Hey guys, I was in the market of buying a nice quality tailgate lightbar, up until when I was studying the gap between my bumper and tailgate, noticed there is some sort of a latch system going on the right side of the tailgate , maybe even preventing me from installing a lightbar in the first place. I have seen the lightbars on the same year truck I've got, so I brought up the question as, how exactly do I install the lightbar then? Very confused as to why this latch system is even on my truck. Looks as if not very many people have it. Did a little reading online though and saw it's a tailgate assist. And why exactly do I need it? Lol I honestly don't know. But anyway, how do I go about installing a tailgate lightbar with this? Assist probably needs to be modified in a way or taken out.
Any suggestions?
Thanks

 

Cut it off

 

I see your from Minnesota, I lived in Minnesota for a fifteen years and now just during the summers but its a very nice thing to have in the winter. Adds visibility to your vehicle during blizzards/whiteouts. I actually just used double sided tape and because the light bar I bought was somewhat flexible, I was able to stick it on the main part of the tailgate. When I started pressing it down from one side of the bar to the other and got to the latch (bump) part your talking about, I just cut the extra sticky tape I bought and added extra under the gap the light bar created when ran over the bump on both sides. Looks great and is still a straight line from one side to the other, doesnt have any wobbles or anything. Mine's an '06 though so it might be slightly different, I'm not sure but it wasn't a real issue for me. Post pics so I can get a better idea if this design is consistent from '04-'06. (Tip: if your putting this on in a cold garage, dry the metal COMPLETELY and take a heat gun to the sticky tape (careful not to burn the tape) right before you put it on. Makes the tape extra sticky.) I wouldn't advise cutting it because it breaks the waterproof seal... If you want my advice, don't buy an expensive LED bar, buy a cheap one, its just not worth it. Mine was maybe $40 and has worked awesome for the past two years. Texans don't really use tailgate light bars on their trucks so it looks unique from the millions of trucks down here.