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I'm installing my roof rack this weekend and was curious how your getting wires from your lights back into the Jeep. My last XJ I did, I ran the wires to the back of the rack, cut a slit into the weather strip on the back hatch and took them in under the trim.
Just curious if there was other ways, I was always nervious about cutting the weather stripping as I thought this would cause a leak. The wires for the HD lighting can get rather large in gauge, so I'm trying to find a different way.
A few jeeps back I removed the runner that the factory racks slide on on the driver's side, drilled a quarter inch hole underneath, then lined up my runner and drilled holes on the inside edge and the bottom, ran my wires through and sealed it up with a good amount of silicone. It came out pretty good and concealed the wires real well. Sorry I haven't got any pictures but I've yet to see anyone do it cleaner.
A bolt hole for the roof rails. They fit a coax cable perfectly if you blow out the threads (I don't run rails so idc). You may have to remove your overhead and interior trim a little to run the wire to wherever, but its clean and no new holes. Fill with silicone and your're done.
A few jeeps back I removed the runner that the factory racks slide on on the driver's side, drilled a quarter inch hole underneath, then lined up my runner and drilled holes on the inside edge and the bottom, ran my wires through and sealed it up with a good amount of silicone. It came out pretty good and concealed the wires real well. Sorry I haven't got any pictures but I've yet to see anyone do it cleaner.
This is what I did as well. No leaks, no problems.
I drilled a hole and used a rubber grommet then sealed it with silicone.
This is exactly what I did for front and the rear work/backup lights (they also tie into the reverse switch on a toggle). 3 yrs. now and zero leaks of any kind on headliner.
Last edited by Fred/N0AZZ; 04-07-2015 at 09:46 AM.
It's supposed to be waterproof when installed vertically and the cable coming out of the bottom. I'm going to try it with the cable pointing towards the back of the Jeep. If it leaks, I'll add some silicone. I like the clean look of the pass-through for a few extra bucks.
I have 5 lights on my Surco rack. Two on front, one on each side, and one in the back. They are LED. The two front are spot beam, and the rest are flood. They provide good area lighting when camping or working on the Jeep in the dark.
I took the time to fabricate a custom wire harness that fits within the cross rails of my rack. Each light plugs into it using a Weatherpak connector. Because they are LED, they only pull 3 amps of current each. That means I was able to wire them up without using relays, as the switches I used are rated at 15 amps each.
Anyway, I used some 4-conductor trialer wire to run to the back, come down in the gap between the body and hatch, make a small slit in the rubber weatherstrip, and then run that wire down to the 2" diameter plastic plug by the driver side taillight. That allowed me to easily run the wires along the inside behind the side panels and under the plastic trim at the door openings, all the way back up to the center console.
I have one main hot lead coming form under the hood, and through the firewall to the center console. This wire is relay fed, and properly fused, and it is enough to run all 5 lights at once. Total load is just over15 amps. The main lead supplies 12+ to all the switches and out to the lights. Everything works great and I've had no issues since installing everything.
I just can't bring myself to drill holes in the roof, no matter what.
Those are known as "Ravines". They are a factory Jeep wheel (15") that was initially put on the original Wrangler Unlimited models starting in 2004. Not the 4 door JK's but the stretched 2-door TJ's. Later, they were an option on other Jeeps, although the XJ's never came with them from the factory, obviously, as they stopped production a couple years before that.
They are one of the two most desired factory wheel "upgrades" for XJ's. The "Moab" 16" wheels from TJ Rubicons are arguable more sought after, but also harder to find, so they are less commonly seen on XJ's. IF you find a set of Moabs in good condition, it's not unusual to see them on Craigslist for $500-$600 a set. depending on whether you'll get a 4 piece or 5 piece set. Ravines can sometimes be found for $175-$225 a set.
In third place would be the Canyon wheels, which were common on Wranglers and Grand Cherokees, and are pretty easy to find.
I have 235/75-15 Destination AT's on a 2" lift, and I'm running the Ravines with 1.25" spacers behind them.
04-06-2015, 07:40 PM
Wires from Outside to Inside
