Brush Guards for deer protection etc

[MXHalofan]

Searched and got nothing. Is is popular to install deer protection like brush guards and bumpers for the towing crowd? There's lots of deer here in MO, especially around the lakes.

 

[MH Hawker]

its not to bad here but in some areas a lot do just that i suspect its more area dependent, i got hit mmm around 15 years ago, i haven't put any on my truck but they do look cool, o and i am in WV so we have a lot of dear, on my wifes drive into work she sees many ever day

 

[roscoe]

98% of them are brush guards.
When deer hit them, they bend and twist and end up in your headlight or grill, and the deer still ends up wrapping around and smashing into the fender-door.

 

[fhhuber]

Your best protection from hitting deer is to NOT "overdrive" your headlights.

Normal low beam headlights are only good to 35 mph without some other source to illuminate something in the road in time for you to stop or otherwise avoid hitting it.
Normal high beams are only good for 55 mph without some other source capable of allowing you to see something in the road.

If you are driving 65 with low beams, depending on moonlight... you're not going to see deer in time to avoid it. The moon, even full moon, is unlikely to make the deer visible in time.
And this is the case for most impacts with deer... about 65 mph and low beam headlights. You might see the deer in time to slow enough before impact that it doesn't go through your windshield.

"brush guards" are 90% just decoration.

 

[Scott Danforth]

my father has a deer guard on the front of his truck. home built from T1 tubing. (the stuff they make cranes out of). it weights about 120#, pins to his plow bracket.

not the prettiest looking thing, however it protects the radiator and head lights.

he did it because he must have hit at least 30 deer and about a dozen large birds (pheasant, turkey, etc) over a 20 year period between his truck, van, etc. he hit 3 in one night on a back road to a camp site and a few years later, took out 3 in one day with 3 different vehicles. usually during rut. the one time he completely stops for a herd of deer crossing the road, two run into the side of his van busting out the passenger window and smashing in the sliding door

there is a reason there are a lot of body shops in northern wisconsin and the UP

the purchased "brush guards" weight maybe 30# are made of light-weight thin-walled tubing, and as fhhuber pointed out are decoration

 

[David Young]

I wouldn't worry about the deer. Just keep good insurance coverage on your truck. Deer are bad in my area. My town decided to relocate a family of "Elk" . I think they have been wiped out by vehicles . I saw one of them laying dead beside the road only a month after reading about the "Elk" in the news paper .

 

[wrvond]

Man, what did the Elks ever do to them?

We have an awful lot of deer in our neck of the woods too (A herd lives on my property). It's been my observation that brush guards are just something to get smashed into your grill when you hit a deer.
Slow down, and look for the headlight reflection in their eyes.
Even better, let the speed demon behind you run ahead and clear a path for you.

 

[Toyelectroman]

from what I hear those brush guards do more damage than good, but I have one and it does a great job at holding my spot lights so I can see the deer. If you really want some protection you need to get a real deal bull bar like they have in Australia but they can run around 1000.00 for one

 

[MXHalofan]

Thanks for the responses.
I have upgraded my headlights to HID projectors and ordered HID fog lights to try to get better night vision. Hoping thats enough.

 

[jkust]

I'm in MN and the deer are terrible. I hate driving to our lake house on Friday nights too late after work. I really never see any sort of guards on vehicles but I get it. It's not whether you mitigate damage, it's that you are in the middle of nowhere and help is very far away and the logistics of getting a rig towed home is expensive to say the least aside from the extreme hassle. You at a minimum want to be able to drive away. I've got the projector HID's as a standard on one of my vehicles and I don't like that they cut off sharper than old fashioned hallogen bulbs. I prefer my non HID vehicle at night but still have to slow down quite a bit as the parade of deer jump in front of me along the route.

 

[fhhuber]

You can look up the charts for expected stopping distance for your vehicle. (with OEM good condition tires...)
Note that the stopping distance changes for various road conditions (and you can expect LONGER than all of the distances listed because you won't react that fast)

Get a cheap brown fake fur coat and put it on a chair in an unlit parking lot. Find out how far away you can see it with your headlights.
Now you know how fast you can go and have any chance of stopping before hitting a deer.

 

[jimmbo]

While super bright lights may improve your vision slightly, you will be hampering the vision of the driver of any vehicle coming towards you, especially if the aiming is not perfect. All it does is encourages faster speeds at night. 37 years ago my brother and I hit a moose. 31 yrs ago I hit a pig, it's like hitting a power pole laying on the ground. The moose was after dark, but the pig was shortly before dusk, just ran out of the ditch.
I've seen deer jump fences and land on the road. The only smart thing is to go a little slower, the life you save may be your own

 

[Silvertip]

Go ahead and laugh if you wish, but my last four vehicles have had deer whistles on them. I hit a deer with my van some years ago and nearly got stopped but still hit the deer in the hind quarters, spun her around a couple times and she ran off. Broke the left headlight and surrounding plastic. Since installing the whistles I've had deer dash up to the road and then quickly turn away. One was a monster buck that I wish I could have met during hunting season. I too live in Minnesota and travel frequently in Wisconsin -- both home to copious numbers of whitetail deer. Bought a new Chevy Traverse in February and it too has the whistles.As long as they don't get plugged up with bugs they seem to work. Just a couple of bucks at any store that sells auto supplies. Available in chrome or black and can be tucked into any area on the front of the vehicle. Someone mentioned "avoiding" the deer. You do not try any quick steering move to avoid a deer. Chances are you lose control of the vehicle due to over-steer and crash into another car or run off the road doing more damage than if you simply "hit the deer". That's why you carry insurance.

 

[bassman284]

... Someone mentioned "avoiding" the deer. You do not try any quick steering move to avoid a deer. Chances are you lose control of the vehicle due to over-steer and crash into another car or run off the road doing more damage than if you simply "hit the deer". That's why you carry insurance.

Silvertip, I'm quoting this part because I don't think it can ever emphasized enough. My dad started teaching me to drive when I was 13 (71 now). One of the things he pounded into my head was "Never drive off the road for an animal." Brake as much as you can but drive straight ahead through it. I learned the lesson well.

 

[Silvertip]

Anyone who lives in whitetail country can try this experiment whether you are hunting or you just have a deer meander into your yard. As the deer begins to depart, give a short loud whistle. That departing deer will stop and turn around to see what the noise was. Hence -- deer whistles work. 100% protection??? Absolutely not. A spooked deer with adrenaline pumping will not be stopped with anything short of a .308.

 

[StingrayMike]

If you are looking for brush guards for deer protection, take a look at the stuff that off-roaders use for rock climbing and trail riding. Dont get "tube" style, but the solid design.

 

[JimS123]

Go ahead and laugh if you wish, but my last four vehicles have had deer whistles on them. I hit a deer with my van some years ago and nearly got stopped but still hit the deer in the hind quarters, spun her around a couple times and she ran off. Broke the left headlight and surrounding plastic. Since installing the whistles I've had deer dash up to the road and then quickly turn away. One was a monster buck that I wish I could have met during hunting season. I too live in Minnesota and travel frequently in Wisconsin -- both home to copious numbers of whitetail deer. Bought a new Chevy Traverse in February and it too has the whistles.As long as they don't get plugged up with bugs they seem to work. Just a couple of bucks at any store that sells auto supplies. Available in chrome or black and can be tucked into any area on the front of the vehicle. Someone mentioned "avoiding" the deer. You do not try any quick steering move to avoid a deer. Chances are you lose control of the vehicle due to over-steer and crash into another car or run off the road doing more damage than if you simply "hit the deer". That's why you carry insurance.

I'm not laughing.....LOL.

The company I used to work for was plagued by deer collisions near their remote plants. Whistles were mandated by corporate and after that the incidence dropped dramatically.

During deer season my buddy and I take turns driving to town each night for dinner. The deer don't react to his car at all. In mine they stop at the edge of the road and look, and / or run back into the woods.

When I buy a new car, whistles go on the first day. For 5 bucks and 5 minutes to install, how can you go wrong...