The most popular ute in Australia. The Ford Ranger sells tens of thousands per year, and whenever you see one in the wild, it is often accompanied by a bull bar. But which Ford Ranger bull bar is the best and how do they work?

What is a Bull bar?

A bull bar offers a layer of protection to the front of your vehicle. Bull Bars are typically made from steel or aluminium alloy and are bolted to the chassis or mounted on front of the bumper depending on the style.

Used for areas prone to wildlife encounters, namely kangaroos, as they act to protect occupants from any kangaroo, emu or bunyip that may run in front of you when driving. They come in an array of options and can have accessories such as winches, antennas and lighting attached for use when off-roading.

Types of Bull bars

To accompany your Ford Ranger, you have a range of options. These include single and triple loop bull bars, and bull bars without loops (otherwise known as crawler bars).

Single Loop

Whilst offering protection against animal hits, a single loop bull bar adds a tubular frame above the bumper in addition to the front bumper barrier. Usually, to protect the radiator and the middle of the frontal area against collisions.

Single Loop Advantages

• Mounting accessories - such as lighting, winches and aerials can be added for when going on more remote offroad adventures.
• It’s the best compromise - owners choose single loops because they are the balance between protection and weight. A heavy triple loop bull bar affects handling, fuel economy and component degradation.

Single Loop Disadvantages

• Medium protection – with only a single loop, the protection does not extend to the headlights or sides of the front of the vehicle.

Triple Loop

For your Ford Ranger, triple loop bull bars offer the most comprehensive solution in terms of protecting your vehicle and its occupants in a collision with an animal. With tubular structure protecting against taller animals and objects, it offers that extra protection for your vehicle’s headlights, radiator, and hood.

Advantages of Triple Loop

• Mounting points for accessories – winches, lighting and aerials can all be attached and secured well with a triple loop bull bar.
• Best for collision protection – Taller animals, boulders, or any other collision, triple bull bars offer the best protection for you and your Ford Ranger.

Disadvantages of Triple Loop

• Weight – they are the heaviest bull bar option for your Ranger, triple loop typically is made from high grade tubular steel.
• Price – they use the most material and therefore cost the most out of all the
• Component Wear – owners are concerned about wearing out tyres, suspension and other parts that are linked with the weight of the front bull bar. These may have to be replaced a little more often
• Handling – with the triple loop bull bar being added, it adds a significant weight onto the front of the vehicle, which can affect the steering and braking geometry, altering the way the car handles, though an upgrade to your suspension can help alleviate the extra weight.

Crawler Bar (no loop)

The Crawler bar is specifically designed for off-road adventure, providing protection from rocks and steep gullies when getting right of the beaten track. This bar is the lightest and most cost effective, but also provides an increased approach angle.

Advantages of Crawler bar

• Increased approach angle – when rock hopping and moving through steep gullies the improved approach angles reduce the likelihood of contact with rocks or gully
• Bolt on hoop – The crawler bar has the option to bolt on a slim, light weight, 2 inch hoop to the top of your bar. This hoop offers additional protection to the front of the vehicle as well as additional aerial and light mounts.
• Accessories – The crawler bar provides you with the ability to mount accessories such as spotlights, aerials winches and recovery points without the cost of single and triple hooped bars
• Increased Wing Angle – the crawler bar prides itself in having wings that hug and form to the angles of the vehicle. The wings sit far closer to the body of the vehicle than the commander bar allowing for more clearance and approach when tackling the trails.
• Light weight – the crawler bar is the lightest and cheapest of the bars and reduces vehicle wear and tear, along with handling

Disadvantages of Crawler bar

• Protection from animal strikes – the main disadvantage of a crawler bar is that it doesn’t protect your headlights, radiator, or bonnet from animal strikes, which is a strong consideration if travelling often at dawn/dusk or at night in rural or outback areas

Conclusion

The Ford Ranger being a popular vehicle both on and off-road, there are lots of bull bars available. No loop bull bars offer some protection and are good for a setup off-roading. Single loop adds a little more protection and is the best compromise between weight and protection. But triple offers the ultimate defence, ideal for areas prone to animal strikes.

Along with your bull bar you may want to look at Ford Ranger Roof Racks and Tray to carry more equipment, rock sliders to protect off-road and a Ford Ranger PX rear bar.