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Ford Bronco Driver Hits Deer at 70 MPH, the Crumple Zones Look Mostly Intact

The Insurance Institute of Highway Safety didn’t award the Top Safety Pick+ to the Bronco. The Ranger-based utility vehicle isn’t worthy of the organization’s Top Safety Pick award either, but on the other hand, this vehicle-deer collision pretty much confirms the Bronco’s crashworthiness.
2022 Ford Bronco after deer collision 6 photos
Photo: Bronco6G forum member 22BIGBENDSAS
2022 Ford Bronco after deer collision2022 Ford Bronco after deer collision2022 Ford Bronco after deer collision2022 Ford Bronco after deer collision2022 Ford Bronco after deer collision
“I hit a deer doing 70 mph (make that 112 kilometers per hour) this morning,” said the owner. “Gotta wait until Monday for the body shop to open.” The collision took place near Gig Harbor in Washington State, and the airbags didn’t deploy despite the relatively high speed of the Bronco.

The owner highlighted “a s#!t load of severed wires there,” but on the other hand, the airbags may not have deployed because the crumple zones are mostly intact. Bronco6G forum member 22BIGBENDSAS further noted that his Big Bend's hood flew up, which is pretty intense given that it happened at 70-ish miles per hour after hitting an adequately-sized deer.

“I was on the freeway for over four hours, waiting for a tow. The deer was so jacked up, couldn’t do anything about it. The positives? No one was hurt. A guy with a badass First Edition saw me stopped from the other side of the freeway and turned around to make sure I was good,” added the owner.

Although 22BIGBENDSAS really likes his Bronco, “I think I’d rather have them [the body shop and insurance company] total it and get a new one.”

The front bumper took it pretty well, but on the other hand, there’s a lot of stuff that needs to be replaced or hammered back into shape. The radiator, for example, is damaged beyond repair. Driving with a broken radiator ultimately overheats the force-fed engine, resulting in disastrous engine failure. Given that certain Broncos equipped with the 2.7-liter V6 like to drop valves, it’s understandable why the owner waited so long for a tow.
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About the author: Mircea Panait
Mircea Panait profile photo

After a 1:43 scale model of a Ferrari 250 GTO sparked Mircea's interest for cars when he was a kid, an early internship at Top Gear sealed his career path. He's most interested in muscle cars and American trucks, but he takes a passing interest in quirky kei cars as well.
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