Thread: Bullbars: do they work, and are they necessary?

If you do any country road driving then a bullbar is a worthwhile addition, in my opinion.

Not just in the event of an animal strike, but also as a place for mounting driving lights and aerials.

I have hit a small roo in my Rangie with no damage.
I have hit medium size roos in my work LandCruiser and two different trucks. All were fitted with bullbars and all would have sustained damage if they weren't.
Both roos I hit in trucks I didn't even get a chance to lift off the throttle (limited to 100kph) and they were quite major impacts.

I have had bullbars fitted to all of my vehicles since I was 17 and I wouldn't have it any other way.

I think it is important to remember that a bullbar could well be the difference between driving away from an impact and being stranded. That is an important consideration when you are travelling in remote areas (I do for work).

SCORE
Steel ARB bar - 2 : Roos - 0

no damage either time both with the front-right.

Waz

On many occasions a collision with an animal will destroy a bull bar - as I saw at a local re-seller of ARB bars this one had collected a large roo on one side, and was bent a dair bit beyond repair.

BUT if that means it hasn't destroyed your engine (radiator etc) and you can still drive away well, that's a good thing.

For the answer to your question, check out Toombies Cannonball run pics

I have had several near misses in the past with Cows that escaped the asylum and were suicidally standing in the middle of the road at night waiting for me to run over them. Give me a bull bar any day.

yep, a "decent" bar is definitely worth every penny you spend on it IMHO

been in vehicles with no bar that have hit big roos and it wasnt pretty.

mate hit one without a bar and the roo slid up the bonnet, thru the screen and nearly decapitated him when kicking, he bled to death before he could be dragged from the vehicle.

been hit twice in vehicles with arb and tjm bars and they did an excellent job of minimising what could have been serious incidents.

been in a vehicle with a plastic style bar and was amazed how good a job it did when confronted with a decent size grey tho the speed wasnt that fast.

and not once was i the one driving at the time thanks

seen a guy in a cruiser with a massive homemade bar hit a beast just south of tambo at speed just on dusk and even tho the beast died it won...

totaled the cruiser and bits of the bar were scattered thru the vehicle.

the driver survived, but was crippled and badly disfigured.

buy a "decent" bar...

If you are using the LR as a shopping trolley in a big city and driving in the bush during the day, then no, but other ways get one

Originally Posted by discomarsh

I'm interested to know if bars are effective in a frontal collision with a large animal.

Who's had a collision with one a roo, ruminant, or bovine creature (or witnessed one) and what was the damage to the bar, the front of the car, and chassis?

Is the impact force successfully redirected away from the vulnerable bits of the car, and what damage does it do, once redirected?

Many of us fit bullbars, but I'm curious as to whether ACTUAL impacts with animals justify their purchase and fitting; or perhaps we just regard them as insurance IN CASE we hit an animal. See the poll with this post, and let us know.

Cheers.

Mines hit more than I care to remember and its still going...

I'm fitting a new one, only because the small dent qualified a replacement by the insurance company.
Otherwise, it would stay on

Mines taken out at least 14+ decent size Roos...

The last one - 6' tall and 100km/h... The vehicle itself still intact. And was able to be driven the next 500km.... Other factors stopped that "CannonBall Run"