Interesting article in Autoweek today about rear fog lights for our US MINIs. Jack Pitney says “all U.S. Minis, new and used, will get rear fog lamps”.
This is an about turn from a Previous Autoweek article where Michael McHale said “We just don’t do it … No BMWs have them, either”. Except that the new 7 series does have them, even making a safety feature of their use as adaptive brake lights.
My own investigations have confirmed that if the six switch toggle panel is fitted, all the circuitry is present in the car, including the actual rear fog lights:
Testing rear fog lights on GBMINI#2
It is likely that one single bit of the “SA” configuration of the MINI (stored with other “KOMBI” data) is preventing the rear fog light function – we just need to find which bit it is!
M&I / GBMINI 
As a senior systems engineer with over thirty years experience, in the aerospace industry, I realize the significant role that rear fog lights play in the reduction of accidents during adverse weather. There are two basic methods to avert injuries and fatalities in a motor vehicle accident. The first is to prevent an accident altogether by the implementation of effective collision avoidance technology, while the second is to provide adequate safety devices. The use of adequate safety devices, however, introduces a significant increase in the initial cost of the vehicle. Therefore, it is obvious that the preferred approach would be to prevent the accident altogether.
Two years ago I developed, patented (US Patent 6,552,492), an Automatic Adverse Weather Rear Light System which presents an innovative improvement to current technology of rear fog lights. I then submitted the technology to the automotive industry, however, the automotive industry being the pompous asses that they are balked at this technology and instead offers either a manually operated rear fog light or no rear fog light. The manually operated rear fog light, however, is often misused and results in either an accident or incites a road rage incident which is substantiated by several studies. Instead the United States automotive industry has chosen to proceed in the direction of radar based collision avoidance systems such as the Cruise Assistant. However, these systems are considered to be an ineffective collision avoidance tool during periods of reduced visibility or in heavy traffic, since cruise control is not employed during these periods, what a revelation. This dilemma is further compounded by the fact that the United States National Traffic Highway and Safety Commission fails to recognize the benefits of a rear fog light. However, this can be expected since they are well know for their movements in slow and mysterious ways.
However, a valid requirement does exist for an adverse weather rear light system. Such a system, unlike today’s technology must be innovative and implemented in a way where the vehicle operator is unable to misuse the rear fog light and, the rear fog light and would not blind approaching motorists or mask either the brake lights or the turn signal/emergency flasher lights.
The adverse weather rear light system comprises a system specifically designed to increase the conspicuity of the rear of a vehicle during periods of decreased visibility due to adverse weather, smoke, or dust. The system includes a control system, which collects the current environmental conditions, the current visibility conditions, the current ambient light conditions, and the current state of the vehicle in addition to fog light system. The control system would automatically energize the adverse weather rear lights when the current visibility conditions are less than a low visibility threshold limit and automatically de-energizes the adverse weather rear lights when the current visibility conditions are greater than the low visibility threshold limit.
The implementation of the adverse weather rear light system is such that the luminosity of the adverse weather rear lights would progressively increase as the current visibility conditions decrease and progressively decrease as the current visibility conditions increase. The advantage of this implementation is that it avoids either blinding or irritating an approaching motorist, which could result in either an accident or a road rage incident. The adverse weather rear light system further addresses the issue of masking the brake lights, the turn signal lights, and the emergency flasher lights, whereby the system would also automatically increase the luminosity of the brake lights, the turn signal lights, and the emergency flasher lights so that the luminosity of these lights is always greater than the luminosity of the adverse weather rear lights. Furthermore, to ensure that the adverse weather rear light system complies with the current luminosity guidelines the adverse weather rear light system, when de-energized, would reduce the luminosity of the rear lights, the brake lights, the turn signal lights, and the emergency flasher lights to the standard luminosity level as prescribed in 49 CFR Ch. V (10-1-00 Edition) 571.108, or as prescribed by the standards of any nation when the current visibility conditions are greater than the low visibility threshold limit. The adverse weather rear light system also addresses the issue of the luminosity level requirements between the hours of dusk to dawn and daylight hours, whereby the luminosity requirements are less between the hours of dusk to dawn than during the daylight hours.
The preferred implementation of the adverse weather rear light system is where the existing rear lights of the vehicle are an integral part of automatic adverse weather rear light system. In support of this implementation I have further developed a technology which accurately controls and monitors the luminosity of the rear lights, the adverse weather rear lights, the brake lights, the turn signal lights, and the emergency flasher lights
The adverse weather rear light system could also energize and de-energize all of the vehicle lights in conjunction with the activation and the deactivation of the adverse weather rear light system. The exception to the deactivation of the vehicle lights would between the hours of dusk to dawn where the vehicle lights would remain on, at the luminosity level as prescribed in 49 CFR Ch. V (10-1-00 Edition) 571.108, or as prescribed by the standards of any nation, with the deactivation of the adverse weather rear light system.
Any comments regarding the Automatic Adverse Weather Rear Light System may be directed to me at the ensuing e-mail address.
Yours truly,
Joe Kover
bemmerz3@juno.com
Senior Systems Engineer