Bull Bars are noted to be essential for not just your safety but that of the 4WD in highway, remote area travel and more. These bars are necessary when you are planning to take the 4WD off the road. These bars are ready to offer the best form of vehicle protection against animal strikes and some other collision types. It is vital to understand and read about these points well in advance before proceeding further with the purchase to be made.
Understand what bull bar stands for
A bull bar is mainly defined as a simple but one effective addition to the front side of the 4WD vehicle. Right now, you can purchase it in various sizes, shapes and materials including alloy, steel and even plastic. This bar helps in providing protection when driving off-road, against banks, logs, and scrub and similar such obstacles.
Some reasons behind the growing popularity
Despite the name, the Bull Bars are not just used for keeping the vehicles protected from bulbs, but there are some added reasons for the growing benefits involved.
Help from the animal collisions
In case you ever hit an animal like a kangaroo, then the impact can easily disable the car. That will leave you stranded or cause some major damages to follow.
- Well, that’s when the bull bar comes to the rescue. It is used for protecting the front portion of the car so that if you ever collide with any animal, then you have a higher chance of just driving on.
- With the help of the bull bars, you will create a barrier between your car and the wild animals. It is one way to prevent some massive damages from taking place over here.
- Most of the time, you don’t want to hit anything and plan to drive safely on the road. But, in case you can’t, then a bulbar is all that you need.
- Always remember to minimise the chances of any animal strike by travelling at times other than dusk and dawn.
The ultimate or general protection
It is true that driving off-road is a bit of a misnomer as no driving can be done off the road. Instead, off-road here mainly means tough roads. These have all kinds of hazards like ruts, rocks and sticks and that can cause some real problems while driving.
- These products can easily get caught up and then jammed into odd places, like a stick through the front under the body next to fog light. This is just an example.
- So, as a part of the repair, it is important to check in with a bull bar. The steel or the alloy of the bull bar seems to be quite strong and a lot harder to pierce than the plastic in question.
The winch mounting point
There are different ways to mount winches without using bull bars. But the bars are noted to be the easiest of the lot. Even if you are not planning to purchase a winch, make sure to spend extra bucks for a winch capable bat anywhere just in case. It will also help out with a bit of resale around here.
Focusing on the accessory mount point
In case you are into some serious dune sand driving in deserts or you are in need of a sand flag, and the best place is as far forward that you can manage, then you need a bull bar to the rescue.
- Without a proper bar in hand, it becomes a lot harder to create a strong enough mount.
- And then there is driving light installation as well, which will need a stiffer base than what most of the nudge bars can provide.
- The bull bar is going to be a major place for mounting the UHF antennas as well.
Now for the improved version of the approach angle
It is always a good idea to improve approach angles so that you do not touch the terrain as much in the hard going. Even if you do, then you won’t be able to damage a bar much like the original plastic. Bars will scuff and plastics will break into smaller pieces.
The ultimate potential for the recovery points
Those days are long gone when vehicles used to come with simple chassis rails extending out in the front. But, the recovery loads keep on increasing with every passing day. Some of the bull bars will have recovery points that are built in them. Then others have an option and help expose the chassis so that extra points can get added. Without any bars, it is difficult to fit some recovery points.
The right bull bar for you to choose
There are different options related to bull bars these days. There are pros and cons involved with each product. Apart from the cost, the biggest disadvantage in question is the weight. Based on the bar you have chosen, you can add anywhere from 30 to 80kgs to the front of the vehicle. It solely depends on multiple factors like:
- Design of the bar
- Vehicle size
- Nature of the front end of the vehicle
The most promising point to remember is that the actual weight added with the bulbar installation needs to be less than the bar’s own weight. There is always a trim to remove. Some bars might replace cross-members so that the net weight gain needs to account for what is likely to come off as well as what is going on around.
- In case you still want to use the power of a bull bar, make sure to upgrade the front suspension. It helps in handling that extra weight.Avoid making the mistake of fitting a heavy bar without suspension to suit. Handling inadequacies will not be apparent unless it gets too late.
How to choose the best bull bar among the lot
There are some important factors that will be included while selecting the best bull bar among the lot. Right from the kind of vehicle you drive to the type of driving, the gear you are likely to carry and what accessories you want to fit, the type of bull bar will vary.
Focusing on the right material
Most of the bull bars are made using aluminium, steel or plastic. As one generic rule, the steel bull bars will present the greatest strength and are finely suited to vehicles that are driven where there is higher chance of the animal stroke, like in outback.
- Always remember that not all steel bars are created equally. Some have better design with extra folds that add to overall bar strength. Then you have others made with thicker and higher-grade materials, mainly you get what you are paying for.
- Then you have alloy bars, which are not as strong as steel bars and have an advantage of being lighter. It means they have less effect on vehicle handling and also wear and tear on components like tyres and suspension.
- Apart from that, the alloy bars have greater corrosion than the steel bars and with highly polished finish. Some of the manufacturers will use various alloy grades and intricate shapes for procuring strength approaches that of steel bull bars.
Some other alternative options under here are plastic bars. Some of the products are made using roto-moulded and low density polyethylene that is UV stable and resistant to chemicals.
Focus on the design of the bull bars
Choosing the right design of the bull bar should be another point of question. If you are planning to drive in areas where there is a good chance of animal strike, you want a bar to offer protection to the vehicle as much as possible.
- The coverage should be for the cooling system, bonnet, headlights, under vehicle components and more.
- In case you are doing a lot of off-road driving through some rocky paths, then look for a bar with outer tubes, which remain compatible with side rails and steps. It will offer protection down the vehicle’s sides.
It does not matter the kind of bull bar design you are looking for. Be sure that it won’t have a negative impact on the approach angle of the vehicle and ground clearance. Always look for a bar with upswept outer wings. A quality bar will always be model specific. So, it will have that contour to match the vehicle design.
Don’t forget about mounting now
In case the vehicle is well-equipped with airbags, then you need to be certain that the chosen bull bar you purchase has an airbag compatible mounting system.
Manufacturers will state the right model bull bars that are airbag compatible and those which are not. Some might even conduct real-world crash testing for the ultimate compatibility. Others will just rely on computer simulations. In case you are concerned, check with the individual bull bar manufacturer to see how they are procuring airbag compatibility checks.
Focus on Ozi4*4 for premium quality bull bars to choose for your 4WD vehicles. Research for some more details from https://ozi4x4.com.au/