Do heavy duty brush guards make you more or less safe in an accident?

[coonazz]

Do heavy duty brush guards make you more or less safe in an accident?

I had this argument a while back and wanted to get the popular consensus. I had a F250 crew cab with a heavy-duty Ranch Hand brush/grill guard. My initial thoughts were that it made you safer in a medium to bad head-on collision. I thought that since it was bolted to the frame that it was like you were driving a mini tank (so to speak). Then I started thinking about the technology that goes in to today’s automobiles that allows the impacted part of the car to crumple up and absorb the impact better, taking away as much of the energy as possible from the occupants in the cab. Then I thought that maybe it was less safe because of this.

What do you think?

[DorothyNotKeegan]

If you do a search you'll find several threads about being involved in an accident with a push bumper. Pretty amazing photos too!

[BrandonA]

The bolt on brush guards help a little but I don't think they add a whole lot. The full replacement bumpers no doubt make you safer. They absorb so much energy in an accident. It saved my brother inlaws life in an accident.

["El Jèfe"]

Based upon what I see daily there is no added protection in a major accident. On the otherhand in a minor hit they do work. As far as the crumple zones they are not adversley affected by the face bar because the zone is behind the brushguard and it will still react as designed. After you install a full bumper/ grilleguard it is reccomended that you have a front suspension alignment done based on the added weight to the suspension, this will help w/ excessive tire wear

[Drenalin_Ag99]

I use a brush guard mainly for kamikaze deer, hogs, owls, and other flying objects. Brush gurad may bend but wont be buying a new radiator. Major accident, only the full replacements will help some.

[medic151]

The crumple zone will react the same and that is what takes the deceleration down. If it didn't do this, like the old cars, the energy would be transferred to the entire vehicle and occupants. I do think they help in slower speed accidents and bumping those pesky kamakazi animals though.

[Closetohome]

I used to have a full replacement Ranch Hand on a 96 3/4 ton Power Stroke and that thing was mean. I was parking one time and tapped a concrete barrier in a parking garage and you could feel it through the whole truck...I think with it being attached to the frame all the energy just traveled through the frame rails. Hitting a solid unmovable object (building, etc) would be painful but another vehicle that would "give way" would be less scary.

With the size of trucks that full replacement bumpers go on I think it is less of an issue. I think when you are talking a couple of tons of vehicle traveling at speed with a large 400+ cubic inch diesel engine block between you and what you hit the shear mass and kinetic energy is scary. You put that much mass behind a solid steel bumper that isnt very forgiving and I was always more worried about the person I hit rather than myself if I were ever to get into an accident. I think it really depends on the size of vehicle that you hit.

I had a small Honda Del Sol (about the size of a Miata) cut me off one time at highway speed on the freeway...the car completely disappeared in front of my hood and I thought for sure I had hit them but it must have been a narrow miss...I hate to think what would have happened to that car in a collision.

[outdoordaddy]

I had a full replacement on a Dodge 3/4 ton and when I got into a wreck all i had to do was spray some paint over the white cars marks...while the white car had to be towed

[Closetohome]

Based upon what I see daily there is no added protection in a major accident. On the otherhand in a minor hit they do work. As far as the crumple zones they are not adversley affected by the face bar because the zone is behind the brushguard and it will still react as designed. After you install a full bumper/ grilleguard it is reccomended that you have a front suspension alignment done based on the added weight to the suspension, this will help w/ excessive tire wear

The old 3/4 ton F250/350's had leaf spring front ends...after a year of driving around with the weight of a front replacement bumper and diesel engine I had to have new spring packs installed with another 1 1/2-2" height added...made a big difference.

[stan]

A few years ago a stolen van with a large brush guard on front was used to ram police cars in our area, totalling a deputy's car in New Mexico, and one of my units, and damaging another. The damage to the stolen van was negligible. The driver was using it as a battering ram.

[Smart]

That depends on which side of the bumper replacement you are on...

["El Jèfe"]

This is a little off the subject but your #1 PROTECTION in an accident is to PLEASE wear your SEATBELT that will help way more than any Replacement Bumper

[Mudslinger]

I have a 06 F350 C/C with a replacement front bumper and it saved my truck from a lot of damage ina wreck.

A while back, a moving cement light standard jumped out in front of me in the Academy parking lot and I pretty much dead centered the pole without ever knowing it was there. Damage was both air bags deployed and the bumper was broke, but no damage to the grill or any other part of the truck. Repair bill was still $4000, but without this bumper, it would have been a lot worse as theis light standard would have gotten into my engine compartment. The truck bounced back about 2' after the collision. I actually think the light standard was moving towards me at a high rate of speed! I do think they are worht the investment.

I saw a frined hit a muley doe, very big, doing about 80 in NM a few years back with a Surburban and a plain grill guard and bent the guard, but no damage to the truck. Without this grill guard, the truck would have received mega damage.

[chongo]

I rear ended an 07 chevy earlier this year at a stop light - doing about 15mph - the grill guard on my mega cab was fine - my bumer was fine my grill was fine - his truck was 4k in damage - I believe it saved my truck from damage but feel that it also caused more damage than had I not had it. Pretty much a lose lose scenario. I will be putting a full replacement on my new Ford though.

[BIG IRON]

It is safer for your thuck but I don't think it makes you safer. What happens to you in the cab will occur with or with out it in most cases.