Reviews for Warrior Products 1563 Side Mount License Plate Bracket with LED for 07-18 Jeep Wrangler JK
Looks sturdy just what i was looking for
Great product. The lack of 5 stars is because of the hardware sent which is not that great. Like Matthew said, the "side" screws and nuts didn't seemed to have different thread sizes - like one was metric and one was standard. You don't have to wrench *too* hard but there is resistance. They may have done this purposely to prevent the nuts from backing out inside the chassis of the Jeep. I wish they would have sent some properly sized nuts and lock washers instead. Also, the nuts for the plate are really cheap - I initially forgot the washer and they busted through. They are easily replaced.
The instructions they sent seem to be updated from the ones that are linked here (and the ones that Filipe mentions. I found them fairly easy to follow.
Here are some of my notes on installation:
- The instructions call for a 21/64 or 11/32 drill bit on the side and an 17/64 bit for the back. You can use 5/8 and 1/4, respectively, without problems.
- From my screenshots, I reused the light connector by soldering it in to the old. That leaves excess wire. I just bound it up with a zip tie. Also, I forgot to go through the hole so I just ran it behind the bracket without issue. Also, the connector from the Jeep side is fair quality stranded copper so using a solder iron to fuse the wires together *may* be a pain. Use a small torch if you have one. I used heat shrink on the joints.
- One of my screens shows the limited workspace for the side screws and nuts. Disconnect the tail light so it is out of the way (completely remove it). This is easy and will allow you to get a wrench in to hold the nuts.
- On the back screws, you have two layers of sheet metal to drill through set about 1/2" apart.
First, one benefit of this product is that you get 4 useable studs to mount your license plate on and works perfectly for mounting a license plate frame as well, which the stock mount did not really allow for.
So as Filipe mentioned, you do have to drill 4 holes in your sheet metal to mount this. That seems a little scary but if you have a good center punch (you can use a nail in a pinch) and take your time, it is not difficult. The center punch is important so that your drill bit doesn't move from where you want it to go. Also as Filipe mentioned, the instructions are not awesome, but if you read them in combination with having everything out of the box and lining stuff up.. they do tell you everything you need to know.
The biggest issue that I ran into with this is that the provided screws were terrible. The two shorter screws that were supposed to have a nut attached to them were not a match for the threads of the nuts that were included. So I ended up going and getting some good stainless steel bolts and nuts that were the correct size and had the correct head on them. Also... it suggests a weird drill bit size that I did not have. I used one that was 1/64 smaller and just jiggled it around a little at the end and that worked fine.
So... in short, take your time, buy better screws and the end product is great. See photos of gecko green jeep for confirmation. Jeep on, friends!
The only good thing I can say is that once installed the product is solid.
The mounting instructions were bad. My hands are too big and I couldn’t reach in to place the top side nut. I was able to get help from someone with a very small hand. The bottom side bolt was unreachable on my jeep I needed to use a pop-rivet type fastener.
The two short stainless steel bolts had supplied nuts with a different thread pattern. Also I can’t imagine why anyone would put stainless steel bolts on a black power coat frame. I went to the hardware store and obtained black bolts and fasteners.
Also, I seriously doubt this can be installed in less than an hour. Needless to say, going to the hardware store for new nuts, bolts and fasteners took more time.
I needed to put on new plates and the bolt won't come off, it just turns freely. The underlying screw isn't attached or has come lose from the bracket. Now I have to cut this thing off with a hack saw. Not to mention it is RUSTY RUSTY Rusty!! I wish I could upload a pic. It's terrible.
Products look solid, but very bad explanation how to mount.
No pictures and no videos.
Says level 1 on the site but actually requires drilling and repainting, if I had understood this before I would have chosen the normal plastic one.