Under bumper LED Pods??

So I'm trying to find a way to mount some 20W Ditch Light LED pods from Cali Raised LED under my bumper of my 2016 Tacoma SR5 with Tow Package. I'm not set on the location, but I do want to mount them somewhere that is somewhat hidden, and also doesn't involve too much modification to the bumper itself. I have a few questions on how to do this...

1. What hardware do I need to mount them/where is the best place to mount them?


I was thinking somewhere to either side of the tow hitch. From what I could see, I saw two possible locations:

The first using the bolts towards the bumper cap (green dots)


and the second using the cutout further inward (red dots).




2. How to wire these once installed?

For example, where would I run the wiring to reach the battery and the switch? Would it go through the bed or some other path? I'm fairly inexperienced with wiring for these types of lights so any and all guidance is helpful.

 

I had some mounted to my hitch with a bracket, I destroyed one light off-road and then removed the setup.

 

Before even reading the text of your post, I was thinking those might be short lived if you drive it off road.

 

Welcome! Do you have pics of the lights you are trying to mount? Do you go off road where clearance/damage can be a problem? I think the cleanest install is where you install the light pods in the bumper, but that obviously requires heavy bumper modification.

Predictable outcome. I didn't want lights that would be damaged off road, and didn't feel like cutting up my bumper so I did this instead, which produces 3x+ over stock:
https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads/gy6-35-hir-921-reverse-light-upgrade-vs-high-power-leds.474996/

 

buy some flush mount baja design lights and flush mount them in the bumper. making holes is no big deal

 

If you are happy with the lights turning on only when in reverse you can tap into the reverse light wiring at the tail lights or the seven pin trailer connector. Either way you should make sure the circuit can handle the additional ~3.5amp current used by the two 20watt pods.

I originally mounted my pods directly under the bumper about the same location you showed with the white arrows. On the 2nd gens the bumpers have a few holes on the bottom side so no drilling was required. Not sure if it's the same on the 3rd gens. Eventually I moved them out further towards the tailight since I wasn't happy with the amount of light visible in the side mirrors when reversing at night.

If these lights ever fail I'd change to flush mounts since the look is so much cleaner.

 

I know this is dead but I ended up going this route because of this thread. Thought I'd share in case someone else ran across it. Use the spot in OP's second picture as a mounting point with a couple washers and locking nuts