I'm not very happy with the light my '16 IS200t is putting out. The headlights work fine. They're just...underwhelming.

For reference, I sold my Raptor with 6 Rigid lights on the front of it. You can possibly imagine the difference in light output. No, I didn't run them in oncoming traffic. I hate those guys, too.

I'm planning a few road trips in the near future and there may be a fair amount of nighttime driving, so I am wondering if anyone has some ideas for putting out some real light. Fog lights are not what I'm looking for. They're easy to do but not enough light or throw. My concern is mainly wildlife. Has anyone installed something like a 10" light bar behind the grille? I'm thinking a light bar wired in with the high beams would make for an ideal setup.

Any input is appreciated.

 

I would actually be interested how this will be mounted tbh, I find that the output of the LED headlights aren't the brightest for visibility. Just anything to gain more sight in pitch black areas. My alternative was somehow mount off road lights on the fenders.

 

The fenders are gonna be a hard no from me. lol
There appears to be an aluminum brace across the front bumper but nothing else in there that looks doable. Pushing on the bumper, I don't feel any flex, and the car moves. That makes me think it could be a potential mounting spot for some brackets. Getting to it and being right on with the measurements may prove tricky but I think the location has potential. I may pull the cover from above the hood latch and give it a better look this weekend.

 

Yeah you can do a light bar but it sounds pretty intrusive install wise for something you'd only use once or twice.

Just use your high beams it should be adequate for wildlife detection.

 

I don't mind an intrusive installation so long as it's pretty well hidden and works right. It looks like the support bar behind the grille would be suitable for mounting. I've got some old Rigid D2s that I can set back in there to test in the driveway. If it throws enough light for my liking, I'll ride it around the neighborhood for a better check.

Where I live, we have all kinds of wildlife and deer are hit on a very regular basis. I'd prefer to not hit anything and have to make a claim. Peace of mind has to be worth something and I like to tinker.

 

Just a idea if your up for some tinkering... Do you have a Fsport with the empty fog lamp hole in the bumper? Maybe you could rig something up involving those little led light bars for sideXsides and ATVs & the fog lamp cavity on the Fsport bumper.

 

they actually sell little inserts for the f sport bumper, where there would normally be fog lights, and you can get led high beams. Personally, I hate the look tho.

 

I felt the same way! I came from a 3 series with the adaptive Xenons that actually move and swivel with your steering wheel angle and vehicle incline/decline angle. For me on the 3IS I simply raised them a bit higher with the adjustments on the headlight housings. There's a service bulletin for this as well. Still a bit underwhelming but made a huge difference for me. I have the F-SPORT LED's if it matters.

 

you can use those foglight inserts that were mentioned, cut proper sized holes in them and rig up some custom cree driven LED lights. You will get two powerful projectors in place of fog-lights (if you have them).