Hi, first post -- Honda Accessories, IMHO

hiPSI said:

Could an after market brush guard minimize the damage from hitting a deer?

Click to expand...

Probably not. The energy expended in the collision is the same regardless if you have a brush guard or not. The difference is that the brush guard (depending on style and how installed) would bypass the bumper and other energy absorbing zones and transfer the energy of the impact directly to the frame.

If you had a test vehicle and ran it into a concrete wall at just 3 - 4 MPH with and without an aftermarket brush guard I believe you would be amazed at the difference. The impact with the brush guard would be magnitudes more severe... not just a little worse, but rather many times worse.

As many of you know, I worked for many years in the auto industry. I was fortunate enough to have a position that allowed me to investigate nearly all aspects of the design and manufacturing process. We even had a couple of guys that would test some of the aftermarket items from time to time. I was outright amazed. Many (most?) of the claims made by the aftermarket were just plain lies.

We had a perfect example play out on this board. A person was designing an aftermarket skid plate for the Ridgeline. Sounds simple enough right? This person apparently had a working design. Most companies would have simply put the product out on the market without further investigation. The person here discovered that the engine and transmission are designed to go down and backwards in a severe frontal collision. The skid plate could have prevented that safety feature from functioning and the project was put on hold. I admire that act of responsibility. I'm sure someone will have a skid plate for the Ridgeline on the market soon despite the danger. They might not even be aware of the safety issue... they may not care if they did know.

Factory approved accessories are usually tested for safety issues.

CSIMO said, "...It probably was engineered to allow the vehicle to absorb the impact as designed and allow the airbags to deploy..." and,
"the brush guard (depending on style and how installed) would bypass the bumper and other energy absorbing zones and transfer the energy of the impact directly to the frame...If you had a test vehicle and ran it into a concrete wall at just 3 - 4 MPH with and without an aftermarket brush guard I believe you would be amazed at the difference. The impact with the brush guard would be magnitudes more severe... not just a little worse, but rather many times worse..."

Thanks for your input, I'd not thought about safety in a full-on collision. Respectfully I'd have to disagree just a little with you about whether or not adding brush guards and the like (that bolt directly to the frame) would protect your vehicle when hitting a deer or in a low speed collision.
I have a couple of reasons for my disagreement. If you've ever travelled in Australia it is practically impossible to find a vehicle without substantial aftermarket brush guards or similar installed, unless you're just sticking to the inner cities, like Sydney. The reason? Kangaroos are so plentiful they're almost considered a pest, and hitting one without protection would total your car. I've heard the same thing from people who live in areas with deer. As a side note, Aussies living in the outback aren't really too concerned about the esthetics of things, they pretty much pick function over form every single time!
The other reason comes from personal experience. A good friend of mine had a Toyota 4X4 on which he installed all manner of bars and protection. A minivan pulled out from the side of the road without looking, right in front of him. The minivan was totalled, but his Toyota only had a bent brush guard and the corner of his hood was bent a little, very fixable.
OK, now to my opinion. I think the only reason there is so much emphasis on crumple zones in new cars is because, in the interests of improving fuel economy, and probably also lowering production costs, the cars have been lightened up by replacing metal with plastic, and by thinning out the metal as thin as possible. And if your new car only lasts a few years, unlike the cars from 40 years ago, so much the better for business. It's a different philosophy, and one that benefits the manufacturer more than the consumer. You may completely disagree, but that is my opinion.

I want to 'redeem' myself, as someone may ask why I bought a new car if I really felt that way. The reason is, I really do like the features of the Ridgeline, and a big selling point to me IS that it is probably the safest truck out there. Whenever someone asks me about it, I always mention it is the only one to have received 5 stars from the govt., that there are only 3 trucks in production with traction assist (Avalanche and Escalade being the other two). I've heard that these trucks are very hard to turn over, in the tests.
And also I want to add that we probably are all benefitting from the research, with the improvements in airbags and such. American cars really need the bags because of the non-self adjusting seat belts, but hey, that's a different rant.
Anyways, CSIMO and others, hope I didn't offend you too much in my first few posts on this excellent forum. I'm normally not like that! Ridges are the best, otherwise I wouldn't have bought one!
(PS-- still don't like that bar though!)