[drmohitg]

Well no offense taken. Education is an ever going process right?
So in the spirit of learning:

1. Damage to other cars: How do I cause more damage to the other car? I have to be practical also here remember. Given the traffic conditions prevailing in Delhi the chances of getting hit by a car from behind is much more because people drive like crazy here. In our 2 decades of owning a vehicle I am proud to say that none of our cars have ever me with an accident. But some moron always manages to find the back of your vehicle. By that maths I think I can live with the bar surely.

2. Hitting a pedestrian: This I had never thought of before. So If you can throw some light on it, you are welcome.

Finally I hope we can have a healthy discussion here and learn rather then just plain criticizing.

[Sheel]

@DrMohit-- I believe the scratches on your rear bumper is not just a result of cyclist/motorcyclist hitting from behind. It appears as it grazed wall or a Car.

Modern Cars are designed in such a way that if you hit pedestrians, the impact shall be lesser compared to Cars designed a decade ago. Bumpers play a vital role in eliminating the 'pedestrian friendly'* nature of a modern Car.

*couldn't coin a better term, so please excuse.

[n.devdath]

Originally Posted by aby

How about the new aluminum Bull bars. While they don't look macho, they are good enough to prevent those idiot two wheelers from causing dents. At the same time, Aluminum doesn't have enough strength to hold on in a crash, thus not affecting crumple zones.
Is my logic correct?

This is correct. With a properly designed bullbar, you can avoid small bumps and dents to your car, yet save your chassis by transferring the impact of major shunt. Though pedestrian safety is still compromised.

[srishiva]

I just hope authorities strictly enforce rules on bull bars, free flows etc. Its amusing to see people who decide what's good based on selfish needs (bereft of logic and law). But blame others as stupid for flouting rules.

[directinjection]

Originally Posted by srishiva

I just hope authorities strictly enforce rules on bull bars, free flows etc.

Authorities enforcing rules? In Delhi, almost all official cars of senior bureaucrats and ministers are fitted with these ugly looking contraptions both at front and rear. The official Grand Vitara that Delhi CM travels in has them too!

[n.devdath]

Originally Posted by directinjection

Authorities enforcing rules? In Delhi, almost all official cars of senior bureaucrats and ministers are fitted with these ugly looking contraptions both at front and rear. The official Grand Vitara that Delhi CM travels in has them too!

To add to that, all the Safaris which are a part of the PM's convoy have the biggest bull bars I ve ever seen on any Safari till date.

[tanwaramit]

Old thread, but ever discussed topic.

Bullbars: Rear, yes you may install it
Front - NO, Please dont even think about it. If a moron pedestrian tries to cross the road thinking he is faster than your car (or your car can stop to zero at 0m distance), he might end up
1. getting hurt - if there is no bullguard with damage to your car
2. killed - if there is a bullguard with minimal OR no damage to your car.

So, its always good to let the car absorb some damage instead of damaging a pedestrians life.

Hence, PLEASE, avoid bullbars at the front.

OT: Hasnt PMs convoy shifted to X5 ?

[Grace]

I know , I am gonna be stoned for this, but I got a solid bullbar on my pickup. Keeps away those pesky two wheelers and autos and I get equal respect from heavier vehicles on the highway. I did plough into an indica and a Uno some years back but it was their mistake jumping signal and trying to squeeze in. As a principle,I always brake/slowdown when folks are crossing the road especially women and children. Even "educated" people in their safaris,sumos and Innovas try to bulldoze people at crossings. Its the mental maturity thats yet to set in.

Warm Regards

[drmohitg]

Thats a good suggestion I feel. That bars in the back are fine. Front ones dont serve any purpose because that part of your car is your responsibility totally.
And that should take away the threat to pedestrians also.

[Mpower]

Originally Posted by drmohitg

My Innova with the protection . Perfect alignment even after 50k Kms.

What if a vehicle thats hitting you from behind has a bumper thats higher than your bullbar....it can still smash your bumper without affecting that cross bar.

[Thad E Ginathom]

Hmmm... maybe for the back of the vehicle, or though one should still take into account that that must be designed to crumple too, and that compromising that, in a rear-end collision, endangers the occupants of the car more than it protects the car.

Perhaps we are not going to survive one of those water tankers that doesn't stop for a signal, even though we have, anyway, but I do not think we should compromise the crumple design at the rear.

drmohitg, thanks for taking my words in a good spirit. As to danger to pedestrians, consider the difference between slashing somebody with a knife and slashing them with the flat side of a cricket bat. Neither is going to be fun to receive, both may cause injury, but the knife is going to go deep. I see many bullbars which are, essentially, steel edges. Sometimes there is some vague excuse for a strip attached, but, even if it is a three-inch tube, at motoring speeds, it is going to be a very sharp.

Just as important as the pressure/size-of-point thing is that modern cars are designed to lift a person up and roll them onto the bonnet. There really is not much a car designer can do to protect the fragile human body from a fast moving object, but they do try. Bull bars are just going to mow people down.

I also suggest that front bull bars are about aggression, not protection. I'm afraid that my car has had plenty of small scrapes, mostly side, some rear, but full-frontal trouble is something I have seen very little of. Even though my most damage-receiving accident in India was wing-to-wing, bull bars (wouldn't they look silly on a Swift!) would not have done much good.

[drmohitg]

I get the point. I totally agree front bars are only meant for aggression as the general feeling on seeing a car with a front bar is to give way lest he decides do brush against your vehicle.

Back bars I am still a little in favour of it. Agreed it might prove hazardous to the occupents of the car in a high speed crash as you say. But I feel then it comes down to individual requirements. For example My highway drives are very very few. Most of the times I encounter these rear bumper scratches/hits in the city at low speeds. And the bar does protect against it.

The issue is much deeper you know. The way people have started ignoring road manners is alarming. These days in Delhi the ring road has become a regular site for multiple cars colliding one behind the other. The reason- The ring road is a relatively red light free zone for almost a good 20 kms at some stretches. In India 95% of people relate the speed of there vehicle to the space available on the road. So Everyone starts driving at speeds in excess of 60-80 kmph. But then there is a reason why the legal speed is 50. Every now and then some idiot (mostly people unfamiliar with Delhi roads specially out station vehicles) realises at the last moment he doesnt have to climb the next flyover and suddenly decides to brake and turn left and thereby causes the cars behind him to go into panic breaking and colliding.

These are just small issues but if you think rationally they are all inter-related (what we used to call as a vicious cycle in school).

But glad we can discuss these and probably make driving a little safer.

[Aroy]

Found interesting side and front protectors offered on the Australian Land Cruiser 70
Toyota LandCruiser 70 accessories
Toyota LandCruiser 70 accessories

I am sure that we can incorporate this design and fabricate it for our own jeeps

Here is nudge bar for the Fortuner in SA Toyota Vehicle Accessories for Fortuner owners to ponder upon.

[Ragul]

Originally Posted by shankar.balan

there are some posts on this forum which say that the addition of the bull bar which is bolted to the vehicle chassis, is actually unsafe in the event of a collision - the impact gets transferred direct to the chassis and has a seriously deleterious effect on it. Effectively, the built in safety measures such as crumple zones etc do not come into play at all, but on account of the bull bar the chassis bears the brunt of the impact.

Any ideas what the Airbag compatible bull bars are? Apparently they allow the airbags to trigger which means their mount points do not defeat the safety aspects of the automobile.

Heres a promo that describes it:

YouTube - ARB Bull Bars

--Ragul

[Thad E Ginathom]

Any ideas what the Airbag compatible bull bars are?

Something that protects the driver whilst still being lethal to whoever he hits?

Please, please, forget about bull bars. They are just an insanely dangerous idea. I wouldn't even want to hit a bull with one.