aranay Posted February 18, 2011 Share Posted February 18, 2011 I want to throw a set of 6" or so off road lights up top on my rig but I don't want to sacrifice what little fuel mileage I have. I currently average 16-17 MPG for you yankees (500 kms/tank for us canucks). I have been contemplating a myriad of mounting locations and I like the roof the best aesthetically. Has anyone done this with recorded fuel efficiency change? I'm also open to suggestions of alternative mounting places and light size. The truck in question is the one in my sig. p.s. - sorry if none of this is coherent due to me being pretty dang high. I just spent most of the night at the hospital with $%^&*#& kidney stones Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Precise1 Posted February 18, 2011 Share Posted February 18, 2011 The more drag you have on the truck, the more it will affect highway mileage, but I have never heard anyone post hard numbers. I doubt 2 lights isn't going to make much a difference that will be noticed with all the other variables. Things to consider about roof mount, you have nothing to mount to so you will have to drill the roof and that has to be sealed well (running the wires isn't hard). Also it is easy to snag a roof light, either tree branches or low parking garages. If you have a sunroof, they can be a little harder to mount. You do get the best broadcast from the roof though. I also have no roof rack or basket. While I do plan to mount an Xterra roof rack (when I can find one) I don't plan to put lights on the roof. Here is what I did instead... The top are Piaa 510 amber ion beam fog lights, the bottom are 4" Hella Optilux HID off road lights (extremely bright), and once I rewire the stock headligts with relays and install the Sylvania ultrabright bulbs I have, that will be all the forward light I will need. B Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
edicer2 Posted February 18, 2011 Share Posted February 18, 2011 (edited) i have them on top of my truck (see sig) and i still get around 17 mpg so i dont think they affect it a whole lot. Mine are fairly large too looks like a brick on top of my truck lol Edited February 18, 2011 by edicer2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SilverPath Posted February 18, 2011 Share Posted February 18, 2011 I know I have an R50 but, I have a lot of drag uptop on my rig thanks to my basket, spare, and lights. Stock I was doing about 20mpg, now I am only down to 17 if I keep my foot out of it. Thats not all because of my lights either, larger wheels etc all impacts it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nunya Posted February 18, 2011 Share Posted February 18, 2011 (edited) I think last time I checked my mileage I was getting like 14ish mpg. I have a fiew things that are against me though. 4 5" roof mounts proably attribute to that, but I'm sure having the 3+3, 32s (when I last checked) bad o2 sensor, pollution control stuff that needs some "help", etc ain't getting me any better miles either As B said though you also have to watch with roof mounts as they are now your tallest point and gonna be the first thing to get bashed when in an area that has lower height clearance issues. I eventually plan to do a basket and incorporate it to also be a little bit of protection for mine. But that ain't gonna happen for a wHile. Dint forget to check your local laws as well, I know here in PA your actually supposedto have any lights above your headlights covered when on the road (unless factory) and can cause a hinderance if you plan on using them as auxiliary on-road lighting as well. Edited February 18, 2011 by nunya Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OldSlowReliable Posted February 18, 2011 Share Posted February 18, 2011 put em on your brushguard. You already have it, it protect them, no added wind resistance, they will look better (in my opinion), easier wiring/mounting, and if you need/want to put light covers on them, you can do it relatively easily vs on the roof(depending how tall you are). You also will not worry about adding 6-8" to the height for parking/drivethrus/carwash Although it does look like you have a roof rack, it's still way more of a PITA to mount them up there To mount them on the pipe supports of you brushguard- 1) Drill through the pipe, run a longer screw 2) Weld on a light tab (imo the most reliable/proven method) 3) Use one of those chainlink fence things that someone else just used, they basically wrap around the pipe and have two pieces of metal that meet as a tab, when you tighten it, it clamps down on the pipe making a pretty easy, cheap, and adjustable light mount. http://www.fencetraders.com/chain-link-fence/chain-link-fittings-and-hardware/brace-bands/cat_192.html Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aranay Posted February 18, 2011 Author Share Posted February 18, 2011 The more drag you have on the truck, the more it will affect highway mileage, but I have never heard anyone post hard numbers. I doubt 2 lights isn't going to make much a difference that will be noticed with all the other variables. Also it is easy to snag a roof light, either tree branches or low parking garages. I do plan to mount an Xterra roof rack B Oh wow lots of food for thought here. The things that hold me back from roof-mounting them are drilling my roof and getting a good seal, wind drag, and overhead clearance issues but I figured these could be somewhat solved by rocking an Xterra rack. i have them on top of my truck (see sig) and i still get around 17 mpg so i dont think they affect it a whole lot. do you have 31" tires? If you're running 235s then I can assume a 2mpg drop due to my 31s??? put em on your brushguard. You already have it, it protect them, no added wind resistance, they will look better (in my opinion), easier wiring/mounting, and if you need/want to put light covers on them, you can do it relatively easily vs on the roof(depending how tall you are). You also will not worry about adding 6-8" to the height for parking/drivethrus/carwash Although it does look like you have a roof rack, it's still way more of a PITA to mount them up there To mount them on the pipe supports of you brushguard- 1) Drill through the pipe, run a longer screw 2) Weld on a light tab (imo the most reliable/proven method) 3) Use one of those chainlink fence things that someone else just used, they basically wrap around the pipe and have two pieces of metal that meet as a tab, when you tighten it, it clamps down on the pipe making a pretty easy, cheap, and adjustable light mount. http://www.fencetraders.com/chain-link-fence/chain-link-fittings-and-hardware/brace-bands/cat_192.html This is most likely whats going to end up happening because I dont want to drop $300-$400 on a basket or Xterra (or similar) rack. Only problem with this is I want to run 4 lights and the lights I want won't fit in there. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
w1r3d Posted March 3, 2011 Share Posted March 3, 2011 I will have to post a pic of my beast lol it has 4 massive lights on the front roof rack... maybe 10" lights Good for driving on dirt roads when kangaroos, cows, camels and dogs are on the roads out here at Alice Springs Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aranay Posted March 3, 2011 Author Share Posted March 3, 2011 I will have to post a pic of my beast lol it has 4 massive lights on the front roof rack... maybe 10" lights Good for driving on dirt roads when kangaroos, cows, camels and dogs are on the roads out here at Alice Springs Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nunya Posted March 4, 2011 Share Posted March 4, 2011 I will have to post a pic of my beast lol it has 4 massive lights on the front roof rack... maybe 10" lights Good for driving on dirt roads when kangaroos, cows, camels and dogs are on the roads out here at Alice Springs this cannot be said without pictures Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GrimGreg Posted March 4, 2011 Share Posted March 4, 2011 I have driving lights (55w) on my brushguard, and offroad lights (120w) on the roof. The roof ones are mountd off my basket. I didn't notice any substantial drop in mpg after mounting them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Precise1 Posted March 4, 2011 Share Posted March 4, 2011 That's because you already have an air dam on the front of the basket... B Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thehuntersam Posted March 4, 2011 Share Posted March 4, 2011 lol if you want to see what 12 mpgs looks like check out my pathy with the roof rack and 4 kcdaylighters. Ii love the lights, it made the pathy look even better and i thought it was a good trade off, about 1 mpg per light! lol My link http://http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6t5nv5yp-hk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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