I recently did my thermostat and gasket. As you know, the ecu comes out when you do this. After putting it all back together, I noticed my bumper/fog lights don't come on when I put my lights on. This may or not be a coincidence.

They blink when I lock/unlock the car, so it seems the bulbs/fuse is good.

Is there some option in the ecu that has to enable these as some sort of daytime running light?

 

Which particular lights are you talking about? Lock/unlock causes the turn indicators (orange) to blink. The parking/running lights (white) are next to the turn lights, in the same housing.

The front fogs are near the bottom of the bumper, below the turn indicators. There is no option to make them daytime running lights (which on the 1st gen MINI are dimmed high beams).

 

The front fogs, perfectly round ones on the bumper. When I had my lights on one click, or low beams on they used to light up.

 

Did you buy your car used?

If you did are you sure you dont have one of the toggle switch mods to turn on the fogs, auto window up, etc?

 

It was used. How can I tell?

 

You're talking about the running/parking lights, not the fogs. Check the bulbs. Open the hood, look down and you'll see two bulb holders attached to the back of light housing. The larger one is for the turn signal. The smaller one right next to it is for the running/parking light. Both release from the light housing by twisting. The smaller one may be very tight and difficult to twist the first time you try to remove it.

Here's a pic of your MINI that you've posted before. It doesn't have the optional front fogs, which would be mounted in the round holes lower on the bumper. Cars that don't have the optional front fogs have a black plastic filler trim piece in the hole.

 

I have an 05 MCS and when I put the light switch one click up yet not in headlight mode, I can use the toggle on the console to light the fogs low in the bumper. On click further and the headlights come on.
I'd check #1 fuses, #2 bulbs and then start testing the wires. The switch could have died too. Diagnostics by elimination.