How to Mount 88-98 C/K Truck Headlights in your 93-97 Camaro

**McCauleyWB** · 10-18-2012, 02:35 PM

Full credit goes to Procharged94Lt1 on CZ28. Since the site is down, I'd hate for the community to lose the info so I am moving it here. The pickup housings also come in projector and halo versions if you are looking for a unique HID setup. I will come back and add my own images once I dig them up.

I am going to try my best to show how I put a set of headlights originally intended for the 88-98 full-size pickups into my 94 Camaro. This write-up will hopefully show I did it and will help guide you through an installation as well. I am open to suggestions and will post other hints and tips that anyone else finds while attempting to do it on their car.

**This is for informational use only! Doing this conversion requires cutting of the factory headlight header panel which will prevent you from mounting stock headlights back in your car should you choose to go back. In addition this method also requires cutting of the bracket that comes with new headlights that will also render it unusable on a truck. With all that said...lets begin!**

Tools you will need:
- Basic wrenches, sockets, extensions, screwdriver set etc.
- Dremel tool with cut-off discs and a carbide bit
- Tape measure/ straight edge
- Sharpie marker

Optional:
- Plasma cutter (or hole saw, hacksaw, etc.)
- Grinder with thin metal blade
- Sawzall with metal blade

I am not going to go into detail with how to remove the bumper. If you are attempting this, I'm going to assume that you can figure out how to take the bumper off.

First thing to do is remove the bumper and all the factory headlights - including all the brackets and springs that are surrounding the headlights. Should look something like this when you are done -

factoryremoved.jpg

Before you remove the header bracket go thru and mark where the bolts mount and where it sits in relation to the metal bracket in front of the hood latch. It might not matter on all cars but it will ensure that its mounted back where it originally was so that your bumper cover will not have a different gap between it and the hood. Next remove all the bolts holding the header bracket and remove it from the car. You might not think this will be necessary but will keep a HUGE mess from cutting the plastic out of the car. Trust me...even a few of the small cuts I did with it in the car made a huge mess.

Once you have the header bracket removed you can start marking out where you need to cut. Here are some pictures with different angles to show what needs to be removed and where. These should get you really close. Every car is different and, depending on what style of lights you bought, you might need to take a little more in some places. This is what worked for me. I used a 4" Grinder with a thin-metal cutting blade to cut the plastic. It cuts thru like butter.

passengersideheaderpanel.jpg passengersideheaderpanelcut.jpg

After you have braved the storm and cut your bracket almost beyond recognition, it's time to loosely mount it back on the car and move onto modifying the brackets that hold the headlights to the car. For simplicity sake I will be referring to them as the 'truck bracket.'

Again...here are some pictures to use as a guide for measuring and cutting them. There isn't nearly the same amount of cutting involved with these but it is pretty straight forward.

Truckbracket4.jpg truckbracket2.jpg Truckbracket3.jpg

Both brackets should mirror each other. Once you have them close, use this picture as a reference to ensure that it will be close for the final fitment of the headlights. The truck bracket I mounted with 2-1" course thread zip-in screws. You might not think that will be enough be actually once the headlights are in the brackets they are very tight and can hardly move since the headlight is so close to the hood and they touch the bumper cover. The measurements I used should get your brackets to be mounted tightly to the underside of the radiator support. They should obviously be level. You will have a LITTLE play if they aren't perfect but always try your best.

Now comes the tricky part. If you have decided to go with the 'projector style' headlight you are going to need to clearance the radiator support to allow room for the rear of the projector housing. This is rather simple and you can be a little more liberal with your cuts here if you wish since they can't be seen once everything is mounted. If you have bought a different style headlight simply mount the truck bracket to the radiator support and see if the headlight fits. If it does you can skip the next step.

Procharged used the plasma here. I used a hole saw, dremel with cut-off wheel and keyhole hack saw for delicate cuts. Took a little longer, but the whole build was done in one evening regardless. Use this picture as a reference as to how much space you will need to cut to allow clearance. Once you have marked where you need to cut, pull the header panel back off quick to give you enough room for making your cuts and to ensure you don't damage it.

reliefcut.jpg

After cutting, I chose to use sheet metal edge protector (not sure what the official name is) to avoid marring the housing or cutting in to wires. Once the radiator support is adequately clearanced on both sides, go ahead and start re-assembling things. Throw the header panel back on loosely, attach the truck brackets to the radiator support and then throw the bumper back on making sure everything is going to fit at this point. This would be a good time to install aftermarket fog lights if you choose too. When everything fits well, drop in your headlights and see how they fit in reference to the bumper cover. Should look like this -

mount2.jpg mountedpicture.jpg frontview.jpg

Once you feel that the headlights fit in there snugly, carefully close the hood and make sure that there isn't any interference. Be prepared...these headlights are a tight fit and they need to be almost perfectly in position so that they cover the bumper sections from the factory headlights, and aren't so forward that they hit the hood when it is closed. You may need to do a little adjusting of the truck brackets to make sure they are in the right spot.

After it is to your liking and the hood closes without interference, go back and tighten everything up. Before you install the headlights you are going to need to put in the bulbs. As far as bulbs go, simply use whatever style of 9006 low-beam and 9005 high-beam bulbs. Halogens will work, but why not throw in HIDs if you are going through the trouble? To install the bulbs you just need to cut the ribs off on the inside of your factory plugs. The clips will still hold the bulbs so don't be concerned.

The housings I purchased came with a running light that would need to be wired if you want to use it. If you decided on halos...there are a couple wiring options there as well. Procharged simply spliced them into the factory parking light wiring since it was easy to get to since it runs right below the headlights. If you choose to put them on a switch, it's equally as simple since the halos have their own red/black wiring that you hook up however you please. Let there be light!

halolitup-1.jpg

Once the bulbs and wiring are all completed, check to make sure they work as intended. Note that HIDs may need to have the wiring rolled if it does not work the first go around. If everything is a go...install the headlights for the final time, close the hood and step back and enjoy your work. Perhaps a beer now?!

halodone.jpg

Please feel free to post additional questions. If you have tried this yourself and had success...lets see your results

Also, any tips or tricks you learned along the way or anything you to add is appreciated.

**spikester7878** · 10-18-2012, 03:52 PM

awesome results.......i dont think it would work on a firebird though :/

**GreenZ96** · 10-18-2012, 05:40 PM

I've been considering doing this mod, will likely pick up a used headlight mount to work with incase I fubar mine.

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**Badbird_96** · 10-18-2012, 07:05 PM

Agreed with getting a spare. I'm really considering this though. Night driving would be greatly improved I imagine

**F.G.** · 10-18-2012, 07:11 PM

That looks badass, too bad I dont have a camaro.

**McCauleyWB** · 10-18-2012, 08:04 PM

Originally Posted by Badbird_96

Agreed with getting a spare. I'm really considering this though. Night driving would be greatly improved I imagine

Very much so. Anything is an improvement over stock lighting. I also took some shots of the cutoff from the HID / projectors. They weren't aimed yet, but I'll throw those up here too. Nice sharp line keeping it out of opposing traffic's eyes.

**Chris** · 10-19-2012, 12:04 AM

Well I just purchased hella projectors to start a retro fit. Thinkin of getting some of these in a plain style to retro instead. Just wish there was a non halo led style out there. Hmmm now what will fit in this housing. Thanks for the info!

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**Badbird_96** · 10-19-2012, 01:38 AM

I would probably get a set of the crystal clear ones that look like stock but without the lines in the lenses. Not a real fan of halos personally but that's just me lol.

Edit - Oh and thanks mccauley I've never seen this before very intrigued with it.