I've never understood how a 2 inch piece of plastic on the from of the hood is supposed to deflect things from your windshield, 4 feet back?

 

The bug shield I had on one of my trucks put most of the window washer fluid on the hood after a certain speed was reached!!!!

 

The problem is, that the bugs were NOT told that they have to fly at a certain height to HIT the bug shield !!!!

I guess they didn't get the memo !!!!

 

Bug shields do two things.

Make a truck look dumb, and ruin the hood of your truck. The rubber tabs eventualy rest on the hood and rub holes in it.

 

Creates an upward airflow in front of your windshield. It definitely decreases the number of bugs that hit the windshield. I'm not sure about rocks...

edit - personally I would just go with a bug washer fluid which does a decent job removing them compared to normal washer fluid which does nothing.

 

This is all good information as I have had my truck for a month now and put a tonneau cover on and mudflaps and was thinking about a bug shield. I remember my old Dodge Ramcharger from long ago and putting a bug shield on that truck made a hugh difference in the A/C ability to keep interior cool. Now with everything being so aerodynamic I though it would make a difference with bugs and everyone here is saying that it does...it puts more of them on the windshield... so no bug shield for me. Thanks for the info guys.

Will

 

I'll stand with ya, count me in


Will

 

The only thing I've found that they help with is love bugs. It takes an hour to clean the damn love bugs off the truck without a deflector. About 10 minutes with one. My window still gets covered, but I don't have to worry about the damn love bugs destroying the paint so quick.

 

I had Xpel clear shield installed when new. It covers the entire painted front of the truck, and about 20" back from the front of the hood. It protects from rock chips and makes bug removal easier. Pretty pricey, but worth it IMO.

 

I think it about this way. The edge of the hood gets sandblasted on regular bases and there is where the paint starts wearing away more frequently than any one area. It is not necessarily used for bugs but an investment for protecting the paint.

I told you there is a method to my madness