[squared away]

As seen on the WRX club (read i-club), people have developed/engineered light bars for the WRX. Are there any available for us older RS's?

Here's an example I'm thinking of

Taken by a NESIC member at a Rally-x late last year. I don't know who's car it is, I'd probably get my answer by posting in NESIC on the I-club. Just thought I'd throw it out here as well. Thanks for any info.

AJ

 

[RS25.com]

I'd bet Grahame Goode has one, or Primitive, or someone else... I'll see what I can find.

 

[squared away]

i thought i tore Grahame Goode apart the other day... but i'll look there again. I could have just missed it or something. Thanks for your effort.

 

[squared away]

found the answer.... Rallispec made it before they went out of business... maybe they'll have some at their re-opening in 1.5 weeks... no need to search anymore... :sunny: :happynow:

 

[DAUTHI]

options

Fwiw,

As far as I'm concerned you could do a lot better building yourself a bar. With a little aluminum, a little ingenuity, a few tools, and a couple hours work, you can make one that is stronger and not as ugly as most commercially that are available. I made this with $40 worth of aluminum stock $10 woth of SS bolts and $5 of cutting at a metal shop.

It's not the most beautifull thing on earth, but it is damn sturdy!!! Not even a hint of jiggle, and that is the big problem. Let me tell you those 4000's are HEAVY!

Take a shot, it's much more satisfying to do a custom.

Pete W.

 

[Guest]

Pete - do you normally run with the white plastic covers on? If not, you should look into getting the clear covers.

And yeah, home-made is best, although you could probably go cheaper than $40 for the aluminum. I got mine done for a 12-pack of beer. Err, the raw material and the bending that is.

 

[DAUTHI]

yeah, I run the white covers most of the time. I gotta get a couple of sets of the clears tho. A couple because I have 500's in the fog spots now, and clear because the white Hella ones are a bit too flashy for public consumption. I get people who pass me then slow and pull along side and give me dirty/ astonished/ enraged looks and or gestures all the time when I have the covers ON! With them off not many people seem to notice.

As for the $40 for aluminum stock. I tried a few cheaper versions, I think this is EVO4, and all of them jiggled like a biotch with the 4000's. So I brought out the big gun. It's 4"w X 5/8", super hard (don't remember the #), flat stock. I can stand on the mounts, and have , and move the whole car around without ANY perceptible flex. They are totally beefy. I like overkill. :biggest:


Pete :spin:

 

[squared away]

so basically you just took large pieces of metal and drilled holes in them to mount them to the car and the lights to them? hmmmm..... sounds like a darn good idea... :happynow:

what do you have them mounted to? the bumper beam? it looks good, so i'm just trying to figure it all out... for future reference of course..

AJ

 

[Guest]

Toward the front edge of the bumper you probably don't want to drill through the top to use a bolt - I've found that really large plastic wall anchors (for hanging heavy pictures on walls) work great. In the back I'd run it through and bolt it.

 

[DAUTHI]

yes sir that's it!

You are indeed correct. They are mounted up into the bumper beam. I thought of many different ways to mount them, but none were as simple and direct. Direct is the key to preventing jiggle. The longer the un-supported mount the more likely to flex.

I also thought about different ways to bolt to the beam. It's really too complex to use nuts and bolts thru the bumper skin. My way isn't as glamorous, but again simple and direct. I used 3/8" ss hex head lag bolts 1 1/2" long. They are plenty tought and very tight. The threads don't deform at all. I kinda thought they would, but nope.

There is a 1/4" gap between the beam and the skin. It deforms a little when you crank the bolts down, but not noticably. And it pops right back when you take them off. You can't see the holes unless you lay in front of the car too. Guess lightweight bumper beams are out tho

Pete

 

[Guest]

Yeah, I have a feeling that these lights would destroy the lightweight beams.

 

[squared away]

Pete,
Check your PM's when you get the chance please. :biggest:

Thanks,
AJ

 

[DAUTHI]

Destroy??? LOL

They are insanely heavy. The lamp is all metal. Not a scrap of plastic. I would say A pair of 4000's weight as much as 4 pairs of 500's. They make 4X the light tho

I also have 500 driving beams in the stock fog spots. They work great when angled out for use as cornering lights. However, if the are aimed forward, they are nothing. With the 4000's lit I can switch the 500's on and off and not even notice a difference. The beam of the 4000's is kinda unreal. But there are better I've seen the 4000 motorsports (HID) coming at me and they are 10X brighter than my 4000's which are crazy bright to begin with.

I'm a big hella fan needless to say.


Pete W.

 

[Porter]

I can vouch for Pete's lights. It's like daylight in front of the car when those bastards come on!


Pete... call me some time you traveling freak! Tell Jen I said hi.

 

[Guest]

You don't have to tell me.
(before the tires, springs, struts, and many other things)

 

[squared away]

thanks guys, you've got my mouth watering and my brain itching to figure something out. I like Pete's idea as the lights are a little bit lower, and I'd rather not drill through my bumper, as the quantity of MY98 authentic bumpers aren't plentiful in the parts/junk yards. A bumper beam is a little easier in my mind. Again, thanks a ton, and feel free to keep posting pics and stuff, the more minds the better I say. :biggest:

AJ

 

[Guest]

The only visable holes are underneath, where Pete's are. The other ones are behind the grill.

 

[crash]

Pete,

Can you take some pictures of the underside of your fog mounts?

I'd love to get a better idea of exactly how you mounted them.

Thanks,

Nathan

 

[DAUTHI]

Sure, I'll take some shots in the next couple of days. That is if the slush stops falling from the sky. It's not snow nor rain. Yucky!!!


Pete

 

[DAUTHI]

here ya go! Simple as can be

Mmmmm, icy and dirty.......... :run:

Notice as well, someone is still too lazy to sand the blue paint off the end of the plate!