Light Bar 2500 Laramie front bumper issue...

Skrap · May 21, 2015

I put this here because it is 2500 specific and just about all I have found refer to the 1500s.

So, I'm wanting to get a nice, bright light bar for bumper space on my 2015 2500 Laramie Mega. The issue I'm having, since I don't have a lot of experience with these things, is that the space between the tow hooks on the front bumper is just at 29.5". I assume I am relegated to a 24" bar only?

Also, in this space there is a "recessed" plastic louvered looking panel. Does this need to come out for the light bars to typically fit? Here is the front bumper area. Thanks for the help.

Birddog · May 21, 2015

I have a 50" across the windshield and a pair of cubes where you're asking about. I haven't measured the area but I know a 20" will fit. I'm not sure about the 24". Also, you'd have to consider what mounts you'll be using in the "will it fit" equation.

River19 · May 21, 2015

Mine has a 40" PIAA light bar mounted from tow hook to tow hook using the inside bolts.

So it is possible, unless the front end on the 2015 is different than a 2014.

hemi1282 · May 21, 2015

I have a 20" and yes I had to remove the plastic part got mine from rough country with brackets, easy install

SlightlyTweaked · May 21, 2015

Sane as above ^^^ The Rough Country brackets make install for a 20" lightbar cake!

jadocs · May 21, 2015

Yeah you need to research available mounts. I have only seen them for a 20" or 30" bar..unless you fab up your own.

Assuming you are keeping your tow hooks I would go with a 20" so they are still usable from all angles.

I'll be picking up a set myself pretty soon for my 2500.

River19 · May 21, 2015

Funny, when I hear "Light Bar" I still think "bar to mount lights" vs. the LED systems......hence my earlier answer and post.

brandonjansen · May 21, 2015

30" curved bar mounted between the tow hooks

However this did take some custom work. A 30" bar won't fit flush in between the tow hooks like that stock. There isn't enough room. I had to notch out the tow hooks and then bold the bar directly to them.

I do have a full writeup on this install but haven't posted it up on this forum yet. I can make that happen if you're interested in seeing it.

Skrap · May 21, 2015

Damn. That's nice. I'll speak for all the 2500 guys. Please post the writeup in the 2500 subforum when you have some time.

I double checked and the space is actually 30.5" between the hooks. My goal is to never have to use the two hooks but how much do you think the integrity of the hooks was compromised? The setup looks great. Thanks for posting.

jadocs · May 21, 2015

I wrestled around with the decision to get dual vs single row and whether to go 20" or 30". After a bunch of researching I found that the Rigid SR2 driving 20" (single row) puts out 11250 Lumens which is more than some other brands double row of the same size (about 5k more). The other thing you need to keep in mind is the tow hook mounts. Some have zero adjustability (as in the ability to move the bar up and down in the mount to center it in the bumper gap. I'm not talking about rotating or aiming the light). If you look at Rigids tow hook mount you will see slots vs. a single hole where the light attaches.

kcbigbadram · May 21, 2015

Skrap said:
Damn. That's nice. I'll speak for all the 2500 guys. Please post the writeup in the 2500 subforum when you have some time.

I double checked and the space is actually 30.5" between the hooks. My goal is to never have to use the two hooks but how much do you think the integrity of the hooks was compromised? The setup looks great. Thanks for posting.

Theres a thread on another forum where a guy snapped his tow hook after shaving it down to mount the light bar. Definitely something to think about before mounting it that way.
Tow hook snapped!! (will add pics) had a light bar mounted to them - Dodge Cummins Diesel Forum

I had a 30" bar mounted on my last truck with the cjc mounting brackets. It sticks out from the bumper a little but I still liked the look.

2014StormTrooper · May 22, 2015

I was always told I could fit a 30" bar in there, and there's a company that sells custom brackets for 30" bars for our trucks.

jadocs · May 22, 2015

And the light will stick out using the 30" tow hook mount. It's made to hold the light outside. That's why I say check the lumen output, you may find (like I did) a 20" single row bar that tucks in nicely, allows all angle tow hook use, and is brighter than a 30" double from other manufacturers.

Wandell · May 22, 2015

I've not been impressed with the OEM tow hooks. As mentioned above, someone had one snap after trimming it to mount a 30 inch LED light bar. Another "tweaked" his front bumper using a stock tow hook. Apparantly the 2500/3500 tow hooks are not mounted directly to the frame and are not as strong as they look. This is why I'm seriously considering removing them and mounting a 40 inch LED light bar in the opening. I've also seen someone mount 5500 Ram tow hooks, which mount directly to the frame.

Skrap · May 23, 2015

Those Rough Country light bars with the brackets look nice. I have also been searching so much on the web I think I finally finished the the Internet. Narrowed down some bars on Amazon and couple other sites.

Have another question. My Ram has the factory Aux Switch Panel installed. Are there wires that go from the panel to the firewall or fuse box area in the engine bay where I would hook up a light bar wire harness. Or, do I need to run the wires through to behind the Aux Panel? Anyone know of any write ups on using the Aux Panel for hooking up lights? Thanks.

SPDKLZ · Jun 1, 2015

That 30" bar looks great!

R.anderson · Jun 2, 2015

I have the 20" Four Function Promaxx light bar on mine I made a custom bracket to mount it on

jadocs · Jun 2, 2015

I just mounted my Rigid brackets this past weekend. My 20" SR2 Rigid Driving LED is currently in the mail.

I will say it was initially a PIA getting the tow hooks off because the nuts are not welded to the plate and my intercooler was in the way of getting a wrench behind the 11 and 1 o'clock nuts.

brandonjansen · Jun 3, 2015

Skrap said:
Damn. That's nice. I'll speak for all the 2500 guys. Please post the writeup in the 2500 subforum when you have some time.

I double checked and the space is actually 30.5" between the hooks. My goal is to never have to use the two hooks but how much do you think the integrity of the hooks was compromised? The setup looks great. Thanks for posting.

I posted up my build thread on this forum now. It's linked in my signature and the post on the light bar install can be found on page 6 :waytogo:

As others have posted there was one guy who snapped a tow hook after modifying them. To be honest, I'm not totally worried about it. The tow hooks are in case of emergency only for me. If I do have to tow someone I'd do it off the rear hitch anyway.

Skrap · Jun 3, 2015

Jadocs, those brackets look nice.

I actually received my light bar and harnes I got off Amazon. It is an Eyourlife brand from China but it looks like pretty good quality and seems stout. The light housing is 26" wide, 28" to outside of bolt heads and outside to outside of mounting feet is 29". I'm going to fab my own brackets that are similar to the CJC Off-road and RC mounting brackets.

I'm going to do a full thread on the light bar, bracket fab and install so will start this weekend on it. Just need to figure out if I want to use my cutting wheels or pay to have them cut out.

Light Bar 2500 Laramie front bumper issue...

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