How to lower your stock headlight to use an after market hood

Tools & parts needed: 1) 1" x 1/8" aluminum flat bar(Home Depot) 2) Riv-nut installer(optional) 3) 2- 1/4" riv-nuts(nut-serts) 4) Power Drill 5) 4-1/4" bolts 3/4" long (stainless preferred) 6) 2-1/4" nuts & 4-washers(stainless preferred) 7) 2 - 1/4" Fender washers      8) Vise (or equivalent to bend aluminum) 9) Right and left stock headlight brackets(Honda Dealer)(optional)

Step 1 Remove stock Hood, headlight and lower black plastic shield under the H/L. Leave the H/L mounting brackets attached to the H/L.

Step 2 The mounting tab on the H/L bracket has a drop-down on it that needs to be bent flat. See picture to the right.

Step 3 Using the H/L brackets as a template to mark the crossbar of the frame. You will need to drill 2 holes. You can use self-tapping sheet metal screws or go with a more professional look by using a couple riv-nuts. You are basically dropping the upper mounts down about 2.5".  The picture to the right shows where I drilled and put the riv-nuts.

Step 4 Make your lowering brackets. Using a vise, you need to bend the aluminum into the shape as shown. The top leg is 1 3/8". The drop leg is 1 1/2". The lower leg is 3" but you can cut this down to about 2 3/4". I felt it would be a little stronger if it was a little longer. Then drill a 5/16 hole in the upper leg near the center. Then drill a 15mm hole in the lower leg at about the 2" point. I forgot to measure hole points but If you got this far I am sure you can figure it out. Take the  lower H/L mounting rubber grommets out of the stock position and install in the new brackets.

Step 5 Attach the lowering brackets using the hardware as described in the parts needed section. I used an allen head 1/4" bolt along with a flat washer, fender washer and nut(all stainless). Place the new bracket on top of the old mounting tab, put the flat washer on the bolt and drop it into the hole. Use the fender washer and nut on the bottom. You need a fender washer on the bottom to make up the size of the original hole. Tighten both bolts.See picture.

Step 6 You should now have 4 NEW mounting points for your headlight. Grab your H/L and push it into the lower mounting grommets. Using (2) 1/4" bolts and washers, attach the upper mounts through the mounting bracket and into the riv-nuts. You can use self tapping sheet metal screws here but I highly recommend the riv-nuts. Self-tapping threads can strip out over time and cause a loose headlight. Connect the electrical connector.

Step 7 You now need to address the red plastic mounting which attached to the upper part of the H/L brackets. The brackets are now out of position and the plastic attaching clips have no place to go. What I am going to do is buy another set of H/L brackets and bolt them into the stock position. This will allow the stock clips to fasten the front plastic to the original position. You could also build a bracket to do this but for $10.00  i think the Honda brackets will work best. I would highly recommend doing one or the other because the front plastic will be a little flimsy if they are not attached at this point.

Step 8 Mount and attach your after market hood as per the manufacturers instructions.

Thanks to Bill at QuadTech for supplying the hood for this project at no charge.

This site was developed and maintained by Jeff Poole. Honda, TRX450R, Fourtrax, and all other Honda related terms are property of Honda America Corporation.

Degree of difficulty 3