Rear fog light - Bumper reflector light installation

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2019 CX-5 Signature
Rear fog light - bumper reflector lights installation.

So this was interesting (and still is).

I was able to install some of the aliexpress/eBay rear bumper lights. That part was easy. Drop lower trim panels in the rear, install new lights and run wire up through grommet into rear quarter panels.

Then I installed the wiring onto the turn signal lights. It took some trial and error but the turn signals and running/parking lights worked fine. The lights themselves came with a green, yellow, red and black wire. No wiring diagrams are available for the lights (naturally).

Here*s the two issues I ran into.

1. The brake light never worked. When I hit the brakes, the bumper lights turned off instead of getting brighter. Not sure why and not even sure I found the proper brake light wire.

2. Even worse, once I had everything wired up (clearly, there*s an issue with my selected wires) I started getting all sorts of codes/DTCs and errors at the front of my car in the instrument panel. Errors like smart braking control failure, front sensor error, etc. All hell broke loose. Needless to say, I disconnected all the wires and everything is back to normal.

Does anyone have a wiring diagram for the 2019? I*ve tried every combination and I can*t get the brake light to work and my current wiring scenario causes havoc on the car*s computer.

They looked great for the hour or so I had them connected!

Edit: just to clarify, these are not true fog lights, they are turn/park/brake indicator lights that replace the reflectors in the lower rear bumper.
 
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I*ve searched quite a few times. I*ve also read all the threads on rear fogs.

The issue is that I cannot find actual wiring diagrams/instructions.
 
Thank Max! Got them all working. Once you pointed out my stupidity (green isn*t ground in automotive wiring) it works perfectly.
 
I mean, for 110V home wiring it is. Admittedly, I had a major brain fart and wasn*t thinking.

Having said all that, $45 well spent! They look stock and really sharp in parallel with the signature*s rear LED lights.
 
That is exactly what I just installed. I wish I had seen the wiring diagram on your link before I attempted mine. Very happy with the results.
 
Here*s what I did (I*m doing this from memory and after some trial and a lot of error):

Green light wire to green car wire
Yellow light wire to blue car wire
Black light wire to ground (there*s ground blocks and screws right next to light wiring in the rear quarter panels)
Red light wire to pink with stripe car wire

I used T-locks to connect the wires to the car wiring and opted for the wires just before the junction that goes right to the rear lights themselves (basically I disconnected the rear lights at the rear quarter panels and connected the wires that feed that connector). If you*re really in a jam I can take it apart and snap some photos but it*s pretty easy once you have things apart.

You can go to e-trailer website and look at video for installing the trailer harness t-harness. That will cover the disassembly of the rear panels and show you the wiring as well.
 
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How was the actual fitment on the vehicle, did it fill the existing area well? The corners on my lights look pointed and these appear to be rounded. And how long was the wiring ?
 
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It looks OEM to me. I*ll try and snap some photos later. Zero issues with that fit and there are no gaps.

The wiring was more than adequate to go from the mounting location through the grommets into the rear quarter panel. If I was guessing, I have 2-3 feet of wiring left after splicing. I had enough to coil some up and leave a service loop of wire should I ever need to fix anything in the future.
 
I'm considering doing this but I'm concerned in replacing the OEM passive reflectors with a light fixture. The purpose of those reflectors is to make a parked or un-illuminated vehicle more visible to another vehicle approaching from the rear (or rear-quarters). Do those nice LED fixtures also have embedded reflectors? What about side quarters?

I know they have the words "Reflector Lights" in the product title, but I can't see any metallic multi-faceted reflector characteristics in the photos. The non-illuminated part looks to me like its just translucent red plastic. The lighter strips are un-masked areas that the LED's illuminate through. Not much reflectivity. See the photos CharlestonMX5 posted below.
 
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I ordered these from Amazon last night. I couldn't resist (yippy)

https://www.amazon.com/dp/ (commissions earned)

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KE-KE 3D Optic Red Lens Full LED Bumper Reflector Lights Tail Brake Rear Fog lights and Sequential Turn Signal Lamps for 2017 2018 2019 Mazda cx-5 cx5 accessories
 
The wires change colors at the connector from the car harness to the rear OEM Light harness. Attached pictures are top connector first going to the rear lamp. Last picture are the wires coming from the bottom connector going to the wiring harness. I connected the new lights to the bottom harness wire, you just need to be sure which pink wire to use. You will see the second Pink wire has no corresponding wire on the other side of the connector.

Light to Lower Harness
Red to Red
Black to Black
Yellow to Blue
Green to Pink

Upper Harness
Red to Red
Black to black
Yellow to brown
Green to Green/white

Upper connector 1.jpg
Upperconector 2.jpg
Lower connector wires.JPG
 
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I'm considering doing this but I'm concerned in replacing the OEM passive reflectors with a light fixture. The purpose of those reflectors is to make a parked or un-illuminated vehicle more visible to another vehicle approaching from the rear (or rear-quarters). Do those nice LED fixtures also have embedded reflectors? What about side quarters?

I know they have the words "Reflector Lights" in the product title, but I can't see any metallic multi-faceted reflector characteristics in the photos. The non-illuminated part looks to me like its just translucent red plastic. The lighter strips are un-masked areas that the LED's illuminate through. Not much reflectivity. See the photos CharlestonMX5 posted below.

No, these are not reflective. Just red lenses with integrated lights. Normally I am in agreement, however, I dont expect that small reflectors imbedded in the bumper skirt just a foot or so off the ground will increase any awareness of my cx-5 from a driver following me. The additional illumination from a light fixture would be more likely to raise a flag. Thats just my opinion (not sure its worth $0.02).

The lights stand out really well and give additional pop.
 
Rear fog light - bumper reflector lights installation.

No, these are not reflective. Just red lenses with integrated lights. Normally I am in agreement, however, I dont expect that small reflectors imbedded in the bumper skirt just a foot or so off the ground will increase any awareness of my cx-5 from a driver following me. The additional illumination from a light fixture would be more likely to raise a flag. Thats just my opinion (not sure its worth $0.02).
The rear red reflectors are required by US law which will increase the visibility and safety from rear when you park your vehicle on the street in the dark. I doubt any annual state inspection would bother to check these though.
 
The rear red reflectors are required by US law which will increase the visibility and safety from rear when you park your vehicle on the street in the dark. I doubt any annual state inspection would bother to check these though.

Yes, that's what I was getting at in my original question. Odds of a state safety inspection failure is low, we don't even have safety inspections in many states. But an accident investigator might find you (partially) at fault. I don't mess with mandatory safety equipment.
 
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