It seems like I am constantly hearing about another person killed in an FD Are there really this many freak accidents, or is the FD a really unsafe car in an accident?

 

https://www.rx7club.com/forum/showth...hreadid=193902 i was only doin 30mph and the damage went all the way through past my r1 strut bar and damned near the firewall. imagine 50 mph im really down about this and i pray for those who have it worse
- jon

 

Too many inexperienced drivers driving too fast on the street. These cars are very well built to survive a crash but there's no only so much car....

 

i fell asleep and woke up in a light pole off the freewy... i survived and had no seatbelt

very lucky ..... but the cabin didnt crush like i would have thought...

dont try this at home

 

Jeez, glad you're okay dude.

I guess I'm used to MR2s, they tend to have incredible crash safety for their size, so I get the mistaken notion that other sports cars are just as safe. I've seen people crash into a pole at triple digit speeds and walk away, I've seen people flip end over end when not wearing their seatbelt and be fine, I've seen people at a standstill hit by semi trucks going 75mph and be fine.. its just mind boggling to me that a simple 30mph crash could cause severe injury.

Note: none of this is a bash on FDs, I love them, but I'm just a bit concerned about their accident safety.

 

For it's time the FD3S was pretty crash worthy - the engine is designed to submerge under the car in a frontal impact.

It even had a *gulp* airbag! WOW.

It's all about weight and heft - even now. A Mercury Grand Marquis is still going to be the winner in a crash test - it was one of the first cars to get a five star safety award 6 years ago when everyone else was failing.

 

That cause with the up power grade to the FD , safety up grades are also in order . like a roll cage , fire extin. and of course a seat belt never hurt any one

 

well I for one hope that if I ever hurt my FD3S in away that cannot be repaired(Unibody twist) I hope it takes me with it!!!!

 

Just had an accident in my FD this morning(see above) the car is probably totaled but I'm fine.

 

i feel ur pain ceccil curt glad ur ok

 

I got hit in the side last October by a 96 Corvette. I was doing like 30 and he was doin like 15-20. And hit me in the front fender right behind the wheel and got the whole door and part of the rear fender. My car was so stable in the wreck, I didn't even swerve at all when he it me. It just spun him in the direction I was heading. I just pulled over after a good brake check right after he hit. I think the FD is a strong *** car because it is so compact. It is like a bike wheel, the smaller the diameter the harder it is to flat spot. By the way. I have a roll bar, race seats, and harnesses so I'm safe. I prob didn't slide when he hit also because I have 285 Potenza's on all four corners.

 

is the fd3s a deathtrap?

 

the 99 and newer cars have additional side impact protection. Nobody seems to do anything voluntarily. This leads me to believe that a US FD would not pass the current japanese side impact requirements. I'm not sure how their standards compare to ours though.

My friend is building a tube frame FD. The one thing I've realized by watching his project is how thin the sheet metal is. EG: he cut away the frame support behind the rear shocktowers but left the outer body panels. When I rested nothing more than the weight of my hand on the rear fender where the antenna was previously mounted the whole back end sagged. when he pushed the car across the shop the rear was waving around like a piece of rubber. Of course, it all works fine when the inner reinforcements are in place, but it shows that mazda didn't leave much excess anywhere.

 

yeah, its the price we pay for light weight.

 

I have almost 10 years of accident experience in my FD...

My car sustained over $18,000 of damager the other week and even then the body shop doubted my frame would ever be 100% so I accepted the totalling of my car and received a $17k+ check and my signicant parts.

I was unhurt even though my air bag NEVER went off and yet, my car hit so hard that :

(1) The frame is a U.

(2) My ETB and my front strut bar were ruined.

(3) Front bumper, hood, radiator, A/C but amazingly not the Intercooler were all obliterated.

(4) The impact caused a wrinking of the frame from the compression, extending even almost up to the sunroof.

I received only a bruise on my foot....still don't even know how that happened. Probably bracing myself for impact as I was spinning down U.S. 19 into the walls.

That's not the only accident I have been in but the most significant. The car may be accident prone but if I was to be in an accident, thus far the FD has proven to shelter me from all injury.

Knock on CF....

 

i walked away from an accident with a semi, in fact i got out of the car and jumped up and down in anger

 

ya i was in an accident to with my fd, scariest time of my life, i spon out at about 130 mph, way to fast to be going on a highway but you even really realize it because the car rides so nice, i hit some sand and did a 180, then went across the whole highway, i dont kno how i didnt get hit by any trucks there was like 5 of them coming right for me. but anyways i was going backwards at a angle like / and then the light pole was right in my path,
BANG! sounded like i was shot by a shotgun.hitting me on the drivers side mirror.
that then spon me around to a 180. the car came to a stop around 200-300 feet from the pole that i took down, the only thing broken on my fd was the frame, and the raditor, my leg got hit from the impact of the pole, but i walked away shaken.

i hope to never experience anything like that again, i thought i was dead. if you are an inexperienced driver
DO NOT GET THIS CAR!! in my mind i think this car is very safe. its built crazy strong.

 

i will try and post pictures of my damage at 30 mph

 

I hope you're kidding, bottom line is that it's still just a car.... a car can be replaceable.

 

well atleast its not as bad as a fiero they have a tendancy of breaking into 2 pieces front and back then all you have to worry about is which side and way it is coming apart people have been cut in half buy the seat belts not pretty

 

R1s' only have a driver side airbag.... so if you get in an accident hope your girlfriend doesn't look like Pamela

 

That's pretty twisted dude. It's only a car...

Some people think it may not be replacable... But it really is.

 

Hmm, all these accidents bring out question... that I've had for some time.

I know many people push their FDs, understandably. Probably the same thing for owners of Supras, Corvettes, Mustang, etc... I presume most people do this, because our cars handle so well. And I've had a few times when I've pushed my car pretty hard as well.

However, on a track or very nice road, I know our cars are awesome. However, I'm hesitant to really race on a highway (especially in the Northeast), because there are so many potholes or inconsistencies in the road, that I feel our FDs are more dangerous. On a perfectly flat road, the low suspension travel and stiffer suspension keeps the car "on rails" and less body roll.. but when there are bumps, those things work directly against us.

So... my point being - handling is greatly compromised on everyday road? and more so in our FD than regular old cars.. atleast on a relative scale?

 

FD's are safe as a ****

 

I think the FD is safe not because of how it can withstand a crash, but it's capabilities of avoiding a crash. I've escaped three potentially serious accidents in the FD simply because the car is so agile and stable. I would most definitely be dead if I were driving a neon or something. This car handles emergency maneuvers very well imo.....