweet install, would love more info on your CANBUS box (schematic, BOM, etc). I plan to install this exact setup, however plan to make a custom bracket to the left and right of the air intake, will require some Dremel cutting, but should be fairly easy and black JB weld is your friend for these types of custom installs. Also may add rear fogs (red) cause we get a lot of fog down in the marshy areas at the beach.
Also interested in additional info with the CANBUS setup. Where exactly is the wire, and how do you connect to it?
 
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Runaway Tractor

Runaway Tractor

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The canbus twisted pair that carries lighting signal is in the left side of the driver's foot well. I may have pics, which I'll look for. Ran cat6 from there to the "avionics bay" in the frunk where the canbus decoder and relays are in that box.
 

Caliber357x

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This is great!! I live in the middle of a national forest and drive 12 miles from the smallest town of 250 people, and while the high beams are good, I need extra light driving on chip and tar roads with dozens of deer around. I’ve also considered consigning someone to design a light bar near the active air dam inlet space that I could control with a switch.
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