Permanently Removing Rear Bumper
#26
1st-Class Engine Janitor
iTrader: (15)
Not the kind of thing a marketing department will generally include unless forced to.
Safety standards were lower back then, both for production and aftermarket parts.
Having recently had the tank out of my SA, I have a very clear picture in my mind of just how little protection the fuel tank has from rear impact, absent the bumper.
The "5 MPH bumper" mandate was designed to allow for impacts up to that limit with little or no body damage. That doesn't mean it provides no energy dissipation/transfer above that rating - - just that it and the car will take damage from an impact above that force. It's still part of the design's impact prevention even in impacts above 5mph.
It still provides mitigation; in essence, it shaves the force equivalent to a 5mph impact 'off the top' of transferred energy.
That might be the difference between a wreck that penetrates the tank, and one that doesn't, depending on circumstances.
Same deal with the collapseable steering column; it won't help you if the accident is so bad that the column bottoms in its travel limit & proceeds to ram your ribcage out your spine, but that 5 or 6 inches of collapse might make the difference between a serious bruise, and a cardiac penetration.
As they say in the armor business; "only the intact survival of the last millimeter really counts."
Cars from this era of manufacture have nothing like the protective strength required of current cars. A first-gen, if made today, would surely fail to pass government testing & safety mandates.
Reducing its protective capabilities even further in the name of aesthetics? To me, that just seems unwise.
Safety standards were lower back then, both for production and aftermarket parts.
Having recently had the tank out of my SA, I have a very clear picture in my mind of just how little protection the fuel tank has from rear impact, absent the bumper.
The "5 MPH bumper" mandate was designed to allow for impacts up to that limit with little or no body damage. That doesn't mean it provides no energy dissipation/transfer above that rating - - just that it and the car will take damage from an impact above that force. It's still part of the design's impact prevention even in impacts above 5mph.
It still provides mitigation; in essence, it shaves the force equivalent to a 5mph impact 'off the top' of transferred energy.
That might be the difference between a wreck that penetrates the tank, and one that doesn't, depending on circumstances.
Same deal with the collapseable steering column; it won't help you if the accident is so bad that the column bottoms in its travel limit & proceeds to ram your ribcage out your spine, but that 5 or 6 inches of collapse might make the difference between a serious bruise, and a cardiac penetration.
As they say in the armor business; "only the intact survival of the last millimeter really counts."
Cars from this era of manufacture have nothing like the protective strength required of current cars. A first-gen, if made today, would surely fail to pass government testing & safety mandates.
Reducing its protective capabilities even further in the name of aesthetics? To me, that just seems unwise.
#27
Lives on the Forum
Carry the bumper with you, and if you get rear ended just throw it on the ground behind the car and claim that it got "knocked right off the car".
.
.
#28
Lives on the Forum
iTrader: (5)
Hate to imagine what litigation a person could have if rear ended and injured seriously enough to needing a wheelchair and the adjuster questioned the missing bumper.
Not a chance i would take...
Oh well, I think i have beat this topic to death with my opinions, I'm out.
#29
Moderator
iTrader: (3)
Join Date: Mar 2001
Location: https://www2.mazda.com/en/100th/
Posts: 30,826
Received 2,594 Likes
on
1,842 Posts
#30
Moderator
iTrader: (3)
Join Date: Mar 2001
Location: https://www2.mazda.com/en/100th/
Posts: 30,826
Received 2,594 Likes
on
1,842 Posts
Same deal with the collapseable steering column; it won't help you if the accident is so bad that the column bottoms in its travel limit & proceeds to ram your ribcage out your spine, but that 5 or 6 inches of collapse might make the difference between a serious bruise, and a cardiac penetration..
contrast this to the Tr3, the steering box in that is literally right behind the bumper. the steering column is one piece too. ducking isn't an option, the rear view mirror is a rectangular piece of glass, with no liner/protector or anything.
the question mark of course is since the Tr is british steel, it might actually go right thru a Honda, everyone dies, but it would be cool!
#33
Moderator
iTrader: (3)
Join Date: Mar 2001
Location: https://www2.mazda.com/en/100th/
Posts: 30,826
Received 2,594 Likes
on
1,842 Posts
#34
1st-Class Engine Janitor
iTrader: (15)
It agrees strongly with you.
Song Lyrics:
I'm in the Northside Hospital flat on my back
My legs are broken and my ribs are cracked
My front teeth are missing; I'm one big scar
Don't ever have a wreck in a Japanese car
Well, me and my buddy, we're out for a ride
We had a couple of honeys sittin' by our side
We stopped at a red light three cars back
when this guy behind us gave us a tap
Now I don't care how fat you are
You're still not safe in a Japanese car
I know they're pretty and they'll take you far
but you're gonna get killed in a Japanese car
I love my Sony Walkman, my Hitachi TV
My Nikon camera and my new CB
I time shift my viewing with my VCR
But I'll never buy another little Japanese car
There's not a song on the radio that I can't get
with my new Nakamichi metal tape cassette
Yamaha built this great guitar
But I'll never buy another little Japanese car
Now I don't care how fat you are
You're still not safe in a Japanese car
I know they're pretty and they'll take you far
but you're gonna get killed in a Japanese car
Give me a Ford or a Plymouth or a Chevrolet
I want to live and see another sunny day
I want steel all around me and a heavy frame
These recycled beer cans crush and maim
Now when you're cruisin' down the highway doin' 55
and your little car is being blown from side to side
Think about me wherever you are
And you'll never buy another little Japanese car
What would have been a fender bender years ago
has broke my nose, chopped off my toe
Planned obsolescence, that's all they are
and you're gonna get killed in a Japanese car
I'm in the Northside Hospital flat on my back
My legs are broken and my ribs are cracked
...
I'm in the Northside Hospital flat on my back
My legs are broken and my ribs are cracked
My front teeth are missing; I'm one big scar
Don't ever have a wreck in a Japanese car
Well, me and my buddy, we're out for a ride
We had a couple of honeys sittin' by our side
We stopped at a red light three cars back
when this guy behind us gave us a tap
Now I don't care how fat you are
You're still not safe in a Japanese car
I know they're pretty and they'll take you far
but you're gonna get killed in a Japanese car
I love my Sony Walkman, my Hitachi TV
My Nikon camera and my new CB
I time shift my viewing with my VCR
But I'll never buy another little Japanese car
There's not a song on the radio that I can't get
with my new Nakamichi metal tape cassette
Yamaha built this great guitar
But I'll never buy another little Japanese car
Now I don't care how fat you are
You're still not safe in a Japanese car
I know they're pretty and they'll take you far
but you're gonna get killed in a Japanese car
Give me a Ford or a Plymouth or a Chevrolet
I want to live and see another sunny day
I want steel all around me and a heavy frame
These recycled beer cans crush and maim
Now when you're cruisin' down the highway doin' 55
and your little car is being blown from side to side
Think about me wherever you are
And you'll never buy another little Japanese car
What would have been a fender bender years ago
has broke my nose, chopped off my toe
Planned obsolescence, that's all they are
and you're gonna get killed in a Japanese car
I'm in the Northside Hospital flat on my back
My legs are broken and my ribs are cracked
...
Thread
Thread Starter
Forum
Replies
Last Post