In my E36, the foglight switch was an on/off pushbutton. If I turned the headlights off while the fogs were on, the next time I turned the lights on the fogs would come on.

The E46, as we all know, has an electronic foglight switch. I'd like to have the foglights come on with my headlights withouth having to manually turn them on all the time. Anyone know if this is possible via some sort of swap-out or clever hack?

same here, i'd love to know too.

you can prolly tie the switches together to make this happen.
i doubt that there is a real patch to do this, i think it is the Law that they be seperately switched... could be wrong, that is just what I was told a few years ago when I asked to have this same thing done... I did it anyway after I got home!

I have read the headlight laws here in TX and there are no mention of how the lights are switched, but you can only have three white forward lamps on in addition to your two headlights. That is why the fogs go out when you turn the high-beams on -- it would be one too many light.

Also, simply shorting the switch would not keep them on automatically I don't think.. I'll have to look into the electronics of this a bit more I guess..

I noticed that too. In my 99 M the fogs would come on with the headlights if I didnt turn them off and in my '00 328 I gotta hit that damn buttong everytime!

You could probably just make a relay that would trip the switch whenever you turn the headlights on... but messing with BMW wiring is not my calling in life, so I leave it alone.

There is a law in Tx that states you can have upto four headlights on at once. Fog lamps are considered headlamps because of their intensity. Fog lamps turn off when your high beams are on because fogs are just that, for fog.....You can't see in the fog with high beams on and having high beams and fog lamps are considered as 6 driving lamps!! If you wanna get technical, you can be sited for driving with fog lamps on at night if the weather does not permit them.....Crazy huh???? The reason I know is because that was my profession. Personally I like the way it looks!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!Be careful and good luck!!!!!!!

Actually if we're getting technical, the law in TX says that you can have up to 5 driving lights, not 4, and that your lights must be properly aimed and located in the zone from 12" to 48" above the road surface. Technically, driving with your foglights on in low cars is illegal in TX anyway -- sort of like driving with your roof rack lights on -- but nobody ever stops you for it, especially when it's foggy and you actually need them.