Thank You Hard Dog and Bethania Garage

About 2 weeks ago I finished installing my Hard Dog roll bar into my '99.  This is obviously a purchase you make and hope you never have to use it.  Today I used it... Every panel on the car buckled,but the occupancy cavity was untouched. While the roll bar is obviously made to protect in a roll over, I believe it helped distribute the hit around occupancy cavity.  

I'm pretty beat up and have a gnash on the back of my head, but it could have been worse.  That being said, Thank you Hard Dog for the products you build and the community you support.  

Well done Mazda and well done Hard Dog. Glad to hear you're okay!

rollbar needs moar padding around driver's melon

Glad you are OK, that looks like a hell of a hit!

Glad you're not hurt worse. We need to get ours installed soon. I've had to many close calls lately from inattentive drivers. 

Hell of a hit. Glad you walked away. Keep an eye out for concussions and injury that shows up over the weekend. Took a few days for all of it to register from my t-boning in January. 

And so glad i took the time and money to put a hard dog in mine as well.

Did you have door bars?

Yes.......first and foremost glad you are OK. That's a big time hit. Very sad for the car.

Glad you're alright.  This is also the second hard dog equipped car I've seen with massive rear-end crush that stops right at the rear roll bar attachment.  

Glad you were able to walk away. Sorry for the Miata, but good to see how well it held up. 

I smell an Exocet...

any evidence of head contact to the roll structure?

I look at crash pics every day for a living, not sure it made a notable difference in this case. Hope you can reuse the bar in the replacement.  At least your hit was not from a higher truck. I have a lot of concern in mine that a truck will hit me and over-ride the crash structure. 

Sorry to see a miata headed for the junkyard, may its parts help another survive...

Trackmouse said:

I smell an Exocet...

Or LoCost.

Glad to hear you aren't hurt too badly.  Sad to see an NB bite the dust. 

Glad you walked away. Sucks about the car though. 

In reply to Apexcarver :

Not sure RE: contact.  I woln't know until they total the car and I get to buy it back.  The car has about $3000 of turbo, ECU, and other accessories on it, so I'm not letting it just go to the yard.  

Glad you’re ok, but I really hate when people’s cars get totaled like that. 

Dang dude. Glad you're ok.

Glad to hear that you’re OK, and sorry about the car.  Just curious- did you have a back brace on that Ultrashield seat?  If not, how did it hold up in the crash?

Glad the car did what it was supposed to do, and you were minimally damaged.

Looking at the difference in head protection from the rollbar between the driver and passenger seats is why I am a fan of the high back 01-05 seats in conjunction with the roll bar on a street NA/NB.  It's also why I like the Ace/Deuce on street cars with stock seats.

Driven5 said:

Glad the car did what it was supposed to do, and you were minimally damaged.

Looking at the difference in head protection from the rollbar between the driver and passenger seats is why I am a fan of the high back 01-05 seats in conjunction with the roll bar on a street NA/NB.  It's also why I like the Ace/Deuce on street cars with stock seats.

I think I get what you're saying.  The high back ultrashield probably literally and figuratively saved my neck.  

Also, FWIW, all future miata with roll bars I own will have bar padding. I dont think I came in contact with the bar, but it is scary to think what might have happened if I did.    

I think too many people in miatas are so focused on getting low enough to pass a broomstick test (which honestly I see plenty of people on track who don't IMO) they don't pay attention to where their head is next to the rollbar. I think a seat that goes above the head is a must

The outright scariest thought for you:  That isnt that massive of a hit.  It looks bad, but the impact overrode the crash structure (whats made to take the hit).  That high on the car isnt going to do nearly as much as the frame below it that the bumper bolts to. 

Underriding a truck/SUV is the scariest aspect of small cars like Miatae

Apexcarver said:

The outright scariest thought for you:  That isnt that massive of a hit.  It looks bad, but the impact overrode the crash structure (whats made to take the hit).  That high on the car isnt going to do nearly as much as the frame below it that the bumper bolts to. 

 

Underriding a truck/SUV is the scariest aspect of small cars like Miatae

Yep I'm afraid a newer truck/SUV or a lifted brodozer will use the 911 as a ramp when it runs over me.  My following distances are probably way to long, and if someone tailgates me in a brodozer I just slid to the next lane and let them go by, 

Glad everyone is ok. 

In reply to Apexcarver :

Impact structure heigh mismatch with trucks is at least as big a reason as roll overs for me putting roll bars in the Miatae I've had.