Flash Tailgate Lightbar Build

[Lightning Jones]

Well, I did it.
My 2024 Flash did not have the EV trademark Taillight to Taillight red light bar.
After a few weeks of research, a few lucky finds, a great deal of trial and error, I built my own tailgate light bar.

After posting on FBook and getting over 400 order requests, I had to walk away from it all.

No holes, no trailer plug, no additional wire runs.

How did it turn out?

 

[K6CCC]

Very nice. Tell us all about it please.

 

[l!ghtning]

Very cool. So many questions.... like... how? No holes, no trailer plug/wire runs? Batteries I guess?

 

[BabyDoc1012]

Can’t leave us hanging! I would love to do this to mine. Originally thought about swapping the tailgate out until someone on here I think, mentioned the taillights are different for the XLT/Flash and the Lariat/Platinum.

 

[l!ghtning]

I thought it may be a Putco Excaliber light bar... but that has a wire run to the LVB.

 

[Pioneer74]

All that work and you still haven't removed the dealer sticker from the tailgate?

 

[Henry Ford]

All that work and you still haven't removed the dealer sticker from the tailgate?

My pet peeve. Not too many dealers around me have stickers anymore but they all have license plate surrounds. My dealer contributed a license plate surround and a hutch receiver cover to the landfill via my garbage can.

 

[TaxmanHog]

Finally, a rear light bar option…

 

[Lightning Jones]

Light Build:

The housing are aluminum led strip fixtures from Amazon.
They are sold in 10 packs only for $60-80.
The right housings are 90 degree corner fixtures with 45 degree internal mounting surface.
The right size for this application is 10mm mounting surface.

Amazon Red LED Strips worked best. 16.5 foot long, 4mm wide, 600 LED per strand and I think each LED was $12-16 with a foot or two of leftover. The 10mm surface inside the housing gives room to double the LED strip, try stagger the LEDs to prevent slightly dim areas.

The housing diffuser is white and after several attempts to match the taillight color.
The best result was standard red rustoleum plastic / wood / metal spray paint on both sides, interior and exterior.
This was determined after several different attempts, powder coatings, filters, tapes, acrylic paints, dips. The white diffuser made the red LED strip a bright pink without treatment.

Now, to match the color of your truck, simply spray paint top of the housing, use tape to cover the internal section of the housing and spray paint the front with focus on the front facing edges.
This will leave one bare aluminum read section.

Once, you spray the internal and external of the diffuser and housing, you can install the LED strip.
Install the painted diffuser into the housing, install the painted end caps with the wiring sticking out of the side port. Then, you can seal the endcaps however you like, used a tube of gasket material and once dry, I applied an epoxy encasing the entire endcap.

When, your end caps are sealed apply a couple of coats over several hours of Triple Thick Gaze Spray. You can find this in most hardware / big box stores. This helps to seal the diffuser and housing along the long seams.

That is your completed light.

Installation is easy:

On the bare aluminum rear surface, apply heavy weight double sided tape. 1 inch Gorilla tape cut in half roughly works perfectly. The tail gate area between the taillights has a slight curve and tilt. The housing will bend to fit the curve without issue.

Connect longer, roughly three or four feet of wire to each of the light wires (Red and Black).

Buy half a dozen adhesive wire clips, clamps, or attach the extended wire leads to the side of the tailgate and run them down and under the pivot point and down to the bumper mounting structure.

Zip tie, attach the wires to a secure point with a few inches of slack to allow tailgate movement.

Now, the big secret everyone is waiting for...

The power supply.

Splice into the license plate lamp wires however you like, pinch splice connectors, bare wire, etc.

Black is ground, Yellow is power.

Black to black and Yellow to Red.

The license plate lamps activate with our running lights, door locks, marker lights.

This method does not impact the trailer plug or register any power load as a trailer.
It removes the need to link into the taillights or run additional light wires or separate controls.

Conclusion:

It is a bit of a long process, at least for me finding the right materials, trial and error.
One of the benefits is extra light housings, materials.
I bought two white LED strips and am building two full length white lights to mount under my running boards for additional courtesy lighting. The small housing section and red LED strip leftover, I am turning into a mini red interior light for my cab.

Overall, I think I spent about $150 for everything and can build up to 10 lights for a bit more.
You can do anything you like, multi color LEDs, underbody lighting, whatever your creativity creates.

And, yes. All that without removing the dealership sticker. I like my dealership haha.

I hope that helps.

 

[flypony53]

My pet peeve. Not too many dealers around me have stickers anymore but they all have license plate surrounds. My dealer contributed a license plate surround and a hutch receiver cover to the landfill via my garbage can.

This is a similar pet peeve of mine. I tell the dealer before I sign that they must remove all references showing their dealer (Stickers, license plate, etc) or credit me back $1000 for an advertising fee. I did this after the decal damaged one of my vehicles many years ago as I tried to remove it. This has worked. I have only had to walk out of one dealer, of which they called me back and removed the logo.

 

[F150ROD]

Wow looks great!

If we could only get a redesigned front light bar, thinner, brighter…. Not sure

 

[HI Zeus]

Light Build:

The housing are aluminum led strip fixtures from Amazon.
They are sold in 10 packs only for $60-80.
The right housings are 90 degree corner fixtures with 45 degree internal mounting surface.
The right size for this application is 10mm mounting surface.

Amazon Red LED Strips worked best. 16.5 foot long, 4mm wide, 600 LED per strand and I think each LED was $12-16 with a foot or two of leftover. The 10mm surface inside the housing gives room to double the LED strip, try stagger the LEDs to prevent slightly dim areas.

The housing diffuser is white and after several attempts to match the taillight color.
The best result was standard red rustoleum plastic / wood / metal spray paint on both sides, interior and exterior.
This was determined after several different attempts, powder coatings, filters, tapes, acrylic paints, dips. The white diffuser made the red LED strip a bright pink without treatment.

Now, to match the color of your truck, simply spray paint top of the housing, use tape to cover the internal section of the housing and spray paint the front with focus on the front facing edges.
This will leave one bare aluminum read section.

Once, you spray the internal and external of the diffuser and housing, you can install the LED strip.
Install the painted diffuser into the housing, install the painted end caps with the wiring sticking out of the side port. Then, you can seal the endcaps however you like, used a tube of gasket material and once dry, I applied an epoxy encasing the entire endcap.

When, your end caps are sealed apply a couple of coats over several hours of Triple Thick Gaze Spray. You can find this in most hardware / big box stores. This helps to seal the diffuser and housing along the long seams.

That is your completed light.

Installation is easy:

On the bare aluminum rear surface, apply heavy weight double sided tape. 1 inch Gorilla tape cut in half roughly works perfectly. The tail gate area between the taillights has a slight curve and tilt. The housing will bend to fit the curve without issue.

Connect longer, roughly three or four feet of wire to each of the light wires (Red and Black).

Buy half a dozen adhesive wire clips, clamps, or attach the extended wire leads to the side of the tailgate and run them down and under the pivot point and down to the bumper mounting structure.

Zip tie, attach the wires to a secure point with a few inches of slack to allow tailgate movement.

Now, the big secret everyone is waiting for...

The power supply.

Splice into the license plate lamp wires however you like, pinch splice connectors, bare wire, etc.

Black is ground, Yellow is power.

Black to black and Yellow to Red.

The license plate lamps activate with our running lights, door locks, marker lights.

This method does not impact the trailer plug or register any power load as a trailer.
It removes the need to link into the taillights or run additional light wires or separate controls.

Conclusion:

It is a bit of a long process, at least for me finding the right materials, trial and error.
One of the benefits is extra light housings, materials.
I bought two white LED strips and am building two full length white lights to mount under my running boards for additional courtesy lighting. The small housing section and red LED strip leftover, I am turning into a mini red interior light for my cab.

Overall, I think I spent about $150 for everything and can build up to 10 lights for a bit more.
You can do anything you like, multi color LEDs, underbody lighting, whatever your creativity creates.

And, yes. All that without removing the dealership sticker. I like my dealership haha.

I hope that helps.

Sharing of a simple (once YOU have put all the trial and error labor into it), is one of the great things about a form like this! Every time you see a Flash with a tailgate light, pat yourself on the back for me, please.