Purchased a Manik Grill guard today, Gets installed Friday It looks awsome (held up in front)

I'm excited

 

If you can, please post pics when it's all done. I for one would love to see them!!

Cheers.

 

What exactly is a grill guard useful for?
Not poking fun, just curious. I can see mounting lights or tying things off on it, or perhaps a winch, but by itself, why would someone want one?

 

even by itself it can protect the front of your truck when you are off roading. hence the name, grill guard or brush guard. also, lots of people put them on because they like the look. personally I am not a fan, but to each his own.

 

I live in central Texas, where white tail deer are as common as mosquitos in Houston. Grill gaurds are not a cosmetic touch to most of us, they are a safety item. My B-n-law hit a horse on a rural road - the truck was totalled, he and his son were untouched. My wife hit a deer, a few hundred dollars of body work (on her Explorer ) and she was OK. Both had grill guards.

On my 01 Screw, the first week I had it I parked in the convention center (before I put my grill gaurd on), and slightly bumped the concrete barrier - over $500 repair to my brand new bumper, instead of a scratch on a grill guard.

My guess is that if you dont drive where wildlife roam, or park in convention centers, or think they make your truck look good - you may not need one!

 

Got it installed I think it looks GREAT!!!

I just made a gallery so hopefully I can get it to work.

https://www.f150online.com/galleries....cfm?gnum=3316

 

Sweeet, that is the 1st grill guard that I've seen and liked on the 04.

How much?
Where did you get it?
Any drilling involved?
Can it be ordered On-Line?

 

looks real sweet on the yellow. gives a nice accent. i usually think grill guards are over done and ugly, but that one looks nice. good choice.

 

Grill guards.......

Not trying to be clever here or make a particular point.....just something to ponder.

Some look good.

They can protect bodywork in an "incident".

They can protect against animal strikes.

BUT....do you know what happens when you hit a person with a grill guard.

All the impact force is concentrated in the small area of the bar.

(Imagine a stiletto heel on a woodblock floor)

Grill guards actually virtually illiminate all the research into vehicle aerodynamics vis a vis impact with people, whereby car and truck hoods are now designed to sweep a body up and over the front of the car with at least some hope of survival or lessened injury.

I repeat I am not trying to be clever or speak against them....it's just that in the land of Ralph Nader this aspect of safety has been totally ignored whereas in most of the rest of the world they are now banned.

Just something to ponder !

 

interesting point Lenticular. I'd like to discuss it more with you. how about you go stand over there in the street while I go get my truck from the back parking lot...

i'm just messin' with you.

 

Here's some pix of my RanchHand Grill Guard --

My Grill Guard

BTW ctupton, I like ur truck!

 

man, the black grill guards look real good on the yellow trucks. they just aren't mean for my truck. i think they look good because they remind me of the lifeguard trucks at the beach in Santa Monica.

 

Interesting to read your perspective on safety Len, especially from someone that hails from the land of the unarmed police.

Go to certain areas of Mexico and you will see many cars are equipped with functional cattle guards. Are you certain Len, that "most of the rest of the world" is not a bit too broad of a generalization?

For offroaders, grill guards can serve as place to mount winches, auxillary lighting, and sometimes, used as a jacking point. Certainly there are those that mount them solely for looks, but there are definitely those that require the safety they provide to the occupants. Some also take comfort in having added a battering ram to their rig. To each their own, I say.

 

I knew someone would come back with that reply ASAP.

And I understand your logic.

Yes...most of the rest of the world....not the outback of Australia mind you, where you are more likely to hit a kangaroo than a person.

Indeed I like the look of grill guards myself, and living part of the year in Texas.....and enjoying the chance to travel on back roads...see the appeal of them myself....if I see one I like I might even be tempted for my new Lariat.

All I am saying is.....please have at the back of your mind when driving, the flip side of the coin...and, as I say, what the effect is when contacting a human body.

We had quite a long debate in Europe about the efficacy of guards and the results of filmed tests on cars hitting pedestrians with and without grill guards was quite readily seen !!
NOT pleasant viewing.

And again I'm not trying to say the places that have banned them are right and you are wrong.

All I am saying is.....and sorry to repeat myself again...just be aware of the downside.

However I WILL add that there are some strange double standards about road safety in the US.

Why do some States allow motorcyclists to NOT wear crash helmets...the one thing most likely to save a motor cyclists life in the event of an accident.

Why in the land of Ralph Nader were some of the most famous cars forced to change their design because of his campaigns ?

Most puzzling...because, you see....we now have the S Type Jaguar introduced here in the UK...we are not allowed to have the Jaguar Leaper mascot, because of the spear effect it would have hitting a pedestrian.
In the land of Ralph Nader....Oh, look, you can have a leaper !!!

Wierd or what !!!!

 

damn, do you guys aim for pedestrians? i mean, getting hit by a car is a dangerous affair anyway, so I wouldn't really design for safety of someone getting lit up by the vehicle. you get hit by a car, no matter what is on the front, and you can get pretty messed up. you can't blame that on the Leaper hood ornament or the grill guard.

and why are we the land of Ralph Nader? there are 270 million other Americans here too...