Is it, by any chance, difficult to install those aftermarket side markers on the front fenders. Is it just drilling a hole into the fender to make it sit flush? What kind of adhesive, if any, is used to hold it on. I was thinking about doing this mod. Any input on this is greatly appreciated.

 

have a body shop cut the holes out man, its not worth messing with your fenders. I paid $40 to have both of mine cut out nice and even. All i had to do was run the wire to them and screw them in.

Ant

 

All you have to do make a hole big enough to fit the sidemarker. Then make sure you put some silicone around the hole, so the car doesn't rust around the hole. With my sidemarker, all I had to do was screw 2 screws in each sidemarker. I wired mine by taking the positive from the OEM sidemarker and the turn signal, that way my sidemarkers came one w/ my parking lights and blinked alternately w/ the turn signal.

 

has anyone ever had a vandal pry on them or anything? any personal experiences

 

Thanks, everyone! I'm going to tackle this mod this week!

 

Never had anyone try and steal my sidemarkers

 

i thought you just make 1 or two wholes for the screwsand just screw in marker....is it much more work then that? Cutting out a whole for the whole sidemarker??-that's something new i hear.


I wonna do this mod also.....i was at my local hookup shop and the guy was just drilling wholes in the fender...there was no cut outs of the shape of sidemarker......

 

The older style of side markers used to be held in place by tension tabs. So those required a precise cutout that matched w/ the clips that held the lights in place. Newer sidemarkers just require one hole for the bulb's socket and then 1 or 2 much smaller holes for the mounting screws. They have gotten much easier to install. I am planning to add some to my car soon. I'l probably get the oval and clear ones made by APC. You can get them anywhere and they're under $20.00

 

Instead of paying a body-shop to cut the holes for you, spend that $ on a Dremel high-speed rotary tool to make the cuts with. You'll get a great new tool that will make the job a snap & that you'll use again and again. . .

Use consistent, measured lines of reference (1 vertical, 1 horizontal) to locate the holes on the fender before you cut.

Good luck!

 

Yeah, I would also put masking tape all over the fender in the area where I'd be doing the install. You can use the tape to draw on your reference lines as well as protect the finish from any accidents. Where do you guys recommend putting the side marker; in line with the molding strip or higher up on the fender. I am thinking about higher up on the fender.

 

Drilling the holes yourself sounds like a good idea, and much cheaper at that. I'd rather pay $10-$15 for the Dremel attachment to have for future use.

But I've also been looking into side mirror markers. Some companies make complete mirror replacements, but what I'd like to do it just bolt on a low profile light (much cheaper!). Of course, the trick is finding such a light that will fit the mirror properly. In the end, this kind of side marker will protrude more and you won't disturb the clean surface of the fender. IMHO.

If anyone has seen anything like this, aftermarket bolt-on light for side mirrors, please post. Thanks.

 

The tape is an important step - I forgot. Personally, I think the lights look too low when aligned with the molding strip. The idea is to make it look as OEM-ish as possible.

 

first off, yea do it above the mounting strip, like about an inch or two lower than top of the wheel well in the fender. Yea imma do this soon too, but have a few questions...how much is a dremel?? and when u said u connected it to the positive of the OEM sidemarker and also the blinker, so that its on with the parking lights and blinks alternately with the turn sig..but then which wire from the aftermarket sidemarker goes to which...and where is the ground on the aftermarket sidemarker go to?? are there 3 or 2 wires on the aftermarket sidemarker?

 

Two questions

1. What about the ground wire?

2. How big of a hole did you cut?

 

from the way he described it - comes on with parking lights and then blinks alternately with the signals - I think he did this:

+ sidemarker wire to parking light power
- (ground) sidemarker wire to turn signal +

this will make it blink with the turn signals during the day and then at night, it will come on with the parking lights and then blink alternately with your turn signals

small bulbs like those dont require a really strong ground so this setup uses the + wires as a ground when they dont have power
lights off: turn signal power goes to one side of sidemarker bulb, other side of sidemarker bulb gets ground from the parking light wire (not on)
lights on: parking lights give power to one side of the sidemarker, + turn signal acts as ground while it's not on, when the signal blinks, it gives + signal and the light will turn off when both sides get + signal

a lamp (not LED) just works by passing current through it so if you have ground on one side and power on the other, it'll light up; polarity doesn't matter

that's how the parking light rewire works (I have the 3rd gen version on my page)

 

Like someone alredy mentioned, get the ones where you have to drill holes, and not cut them. Use masking tape to mark the area. I found that the easiest way to drill was with one of those cone shaped drill bits. Spray some primer on the open meatal after you drill. I also put silicone sealant on the back of my sidemarkers when I screwed them in.

here's some pics:

 

 

where did you get those screw in side markers that don't require cutting??

 

they're APC ones from Pep Boys.

 

why do most people on this org choose to cut out the fenders instead of just screwing them in???

 

Different styles and more of a flush fit in most cases...imho

 

Has anyone put them on their door instead of the fender?