carritt11 Posted August 7, 2015 Report Share Posted August 7, 2015 (edited) So I decided to order a 24" LED light bar to add a little more of a rugged look while giving me more light when actually out in the sticks trying to avoid deer. There are a couple ways it could be done. I know one member installed a 20" light bar behind the lower grille but I wanted it visible to add to the look. First think I did was remove the lower plastic engine guard from underneath the vehicle. For my Journey(2015 Crossroad) I had to remove several rivets from fender well, along bumper to the next fender well. Next I crawled underneath and noticed that the lower grille was held in by tabs so I grabbed one end with one hand and held the bumper in place with the other and started pulling the grille off from one side to the other. It was much easier than I had expected. One thing to note is that there is a small sensor attached to the lower grille, be sure to pull this off before removing the grille so you do not damage it. After I had the grille removed I positioned the Light bar with assembled mounting brackets in place to see where I could mount to get the desired affect. I came up with 2 options. 1). Not too far above the opening is the metal bumper. If I were to attach there I would have needed to make my own brackets to bring the bar down low enough to be useful and it would also be back further than I wanted. 2) Attach to plastic portion of bumper by drilling holes to mount the brackets. I did not want to take the time to design and fabricate special brackets to mount to the metal bumper so I chose option 2. What I originally wanted to do was drill the holes, place 1/4" thick metal strips along the top of the plastic portion to give it extra stability. After wedging the light bar into place where I wanted I realized that the upper part was not taking a lot of weight. The light fit into this space so well that it rests on the bottom portion as well. If i had replacement bolts long enough I would have used the metal strip idea for extra support. Being mounted only to the plastic proved to be a pretty solid fitment. The bar is not going anywhere. After fixing the bar to the plastic bumper I then measured from the gaps on both sides and above the light bar to cut out a hole in the lower grill to form around the light bar. I cut 5" from each side and 1 3/4" from the top with my dremel. My grille was now an "n" shape. I redrilled a hole for the sensor to pop back on and then I re-installed the grille. It was a tight fight around the light bar. I could have taken another 1/4" off of the top for an easier re-assembly but it popped back on with a little force. As for the wiring, I ran the wires along the side of the grille keeping them away from the radiator. I fished them round the headlight along the fender well and connected to the battery post and grounded to a bold attached to the body. I ran a switch through a rubber gasket by making a hole in it and pulled through under the steering wheel. Right now I just have double sided tape holding the switch in place. When I find where the mounting bracket went for the switch I will attach it. Overall I am very happy with how it turned out. Edited August 7, 2015 by carritt11 FlomotionJourney and DJcouple 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lobitz68 Posted August 7, 2015 Report Share Posted August 7, 2015 Nice job. Curious about how much light output you get on the dark back roads... Post some pics if you can. dhh3 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
onecrazyfoo4u Posted August 7, 2015 Report Share Posted August 7, 2015 Looks excellent! What are the details on the light bar? Where did you get it, how much, specs? dhh3 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
carritt11 Posted August 7, 2015 Author Report Share Posted August 7, 2015 I'll try to get pictures when I can. I tried to get a picture of the light cast compared to headlights in a darker are but my camera on my phone only picked up as far as the headlights. It couldn't focus past that. The bar itself is nothing fancy. Just a cheap China bar I got off eBay for $50. I figured I wouldn't really use it too much so I didn't want to buy the really good ones. It's rated at 8400 lumens. It has epistar led chips. dhh3 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
carritt11 Posted August 20, 2015 Author Report Share Posted August 20, 2015 Headlights LED Light Bar Headlights and light bar rolly, FlomotionJourney, dhh3 and 1 other 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lobitz68 Posted August 20, 2015 Report Share Posted August 20, 2015 Took long enough!! Looks good. jkeaton and dhh3 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cody Chornobey Powley Posted November 8, 2015 Report Share Posted November 8, 2015 If I lived where I needed one I'd probably get the biggest and put it with the roof rack. dhh3 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
carritt11 Posted November 14, 2015 Author Report Share Posted November 14, 2015 If I lived where I needed one I'd probably get the biggest and put it with the roof rack. The rails sit too far back to make good use of a light bar. You would have to extend the rails somehow or best option would be to bolt to the roof just above the windshield. I did consider it haha. Cody Chornobey Powley 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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