I've done everything I can do (I think) to improve the main lights on my 02 WRX short of a HID retrofit, which I'd like to do but my other half would kill me :( if I spend another $1000 on the car.

I've added ground side relays. and switched to ge nighthawk bulbs (NOT the blue ones).

Output is better than stock, and ok on dry roads. Wet roads / adverse conditions though and the road turns into a black hole as far as my lights are concerned. Mostly I'm stuck with low beams due to traffic.

Factory fogs appear to be close to useless - only seem to illuminate about 20ft in front of the car.

1. Is it worth replacing them with some Hella 500 fogs - are these significantly better?
2. Clear or Amber model?
3. Anyone have some before / after comparison pics with the OEM lights?
4. Mounting - do I really need to buy the (Kartboy?) brackets?

Any comments / advice appreciated.

Thanks.

Hella 500 series are decent lights - I've had several sets of their fogs on different cars - I run the 500s in a driving pattern on my 05wrx, but retained the OEM fogs. My driving lights are bracket-mounted at the bumper level.

Clear or amber is a coke or pepsi thing... personal taste. Some claim less "wash out" in snow or heavy fog with the yellow lens.

I've not used them to replace factory fogs, so I'll defer those questions to others who have. Kartboy makes good stuff, though.

I've done everything I can do (I think) to improve the main lights on my 02 WRX short of a HID retrofit, which I'd like to do but my other half would kill me :( if I spend another $1000 on the car.

I've added ground side relays. and switched to ge nighthawk bulbs (NOT the blue ones).

Output is better than stock, and ok on dry roads. Wet roads / adverse conditions though and the road turns into a black hole as far as my lights are concerned. Mostly I'm stuck with low beams due to traffic.

Factory fogs appear to be close to useless - only seem to illuminate about 20ft in front of the car.

1. Is it worth replacing them with some Hella 500 fogs - are these significantly better?
2. Clear or Amber model?
3. Anyone have some before / after comparison pics with the OEM lights?
4. Mounting - do I really need to buy the (Kartboy?) brackets?

Any comments / advice appreciated.

Thanks.

:lol: dude i so understand where your coming from. my wife is ready to strangle me:lol:

http://www.danielsternlighting.com/

go read.
PS. ur doing it wrong.

http://www.danielsternlighting.com/

go read.
PS. ur doing it wrong.

I've read Daniel's site many times, and corresponded with him on several occasions.

Daniel supplied the relay harness for my main lights, and recommended the GE bulbs.

Exactly what am I doing wrong?

i ran the amber fogs in my 02 and it was 100x better then the stockers. about 6 months later i tried out the clear lenses and ended up going back to the amber. you will love them. the kartoy brackets make life easier if you cant fab stuff.

i ran the amber fogs in my 02 and it was 100x better then the stockers. about 6 months later i tried out the clear lenses and ended up going back to the amber. you will love them. the kartoy brackets make life easier if you cant fab stuff.

That helps a lot, now I know the improvement is worth having :)

I was dithering between getting the amber version, or going with the clear version and getting selective yellow bulbs - so I have an easy way to go white if I decide to in future. I guess the bulb vs lens results would probably be identical.

Were the lights still within the 'well' in the bumper when mounted with the kartboy bracket?

i got mine from rallylights.com, but i would guess the bracket is similar. it's just a flat L bracket with the appropriate holes for mounting. it'd be simple to fab up one if you have the time and the right tools, but the bracket didn't cost much and saved me a bit of hassle.

my fogs appear to be located in the same area of the well. i can just barely get the corner of a squeegee sponge in there to clean off the road salt. as far as lenses go, i didn't like the look of the yellow lens and went with clear instead. i figured i can do clear or go yellow by switching a bulb, whereas if i had the yellow lens, clear would not be an option.

so far, i'm extremely happy with them. they definitely do more than the stock lights! they throw a very wide, very flat beam pattern. they work wonderfully for lighting up deer on the side of the road. i have the exact light setup you do, sans daniel stern's relay kit (love to get one!). also, do yourself a favor and throw some rockblocker film on them. just don't forget that you can remove the blue hella logo (sticker) on the lens. i realized that after i finished the rockblocker on one side. :furious: plus, the low cost helps keep the significant other happy!

yea, mine were behind the bumper as i could still use those mesh covers with my hellas.

The kartboy mounts are $45 or something which seems pretty steep - over 1/2 cost of the lights! The RL one is $33. I guess I'll hack one up myself.

Looks like there is now a FF variant of the 500 fog :) I'll probably go with that one and selective yellow bulbs from DanielStern.

Thanks guys.