I installed my clearance lights yesterday and thought I would share a few notes. Some things I haven't seen covered anywhere else.

I bought the kit off Ebay, offered by Heller Ford. $89 including shipping. Took exactly a week to get them to me.

Heller sent a single page instruction sheet which might be there own. Then they also included a printout of Motomans web site: http://www.emotoman.com/f250/lights/f250lights.htm . I have no idea whether they got Motomans permission to use his content - none of my business really. But I would feel better about doing business with them if they at least included credit to him or a link to his web site. There was nothing to indicate that it was not their own content.

I installed the lights with one on center, 8" out to the next pair, and 12-1/2" out to the outer pair. Some instructions say 13" to the outer pair. I liked the look of 12-1/2" better and it's not so close to the roof gutter.

I placed all of them 5-1/2" back from the rear edge of the windsheild rubber to the center of the 7/8" hole. All the lights should point straight forward. Do not angle them outward to match the contour of the windshield rubber. So, on the outer light, your 7/8" hole will be 5-1/2" back, but one of the smaller holes will be further and one will be closer.

The lights from the factory do not match the contour of the roof perfectly. It doesn't matter whether you set them at 13" out or 12-1/2" out. None of the 5 lights really fit the contour perfectly. You'll need to cut the plastic base a little bit if you want a perfect fit. I'm guessing the different roofs on SC and CC and STD cabs are all a little different. It's not the rubber seal that you want to trim, it's the plastic lamp base. Personally I did not trim them. A perfect fit would just trap water. They are tight around the seal which is what matters.

The foam seal on the base of the lights only covers the center area. Just around the drilled holes. They will seal fine whether the bases match the roof perfectly or not. I put silicone around the holes just to be safe.

The bolt studs on the base are 1-3/4" centers. I drilled 1/4" diameter holes so they would have some clearance.

I kept the drilling chips to a minimum by using a 7/8" (1/2" conduit trade size) knockout. You can use a uni-bit but be prepared for a lot more chips.

I did not remove the headliner. I removed all the accessories back to the point of the door latch (super cab). There was room to work carefully and not kink the headliner.

The Ford wiring harness is a work of art. At first it's hard to determine which anchors go where. But the harness has a ridgid portion that goes under the A-pillar trim. The anchors on that are obvious, so work from there upward and downward. All the anchors fit perfectly. Very well made.

As others have said, the plug for the lights should exist on all SD trucks, 99-07. I was installing Olbirds overhead console at the same time. The wires you need for power to his console exist in the same kick panel plug, but are not in the standard clearance light harness. You can get the harness which includes the console wiring, so the wires would be there but I don't think the console end plug would fit. I just paralleled 2 wires down to the kick panel wiring and tapped the hot wire. There is a convenient ground stud there too.

I started the job at about 7:30 AM and was done before 4:00 PM. Including trip to buy wire and lunch. That included the clearance lights and the overhead console, and I was working alone. The only difficulty was reaching the center hole with only two hands. I just used tape to secure the knockout punch, and the clearance light, while I worked inside on that one.

Not to gloat or anything, but this February day reached 83°F. I know because it was displayed on my new overhead console. Gotta love California on days like this.

Bill

 

Where are the pics???

 

Hey my install went exactly like that to. You got to get some pics up

 

I put up some pics in my gallery. I did not take installation progress photos. There are plenty of those around already. There are pics of the Olbird overhead console. It looks really nice up there, just like it belongs. No one would ever guess it was not stock.


But it has a problem. We are right around 80° today and it's stuck on 47°. Has been all day. It was working perfectly last night, changing temp as we drove around. Olbirds instructions say that they do that, although he does not mention it before you plunk down your money. He even puts a suggested reset switch part number in his kit so you override it. I guess I'll have to do that which is disappointing.

A pleasant surprise was finding a predrilled hole in the front shroud for the temp sensor. His instructions are not clear about where to put it exactly, just showing it up in the front in a photo. But I pulled the front grill off and there is a pair of holes obviously intended for that sensor. I could pull the grill and take a photo if anyone is interested in the future.

Bill

 

Not to gloat or anything, but this February day reached 83°F. I know because it was displayed on my new overhead console. Gotta love California on days like this.

Well he!! Bill I can top that down here in TEXAS we dont have to waste a whole day installing a thermometer since we only have two temps, HOT and NOT and no guage is necessary!

Sorry couldnt resist my inner smartass.

 

Looks good!! I'd trade ya gladly. It was -12 at 7am this morning and only warmed up to -5. That was no windchill. Windchills were -35 to -45 today.

 

I installed mine the same day you did. 75 to 80 degrees, not a cloud in the sky, gotta love this Fla weather. The only real complaint was the headliner must be fiberglass or something, cause it sure made me itch..

 

-13F this morning here in tropical Hooterville WI.

Might warm up to +8F today! I think I will work on my tan.

 

Hmm, didn't notice that at all. I cut mine with an exacto knife. It looks like kraft paper liners (cardboard) with a foamcore medium. Cut really easy for me and no dust at all. Olbirds template was perfect and I didn't have to do any additional trimming at all.

Bill

 

Ya and yesterday it was a balmy -2 for a high, Gotta Love WI!!

 

I got the kit from Heller Ford for fathers day. In everything I've read about the install, nobody has specifically said where the new harness plugs to the truck. I've taken a few older Ford trucks apart and the roof light harness always plugs into the light switch. Are the SDs the same?

 

No, you will find the plug in the passenger side kick panel. If you have an overhead console, the plug will already be populated and you'll need a combination harness. Or just tap into it like I did. If you don't have the overhead console, the plug will be sitting there empty waiting for you.

Bill

 

Thanks. I have no overhead console. Now for the courage to start pulling the interior of my truck apart.

 

It's not too bad really, just work slow and easy. FYI you don't need to remove the headliner, just lower it in the front. I found the hardest part was removing the trim buttons in the headliner and there is also one in the kick panel trim. I actually broke part of the pin on one, but they are cheap to replace and you can push new ones in at a later date. Getting the A-pillar covers back in correct placement was a little difficult too.

The interior is stress free compared to the courage required to drill your roof.

Bill

 

I have the same problem with my overhead console that you did. It doesn't want to change temperature sometimes when you drive long distances. I guess one of the extra blunt cut wires up in the overhead console (I know I had two extras up there) can be hooked up to the speed sensor and keep the console checking the temperature sensor more often. Now I just need to find a link to where I saw it on here. Apparently Ol Bird has some instructions on how to do this, I am going to email him on it.