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I have a 20" Lightbar mounted in my Bumper now.. the mounting for the Lightbar are on top instead of the sides like other lightsbars.. I was wondering how other people have mounted a 20" or 30" in their bumper.. I really want to get a new bar and remount it.. any suggestions would help.. thanks.
I'm not a fan of this location for a lightbar, as it blocks air flow to the factory installed transmission oil cooler. I tow a 6200 pound camper, so keeping this area open is critical for good airflow to that cooler.
I have a 30" in my bumper. Going off the Transmission Fluid Temperature on my Edge there is no difference before it was in there compared to now.
Originally Posted by Bucko
I'm not a fan of this location for a lightbar, as it blocks air flow to the factory installed transmission oil cooler. I tow a 6200 pound camper, so keeping this area open is critical for good airflow to that cooler.
Real talk: I keep seeing this. One person says it's cool, another says that they don't want to risk it because it won't be cool.
I'm of two minds. While I think that it shouldn't have a damaging impact, it will have SOME impact. You're basically taking free flowing air and forcing it around the light... which uses the same air to cool itself. So the ambient air is probably 1-5* warmer than it normally would be and is restricted to a certain degree.
I'm sure that there's enough air leak from other parts, even with the baffle hangers installed, that it won't have a significant impact, but I really want someone to real-world measure the temps with a partially obstructed intake vs a clear intake.
With my Edge programmer mounted on the left of the dash, I see transmission temps climb to 2005 to 207 when towing my 6200 camper on inclines; summer temps are now here, in the 90's with high humidity in Florida. And that's with no blockage. If I don't tow, my temps are in the 182 to 185 range.
Ford placed their factory transmission cooler down low and created a grill opening there for a reason; I'll choose not to question it.
If you don't tow, or tow light weight trailers, this may not show up much with transmission temps, but since heat is the number one cause for an automatic transmission wear or breakdown, I'll leave that opening unobstructed so I can get as much airflow to the cooler as designed, and to extend the automatic transmissions life.
Last edited by Mod (Ret.); 06-01-2016 at 08:25 AM.
Right now with mine in the summer heat, it stays right around 183. I towed a 1995 F-150 two weeks ago and the highest my Edge displayed was 206.
I honestly don't tow a whole lot, just use the bed. So I am not too concerned about it.
There are alot of worry worts on this forum. Mount the light bar where you please. It's an ideal location and if I had the option it would've been my first choice. Look into the angle iron. Also where did you purchase the bar from?
05-31-2016, 12:35 PM
Lightbar in Bumper of 2005
