Cab Mount Chop - Food for thought?

You are missing the point and the concept man. Here you go:
Everything is moving at 35 mph down the road. Cab, bed, wheel, rotor, everything.
Now, I swerve because I'm texting and clip a steel immovable pole on the right headlight. Here's what happens (quickly):
1. Front of truck stops. Rest of truck keeps going at close to 35 mph.
2. Next, unsprung mass (wheel, tire, rotor etc) now stops. Rest of truck continues to move forward but we have bled some energy, say down to 30 mph.
3. The cab mount, attached to the rest of the truck, continues forward and strikes tire and wheel. *Important* cab mount hits wheel, not wheel hits cab mount.
4. Cab mount has two possible paths... push wheel and mass downward or bend and let that mass through.

This is what happens. I cannot 100% tell you a CMC would bend. I can tell you that the original cab mount is stronger than any modded one.

 

they sued a repair shop for doing a hack job not who they bought the car from. also the hack job was not clearly visible a cmc is


from the article
based on court documents, it appears the couple also filed a suit against the dealership and Honda, but both were later dismissed),

 

It's the difference in velocity that causes the ping pong ball to go through the wood. If the stationary ball wouldn't go through the a rock on the highway wouldn't shatter a windshield.

 

there is a really easy fix here guys. do the CMC and get a plate bumper. then you just bounce off in a small overlap crash

 

If you're worried don't do it. Simple. This thread is as stupid as the plate bumper argument thread. Way to waste peoples time OP, although I will say watching the pingpong ball go through the plywood was cool as hell

 

I am sorry i respectfully disagree. I may be just a, oh how did you put it "Jackleg" but with many years applied working with steel and being a certified jackleg I guess I woudn't understand the idea that the 3/16 steel I use to replate and box these is not stronger than the weak crap the factory builds it out of. I'm out OP this was interesting not anymore just insulting. I get enough of that other places. I'm just a dumbass welder anyway.

 

I agree here except #4, there is much more force behind the cab, frame, bed, etc. The wheel also has many possible paths. Would it stay stationary and blow though the CMC? Would it deflect and move sideways? Would it get crushed and break under the force of the cab/frame? I would speculate that in any case, with any CMC, the force of the cab into the wheel would simply crush the wheel and/or deflect it under the cab.

I don't really know the answers to these questions nor do I think anyone here does. I have to admit, it is pretty fun to think about though.

 

I'll bring up this hypothetical question ..

Okay just hear me out !!

Let's say a Toyota Tacoma is involved involved in a Fatal TC and this vehicle has had a cab mount chop . Now the vehicle has been impounded by P.D , Sheriff or State HP for investigation !!

The investigators come upon what looks to be a modified factory cab mount and now determine said vehicle has been altered beyond factory specs . This now puts blame on said truck owner for illegal modifications

Now the investigators now knowing the truck was illegally modified put the truck owner at fault and charge the owner with vehicular homicide


Here's something else ,not related but basically similar vehicle modification .......

My Camaro which is a street/ strip drag race car has a NHRA certified chromemolly 8 point cage that is legal to 9 seconds/150mph . It also has Drag race style seats and 5 point harnesses all NHRA legal

I've been stopped numerous times on the street by PD and SO and I've been warned luckily not cited but warned that I've drastically changed the cars crash characteristics that can kill the occupants . They say I can be seriously injured or killed in the event of a TC . Even though the cage ,seats and belts are NHRA legal it is illegal for driving on the street . Law enforcement state the Racing modifications make it extremely difficult for first responders to extricate occupants. Also if I get into an accident and I hit my head on the cage I can be killed instantly

I had a friend of mine have his jeep impounded for illegal safety modifications. He had a SCORE legal roll cage installed with suspension seats and 5 point harnesses . The CHP officer stated these are illegal modifications that are not legal for the street

 

If you do it for a profession then you are a pro, not a jackleg. The guy who is a 9th grade history teacher who goes out and bubble gums two pieces of metal together at the wrong temp is a jackleg.
The actual metal 3/16, is fine, and if it all were made of cold rolled then that would be fine. It's putting two basically dissimilar metals together that's not going to be as strong as the original.
Now, is it good enough?
I just know it won't be as strong.
BTW I took welding in VoTec back in 1981. I got certified and promptly took a job in a body shop so the welding career went away. Was a body man for a few years until I went to school. Much respect.

 

Glad to be of service. Ill bump the "get this sticker off" thread up so we can have a more important discussion.

They way I see it, and obviously you don't (which is fine....yay for diversity!) is that all of this modding and altering of these highly engineered structures, will, at some point, have it's day in court. Maybe not soon, but I am guessing there will come a time. I think that it would be wise for people here considering a CMC to be at least aware of the issues at hand, when deciding if they really want to proceed. I feel a lot of people just blindly do this mod because TW told them to. Its on the TW checklist as a normal part of fitting 33" tires. If the cab-mount was better understood as being part of the crash-worthiness of the truck, people might hesitate or at least consider more carefully the other options.

Anyways.......not looking to waste your time, please skip to a gear-hunting thread, or something regarding an "anytime mod".

 

Is it really all that different to a jury? I know I wouldn't want to take my chances in front of an emotional jury when a grieving widow is crying about how a modification to the truck caused her husband's death.

 

I think, quite honestly, that your interest in this post shows you are thinking it through. Maybe you are the guy who can make this mod a safe upgrade by considering what has been discussed so far.

 

Exactly. There are rules and there are "rules."
If we wanted to make vehicles as safe as we could, it would be easy. All existing features PLUS five point harness, HANS and mandatory helmets. Yep, it would suck but it would be the best possible safety. It will never happen though.

 

These modifications are illegal not necessarily because they are more dangerous, but because they are not part of a proven and tested system from the original manufacturer. They really may be more safe, but I assume there is no original manufacture approved test data to state approval for a car used on public roads.

 

Sorry I guess I'm sensitive I've dedicated 30 years to doing this shit for a living and it's tearing my body apart. I take alot of pride n what I do and have made a decent life with not much education so yeah I guess a bit touchy. I started in votec classes in the late '70's in school so it's been a while. I went into the Army as an Air Traffic Controller but there weren't any jobs when I got out so I fell back on what I learned in shool. I wish they still offered these classes in our rural areas

 

Don't be man. I took welding one year and auto body the next two. The one I wanted to take and still wish I could take it was masonry. The teacher was a world class stonemason and I would have loved to have that education.

 

your comparing apples to oranges. This was a certified repair shop that glued a roof on instead of welding it. The CMC is cutting a piece of metal out and welding a thicker piece of metal in a 1/2 inch back. Unless you know what your looking for you would't even know someone did a CMC.
people do frame repair all the time there is a company that sells tacoma frame parts. you cut out the damaged section and weld in the new section

 

Nope, not a good idea at all. Increased likelihood of losing your legs/knees.

 

...except Toyota nor Honda won't allow repair now because the ultra high strength steel material. Replace it or total it.

 

must be a 3rd gen thing or a lawyer thing. I could totally understand how it wouldn't be worth repairing for liability reasons for a big company like toyota

do the 3rd gen have the same frames as the 2nd gen?