RayNada

I've got a 1996 Lexus ES300 which has the square (clear) fog lights up front in the lower grill section and I'm wanting to install the yellow round JDM (?) fog lights (shown below).

I've purchased a set of used round / yellow fog lights and it appears the mounting bracket, holes and connectors all connect up fine to the car itself. However, the holes in the lower grill are square for the US clear fog lights on my 1996 model. I'm going to see if the round lights look okay in the square holes or maybe trim things just a touch.

My question is were these yellow fog lights only available in Japan? Also, will the lower center grill with round holes (example shown below) install into the US front bumper?

From what I can see, the round fog lights were from years 92, 93, 94 but not sure if that was only outside the USA or what. I'm attempting to install them into a 1996 US model. Not sure if round lights ever came on US cars or if the square vs. round center grills are directly interchangeable. Does anyone have any first hand experience in this area? Thanks!

Ray





These are the round fog lights I bought



Wondering if this style center / lower grill would bolt right up to the 1996 US front bumper?

LeX2K

No idea hopefully someone else knows but I doubt it.

Arsenii

Hello,

Here is a Parts Diagram for your car.

The Round fog lights were standard for a Pre-Facelift ES300 (1992 - 1994) in both US and Japan, here is a picture of one around this forum. Part Number for said Grille is 53112-33010, here is a link to one on eBay. May be a long shot, but you can also try ordering it here, though the chances of actually getting it are slim, they verify that they have the part only after the Order is placed, worth a shot though.

It seems like both Pre- and Post-Facelift models had the same Part Number for the Bumper Cover, so all the Fog Light Mounts should fit perfectly. If the connectors end up being different, here is a thread on how to Re-Pin it.

Hope this helps and best of luck!

LeX2K

I stand corrected great answer.

RayNada

Great thanks! I'll check those links out. It's my girlfriend's car; as soon as she gets back I'll check into this further and follow up with some photos of how it all goes.

Ray

RayNada

Okay, dug into the fog light project today and here is what I found.

1. The JDM yellow fog lights bolt right up and the electrical harness works fine (connectors are the same).

2. On the road, the yellow lights (at night) are much nicer and throw more light down the road than the square white US style ones which were originally on the car

3. The round JDM lights won't poke through the square center grill

4. The center grill mentioned above (with the round holes) appears to be the same mounting holes as the square one

5. If you just remove the center grill (with the square holes) altogether, it looks pretty nice (kinda more race like) and then you can bolt the JDM round yellow fog lights right up

I'll attach some photos showing things in case anyone in the future is curious. I'll also post some before and after pics of the car. Super happy with how it turned out in the end and thank you for the help Arsenii.

Ray



JDM yellow fog light (left) vs. stock US white fog light (right)


Electrical connectors are the same


Testing the light prior to installation


Round light will not slip through square hole


Another angle showing the interference


Center grill is held on w/ 3 screws on the back and, then remove all the clip style tabs along the bottom and it will pop out


Middle screw along the top


This kinda shows how the lower center grill attaches w/ the clips


Center grill out - held in by 3 screws


Here you can see the holes along the top and the overall design of the back of the grill. Appears to match the grill sold on ebay w/ the circle cut out areas as far as installation would go

RayNada

As mentioned, I opted to just leave the center grill totally out - after cleaning up some dirt in the surrounding area, I think it looked pretty nice.

Here are some photos showing the final results.

Ray


Before w/ US style white square fog lights


Original square lights on my girlfriend's 1996 Lexus ES300


JDM round yellow fog lights in!


Looks nice even without the center grill


Testing the lights again - may polish the lenses down the road and paint the brackets w/ some fresh paint or Cerakote


Final results! Really pleased with how it all turned out - no need to buy the center grill with the round trim I don't think