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Basically, a NightRide camera is cheaper than a brush guard because it helps you spot trouble far down the road and you’ll have enough time to avoid it. An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure, after all!What if you’re looking for protection? Is a brush guard the best way to protect your vehicle at night? Let’s find out by exploring the pros and cons of having a brush guard on your vehicle.

A brush guard is a type of grille guard that you install in front of your vehicle. It’s basically a few aluminum alloy or steel bars that are mounted to the front of the car or truck and wrapped around the front of your bumper and hood.If you frequently drive at night or in low light areas, you might be thinking about installing a brush guard on your vehicle. A brush guard is a big investment, so it’s smart to evaluate the pros and cons of having a brush guard on your truck before dropping hundreds of dollars on one.

Rather than provide a layer of protection in a crash, NightRide helps you prevent collisions by increasing visibility at night. NightRide is a dash cam that utilizes thermal imaging technology to provide a lot more visibility than headlights or even night vision cameras ever could. With a NightRide camera, you can spot animals, pedestrians, bicyclists, and parked cars over 1/4 of a mile away. You can read more about NightRide cameras here.Tyger Auto’s TG-series brush guards are an affordable solution for drivers who want a lighter, simpler brush guard. It’s made of 2.5-inch tubing but its compact design brings the weight down to just 27.2 pounds. The Tyger TG goes beyond the basics, with a pre-welded light mount channel for optional LED lights and pre-drilled mounting holes to accommodate a front license plate. User complaints are few, but center on the need to remove front tow hooks, the design’s tendency to block front sensors on the Toyota Tundra (and possibly some other very new pickups with advanced driver assist systems) and a limited warranty (five years).

A brush guard can be used to push another vehicle without risking damage to the grille, headlights, hood and fenders behind it, which is why you sometimes see them on tow trucks and other roadside assistance vehicles. Guards also protect those same areas in a crash. If the vehicle hits an animal, a brush guard can prevent it from rolling up onto the hood and through the windshield. The cost of repainting, repairing or replacing a brush guard is far less than the potential cost of repairing damage to the vehicle itself.The Jeep Wrangler and Gladiator are very popular off-road vehicles with very unique requirements for a brush guard. The front end is narrower than a typical truck, and care must be taken not to block the headlights or the seven-slot grille. As a purely stylistic matter, most Jeep enthusiasts would prefer to be able to see that uniquely Jeep face. The TAC Bull Bar checks that box with a basic but effective brush guard designed specifically for those two Jeep models. It’s a heavy-duty, 3-inch, one-piece rugged basic guard that can accommodate lights. There’s a lifetime warranty for the stainless steel models, but powder-coated models are covered only for three years. Do-it-yourselfers should know there is cutting involved, this is not a bolt-on installation. The TAC is also available for other vehicles, but works uniquely well on the Jeeps. Given that brush guards are often customized for specific makes and models, we searched for the highest-rated aftermarket accessory brands that carry a wide range of guards for pickups and SUVs. As not all brush guards fit all models, we recommend navigating from the recommended item to the manufacturer’s page to find a version of the same guard that’s customized for your truck. Some drivers want a bit more presence than a basic black brush guard affords. Black Horse Off-Road specializes in front end protection and offers polished stainless steel brush guard options across their standard, Savannah, Max, Beacon and Armour line-ups. Welded one-piece construction made from 3.0-inch tubing, this guard has pre-drilled holes for lights, a removable skid plate and installs without cutting or drilling. While the company offers a three-year warranty on its powder-coated products, the stainless steel versions are covered by a limited lifetime warranty.Brush guards vary greatly in design and cost, and importantly, part numbers and prices for brush guards within manufacturers and series can vary based on vehicle and year of manufacture. For our list of the best brush guards, we’ve linked to specific vehicle price checks, but these may not be right for your specific truck. From each link you can navigate through to find a similar guard within each manufacturer’s range that’s designed for your truck.

Westin set out to build the highest-quality, toughest brush guard possible with its HDX series, and by all accounts, it succeeded. The Westin HDX guards are made of 2-inch diameter tubing, with one-piece solid construction. Those with a polished finish come with a lifetime warranty. Powder-coated models get a 3-year warranty. The only gripes users have are a poorly-written installation manual and the HDX’s weight. It adds 93 pounds to the front of trucks that are usually quite nose-heavy to begin with.The Autosaver88’s strengths are 3-inch tubing for toughness and durability and a design that mounts low on the front of a truck. That puts the built-in LED lights in a position to illuminate what headlights skip over directly in front of the vehicle, adding an extra layer of safety and protection when off-roading or driving in bad weather. The lowest part of the guard serves as a skid plate. As with some other guards, it can block the front sensors that are used for parking, distance alerts and/or adaptive cruise control, but for a brush guard that incorporates a light bar, the price is friendly. The bumper is incredible neat looking and very strong it came with all the hardware to which made it very easy to install I would definitely recommend this bumper to all my friends, it is better than all the more expensive bumpers More Popular Tacoma Accessories: Toyota Tacoma Floor Mats and Floor Liners, Toyota Tacoma Running Boards, Side Steps and Nerf Bars, Toyota Tacoma Exhaust, Toyota Tacoma Trailer Hitches & Towing & Toyota Tacoma Car Covers.My freinds and I say this Bull Bar is an upgrade for my truck. I have had strangers ask me were I got it, so i told them about AAG! Hope you get more orders. Thanks! Read more Aries Bull Bar customer reviews.Didn’t come with winch assembly pieces. Had to drill some holes because the welds were not aligned. I thought it’d be a good grille guard considering it costs over a grand. It didn’t fit as well as it could. Instructions were terrible but YouTube helped immensely. Read more ARB Deluxe Bull Bar customer reviews.

Overall good product. Strong, and great workmanship. Instructions were pretty vague, though. Didnt like crumple zones on the mounts, had to bridge those over.

Though there is a lot of objection to the ban, the fact is bull bars and crash guards ‘do’ affect the safety of passenger cars. Otherwise they would have come as a standard factory fitment.A tool fitted on the front of a vehicle to protect it from collisions of any kind, the bull-bar has been in the news in recent times. Though it might be hard to believe, the “bull” refers to cattle, which in rural areas sometimes roam onto roads and collide with vehicles, clarifying the role of the bull-bar in a car.On January 29, 1886, when Carl Benz submitted the patent for a three-wheeled vehicle with gas engine to the Imperial Patent Office in Berlin, it created a sensation never seen before! The patent speci…Read MoreThe car that you own or drive comes with a lot of features and specifications. It is not just enough that you know how to drive it well; you should also be aware of the various warning signs and alarm…Read More Recently, this popular accessory that is sold by car makers themselves, has been banned by the Indian government’s Ministry of Road Transport and Highways (MoRTH) on cars and SUVs. Unauthorised fitment of bull bars attracts a fine ranging between Rs 1000 to Rs 5000 or imprisonment from three months to three years, while the punishment for seller could be Rs 5000. According to section 52 of the Motor Vehicles
Act, “No owner of a motor vehicle shall so alter the vehicle that the particulars contained in the certificate of registration are at variance with those originally specified by the manufacturer”. It means every car has a design approval and nothing should be allowed beyond this. Obviously across the world the bulbar is known by different names – push bumper, brush guard, moose bumper, etc. Bull bars are sometimes used as a platform for mounting spotlights too. Varying in size and form, they are normally built of welded steel, aluminium tubing, moulded polycarbonate and polyethylene materials. The heavy built structure, without covering the entire front of the car, provides tough protection for the lower grille, and center and underside of the front bumper.Traffic signs come in all shapes, sizes and colours. While we may be inclined to believe that road signs are synonymous with red, yellow and green, that is just the tip of the iceberg. The stop, watch…Read More We’ve detected some suspicious activity coming from your IP address and have temporarily blocked it as a security precaution. Please check the box to let us know you’re human (sorry, no robots allowed). In this article, we weigh up the pros and cons of fitting bullbars to your vehicle. And, for the sake of brevity, when we’re talking about bullbars, we’re including roo bars and nudge bars as well.

If you do a lot of driving on rough, unsealed roads, a bullbar is a very handy after-market addition to your vehicle. They’re also good value on vehicles that do the clear majority of their mileage on country roads. Far from being exclusively for 4WD vehicles, it’s commonplace to see bullbars fitted to sedans and commercial utes in regional and rural Australia.Bullbars, roo bars or nudge bars – whatever you prefer to call them, the subject of whether or not to fit them to your vehicle can be a divisive issue for some people. What can be agreed on, however, is when a vehicle should and should not have bullbars fitted, which in large part applies to where and how you use your vehicle.

Bullbars do a fantastic job of protecting the occupants of a vehicle when you’re in a collision, whether that collision involves another car, or an animal like a cow or a kangaroo. They also afford the front of your vehicle – the engine bay, cooling system, the electrics and your suspension – an added layer of protection in those types of incidents, or incidents in which roadside debris or fallen trees that you can’t see while driving at night or in hazardous conditions, could cause significant damage to your vehicle.

Under these guidelines, the bullbar must follow the profile of the vehicle it is fitted to, the bullbar can’t increase the width of your vehicle (excluding the mirrors), any sharp edges must be chamfered or rounded off, no open-ended frame members are allowed and no small components (like brackets) shall be attached to the front of the bull bar.One of the biggest plusses in having a bullbar is also one of their most significant disadvantages. While a bullbar unequivocally increases the level of safety for the occupants of a vehicle involved in a collision, it also increases the likelihood of serious injury – even death – for the occupants of the other vehicle in the incident.

Some other cons associated with having a bullbar fitted to your vehicle include decreased fuel efficiency from the increased weight, compromised front suspension if it hasn’t been strengthened to accommodate the addition of the bullbar, and the possibility of having your indicators, headlights and general field of vision partly obscured.

Ultimately, to have or not to have a bullbar fitted to your vehicle comes down to individual choice. However, if your predilection for a bullbar is purely aesthetic and isn’t absolutely necessary, it would be wise to sit back, take a breath and think about whether the pros, in this instance, outweigh the cons.

Whether or not your vehicle needs a bullbar fitted, there are a number of statutory requirements you need to adhere to, including Australian Design Rule 42/04 – General Safety Requirements and Australian Standard AS 4876.1.

Research has also shown that airbags on vehicles fitted with a bullbar may not work properly and side impact crashes are more serious. “The forces exerted by the vehicle with a bullbar, particularly a 4WD, will impact higher up the vehicle, and closer to the head and chest of its occupants.”The cons of fitting a bullbar to your vehicle are numerous. Apart from the significant cost, there are also a number of safety and vehicle design and engineering integrity issues that come into play.

Bullbars are also a great mounting point to attach important off-road equipment such as winches, LED spotlights and driving lights, and antennas. Bullbars also make an excellent recovery point option if you find yourself bogged or in difficulty and need to be winched or towed to safety.Of course, it’s hard to argue against the aesthetics of a tricked-out 4WD with a sweet looking bullbar at the front but the main reasons in the pro column for fitting bullbars are safety, protection and convenience.

When it comes to your Toyota Tacoma, you want parts and products from only trusted brands. Here at Advance Auto Parts, we work with only top reliable Bumper Guard product and part brands so you can shop with complete confidence. Some of our top Bumper Guard product brands are ARIES and Westin. We’re sure you will get the right product to keep that Tacoma running for a long time.

Shop online, find the best price on the right product, and have it shipped right to your door. If you prefer to shop in person for the right Bumper Guard products for your Tacoma, visit one of our local Advance Auto Parts locations and you’ll be back on the road in no time!Bought this to replace my stock switch on my 94 Explorer. The design is much more updated and even the slightest touch of the pedal trips the brake lights.Your Toyota Tacoma will be happy to know that the search for the right Bumper Guard products you’ve been looking for is over! Advance Auto Parts has 13 different Bumper Guard for your vehicle, ready for shipping or in-store pick up. The best part is, our Toyota Tacoma Bumper Guard products start from as little as $210.99.Here at Backwoods Adventure Mods, we’re all about upgrading vehicles for off-roading and overlanding – it’s what we do. We’re passionate about outfitting cars with the best essential – and sometimes super cool but not strictly essential – gear that will improve your experience, protect your vehicle, look great, and get you and your car back home again in one piece.

The DRIFTR roof rack system from Backwoods Adventure Mods adds critical storage space without adding unnecessary weight. Full aluminum construction makes the rack and ladder lightweight and strong. This modular rack system also has a low-profile design which minimizes its impact on aerodynamics. Of course, your actual results will depend on what you store up there, but the DRIFTR rack itself won’t have an impact on your MPGs one way or the other. It’s just a great-looking rack that’s easy to customize to your exact needs. To manage fuel economy, keep your roof storage lightweight and low-profile.

Adding mods to your off-roading vehicle is part of the fun of the sport, and Backwoods Adventures mods is here to help you get the upgrade you need and to want and keep your vehicle operating as efficiently as possible. Give us a call to talk about mods for your car today.We’re sick of the Aluminum vs. Steel debate, so we took the best features from each material and combined it. Get the strength of steel in exactly the places where you need it most, while saving weight and eliminating rust everywhere else.

Our goal is to be different on purpose. All of us here at Backwoods eat, sleep, and breathe offroading. We design and build our products to solve real problems based off of real world experience out in the field.

Before we dive into the mods themselves, it’s worth taking a moment to consider why mods affect fuel economy. Vehicles built for off-roading are big and bulky and aren’t known for their fuel economy. Upgrading your car with overlanding mods makes the situation worse by adding drag, friction, and weight, all of which cause your vehicle to work harder, which in turn makes the vehicle less efficient and results in lower gas mileage. Obviously, lower gas mileage means your vehicle is more expensive to drive. But lower mileage also means your car will go fewer miles between fill-ups and a shortened range can really cramp your style when planning an off-road adventure. Reducing fuel economy from 21 mpg to 18 mpg can reduce your range by over 50 miles.That’s why Backwoods Adventure Mods offers a hybrid solution. Our Hi-Lite bumpers are made from lightweight aluminum and feature steel winch cradles and mounting brackets. The bumper plus bull bar weighs less than 130 lbs, making it the strongest, lightest bumper mod you can find anywhere. Will it reduce your gas mileage? Yes, a bit, but the extra strength and security are well worth it.

Off-road enthusiasts know that bumper mods are critical upgrades. Factory-installed front and rear bumpers, even on cars built for off-roading, aren’t strong enough to stand up to the hazards of the open trail. They’re no match for boulders, stumps, ledges, and branches; you’ll bring your OEM bumper home from a weekend off-road scratched, dented, and possibly even punctured. While that messed-up bumper doesn’t look particularly good, it’s also not able to protect the more critical components under the hood. In addition, OEM bumpers aren’t able to support the recovery gear you need to tackle significant challenges. A bumper mod is a must if you want to mount a winch or shackles to your vehicle.Keeping your MPGs up is important, but you’ll still want to upgrade your bumpers and add a roof rack since the benefits of these mods are so significant. Here are a few things you can do to compensate for the loss of fuel economy:

Roof racks add drag and weight to your vehicle. There’s no getting around it. The more stuff you put on top of your car, the less aerodynamic it will be. And yet rooftop storage is often essential. Off-roading and overlanding require a lot of gear, and there’s no getting around the need for extra storage.

Front bumpers are made from either steel or aluminum. Steel bumpers are strong; the only issue you need to worry about with them is rust, but they are heavy. A solid steel front bumper with a bull bar can weigh in at well over 200lbs. Adding that kind of weight to the front of your car will affect a lot of things, including suspension, handling, and gas mileage. But bumper mods add weight, and weight lowers gas mileage. Installing hybrid bumpers and low-profile roof racks from Backwoods Adventure Mods plus making these other changes will minimize the impact on your fuel economy so you can manage your fuel costs and your driving range. Deciding between grille guards and bull bars depends primarily on personal preference. If you want to outfit your truck with rugged off-road style, you’ll want to choose a grille guard, like the Aries Off Road Grille Guard. Custom designed for your year, make and model, the Aries Off Road Grille Guard accentuates your rig’s factory lines. It boasts integrated brush guards, and it comes in your choice of polished stainless steel or black powder-coated steel. For even an even more rugged appearance, set your ride up with taillight guards as well.

When you want the best protection for your passengers and your vehicle, you need to set your ride up with a tough-as-nails grille guard or bull bar. But, that’s where you’re stuck. When it comes to bull bars vs. grille guards, how do you decide which one is the best for your vehicle? You may be surprised at how many people don’t even know the differences between grille guards and bull bars. That’s why we have all the information you need to know in order to decide how grille guards or bull bars will deliver the protection you want.

If you’d rather give your ride extra protection without altering its appearance drastically, you would be better off going with the Westin bull bar or the Aries bull bar. Also custom designed for your specific vehicle, these bull bars safeguard the most vulnerable spots on your vehicle. And, they come in polished steel or black powder-coated finishes. Expertly crafted: Vanguard’s superior design, coupled with its excellent durability, guarantees incredible durability for extreme duty. In addition, its black powder coat protects its surface from debris and rust, plus adds the intimidating snarl you’re looking for. Easy Installation: Installation is easy, with no drilling or cutting required. A 1-Year Limited Warranty backs it. This Pre-Runner Grille Guard is protected by Armordillo’s 1-year limited warranty. However, some exclusions may apply, so please refer to the manufacturer’s website or contact customer support to get more details.Even the most serious of all-wheel-drive pickup owners have moments when they want to let loose and have some fun. But before you can enjoy yourself, you first need to take precautions to protect your vehicle from damage. That’s where Armordillo Pre Runner Guards comes in. Armordillo Guards are explicitly designed for all-wheel-drive pickups and offer superior protection against off-road hazards.

Bull bars and grille guards are both designed to protect your vehicle, but they do it in different ways. If you spend most of your time off-roading, then a bull bar might be for you. On the other hand, if you have a mix of highway driving, you may want to consider a grille guard. Which one should you choose for your vehicle? Ultimately, that depends on you and the look you need.Guaranteed to protect: Add the ultimate protection for your off-road adventures with a Vanguard Off-road bull bar. Vanguards 3-inch powder coat tubular steel construction, skid plates, and included lights offer heavy-duty protection and clear vision for night-time off-roading.A 1-Year Limited Warranty backs it. This Vanguard Off-Road Powder coat Black, Black, Aluminum, and Chrome finishes are protected by a 1-year limited warranty. However, some exclusions may apply, so please refer to the manufacturer’s website or contact customer support to get more details.Defends: Your Toyota Tundra’s front end will snarl with protection installing the Armordillo Matte Black AR Pre-Runner Grille Guard. The grille guard’s rigid A36 steel construction provides you with maximum front-end protection. It also enhances your truck’s lighting with two auxiliary lighting options.

Functionality-wise, front-end guards are great insurance in the event of a minor impact or abrasion. Manufactured from heavy-duty alloys, front-end guards protect several of your ride’s critical components, including the headlights, the radiator, and other fluid coolers.

For more information on different types of guards, check out our related articles on RealSource—your source for articles on all things truck, Jeep, and more!

Unlike the other front-end guards on the list, bumper guards protect only the front bumper, rather than the grille, headlights, or other components. Rear bumper guards are also available, protecting the rear bumper against impacts and abrasions.Moderate front-end protection and mild styling; bull bars feature a single central hoop and, typically, an integrated skid plate for additional protection.

From an aesthetic standpoint, there’s no doubting the rugged appearance of a front-end guard. Whether you opt for a tubular bull bar or a full-coverage, ranch-style grille guard, your ride’s front end will look tougher than ever!Also referred to as “brush guards,” grille guards feature comprehensive front end protection, with most including wrap-around headlight tubes. Other variations include mesh grille protectors and light mounts.

Nothing creates the image of an aggressive work truck like a large Tacoma grille guard bolted onto the front of your ride. At Extreme Terrain, we offer a variety of front bumper guards and grille guards. These products go on easily when outfitted on a matching pickup, and once they’re installed, you’ll enjoy a higher level of protection than before. The guards are made from steel or stainless steel, and they’re designed to withstand a major impact while protecting your truck from as much damage as possible.

When selecting grill guards, it’s important to choose an option that’s made for your model and year Tacoma. When it’s selected properly the guard will bolt into position and cover the grill and perhaps your lights as well very effectively. When the wrong guard is purchased for your vehicle, you’ll have to make modifications to get it to install, and it may not offer the right level of coverage. Most grill guards are black in color, though it’s possible to get chrome and stainless steel as well. Try and select a style you like the look of, but always keep function in mind as well. A good guard will help prepare your truck for the rigors of off-roading, but you can make your pickup even more capable on trails with a set of new all-terrain tires and a lift kit.

The right Tacoma grille guard will be different for every truck owner, and that’s why we offer a large selection to choose from. It’s important to consider exactly what the purpose of the guard is and if you would benefit from additional accessories. Some brush guards come equipped with winch plates as well. These durable plates are designed to accept a Tacoma winch that will allow you to pull yourself out of trouble or tow a friend to give them some extra traction on a trail. It’s always a good idea to add some front-end protection to your truck, especially if you’ll be driving on rough trails, but a grille guard isn’t the only accessory worth investing in. Consider getting a skid plate to protect the underside of your pickup, as well as some armored panels for the side of your pickup. Adding protective panels to your truck will help you drive confidently and will likely save it from scrapes and excessive wear that’s entirely avoidable. Choose a grille guard for your pickup and consider some extra accessories, and you’ll have a ride that’s more capable and ready for tough driving situations so you can take on even more.Free Shipping Offers are for Standard Ground Delivery Service and are only valid for shipping addresses within the 48 contiguous United States. Truck freight and oversize charges still apply unless otherwise noted, and can only be shipped to the lower 48 States. Tires, Wheel and Tire Kits, and certain large items do not qualify for free shipping.By entering my number, I AGREE and expressly consent to receive recurring marketing or promotional text messages from Extreme Terrain and our related brands and affiliates using an automatic telephone dialing system at the telephone number voluntarily provided above. Message frequency may vary. Consent to receive text messages for these purposes is not a condition of any purchase, service, or sweepstakes entry. Msg and data rates may apply. Reply HELP to 94985 for help. Reply STOP to 94985 to cancel. View Terms & Privacy Policy.

The Ranch Hand Legend Grille Guard is the original icon of the vehicle protection industry. Providing outstanding protection for various 1/2 ton trucks, the Legend Grille Guard is one fully welded piece of steel mounted to your vehicle’s frame in four locations creating a solid barrier between your truck and unpredictable obstacles.“Typically, interfering with the airflow on a vehicle can impact fuel economy significantly,” said Bear. “However, Ex-Guard products minimize their effect on aerodynamic drag because they are mounted several inches away from the front of the vehicle and are designed with round tubing, allowing air to continue flowing.

Executive Editor David Cullen comments on the positive and negative factors impacting trucking – from the latest government regulations and policy initiatives coming out of Washington DC to the array of business and societal pressures that also determine what truck-fleet managers must do to ensure their operations keep on driving ahead.

“We chose MVT Solutions for these trials because of their reputation in fuel economy testing and wanted to eliminate any questionable variables that might have remained,” he continued.

It’s hard to argue against the logic of mounting a stout “bull bar” or “moose bar” (pick the name by the variety of large beast that most often gets in the way of your trucks running the roads) to protect the nose of an expensive tractor.Comments are moderated and may not appear for 24 hours or more. Comments that include personal attacks or slurs, hate speech, demonstrably false information, excessive profanity, or that are thinly veiled promotions for a product, will not be approved.

“Ex-Guard grille guards are not a fuel-saving product,” he added, “but our testing should provide fleets with the confidence to consider their use based on maintenance and operational costs as opposed to fuel economy losses.”“Our testing found the Ex-Guard LT-325 grille guard [manufactured by Ex-Guard Industries] had no discernable effect on fuel economy while the LT-350 had only a small negative impact of -0.51%, which is a smaller impact than the tractor’s side mirrors,” stated Daryl Bear, lead engineer and COO of MVT Solutions, in a news release.