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Old 07-25-2010, 05:13 PM #1
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Brush Guards and Tail Lamp Guards

Hey all! I just picked up a 99+ 4Runner SR5 4wd with 64,000 miles. Yes... I know... I was totally lucky! Anyways, I've recently found this forum and have been reading and absorbing all the info I can about these trucks. I've been a member of other forums for past cars I have owned and find them extremely useful!

This is going to be my fun weekend car and am looking only to do some minor upgrades to it to make it my own. I've been researching the forums for front brush guards and tail lamp guards and have seen the mixed responses to them. I am not looking at going the full bumper replacement like the ARB or similar. Not to fond of the look of them, but they are sweet pieces of equipment! I've been looking at the simple bolt-on version and have found most of the recommended ones here are no longer being produced, such as Manic or Smittybilt.

The ones I have found are the Westin and Black Horse. I've read Westin is pretty good, but haven't been able to find any feedback or experience with Black Horse. Anyone have one of these or can vouch for how good or not they are?? I've found some pretty good pricing on them here...

1999 Toyota 4-Runner Grill Guards

I know these types of guards both for the grill and the tail lamps aren't that functional, but I'm going more for looks with these than a whole lot of function.
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Old 07-25-2010, 05:52 PM #2
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Some call the grill gaurds damage multipliers as when they do get struck they cause way more damage then without.

I like the tail light guards, but have heard the same with those too.

I would save the money and put it towards an ARB. If my runner didnt have 166k on it I would put out the money for an ARB as they are a sweet setup.

Nice find on the 4runner too!
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Old 07-25-2010, 07:32 PM #3
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I have a Hunter grille guard..which is basically the eBay version of the Westin brush guard. It only cost me $175 shipped..half the price of the Westin and I'm happy with the quality as well.

I also just ordered some tail light guards off of eBay and should get them in a day or two. They were only $60 shipped so i'm excited to see the quality of those as well.

I personally like the looks of brush and tail light guards. My suggestion if you are trying to save some money is look for knock-offs off of eBay.
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Old 07-25-2010, 08:40 PM #4
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i have a hunter too and its great! It's been on there for a couple of years and it still looks perfect. just make sure you get the black one im pretty sure any chome one would rust.
How on earth does a brush guard cause more damage when your in a collision? If anything i would think it would be less with the big beams sticking out no???
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Old 07-25-2010, 10:18 PM #5
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they can cause more damage in some cases.

Say you were off road and rolled back into a tree or rock mid tailight, well without the tailight gaurds yeah itll bust out the taillight, but with the gaurds since they are bigger than the taillights, its going to push that gaurd into your body and scratch paint and possibly dent body panels that may or may not be easily fixed.

Same with the brush gaurd, in a collision it could be pushed up and back causing damage to the hood where if its a low speed collision it could just mess up the front bumper.

Get what im talking about?
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Old 07-28-2010, 12:09 PM #6
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oh ok i see! that makes more sence.
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Old 07-28-2010, 12:52 PM #7
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Hit the back of this car with a "brush guard" at about 10 mph. Damage to my rig - slight dent to the chrome bumper and a scuff on the fender by the corner light where the headlight guard section popped back. That's it. Nothing else. The guard was mounted to the front of the frame, and through the bumper with "L" brackets. If it was just mounted to the frame, like these are, it would have easliy folded back into the grill, hood and fenders.

My $0.02 -

These imitation "bull bars" are purely cosmetic. They are not "solid stainless steel" as some claim, they may be stainless tubing, not solid. Huge difference there. If it only comes to the top of the bumper, then you are probably not going to multiply any damage in an accident. It's cheaper to mount lights to the bumper. (Insert Opinon here : If you already have the "fat lip" bumper, adding something in front of it is only going to make it look goofier)

Brushguards, if not properly mounted and reinforced pose a real issue to the grill, fenders, and hood; whereas if it weren't there, you may get away with bumper only damage.

You want a bull bar - get a bull bar. ARB, Shrockworks, TJM...

Hope that helps some.
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Old 07-28-2010, 01:30 PM #8
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For looks go with the brush guards, for running into trees, rocks etc go with arb. Arbs make some 4runners look like a weird ford explorer lol especially if you've trimmed a lot etc.

I'm getting new bumpers and new fender next week and im gonna lose the chrome bumpers and have the new ones painted the same color of the rest of the car so when i get my brush guard chrome wont look goofy when everything else is black and sunfire red.

Whatever you decide post lots of pictures. Id also like to find out more about these black horse guards you speak of will tty and find more info. as well.

Good luck!
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Old 07-29-2010, 01:02 AM #9
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Try WAAG check their website
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Old 07-29-2010, 01:09 AM #10
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I agree. A brush guard is no substitute for a real bumper, and will cause more damage if you actually hit something, not just nudge it...

The tail light guards are almost useless as well. When I had them on my rig, the only real purpose they had was to give me a backup aid, since they stick out a little bit.
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Old 07-29-2010, 11:46 AM #11
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Mr. Leary View Post
I agree. A brush guard is no substitute for a real bumper, and will cause more damage if you actually hit something, not just nudge it...

The tail light guards are almost useless as well. When I had them on my rig, the only real purpose they had was to give me a backup aid, since they stick out a little bit.
This is absolutely correct. My son rear-ended a Honda CRV with his Runner and her damage was minimal. The damage to the Runner however, because he hit at an angle, folded the "brush guard up, and sideways. What would have been bumper damage only, maybe the grille too, turned into bumper, grille, radiator support, fenders, hood.....whole new front clip.

A brush guard is exactly that. It's intended to nudge brush out of the way and keep it away from the radiator and possibly the headlights. Hit something solid, and it will fold up and into other sheet metal that would otherwise not have been touched.

We're almost done replacing my boy's front end (doing a Tacoma front end while we're at it) and will be capping it off with an ARB or Irbis front bumper.
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Old 07-29-2010, 11:53 AM #12
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Quick fix is to not run into people or things and pay attention to driving and nobody has to worry about messing up your own car with a brush guard. Simple. LoL!!
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Old 07-29-2010, 03:17 PM #13
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Quote:
Originally Posted by kregg View Post
Hit the back of this car with a "brush guard" at about 10 mph. Damage to my rig - slight dent to the chrome bumper and a scuff on the fender by the corner light where the headlight guard section popped back. That's it. Nothing else. The guard was mounted to the front of the frame, and through the bumper with "L" brackets. If it was just mounted to the frame, like these are, it would have easliy folded back into the grill, hood and fenders.
I'd love to see some pics of the install of your guard! I want it as rugged as possible and to have the best installation that I can get.

I realize these types of guards are mostly cosmetic and have limited use, but I am not looking for a full bumper replacement or anything super heavy-duty. Same goes for the tail lamp guards. I know they serve no real purpose other than very minor protection, but again I was going more for looks than for purpose.

Thanks for all the responses! I think I am going to order the Black Horse tail lamp guards first to get a sense of how well their stuff is constructed. I'll keep you all updated and pics soon!
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Old 07-30-2010, 10:16 AM #14
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Burshguards and tailight guards just offer minimal protection but at least it's some. I had a box fan fall off of a shelf in my garage and smacked and bent two of the bars on my tailight guard and without them there it would've broke the tailight so I guess it was good it was there.

I like 'em just for looks but mine are only on for part of the year and no brushguard for me or bull bar since they cut the approach angles down too much when off road.
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Old 08-01-2010, 12:51 AM #15
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Quote:
Originally Posted by tdaggett View Post
We're almost done replacing my boy's front end (doing a Tacoma front end while we're at it) and will be capping it off with an ARB or Irbis front bumper.
Please post pics when you are done! I love that taco front! What a great dad you are!
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