Best bullbar for the NT?

[Terrance]

Hi fellas,

I'll bo looking to kit up the 'lux with some barwork before heading to the NT. I'd like to know if anyone has had any good or bad experiences with any bullbar manufacturers? Also I'd like to hear your thoughts on which bar you'd think is best for the NT.

My main thoughts are it needs to have a good mounting system to deal with corrugations, has to be strong for the Roos and needs to have good rust protection.

The lux is going to be more of a tourer than extreme off road. I'm looking bar plus side rails and the brands I'm currently considering are TJM, ARB, AFN, MCC and ironman.

Thanks for your help fellas.

[Jacko9]

Got a BSF which is a bit left of field, but extremely solid! They can be built winch compatible, to your desires, come powdercoated hammertone, happy with mine.

[Unluckyalf]

Mine just has a standard commercial bar from ARB. The only issues i had with my last Hilux was the underbody mounts for the siderails breaking with the corrugations. ARB welded them up for me and they were fine after that.
Having said that, i havent hit anything more solid than Walleroos and one Wedgie

[sammbo80]

Also have a look at TUFF Bullbars, they make some serious bars for outback driving.

[Jacko9]

Also have a look at TUFF Bullbars, they make some serious bars for outback driving.

Rubbish approach angles & poorly made these days. If you want a bar for outback driving that still has decent approach angles & winch compatibility, I think there are much better options. Almet Engineering, SJR Industries & BSF to name a few. My uncles old tuff bar was nowhere near as well built as his new one, nor my mates on his cruiser...

[William_Foster]

Hi fellas,

I'll bo looking to kit up the 'lux with some barwork before heading to the NT. I'd like to know if anyone has had any good or bad experiences with any bullbar manufacturers? Also I'd like to hear your thoughts on which bar you'd think is best for the NT.

My main thoughts are it needs to have a good mounting system to deal with corrugations, has to be strong for the Roos and needs to have good rust protection.

The lux is going to be more of a tourer than extreme off road. I'm looking bar plus side rails and the brands I'm currently considering are TJM, ARB, AFN, MCC and ironman.

Thanks for your help fellas.

I've got the Toyota standard steel bar and found that great for the conditions in the NT, never had any issues with it off road, although it is a bit heavier than I'd like (but it's steel so that's what you get). As for wildlife, roos are the least of your worries, it's the horses, cattle, and water buffalo that are the animals you see the most on the road (and 4wd tracks). As in all country areas, do your best to stay off the road between dusk and dawn and you should be fine.

[adamkberger]

You're going to get a lot of opinions on here as everyone is an 'expert' when it comes to matters such as this. You need to ask yourself what you 'need' it for. You've stated that you want it for Roo strikes. I have the new genuine bulbar and it's supposedly rated for an 80kg Roo. If I hit an 80kg Roo, I would think that my bulbar would need replacing, but if it took the impact and I was still able to continue on my journey, then it's done its job. I don't go offroad much, mine's more of a highway tourer, so for me this bulbar suits my 'needs'. It offers some protection and doesn't require a suspension upgrade to cater for the extra weight unless I added a winch. If I were going to a remote area, a stronger bulbar might be in order, one that can hit a Roo and happily continue on for the rest of the trip. The ARB commercial bar I had on my 100 series was such a bar. I've hit Roos in that and it did nothing to the bar. I wonder how some of these bars go in a major car accident? Bars that can take out a Buffalo could not be good for the occupants when the car hits an immovable object. Just something to think about.

Adam.

[0urlux]

I would be going for ARB Summit bull bar. I Just had our new lux fitted with this bar and its larger than other bars.

[TOYZX]

Stick to the big names or get ine custom made. Tuff bars are rubbish as is the factory bar. Id hate to see one hit an 80kg roo, ive seen them bend from a bird hit! Tuff bars just bend the end of ya chassis when hit as they have bugger all rearward bracing, not to mention they cost an absolute fortune!

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[adamkberger]

TOYZX, have you got any photos you can post of damaged genuine bars? I'd like to see them.

[TOYZX]

I'll be sure to get some of the next one, dealership usually picks them up pretty quick!

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[Terrance]

Thanks for the info so far. I'm probably leaning more towards a bar that would need replacing after an 80kg roo. Surely if the bar isn't taking the energy transfer of hitting an 80kg object it's being transmitted into the frame which can't be good either. At this stage I'd probably lean towards ARB more than ironman as I've heard they are stronger. Anyone know much about AFN? They are relatively new to the 4x4 industry and there bar is priced at the top end but are they worth it?

[vincentvega]

i have an arb deluxe bar but I still think the smartbars are the best for actually absorbing the impact of a roo strike. I agree the big heavy bars just transfer the impact to the chassis rails which is OK to a point..

[fracturedranga]

This may go against yhe common opinion but ive got an axis bar that has survived 2 decent roo hits and more wallabys than i can remember. The key is to get them with the middle of the bar knocks them down and no damage at all. The only one thats done any damage so far was a camel sized roo outside of broken hill. It jumped out at the last minute and i got it clean with the left hand wheel. Missed the bar wings entirely. I bent the k arm with that one. Allthough if i had a full bar on it wouldve been far worse as it wouldve pused the bar back into my headlight and tire. If youve got a bit of a lift and pay attention when driving at night it xould be something to look into. They are properly strong bars.

[07luxyTD]

5 post style bars like tuff definitely do have a crappy approach angle but its the top side of the bar that works so well. Once you get higher up in nt such at 3 ways and further big roos are rare just a shit load of little wallabys which do bugger all. Like mentioned earlier, cows and horses are the main road kill you will see. Due to being a taller standing animal with a standard arb or tjm backwards slooping bar they normally end up the bonnet and into your windscreen. The higher style bars not sloping asmuch force the animal forwards or higher. There are bars avaliable that have a such arb bottom with 5post style top. Have hit countless big roos with my arb which is now twisted but its done the job
Perfect example below. Cruiser was said to be doing 130km/h when it it the horse (130km/h standard nt speed limit on highway if not that its open speed)



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[D4D luxy]

I've plowed more Roos than I can count with arb bars on 3 different Utes without a problem. Just missed a decent deer this morning though which would have been interesting...

[wyworrie]

Just need one that doesn't hit anything

[glenray646]

I was tempted to go with an Almet engineering bar and rails from Griffith NSW but borked at the price nearly
6 k !!! Ended up running with the Ironman commercial deluxe bar and scrub rails haven't hit anything but I'm happy with the look of it.

[TOYZX]

Almet have gone to shit of late! SJR, much better.

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[greysrigging]

IMHO 'roo bars / bull bars are excellent for attaching things too.....ie spotties, light bars, winches, antennas, fishing rod holders ( for that extra 'kidney scoop' ability ).
For light animal strikes any of the mainstream 4WD accessories retailers will do the job.
As posted earlier, the Top End doesn't have the big mutha 'Reds', but even the biggest of our smaller roos can do some damage.
For real roo protection, look at the cars and 4WD's out west of the Great Divide....local manufactures in Toowoomba, Dubbo, Longreach etc make bars to protect against animal strikes, they dont really concern themselves with approach angles and the like.
Anyways, no ( missnamed ) bullbar will help when smacking into a horse, Brahmin steer or a buffalo.....
Me ? I seriously try to avoid driving at night.....its that simple !