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Lightbars: Over windshield vs. hood mounts

lowmpg

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Hey all, had a white Tacoma with an over the windshield lightbar and the glare was too much on the hood for it to be of any real use.. so I was thinking of going with a hood mounted bar (single row, 40” max) on my bright white JLUR and wanted to know what the bright white owner experience has been with glare on their hood from a hood mounted bar.. thanks.

Any glare on a hood is relative to how you tilt the bar and the beam pattern. I have no 'glare' on mine, yes it clearly hits the hood, but there is no glare. 40" Westin lightbar on Westin mounts. Use mine every..single..morning.
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Thane

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The bumper lights are way more valuable than roof lights, lower position allows you see shadows behind rocks and holes from your higher eyeline.

Getting SAE Aux Headlamps on your bumper keeps you street legal with no covers in Cali, I have been stopped twice in Anza Borrego for uncovered roof lights-on trails-at night... Roof light bars are only legal in OHV areas while off the road in CA. :(
 

Overwatch

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The bumper lights are way more valuable than roof lights, lower position allows you see shadows behind rocks and holes from your higher eyeline.

Getting SAE Aux Headlamps on your bumper keeps you street legal with no covers in Cali, I have been stopped twice in Anza Borrego for uncovered roof lights-on trails-at night... Roof light bars are only legal in OHV areas while off the road in CA. :(
Just so you know, you can get away with it if they have a red or amber filter. I personally use red as I like it on dark nights anyway. Now I only use the actual lights a few times a year while camping or because I got somewhere very late. However you can at least use them and leave them in place.
 
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JLPilot

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A lot of great info in this thread, thank you guys.
 

AlanD

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Jeep Wrangler JL Lightbars: Over windshield vs. hood mounts 1634348979842


Well take look at the road home. In the past two years have seen Coyotes, Javelina, bobcats, a couple of deer, rattle snakes, lost dogs, Great horned owls and 2 lost horses... This time of the year heart broken tarantulas looking for a mate... I run a quadratech J5 light bar...

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mark090852

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The best answer I can give you is that I do enough night time off-roading to make the lights well worth the money I spent on them. And there is absolutely no glare from the over the windshield lights. They are properly aimed and all the light is directed forward of the vehicle. And the A-Piller lights do not glare at all, either. They just slightly light up the hood, but non of it is reflected back towards the driver.
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JLTruman

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I got a few pics tonight, not the best but here's the results
1- drivers seat headlights and diode pro fogs
2- same as 1 with hood mount 30" diode bar with driving lenses
3- same as 1 with a-pillar pro pods and front bumper pro pods both yellow
4- is 1-2-3 together

Jeep Wrangler JL Lightbars: Over windshield vs. hood mounts 20211017_202422


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Jeep Wrangler JL Lightbars: Over windshield vs. hood mounts 20211017_202435


Jeep Wrangler JL Lightbars: Over windshield vs. hood mounts 20211017_202439


not gonna lie though, without the matte hood decal you get blinded by a hood mount, its worse when you have a BRIGHT WHITE jeep lol
 

alksion

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Get 2 Baja LP6's and mount them to the bumper...done. If that is too expensive a couple KC Flex ERA 4's. See video for light output (LP6's will be even brighter). You do not need more than this. Add ditch lights if you want.

Second this. I have a pair of LP6s on my winch guard and a pair of amber squadron pros on my a-pillars. I absolutely love them. I didn’t want to do overdo my light setup as it takes away from the Jeeps overall look.

I tried to keep it simple but practical with my lighting setup. Wife and I roll into some dark camping sites late at night and it’s nice to have the some decent lighting while traversing off road in places you’ve never been before, even if using offline maps in Gaia.

Of course, I think they look cool too, but I’ll roll with the late night finding a camp spot reason as my top priority for purchasing my light setup.

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