Bull bar recommendations

[lmsbb Lurker Find all posts View Profile Close lmsbb]

I am looking at fitting a bull bar to my 2022 VX Prado and was looking for comments (good or bad) re brands. Just want something for a bit of protection while travelling outback. Not interested in bush bashing or doing much offroad.
Cheers
Graeme

[Leethal Advanced Member Find all posts View Profile Close Leethal]

If your looking for animal strike protection, that is skippy, you will need a bar with hoops to protect the front end as opposed to the bumper bar replacement ones without any hoops.

I run a ARB Summit bar and it has done it's job preventing any panel damage after meeting a couple of roos on the highway.

Lee

[lmsbb Lurker Find all posts View Profile Close lmsbb]

Thanks Lee

Yes we are really just after something to hopefully keep the car drivable if we do have any animal strikes.

Graeme

[Not Enough Time Junior Member Find all posts View Profile Close Not Enough Time]

If you aren't planning on doing much driving at night or an hour after sunrise/before sunset why bother and save yourself $3-4k? I do have a roo bar, but I do travel on rural roads at those hours. You will always get the story about a roo which jumps out in the middle of the day, but they are rare. IF you are going to the trouble of getting a roo bar, get yourself some driving lights, they make night driving that much easier on the eyes.

[Brisbane4101 Lurker Find all posts View Profile Close Brisbane4101]

I have an offroad animal bulbar, with the loops.
I rate it above ARB (I have had ARB bulbars in the past).
It comes standard with two integrated substantial recovery points, if you fit a winch, you can remove the winch (for servicing) without removing the entire bullbar, it comes with lift up license plate holder as standard, you can fit a recessed lightbar (so it is well protected), has aerial holders, spot light holders, and it fits the standard foglights in the wings.
It is made from steel (and they tell you what it weighs), and is a full front bumper replacement.

[Looseunit69 Lurker Find all posts View Profile Close Looseunit69]

Brisbane4101

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Brisbane4101 is it the Toro bullbar you have fitted?

Awaiting delivery on my '23 GXL and am at the point of deciding on a few accessories

How is the quality and fitment? Also, what spotties (if any) do you have fitted and are the holes somewhat universal?

[Elkridge Lurker Find all posts View Profile Close Elkridge]

If you are looking for a car for long-distance travel or offroad, I think the VX Prado is your smart choice.

helix jump

[AlanH Lurker Find all posts View Profile Close AlanH]

"Awaiting delivery on my '23 GXL and am at the point of deciding on a few accessories". I'm much the same and have received the email from Tojo saying it's being built now.... and now we wait and figure out what to have on the front.
I rarely drive at night now as eyesight is not the best but roos and emus etc still run out in front of you during the day and I want that protection a bar gives. Actually some years back I was chatting to a bloke in Fowlers Bay SA and his Defender utes bar was in pristine condition unlike the sides of his vehicle because as he said 'I didn't hit them, they hit me".
The ally bar fitted by the stealers looks pretty but is it up to the job like one made from steel?
AlanH.

[Andyfive Member Find all posts View Profile Close Andyfive]

Do bullbars provide "extra protection" for your vehicle at the expense of its occupants? Has any crash testing been done to show if bullbars integrate well with the safety systems that the modern car manufacturers have built to protect you. I find a lot of owners choose bullbars on their looks, but where is the safety data? I'm not saying don't buy one but, be aware that there can be a false sense of security that if you fit one that you are safer.

[krypto Avid PP Poster! Find all posts View Profile Close krypto]

After 40 years of country driving I finally managed to hit a skippy recently. Was travelling at speed overtaking a caravan when skippy jumped out, braking and the other normal evasive maneuvers were not an option. I've never used a bullbar, neither have a number of my country base mates. I do have a small nudge bar

The Roo hit the left front of my vehicle. Damage to the lower left control arm mounts which moved about 4mm and the stub axle which was bent. Surprisingly the car was fully functional and still driving in a straight line with no tyre scrub. The nudge bar surprised me as it took some of the impact and bent. The left bumper and guard were smashed and none of the plastic bits survived under the guard. A roobar would not have saved the roo from hitting my wheel.

Speaking to the crash repairer confirmed my thoughts on roobars. They will potentially protect the radiator, however, he has found that in the event of a serious impact they generally cause more extensive structural damage to the vehicle. They shouldn't interfere with the normal safety systems, however, apparently that's not always the case. They will cause a lot of damage to pedestrians and other road users.

I'll stick with the nudge bar and good driving lights. No doubt there will be lots of opinions, each to their own.

[Brisbane4101 Lurker Find all posts View Profile Close Brisbane4101]

hi Looseunit69, yes, a Torobar, I also have stedi spots and a lightbar, and gme uhf. You can see the red recovery points (two of them) that come as standard with this bar.

Fit is very good, and it is a full front fender replacement, so no cutting of the existing fender with the associated gaps, etc.

My experience with roos seems to be different to some others on here.
The average weight of a eastern grey roo is between 17-50kg (some can get bigger). I work regularly 2-3 hrs west of Thargomindah, or up near Lake Dunn (a couple of hours west of Clermont, in the jump up country), and you often have no option but to drive out early in the morning (dawn) or back home in the dark, on gravel roads.

It would not be unusual to hit 2-3 roos in a 3 hr run out there, and they just bounce off the bar, no damage to the vehicle, no swerving to avoid them, just brake heavily in a straight line (if you have the chance to see them coming) and slow down and stop afterwards and check on them.

Without a bullbar, i would be disabled after the first roo, then on the sat phone, getting someone out to help me. I know what I prefer.

ps: I have also been driving in the city for 40 years, with a bullbar on my vehicles, and never hit a pedestrian.

[marcian Lurker Find all posts View Profile Close marcian]

small skippy vs roobar = roobar wins
large roo vs roobar might result in draw or skippy win.

mate hit roos on motorbike twice.
1st time he brushed it with the side he accelerated rather than hitting brakes. mate 1 skippy 0
2nd time i think roo was bit bigger , mate flew over the handlebars and broken his arm, mate 0 skippy 1.

i have also seen the result of 200series LC vs Prado head on in Cairns couple of years ago, both had roobars. Prado occupants didn't survive i believe