1) This is currently what your bumper lenses look like when you have just your parking lights turned on. We are going to rewire them so that the front lens lights up with your park lights without loosing your turn signal bulbs.

2) You need to purchase two sockets for 1157 type bulbs. I used Autozone item #85802. Its in a pink and blue package marked for GM vehicles. I found it near the bulb section. This re-wire would probably be much easier if one was using the factory socket from the tail lights, but I didn't feel like paying dealer prices, and salvage yards are limited in the area. These are what my two sockets looked like with APC super whites.

3) Since my sockets are designed for a grounded housing, and the bumper lenses on our cars are not grounded, you must first attach a ground wire to the socket. You need to take a screwdriver or other object and scrap a moderate size area on the socket so that we can solder a ground wire to it. This is how mine came out. The Nissan sockets should have a ground wire already in place on the socket.

4) You'll notice that the socket only has two prongs whereas the bumper lenses have four slots. Not too big a deal. I found that the socket actually fits better when you don't place the prong into any of the slots but rather in-between where the fit is more snug.

5) Here's the socket placed into the housing. You'll notice that there are gaps in the socket. We need to fix this.

6) Take your silicone sealant / adhesive and go crazy. Do this in a well ventilated area or you'll get high. Try to cover any area that appears to be open to the inside of the bumper lens housing.

7) Here are my two lenses sealed. If my bulbs go out, yes, I'll have to break the seal, but the silicone should hold its form. This will make it easier to reseal them next time. If you're using the Nissan tail light socket, you're lucky. You have a foam factory gasket. You just insert the socket and turn. That's it for the bumper lenses themselves. Let them sit and dry for a little while.

8) Now for the vehicle wiring. We are removing the factory 1156 socket behind the front bumper lens. Pull back the wire loom and cut the two wires about an inch and a half back from the factory socket. This will enable you to go back to your factory socket if for some reason you ever need to.

9 and 10) Now we need to connect the wiring. First determine which wire on the socket is the 27 watt filament wire and which is the 8 watt filament wire. With an 1157 bulb in the socket, touch the ground wire that we soldered to the socket to the ground on the battery. Then briefly touch one of the other two wires from the socket to the positive battery terminal. Do this for each wire. The wire that causes the bulb to light up brightest is the 27 watt wire. The other is the 8 watt wire. Using two butt connectors on each side, connect the ground from the vehicle (black wire with silver tracers) to the ground on your socket. This will be the wire that we soldered to the socket itself. Then connect the remaining vehicle wire (green wire with black tracers - Driver Side / green wire with orange tracer - Pass. Side) to the 27 watt filament wire of the socket. You should have the 8 watt wire remaining. If you're using the wiretaps that I am, you can go ahead and place the male connector to the 8 watt filament wire. If you're using the tradition 3M type, you'll have a regular wire.

11) Wrap each butt connector in electrical tape. Then tuck them both back inside the wire loom as best as possible and wrap the loom again with electrical tape.

12) You can now place the front lens back into the bumper. Don't secure it just yet with the screw. Feed your 8 watt wire over to the side marker lens. Tape into the hot wire (red with yellow tracer) with your wire tape. If using traditional 3M taps, your wire will be in the tape with the hot wire.

13) Tuck all your wires back into the factory wire loom as best as possible and attach your male spade to your wire tap if you haven't already done so. Wrap the wire loom in electrical tape to keep it weather tight.

14) Gently place your side marker lens back into it's setting in the bumper, but do not secure it just yet. Go to the fuse box under the dash and replace the "tail light" 7.5 amp fuse with a 10 amp. This is especially important if you have rewired your fog lights to your bumper lenses and/or your corners. If you keep blowing fuses, you probably forgot to change the fuse. I've rewired my fogs, corners, and now my bumper lenses, and the 10 amp fuse works just fine. If you choose to go higher, you do so at your own risk and I would not advise it. Turn on your parking lamps and go to the front of the vehicle. The front bumper lens should be lit with the side bumper lens and your corner lights). If not, go back to step 1 and carefully re-read to see if you forgot something. If your bumper lights look like the pic, then you did it right and you can resecure your lenses with the proper screws and tabs.

Repeat the wiring instructions for the other side.

15) Here is a comparison of the way the two styles look. Which do you like better?


Congratulations. You're finished. Drive and enjoy

- d_warner