KC HiLiTES Ford Raptor: 50-Inch Flex Array Light Bar Install

Sep. 16, 2015 By Josh Burns, Photos by Josh Burns and Courtesy of KC HiLiTES

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In our last story recapping the KC HiLiTES Ford Raptor, the crew at SoCal SuperTrucks had just put the finishing touches on installing a new Baja Coyote Front Bumper on the Raptor that was outfitted with a host of Flex Dual LED lights and a C-Series 20-inch Amber LED light bar. But if you think KC HiLiTES would stop there with its lighting arrangement on the Raptor, you’re sadly mistaken.

The KC HiLiTES Ford Raptor is ready for its finishing touches in the lighting department, which includes the roof-mounted 50 Flex Array LED light bar, hood Flex Dual LEDs for the hood and Flex Singles to aid in backup lighting.

The Flex Array LEDs comes in 10-inch bodies and offer a modular LED light bar option for off-roaders. Although the Flex Array can be customized for a particular application, KC HiLiTES does sell them in complete kits in 10-, 20-, 30-, 40- and 50-inch applications.

For this truck, KC HiLiTES wanted to highlight its new Flex Array LED light bars. This new modular light bar system comes in 10-inch bodies that feature a combo spread and spot beam patterns, offering the ability to create up to a 50-inch light bar by pairing together the 10-inch bodies. Although this system does offer custom-ability, KC HiLiTES also simplifies the process by selling complete Flex Array LED light bars in 10-inch, 20-inch, 30-inch, 40-inch and 50-inch setups.

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The Flex Array LEDS feature lightweight, durable aluminum housings that are black powder coated and come standard with gold bezels, though KC offers the option to change to blue, red or black.

To mount the KC HiLiTES Flex Array LED light bar, SoCal SuperTrucks’ Raptor light bar mounts are installed. After the rain gutter molding is removed, a punch is used to start the hole for drilling the mount locations.

Although the garage mechanic can tackle this job, if drilling into the roof is a little unnerving, this is where a quality off-road shop like SoCal SuperTrucks comes in handy.

The grip sert nuts are tightened into place to secure the SoCal SuperTrucks light bar mounts.

The Flex Array LED light bars feature black housings constructed of high-grade aluminum. The light bars comes standard with gold bezels, but KC does offer the option to add on red, blue or black bezels to swap in for a customized look. The light bars feature 10W Cree XM-L2 U2 LED lights, with each 10-inch bar featuring a total wattage of 50W (so 50-inch bars would be 250W). The Flex Array operates on 9 to 18 volts and is protected against EMI interference, and of course KC HiLiTES includes the wiring harness and waterproof connectors with every light bar.

With the grip sert nuts in place, the mount is now ready to be installed.

The SoCal SuperTrucks light bar mount is secured in place with the accompanying stainless-steel hardware.

The Flex Array 50-inch light bar is set into place.

The coolest aspect to the Flex Array LEDs is the fact that the modular system can be used on pretty much any off-road vehicle, be it a truck or Jeep, ATV or UTV. For this application, the KC team would be using SoCal SuperTrucks’ Ford Raptor 50” LED Straight Light Bar Mount Bracket (part # SS331000) to secure the 50-inch Flex Array light bar. These light bar brackets are designed to install in the factory F-150 rain gutters and include a rubber gasket to help seal and prevent water leaks. The SoCal SuperTrucks mounts use grip sert nuts to secure the mounts to the body. The mount is throughtfully created with a low-profile design to allow most trucks to still fit in the garage. Stainless-steel safety head torx are included to secure the mounts as well.

The SoCal SuperTrucks light hood mounts use the preexisting stock bolt locations shown.

The KC HiLiTES Flex Dual LED is installed on the SCST hood mount, and as you can see it remains out of the way of the hood when it is raised.

Although the Flex Array LED light bar would provide ample light power to complement the already impressive number of Flex Dual LEDs installed on the Baja Coyote Front Bumper, KC still wanted to add a few more to the truck. To make sure every angle is covered, KC also installed two Flex Dual LED Spot Beams on each side of the hood using SoCal SuperTrucks Raptor Hood Cowl mounting brackets (part #SS331031). The bolt-on mounts require no drilling or cutting for installation, as they use existing stock locations for installation. Just like the overhead light bar mounts, these pieces are protected via a semi-gloss black powder coat to protection from the elements. The Hood Cowl mounts will fit up to a 6-inch light and install in less than an hour.

The SoCal SuperTruck backup light mounts are simple to install to add backup auxiliary lighting for the Raptor.

The SoCal SuperTrucks backup light mount for the Raptor also uses stock locations for an easy, bolt-on install.

With so much attention paid to the front of the vehicle, KC HiLiTES wanted to make sure there is plenty of light for backup situations as well, and so the final light addition to its Raptor would be a Flex Single LED Spread Beam light, which features two 10W Flex Single LEDS to provide a spread pattern for lighting up the area behind the truck. Holding the light in place would be a SoCal SuperTrucks Back Up light mount kit (part # SS331033). This black powder-coated mount is easily bolted in place and is thoughtfuly built to tuck up high for good approach angles while off-roading.

The KC HiLiTES Flex Single will provide plenty of visibility for backing up during low-light off-road exploring.

The hood-mounted Flex Duals and the 50-inch Flex Array lightbar give this Raptor plenty of nighttime visibility!

Once all of the lighting was wired up and installed, KC took its Raptor out to the desert to test out its setup. The crew is very pleased with the overall build, but most importantly they are excited to highlight the company’s newest LED light offerings. The 50-inch Flex Array setup hadn’t been used prior to this, but KC is happy to report it had been off-road tested and approved by the team and is now available. The modular Flex Array system is unique in that it will offer builders and owners more customizable options for auxiliary lighting. KC HiLiTES has even set up a site specifically for the line, which you can check out shortly when it launches.