Light Bar Mounting Options

[JaredW]

Has anyone found a clean way to mount a light bar out front with a non-Bison front bumper. I've seen some behind the grill but I think you lose too much light output doing that. I already have ditch lights and some small pods in the 5 grill openings across the bottom.

Just looking for a way to put some more light out front on the back roads and try to avoid all the deer!

 

[amateurhour]

There is a few ideas in this thread:

Bars for mounting lights - whatcha got?

I'll say that I'm finding the ZR2 headlights to be better than expected. However, when you're well off the beaten path and at night, som extra exterior illumination is welcome. So I'm searching for some solutions to mount up some front-facing lights for off-road night driving. I have a ten-inch...

www.chevyzr2.com

 

[JaredW]

There is a few ideas in this thread:

Bars for mounting lights - whatcha got?

I'll say that I'm finding the ZR2 headlights to be better than expected. However, when you're well off the beaten path and at night, som extra exterior illumination is welcome. So I'm searching for some solutions to mount up some front-facing lights for off-road night driving. I have a ten-inch...

www.chevyzr2.com

Thanks!

I think I may try a curved bar and magnetic mounts on the front bumper to see if I can get the output I'm hunting for. I want to be sure before I start fabricating a bracket or drilling into the bumper to mount anything.

I may try and look into some sort of bracket to put something in between the tow hooks.

 

[amateurhour]

Let us know if what you come up with

I like the way this bar was made: https://www.chevyzr2.com/threads/silverado-zr2-overland-build.1324/#post-19299

The unfortunate thing about the ZR2 is that it’s such a small demographic, and split between bison and non, that there isn’t much aftermarket support.

 

[JaredW]

Let us know if what you come up with

I like the way this bar was made: https://www.chevyzr2.com/threads/silverado-zr2-overland-build.1324/#post-19299

The unfortunate thing about the ZR2 is that it’s such a small demographic, and split between bison and non, that there isn’t much aftermarket support.

Will do!

Yeah that's hefty for sure!

I know! There are at least some behind the grill mounts that would work but I just feel like you lose so much of the light from our grill design.

 

[Pod Holes]

 

[OC ZR2]

I was able to complete my lighting with a BD S8 20" spot lens behind the grill. I don't think a 30" will fit right and the OnX6 is too deep I believe. It went a bit easier than expected, bought a shit ton of different brackets and metal from Home Depot. Ended up using the 8" "L" brackets in the pics. Had to cut them down and drill mounting holes, paint and install. There are two dog ear metal tabs from the bumper under the rubber flat air flow piece. They work perfect to attach the "L" brackets to and the width fits the 20" light bar. I attached the light bar directly to the bracket and I was able to center the light within the second row up grill spaces. The grill fits back in place and the only securing tab not clicked in is the lower center one because the lower edge of the grill hits the bracket. You could possibly turn the "L" bracket 90 degrees so the grill can connect into the bottom tab and use the light bar mount, attaching that to the bracket. The grill is fully secured and all the other tabs clicked into place. I'm happy with the outcome since I haven't seen any other options for mounts short of the M&R light bar which I don't think is the quality of BD or Rigid.

 

[JaredW]

I was able to complete my lighting with a BD S8 20" spot lens behind the grill. I don't think a 30" will fit right and the OnX6 is too deep I believe. It went a bit easier than expected, bought a shit ton of different brackets and metal from Home Depot. Ended up using the 8" "L" brackets in the pics. Had to cut them down and drill mounting holes, paint and install. There are two dog ear metal tabs from the bumper under the rubber flat air flow piece. They work perfect to attach the "L" brackets to and the width fits the 20" light bar. I attached the light bar directly to the bracket and I was able to center the light within the second row up grill spaces. The grill fits back in place and the only securing tab not clicked in is the lower center one because the lower edge of the grill hits the bracket. You could possibly turn the "L" bracket 90 degrees so the grill can connect into the bottom tab and use the light bar mount, attaching that to the bracket. The grill is fully secured and all the other tabs clicked into place. I'm happy with the outcome since I haven't seen any other options for mounts short of the M&R light bar which I don't think is the quality of BD or Rigid.

How did you mount those pods next to the tow hooks? Just right into the plastic?

 

[OC ZR2]

No, I trimmed out the plastic to fit the base of the mount then drilled through the skid plate top edge for the bolt. Had to trim out behind the light for it to set back a bit.

 

[RecklessRaptor]

No, I trimmed out the plastic to fit the base of the mount then drilled through the skid plate top edge for the bolt. Had to trim out behind the light for it to set back a bit.

Do you have any pictures on how you did the install on the lower squadron lights?

 

[OC ZR2]

Unfortunately I didn't take any pics during the process, very selfish of me lol. I can say that we've learned our lesson when it comes to the front bumper and such. Just pull it, way less time consuming than monkeying around trying to ET your fingers in for clip removal. Have done it twice, once to replace the corner metal end cap (dented hitting a metal chair on the frwy) and then once to install those lights. You can't get the angle right to drill a hole for the mounting bolt. (You can tighten it once in). BEFORE you pull bumper and drop skid plate to drill, hold the squadron in place next to the recovery hook, you can see behind where you need to trim out. Use a sharpie and draw outline behind to remove the metal and plastic so the light sets in. It's not much but keep putting the light in place and see how it sets back. I remember you can only cut so much because of a brace in the area. It's enough to set the light back, mark the hole for the mount and then remove it all. Lastly, tighten the OUTER two hex bolts to secure the light to the bracket, then lightly tighten the two inner bolts. You can tighten those after install and assure your level on aiming, but you can't reach the outer bolts anymore once you mount the bracket. I used the wide cornering lens which worked great to cover the entire front area. They will angle slightly outward which is fine, goes in to the ditch area while off-roading. I use the sPod app to dim them so I can get away with using on road. Sorry for the long explanation but its tough to detail how it went. If you want to chat about it, pm me and we can talk over the phone. Maybe it'll help and I can send some pics when talking to further explain. Good luck, it's worth the work!

 

[OC ZR2]

I took a couple pics to show the cuts behind. The cuts can be tighter, I have extra space around. I cut the bottom plastic piece where the mount goes and then added a small piece of aluminum. prob not necessary, could mount on top of plastic. I can't adjust horizontal angle, it's wedged between side and recovery hook. Slight vertical adjustment only. Hope this helps.

 

[RecklessRaptor]

Unfortunately I didn't take any pics during the process, very selfish of me lol. I can say that we've learned our lesson when it comes to the front bumper and such. Just pull it, way less time consuming than monkeying around trying to ET your fingers in for clip removal. Have done it twice, once to replace the corner metal end cap (dented hitting a metal chair on the frwy) and then once to install those lights. You can't get the angle right to drill a hole for the mounting bolt. (You can tighten it once in). BEFORE you pull bumper and drop skid plate to drill, hold the squadron in place next to the recovery hook, you can see behind where you need to trim out. Use a sharpie and draw outline behind to remove the metal and plastic so the light sets in. It's not much but keep putting the light in place and see how it sets back. I remember you can only cut so much because of a brace in the area. It's enough to set the light back, mark the hole for the mount and then remove it all. Lastly, tighten the OUTER two hex bolts to secure the light to the bracket, then lightly tighten the two inner bolts. You can tighten those after install and assure your level on aiming, but you can't reach the outer bolts anymore once you mount the bracket. I used the wide cornering lens which worked great to cover the entire front area. They will angle slightly outward which is fine, goes in to the ditch area while off-roading. I use the sPod app to dim them so I can get away with using on road. Sorry for the long explanation but its tough to detail how it went. If you want to chat about it, pm me and we can talk over the phone. Maybe it'll help and I can send some pics when talking to further explain. Good luck, it's worth the work!

And this is why this forum is awesome! Thanks for all the info. Hopefully I can dig into this project this weekend and if I have any hiccups I’ll reach out!

 

[OC ZR2]

You bet man, why pave new ground when some idiot has already done it! lol