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      05-30-2012, 07:02 PM   #1
heverlee
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only one fog light is on with automatic lighting

Hello:

I found it is weird that my left front fog light is on with the automatically turned on low beam in the night. The front right one is off at that moment.

On the other hand, when I push the fog light botton both left and right would turn on.

BMW service person said it could be that the one fog light is on depending on driving direction as a way of assist lighting. however I found this issue even when I am driving straight.

not sure if anyone else has similar experience?

thanks
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      05-30-2012, 08:30 PM   #2
ReturnZero
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Hmm, I've seen one side fog lights turn on when you're going to turn or if you have your blinker on or something, but never under normal circumstances. Maybe someone can chime in with more details, but my guess is we're just misunderstanding how the system works...
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      05-30-2012, 09:39 PM   #3
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They're also turning lights. Search the forum. If you're turning left, the left one will turn on even if fog lights are off. Responds to signal and steering wheel.
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      05-30-2012, 10:45 PM   #4
ReturnZero
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By the way - anyone know if you can disable the fogs as turning lights? Don't the Xenons already rotate when you turn?
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      05-30-2012, 11:03 PM   #5
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Quote:
Originally Posted by heverlee View Post
...I found this issue even when I am driving straight.
If the fog light switch is off, both fog lights should be off when driving straight. Period. If this is not the case, then it is a fault and you should have the dealer service it.
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      05-31-2012, 04:23 AM   #6
Nahoa
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Quote:
Originally Posted by caz681 View Post
If the fog light switch is off, both fog lights should be off when driving straight. Period. If this is not the case, then it is a fault and you should have the dealer service it.
Keep in mind that the fog lights activate as turning lights when you first activate your turn signal. They stay light for a short time on that basis (on the side of the turn) and then turn off. They reactivate when you initiate the turn. So, when you activate your signal while you're driving straight shortly before initiating your turn, then the one fog light should be on for a time.
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      05-31-2012, 07:51 AM   #7
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Quote:
Originally Posted by caz681 View Post
If the fog light switch is off, both fog lights should be off when driving straight. Period. If this is not the case, then it is a fault and you should have the dealer service it.
I'm not sure that is 100% accurate. Occasionally I'll watch my wife back out of the garage and one fog light will be lit for a short period even though it is a straight backup. Also, like Nahoa said, when you activate the turn signal the fog on that side will light up, even if you are still going straight and the fogs button is OFF.

To the OP, what you described is normal, at least that is how our X3 behaves. I wouldn't sweat it. At times ours seems like it has a mind of it's own but again, not something to really worry about.
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      05-31-2012, 08:18 AM   #8
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The fog lamps act as turning and reverse lamps below about 15 mph. When turning a corner at a low speed, the lamp on the side of the car in your turning direction will activate. That is, a right turn will activate the right lamp.

When reversing, both lamps will illuminate under very low speeds.

The lamps will also activate when the car is stopped but the wheel is turned left or right.
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      05-31-2012, 09:35 AM   #9
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When the left or right fog light activates, it also fades on and fades off. I'm assuming that was done to not distract other drivers with the light going on and off.

I'm sure the fog lights are controlled by the light control module. I don't see anyway of disabling them from coming on for low speed turns and backing up unless BMW has a way to code that. Then again, why would you want to disable it?
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      05-31-2012, 03:59 PM   #10
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thank you all for the clarification. I did a test and turned out the fog light is associated with the turning direction. this was also confirmed by the dealer. it is just weird that nothing mentioned in manual about this.
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      06-01-2012, 08:54 AM   #11
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I thought ours turned on as you turned the steering wheel, not when you activated the turn signal. Maybe it does it at both times, I will check.
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      06-01-2012, 04:17 PM   #12
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It does both.
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      06-01-2012, 07:57 PM   #13
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Quote:
Originally Posted by heverlee
thank you all for the clarification. I did a test and turned out the fog light is associated with the turning direction. this was also confirmed by the dealer. it is just weird that nothing mentioned in manual about this.
This feature is getting standard in most of the SUVs, I noticed in Merc GL, GMC Yukon, etc...during turn signal is on.
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