Putco OEM Tailgate light bar

[ksale29]

If you ever just want to punish yourself, install a Putco light bar lol. It says easy plug and play system. Take my word for it, it's anything but easy and not plug and play. I've installed the Amber DRLs, Vent lights, grille lights, and a 30" dual function light bar behind the grille and the Putco light bar was way worse than any of them.

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[srv256ss]

More info would be helpful. Mine is going to be delivered next week.

 

[ksale29]

More info would be helpful. Mine is going to be delivered next week.

Mine came with generic Spanish only instructions that after translation still was terrible lol. In the 2026 Ranger Raptor.
1. Removed the bolts to the back seat so I could slide it forward.
2. Pulled back the driver side door seal and removed the seat belt and C trim pillar.
3. Unbolted the bottoms of the back seat to slide forward for space to remove the amp and subwoofer.
4. Removed the rest plastic trim so I could have access to the rubber floor grommet located close to where the subwoofer sits.
5. Worst part to me was unclipping the back of the headliner (while making sure not to crease it) just enough so I could access the 3rd brake light wiring harness which required me to open the back window and get in the bed of the truck once I had access to see and unclip the harness. I started on the driver side using 2 wide plastic prying tools and two rolled up microfiber towels that I would insert into the gaps while I moved a long towards the center of the truck. As soon as I had enough room to access the 3rd brake light harness I stopped prying and put my towels there for wedges.
6. Started running the wires per instructions to discover the harness clip did not match up, requiring me to use a deburring tool on my Dremel to modify the Putco clip to fit.
7. I hid all the wires and pushed through the floor board grommet that I talked about earlier, the Putco wires come with its own grommet.
8. I pulled the wires over the fuel tank following the trucks wiring while zip tieing as I went.
9. You'll see how the Putco wiring harness clips to the taillight harness once you look. Here's what's not in the instructions or at least was not in mine. There will be a short I believe random brown wire, that wire I had to tap into my license plate lights using a P-Tap or the light bar will not illuminate when the headlights turn on.
I contacted Putco about this and they were going to call me back after they investigated their instructions/3rd brake light harness but failed to do so. Hopefully this helps. If you have any questions during installation I'll do my best to help you. Mine did not come with adhesive promotor or automotive double stick tape.

 

[CompDude]

Is this available on Amazon? Have a link?

 

[ksale29]

Bought it through Ford website using my points. There's 2, 1 for BLIS and 1 for Non-BLIS. I purchased for BLIS.

 

[srv256ss]

Mine came with generic Spanish only instructions that after translation still was terrible lol. In the 2026 Ranger Raptor.
1. Removed the bolts to the back seat so I could slide it forward.
2. Pulled back the driver side door seal and removed the seat belt and C trim pillar.
3. Unbolted the bottoms of the back seat to slide forward for space to remove the amp and subwoofer.
4. Removed the rest plastic trim so I could have access to the rubber floor grommet located close to where the subwoofer sits.
5. Worst part to me was unclipping the back of the headliner (while making sure not to crease it) just enough so I could access the 3rd brake light wiring harness which required me to open the back window and get in the bed of the truck once I had access to see and unclip the harness. I started on the driver side using 2 wide plastic prying tools and two rolled up microfiber towels that I would insert into the gaps while I moved a long towards the center of the truck. As soon as I had enough room to access the 3rd brake light harness I stopped prying and put my towels there for wedges.
6. Started running the wires per instructions to discover the harness clip did not match up, requiring me to use a deburring tool on my Dremel to modify the Putco clip to fit.
7. I hid all the wires and pushed through the floor board grommet that I talked about earlier, the Putco wires come with its own grommet.
8. I pulled the wires over the fuel tank following the trucks wiring while zip tieing as I went.
9. You'll see how the Putco wiring harness clips to the taillight harness once you look. Here's what's not in the instructions or at least was not in mine. There will be a short I believe random brown wire, that wire I had to tap into my license plate lights using a P-Tap or the light bar will not illuminate when the headlights turn on.
I contacted Putco about this and they were going to call me back after they investigated their instructions/3rd brake light harness but failed to do so. Hopefully this helps. If you have any questions during installation I'll do my best to help you. Mine did not come with adhesive promotor or automotive double stick tape.

Would you mind posting a pic or two of where you placed your light bar? Looking to see how you solved the potential interference with the spare tire lift.

 

[ksale29]

I'll send you one when I get off work today. The light bar itself will block the spare tire access, but since you will be using the mounting clips you can pop the light bar off when needing to access the spare.

 

[ksale29]

Would you mind posting a pic or two of where you placed your light bar? Looking to see how you solved the potential interference with the spare tire lift.

Let me know if this is this helps. I lined the top of the light bar clips with the crease in the plastic trim. I checked it with a tape measure first to make sure it was even. I did some photos straight on and done from above with the tailgate down so you can see where the clip is mounted in proximity to the spare tire release.

 

[srv256ss]

Ty!!!

 

[ksale29]

Ty!!!

You're welcome! Let me know how it goes!

 

[White willy]

Mine was super simple,I guess non bliss must be the big difference.
The installation was as simple as plugging into the factory connectors,and mounting it to the truck.
I was even able to mount it lower than they say,with zero interference from the tailgate.

 

[ksale29]

I've installed several before that took no time. Basically plugging into the tail lights then into the trailor harness and done. This stinker requires tapping into the 3rd brake light, the taillights, and the illumination wire from the tag light. I guess the BLIS is what makes it such a pain.

 

[srv256ss]

Are these the instructions you had?

 

[ksale29]

That would be them, just in English lol. FYI, I did not remove my tailgate. I took my instructions apart and scanned them so AI could translate then for me.

 

[ksale29]

Are these the instructions you had?

Here is the brown wire that the instructions do not mention. After I got everything hooked up the reverse lights, brake lights, and blinkers worked but the bar would not illuminate unless one of those actions were being done. I had to take the short brown wire that had the electrical tape on it and tap into my license plate light with a P-Tap. I tapped the driver side.

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