Rooftop wiring for lights - Where to run wires?

[1loudLX]

Im thinking about putting some lights on my roof for the winter. I want to make them removeable and want to do minimal drilling in terms of running the wires. Is there anywhere that i can run the wires without chewing up everything case i ever want to take them out for good, im not left with holes up the wazzo?

Im thinking of putting some lights in the rear for extra reverse lights and possibly some lights on the front too. I have a factory roof rack but ill probably somehow mount the lights inside the factory rails on the side, or use some mighty mount clamps and put them on the cross bars.

Does anyone have lights mounted on top of their 100, and if you do, can i see some pictures of your wiring? Thanks a bunch guys.

 

[100 TD]

From under the hood up the front windscreen gutter on the side, and for the rear out the back near the tailgate hinges, I think there is a spare blank plastic cap ready to go.

 

[1loudLX]

not bad.

Anyone else do something different? Thanks 100TD

 

[Jim_Chow]

How about removing the GPS antenna in the rear roof and using that hole?

 

[dclee]

Do you have a snorkel? We've had some success running the wires from the roof into the snorkel tube and down into the engine bay.

 

[1loudLX]

nope.... K&N intake. Also i dont have a factory nav system, my GPS antenna is on the passanger side of the dashboard next to the A-Pillar.

I sometimes wish i had a snorkel, but the loss in performance would be too much for me...aside from having to drill huge holes in my fender as well, lol.

 

[dclee]

I sometimes wish i had a snorkel, but the loss in performance would be too much for me...aside from having to drill huge holes in my fender as well, lol.

I don't know about a performance loss, but that hole is certainly a killer. It's such nice, expensive sheetmetal...

 

[1loudLX]

well i have a K&N performance intake kit...with the open cone filter and stuff. Yeah i already had to replace that right fender once before when a jeep crashed into me in the snow. Im thinking about just cutting out my reflectors on my back bumper and mounting lights in there instead. Anyone else do this?

 

[Jim_Chow]

Get a Kaymar or TJM rear bar and you'll have turning/brake/parking lights built into them.

 

[1loudLX]

i wanted to keep my truck sexy...hummmm. Well i looked today at the tailgate...the only grommets i saw are, one on the upper half for the 3rd brake light, and one down low on the left side by the left tailight, for the tail/brake/reverse/licence lights.

Am i missing another "blank" grommet/cap?

Went and checked out those yakima mighty mounts for the cross bars...im so confused how to make them work. Sleeeeee how would i go about mounting lights on those things?

 

[rockclmbr]

I added roof top lights to the rear with wiring running through the gap of the hatch. I drilled a .25" hole through the pillar in a location I could reach when removing the plastic panel on the DS. I made sure to put a grommet in the sheetmela hole to prevent fraying and to help seal from water. You might squirt some silicone in there once it is all done to make it even more moisture proof.

 

[1loudLX]

Just thought of something. Are there any pass thru provisions underneath the black gutters...or under where the factory roofrack mounts?

 

[rockclmbr]

I don't believe so. When I installed the African Outback rack, there were 6 holes for the mounting bolts. I don't think you want to sacrifice the load capacity of the roof rack so that you can run a wire through the threaded hole. You will most likely introduce leaks this way as well.