Brush Guards

Why do you keep posting a upside down mountain?

 

I have also been looking for one and the Big Country was the first one I found but I cant find a retailer in GA that sells it. The one on their site says they dont carry it. I saw the one on ebay but the pix all being pre 2012 trucks makes me skeptical. Let me know what you find if you end up buying one.

 

I looked into the ebay one too...this is what i found out.

http://www.tacomaworld.com/forum/2nd-gen-tacomas/236955-2012-13-hunter-grill-guard.html

I had the same problem with Big Country in San Antonio. But I ended up googling"Big Country Grill Guards San Antonio" and found a bed liner place that also sell off road stuff and they carry Big Country...they said they would order me one for $389. I think i am going to order next month, I will keep you posted.

 

I emailed the seller on ebay and this is what he had said to me in email

"It will look identical to the ones in the picture. The only difference is the upper supports have been changed to accommodate the minor changes in the newer Tacomas. "

 

read the quote in my sig

 

why do people slam them ? they don't do shit is why

when you go offroad, and there is brush, it scrapes the shit out of the SIDES
not the front. the front is either taking a dead-on poke which no one would drive into,
or pushing brush away, which will barely scrape the front (well, perhaps, but rare), it will mark
the paint on the sides.

fact is you are not going through any brush, ever, or your sides would be a) scraped or b) protected

14 years offroading with my 4runner on tight squirrel paths in the woods and
zero damage to front, lots of white paint scrapes in the clearcoat on the sides and roof


the only thing that will get points is a full on bumper replacement and/or
actual roo bars which can turn a deer into hamburger...

your mileage may vary, but those bull bars are laughable


hey do what you want and get the look you want, fine. but really understand what
functions and what doesn't, so when you do get crap for it, you laugh it off

same as the hood scoop on sports...why oh why...but people still go for look over function I guess

 

BS

I drive a metric f*ckton in the woods and narrow brush choked skidder roads... without anything on my stock 99
4runner, and nothing scrapes the front. the roof, and sides are scraped to shit from brush, not the front. never the front, never the lights.


if your sides are not scraped then you haven't been in brush whatsoever and never will be, you've gotten
out and used a saw or something to clear the trail.


tumbleweeds, that is all bullbars are for. if you have tumbleweed problem then yeah OK

 

So when your driving down a trail and you hit a branch w/out a brushguard on your head light and it cracks...........would it have cracked w/ a brushguard?......chances are NO

 

14 years of driving through branches and not a single ding on the lights

drive down some choked off trails, and scrape some
actual branches,
yes they might break a light, some unknown year in the future
but that has not been my experience. the paint on the
truck is a different matter, it is scraped to shit..on the sides like I said

anyhow, 100% of the trucks I see with those weak-arse guards have zero
evidence of ever leaving paved roads. chump guards

anyhow, if you like them fine just don't be claiming they are any good and that
they serve a purpose other than fluff

 

Theoretically, wouldn't an AVID light bar protect from brush just as much...I mean the brush is rubbing the paint at the bottom of the bumper...


I know that the bull bars are crap, but think that the Brush Guards are a step above that. Not a plate bumper, but not a bull bar...

 

Fine, if we're gonna get technical call it a GRILLE guard. Its purpose is to protect the grille. How do you expect somethin on the front of your truck to protect the sides? Thats what bedliner is for. Are you gonna go buy rock sliders to protct from hail damage and then shit on them too because they didn't work the way you want them to? I've hit plenty of pheasants with mine that would have broken headlights and there was not a scratch on the 'brush' guard. I even bumped into a pickup in traffic when it was icy and im sure that would have done something to toyota's pathetic excuse for a front bumper. The front of my grille guard has rubber strips on it so there wasnt a scratch on his truck and nothing on mine. Sure, dont expect to be eviscerating deer with it at 80 mph, they arent made for that, but they do serve a purpose.

 

Question... What is better in an actual crash for the passengers/driver? Would it be a piece of metal that bend and crush (better for accidents) or a huge piece of metal that does not give?


I would assume it would be safer for the everyday driver, including the other car, to run with a grille guard vs a full replacement bumper?



Lifting a vehicle has the same affect during an impact. They throw off their initial impacting crumple zones to devastating effects. Youtube proof of this with a F-150 stock and leveled vs civic.



So if you want the grille guard, go for it. If you are a weekend warrior, then a full replacement bumper maybe right for you. It's all up to you and your needs/wants.

I'd rather get a new radiator, bumper, hood, headlights, fenders, and grille before the possibility of damaging my frame with a full replacement. Every scenario may differ but I think about a full replacement not bending or giving so the only place to really give is the attachment point aka vehicle frame.



Put a hidden winch on it that way you get a tougher look and function??

 

This is actually a great point. There was a thread on here a month or two ago about a guy who got into a head on collision in his truck and had a plate bumper. His truck was totalled though the damage could have been worse had he not had a plate bumper but the vehicle that he hit took the brunt of the damage in turn injuring the driver in the other vehicle. I'd never be able to live with myself if I was responsible for permanently injuring or worse killing someone with something like that.

Vehicles today even trucks are made to crumble extensively in conjunction with engine mounts that break in a very specific fashion to give the occupants the maximum chance of no injury and survival. Even low speed collisions like 8 to 10mph will result in fairly significant damage to front ends so to me at least calling a grille/brush guard a damage multiplier seems like a flakey argument. If your goal is to make a strictly off road vehicle then I can see some of the POV's and there are better ways to go but I dont understand why people get bashed every time they bring this up.

If a grille guard does hinder your approach angle then just like a driver would with stock bumpers and no lifts should take into account how a guard hinders your approach and if you dont then its less fault of the equipment and more fault of the driver. You'll never see me take my mustang that sits 1.5" off the ground on even a gravel road much like you wont see me take my stock truck to some place like Moab to scale those giant boulders.

 

Are you talking about that First gen... I think it was red if I'm not mistaken?

The first gens had terrible offset crash ratings. The cab crumples up casing more intrusion in the cab. His looked like it was an offset frontal impact. One of the main reason I got rid of mine when I found out we had a kid on the way.

I too would be devastated if I were to inflict serious harm to another driver whether it be my fault or the other. Well, maybe I would feel a bit better if it were the other persons fault... none the less, I've never seen crash ratings or crash studies on a full replacement bumpers.

My old ARB was stout! I always rode around feeling sorry if someone or something were to mess with it!

 

Yes we have such a pheasant problem in the citys. Maybe everyone should get one.

 

Pigeons maybe?

 

No I believe it was a 2nd gen that hit I think a Honda Pilot or something similar. In any case, every car forum I'm on, the hive mind mentality is strong lol.

To the OP, get one and if you do, let me know what you ended up with. Post pix as I too am in the market.

 

But im sure you never have icy roads and taffic there, so you're perfectly safe

edit: At no point did I ever say anyone NEEDS one, or everyone should get one. I'm simply saying that If you ever drive in a scenario where you may end up hitting something, A brush/grille guard is a cheaper solution to dropping a thousand bucks on a plate bumper to protect from minor front end damage. If you don't mind taking the damage, or don't like them, then don't get one!

 

I hit a deer going about 40 with just my bull bar and it didn't leave a scratch on my truck. Bent the bull bar just barely. I'm pretty sure a full brush guard is quite protective. My brother has one on his 08

 

but wait, why am I trying to argue something in the 2nd gen. section...I should know better.