Fog Lights & Rear Lights

[Bigmeat]

I'm hoping to add front and rear fog lights to my early E21.

Looking on eBay there's a set for £180 which is way out of my price range, and the ones on the US site are cheaper but a slightly different design.

Anyone help me with the sort I should be looking for for a mk1 car? We're they used on any other cars of the era?

Also I'll need a rear fog. Are these just the same but with a red lens?
Does the bumper need drilling to fit them?

I could also do with help identifying correct rear lights. I know there's a difference between early and rear lights, down to integrated fog lamps, but I can't tell the difference when I'm looking on eBay. How can I tell them apart?

Thanks

[Jeroen]

BMW updating ETK all the time causes vital info to get lost as I have seen at least 4 different types of tail lights, but according to ETK this is the case: up to the facelift there were only tail lights without fog light requiring a separate fog light which was fitted to the chassis, right underneath the bumper. However, I know for sure that there were pre facelift rear light units that had integrated fog lights, there are enough early E21's round that have the integrated fog light.

Facelifted (8/1979 and onwards) models always have the updated units with integrated fog lights. As I found out recently, early taillights do not fit a facelift chassis, but I can't tell if it works the other way around. My suggestion would be to try and borrow some taillights from other owners or at a wrecker or at Frit's and the likes to see if you can test fit some so you don't have to fit a separate rear fog light which looks shabby imo. As far as I know wiring is the same. Please keep in mind that it is likely that US tail lights do not fit due to the different bumper design.

The front fog lights, well BMW supplied a few different designs over the years but basically any classic rectangular design chrome fog light like from Hella should be fine. These are fitted either at the bottom of the bumper or, originally, to the bumper brackets.

[Manitoba]

As I do not doubt your knowledge, Jeroen, I must conclude that there is something strange about my 07/'80 323i. It does not have an integrated rear fog light, nor a separate one underneath the rear bumper. I believe my car has got some more "transition" details from the early to the NFL types.

Greetz,
Walter.

[uwbuurman]

Walter, you have type 2 rear lights, no doubt

[Jeroen]

lol

well yes there were some funny things going on in the transition period, late 79 was not a real simple switch over and some older parts were used while stocks lasted. And as I said, there are a lot of different versions and there may be a few more country specific ones as well. And who says the ones on your car are the original ones? Absolutely sure there's no fog light? Or perhaps the inner part was changed at some point? So many options... I stopped trying to find a logic or a structure behind them

[Manitoba]

At least I'm 100% sure that there's no fog light switch on my dash...

Greetz,
Walter.

[Jeroen]

Interesting indeed!

[Manitoba]

To be even 200% sure I just checked. There's only one switch besides the light switch, and that controls the rear window heating.

Greetz,
Walter.

[uwbuurman]

Great,so you have no switch. But you do have a foglight, integrated in the rearlight. Maybe no bulb in it, but still.

The type 1 versions have different rearlights, which have no space for a foglight, thats why type 1's can be equiped with an optional light, under the bumper.

Thats also the reason a type 1 rear panel had two round cents, because those are the mounting points for the lights. Thats the difference between the older and newer rear panels, apart from the exhaust hole.

[Bigmeat]

Uwbuurman, where are the 2 mounting points located? I'll see if my car has them.
One of the issues I'm having with my car, as you suggest Jeroen, is that it's built in the crossover period - April 79. Some of the bits are off the later spec car, but much of it is still pretty face lift.
I definitely have early lights with the reflector.

[uwbuurman]

Just below where the the bumper goes, you can see the round spots clearly

[Mihajlo]

old vs new rear lights

[Bigmeat]

Ah thanks for that guys. Yes I've got the round spots, and the to of the 2 lights. I see the difference now they're side by side

[uwbuurman]

So type 1 lights and type 1 rear panel.

[Bigmeat]

That's right.
Don't suppose you'd know if it's likely to have the wiring already in place? Just want to know own if it's worth rooting around for the connectors or if I'm best just running new cable.
Also, I assume I'll need to add some sort of relay, particularly for front fogs?