HOW TO: Bumper LED light bar - installation and general info

Hope this thread will serve as a general catch-all "bumper LED light bar" thread for everyone to share their ideas, installs, Q&As...etc.

Thus far I've only seen a couple of rather expensive solutions for bumper lights bars on 2022 Tundras.
I'm not here to debate whether $700 is a "good price" for a 20" light bar, but I can imagine many of you may feel it's a bit steep for a pair of brackets and a light.
(up to you if you think those/any light bars are worth $500+)

So here we are...
2022 Tundra can accommodate for 22" (or smaller) single row light bar in the bumper opening.
(I chose 20" b/c 22 is hard to find, if at all, and then I wouldn't have enough room to access adjustment screws/etc). 20" seems to be perfect size - your choice in lighting make/model...my story below.

List of supplies:
1. OZ-USA 20" 90W combo light bar: $150 (find a coupon online for 10-20% off)
https://oz-usa.com/20-inch-oz-usa-u...t-flood-combo-beam-off-road-auxiliary-lights/
2. 2x HomeDepot L-brackets (example below, as I don't remeber exactly which ones I got): $5 each
https://www.homedepot.com/p/Everbilt-3-in-Black-Corner-Brace-4-Pack-13741/300985591
3. 2x 5.5" stainless steel bolts (1/4" thick? don't remember either)
4. Miscellaneous items such as zip ties, tape, etc.

Installation:
1. Follow this or similar guides to remove the front end/bumper cover
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XhvOmhE3iTM
Watch this a couple of times, go slow, and don't break anything that you might cry about later.

2. Measure twice....or twenty times, and cut/drill once.
If your LED bar has "feet" like mine, then you must cut the L-bracket to length so it doesn't stick out too far (vertically, it can be a bit longer). See pic for reference.
Next, measure out the center of your aluminum bumper, followed by figuring out the exact center of the light bar in relation to bumper for installation.
Install L-brackets to the light bar (re-drill mount point holes if necessary).
Line up with your bumper and mark where the L-brackets will be mounted to the bumper.
Mark the bumper.
Position the light bar in such a way/height so that the middle of your light bar is about 1/8 to 1/4 of an inch higher than the top edge of the AL bumper bar (this applies to both 2" and 3" deep light bars). OZ light bar is 3" deep and to clear the front of the bumper cover it must be recessed just a bit; luckily the right position for it is about a quarter of an inch above the top of the bumper, which allows it to "sit back" just enough.
If you think you may need vertical adjustment on your L-brackets during or after installation, you can elongate the holes you'll drill so that you can move the brackets up or down a bit, once bolted to the bumper.
Now, with your light bar "sitting slightly on top of the bumper (with it's very back edge), mark where to drill holes in the AL bumper.
Once drilled out, use 5.5 or 6" bolts (thickness/etc of your choice...but no need to go 1/2" etc) to secure your light bar to the bumper.


3. Reroute any and all wiring or harnesses you might have between the light and the bumper cover opening (these may vary per vehicle model; I had to be creative with unclipping a bit of wiring and zip-tying them elsewhere to avoid interference).

4. Cut out the plastic grate in your bumper cover opening (or not; I imagine this can be ran with it all in tact, but I didn't want anything this close to the LEDs themselves, blocking the output in anyway.

5. Connect and route your wiring out (more on that later).

6. Reassemble your front end....and it all should look like this in the end
(remember, if you end up with the light bar sitting too low or too high to your liking in the slot, now is the time to scrape your knuckles and loosen up those L-bracket bolts u used to secure the bar to the bumper, and move it slightly up or down..........you did remember to ELONGATE those holes int he brackets, right?)




End result:



***
As you can see, while I had the front end apart, I decided to install 2x amber LED light in my grille (7" duals also from OZ-USA: https://oz-usa.com/1-pair-7-inch-am...led-fog-light-kit-with-plug-and-play-harness/).
The fabrication and installation of that set is/was much more involving and 100% custom to 2022 Platinum model. In short: used similar HomeDepot brackets but longer and 4x of them. Fair amount of tinkering and trimming here and there. 3" deep light DO NOT clear the Tundra shutter assembly.........but the shutter system can be DISassembled! So, I ended up removing the 2nd top blade from it to clear the lights, and leaving everything else 100% operational.
I can take some better pix if anyone asks, but I won't be able to provide a detailed step by step guide.

***
Wiring:
Bonus info: How to wire up your LED/aux lights on a 2022 Tundra with CAN-BUS headlights, so they can operate with high, low or parking lights!
https://www.tundras.com/threads/how...-bus-driven-hi-low-parking-headlights.110264/

Disclaimer:
Anything listed above may not be 100% accurate. Hope this gives you a general idea on how to do this, but any and all mod, fabrications, risks and outcome are in your own hands.

PS:
...and before anyone asks: Yes, I run 4x Hella Supertone horns in addition to the OEMs.

Hope this benefits one and all, and feel free to comment, share your own ideas, installations, set ups, and so on.
-99

 

Nice job!. I mounted mine to the backside of the grill cause of the camera wire. How did you get around that?

 

I unclipped any and all wiring that I could and that gave me enough room to stretch and route it all around the light opening.
Zip-tied it all in random places to make it work.

I was "this close" to just cutting the wires, and implanting some to make them all longer, but eventually it worked out.
-99

PS:
I also replaced all mounting and adjustment hardware with stainless steel bolts/etc.
In no mood to take this apart again, in case I need to readjust something, and the damn recessed hex bolts which some with some of these bars are frozen shut (although mine came with all stainless hardware).

 

Haha! Sounds like you covered all the areas of frustration too. How many lumens on that light bar?

 

Woah, I need to do this. Did you have to drill any holes?

 

Just put some screws in and area not seen or used. No issues at all with the install. I like the idea of mounting to the bumper support. I just figured it'd be easier to remove everything with it mounted to the grill. Oh yeah, and lots of measuring first.

 

Quick post of light output:


Low beams:


High beams:


High beams + light bar:


Light bar only:


*Pic does not do the light bar justice - it throws that beam FAR.
(I'm too close to that tree line to showcase it)

No idea on lumens of this light bar. OZ used to (and I assume these are the same) sell non-branded versions of some high end light bars in the past; they were (are?) somewhat of a 'small secret' in off-roading communities...but that was a while back.
No idea what these actually are, but w/e the true manufacturer/model, they're good enough for me.
I don't need $500-1000 light, just to have a minimal output difference, and a fancy sticker/stamp for go along with it.
-99

 

I agree. I had non branded on my 4runner and Tacoma for years with no issues. This one I just installed seems just fine for the $100 I have into it after harness and brackets.