Tacoma: 1, Death: 0

Many around here seem to think the same. It would be really cool if this were solid evidence to make that case, because its only been speculation as far as I know.

 

Glad everyone is alive. Looks like the Tacoma was hit more along the passenger side. Did the driver swerve left to avoid the Pilot?

I saw in here that the Pilot left the road. Maybe the passenger side of Pilot hit the Passenger side of the Tacoma and then left the road to the right of the Tacoma.

Was the truck that was being passed escape the crash?

 

Glad everyone lived.. That is Gross Negligence and criminal on different levels.. I wonder how much of a difference an armored plate / tube bumper would have been.. People talk about crumple zones and such but having a heavy steel bumper may make the other vehicle into a crumple zone..seriously doubt much could have been done at those speeds..would have been nice to see what the Honda looked like afterwards too..

 

Well, properly done weld joints are actually stronger than the base metal. So as long as the plate is the same strength as that of the metal of the cab mount it should be the same strength. Not really what I would call speculation. Now if you do a sketchy weld job in your back yard, that is a different story.

 

They like to think that because they want to run larger tires. It just a way of justifying it and I am guilty of that myself. We are all human.
The truth is A) Every accident is different and B) There is zero chance that the cab mount is just as strong after the chop as before the chop. Why? You are throwing heat into an alloy component, which changes the component's properties.
Now, the million dollar question... Even with reduced strength is the cab mount, after the chop, "good enough?" It could be. It also truly depends on the accident and the angles and velocities.
Maybe. I personally choose to keep it like it is. I usually am quite fond of the people I haul around and I could not live with myself if someone got hurt because I was too intent on making something look cooler.
But we all have our thing so I do not judge.

 

It'll buff out.

 

The cab mounts are Ultra High Strength Low Alloy. Lots of pre heating and specific cooling and quenching. Pretty sure the shop down the road would not o that. So, I personally will not make the assumption that "it should be the same strength."

 

And this is why it seems like speculation (in my unprofessional opinion). Two very believable viewpoints on the matter, clear as mud! I didn't come to argue for or against it though; I'm just genuinely curious if we may have some concrete evidence of a "proper" CMC holding its own against a real world scenario.

 

The cab mount is welded to the frame of the truck, I doubt they are heating and quenching the whole frame post weld. welding is not magic and has 100 years of engineering to back it up.

 

While we are on this subject, is anyone aware of a high speed frontal impact with a steel bumpered Taco? Pics would be nice.

 

Think the only real difference at this speed is the removal of the aluminum crash bar. I don't know how much effect that has at high speed, everything after it is still going to get smushed.

 

I actually think skid plates would effect it more. They really stiffen up all those subframes and cross members.

 

Not sure either, most insurance companies only cover up to $5k in mods unless you specifically itemize them in a policy or have a blanket cost coverage, but idk.

Go Fast Camper lead times are down to like 12 weeks but ya he should be able to just fix it. I bet he could just order a rear panel with glass and install it himself or have a local GFC affiliate install it. Not sure what else would be broken on it.

I have camper #199, I just wanted to throw a second on my LC80

 

Dang, glad they are OK, that truck is demolished. Both my daughter and my wife have totaled 4Runners with barely a scratch.

This is interesting. Closing velocity was likely around 120mph, but I guess that is different than velocity. To an observer on the side of the road, each vehicle was traveling 60 mph (in opposite directions), true. But to observers within each vehicle, observing the other vehicle, wouldn't it *appear* that they were approaching/closing at 120mph? Are you saying that if I hit a stationary taco at 60mph, it's the same as if the other vehicle is approaching me at 60mph? Mind blown.

 

She may have also been stomping in the phantom brake pedal for all she was worth. Totally normal if you see another vehicle coming straight for you.

Glad she's just got relatively minor injuries.

 

If there is post weld heat treating, the whole frame would get it at the same time. Heat treating a frame isn't anything exotic or uncommon.

 

The equation for kinetic energy is mass*velocity^2, I think that well the velocities aren't additive, the kinetic energy is and both cars would have kinetic energy.

 

Newton's second and third law's of motion

 

Wow.... that is scary stuff. My worst nightmare right there. Although walked away I can just imagine the Ptsd from that one.
Wow.
Glad passengers are OK.

 

It's probably a bit too soon to make a "Pilot Error" joke, but at least everyone is still alive.