A lift vehicle comprising: a vehicle frame; a lifting section supported on the vehicle frame; and a pothole protection mechanism, the pothole protection mechanism comprising: a plunger bar displaceable with the lifting section, a pair of arm assemblies displaceable by the plunger bar between a retracted position and a deployed position, each of the arm assemblies including an extension arm engaged with the plunger bar and pivotable on a first pivot pin and a bar arm pivotably coupled at a proximal end to the extension arm on a second pivot pin, and a pair of pothole protection bars, each one pivotably coupled on a third pivot pin to respective distal ends of the bar arms via respective bar mounting tabs, characterised in that each of the bar mounting tabs being pivotably connected to the vehicle frame via a fourth pivot pin and comprising a slot in which the pothole protection bar is positioned such that the pothole protection bars rest against the vehicle frame in the deployed position, and wherein the arm assemblies are configured such that the bar arms are pivoted over center on the second pivot pin when the arm assemblies are displaced from the retracted position to the deployed position. a vehicle frame; a lifting section supported on the vehicle frame; and a pothole protection mechanism, the pothole protection mechanism comprising: a plunger bar displaceable with the lifting section, a pair of arm assemblies displaceable by the plunger bar between a retracted position and a deployed position, each of the arm assemblies including an extension arm engaged with the plunger bar and pivotable on a first pivot pin and a bar arm pivotably coupled at a proximal end to the extension arm on a second pivot pin, and a pair of pothole protection bars, each one pivotably coupled on a third pivot pin to respective distal ends of the bar arms via respective bar mounting tabs, characterised in that each of the bar mounting tabs being pivotably connected to the vehicle frame via a fourth pivot pin and comprising a slot in which the pothole protection bar is positioned such that the pothole protection bars rest against the vehicle frame in the deployed position, and wherein the arm assemblies are configured such that the bar arms are pivoted over center on the second pivot pin when the arm assemblies are displaced from the retracted position to the deployed position. a plunger bar displaceable with the lifting section, a pair of arm assemblies displaceable by the plunger bar between a retracted position and a deployed position, each of the arm assemblies including an extension arm engaged with the plunger bar and pivotable on a first pivot pin and a bar arm pivotably coupled at a proximal end to the extension arm on a second pivot pin, and a pair of pothole protection bars, each one pivotably coupled on a third pivot pin to respective distal ends of the bar arms via respective bar mounting tabs, characterised in that each of the bar mounting tabs being pivotably connected to the vehicle frame via a fourth pivot pin and comprising a slot in which the pothole protection bar is positioned such that the pothole protection bars rest against the vehicle frame in the deployed position, and wherein the arm assemblies are configured such that the bar arms are pivoted over center on the second pivot pin when the arm assemblies are displaced from the retracted position to the deployed position.