Thank you all for the recommendation on the LED bulbs. I ordered last week after reading this thread and fitted on Sunday. Bright white LEDs look great and while I had bright white side light bulbs already, I swapped them for new at the same time. Yet to get the diode.
With the side/fog lights out, I also found it was dead easy to slide in home made grills I cut from some race alley mesh and secure with tiny black cable ties. Satisfying (if cold) Sunday afternoon activity.