TIL What A Mansfield Bar Is

"Jcarr" (jcarr) 01/24/2017 at 12:22 • Filed to: The More You Know

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!!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! happened in my neck of the woods this morning. Woman in a Dodge Journey rear ended a tractor-trailer on an on ramp, got stuck and was dragged about 500 feet. Thanks to the under ride bar on the back of the trailer, the woman was alive and conscious at the scene and will probably be fine.

This bar is often referred to as a Mansfield bar because its mandatory introduction on trucks was a result of the !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! in 1967 (warning, link has some graphic images).

The apparatus below the taillights is the under ride bar.

For Sweden > Jcarr 01/24/2017 at 12:25

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This is now a Mansfield thread

RiceRocketeer Extraordinaire > Jcarr 01/24/2017 at 12:33

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Didn’t know they actually worked that well, I’d read somewhere that their effectiveness was questionable.

duurtlang > Jcarr 01/24/2017 at 12:34

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I would argue it didn’t work that well at all. The bar seems to be too weak. The car didn’t crumple that much, yet the underside of doors of the trailer caved in the windshield. Had that Journey had a shorter hood the people inside wouldn’t have fared as well.

deekster_caddy > Jcarr 01/24/2017 at 12:35

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Interesting. I knew why the bar was there, but never knew it’s name or origin. And I used to watch Law and Order and never knew that Mariska Hargitay was her daughter.

SidewaysOnDirt still misses Bowie > duurtlang 01/24/2017 at 12:35

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Actually a pretty common issue. They’re usually not strong enough.

CB > For Sweden 01/24/2017 at 12:36

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Directions unclear, I’m Peter Mansbridge.

Jcarr > SidewaysOnDirt still misses Bowie 01/24/2017 at 12:38

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bob and john > RiceRocketeer Extraordinaire 01/24/2017 at 12:38

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some are better then others

Jcarr > duurtlang 01/24/2017 at 12:38

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Good point

CB > RiceRocketeer Extraordinaire 01/24/2017 at 12:38

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Watch some NHTSA footage with crash testing them. Not exactly inspiring.

bob and john > duurtlang 01/24/2017 at 12:39

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check my other comment, some work better then others.

RiceRocketeer Extraordinaire > CB 01/24/2017 at 12:42

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consider me less than inspired now

Demon-Xanth knows how to operate a street. > Jcarr 01/24/2017 at 12:49

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I am pro-mansfield bar:

duurtlang > bob and john 01/24/2017 at 12:49

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That’s much better.

Jcarr > Demon-Xanth knows how to operate a street. 01/24/2017 at 12:51

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Yikes

Demon-Xanth knows how to operate a street. > Jcarr 01/24/2017 at 12:56

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When you have a trailer that is rather overloaded, the bed full, and the trailer brakes stopped working 2000 miles ago... misjudging how far a truck is slowing down kinda sucks.

Wrong Wheel Drive (41%) > duurtlang 01/24/2017 at 12:57

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Until I read your comment, I thought this was actually a picture to show why it was important and how bad this one was.

victor > Jcarr 01/24/2017 at 12:57

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The IIHS actually took up issue with basically weak Mansfield bars

ttyymmnn > Jcarr 01/24/2017 at 13:00

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And people say that government regulation is a bad thing.

Jcarr > ttyymmnn 01/24/2017 at 13:06

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Eh, double edged sword.

AntiSpeed > Jcarr 01/24/2017 at 13:12

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Huh. I always thought it was a step so you could get into the back of the truck.

Jcarr > AntiSpeed 01/24/2017 at 13:13

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facw > duurtlang 01/24/2017 at 13:16

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Yeah, the bar is not supposed to give like that.

Junkrat aka Rick Sanchez: Fury Road Edition > Jcarr 01/24/2017 at 13:26

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The bars on the newer Hyundai trailers are pretty flimsy.

ttyymmnn > Jcarr 01/24/2017 at 13:30

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Agreed. As one of my former music history professors said, “All generalizations are lies.”

Honeybunchesofgoats > SidewaysOnDirt still misses Bowie 01/24/2017 at 13:36

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I was going to say just that. There’s a video somewhere of Mansfield bars failing. A lot of them only satisfy their purpose in appearance only and aren’t actually braced against any sort of impact.

This one failed pretty badly.

Matt Nichelson > Jcarr 01/24/2017 at 14:12

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Here’s some interesting facts since I live about an hour north of Biloxi. The Gus Stevens Supper Club is where Jane Mansfield performed before her death. It hosted other greats like Mel Torme, Andy Griffith, Jerry Lee Lewis, along witth others, and was a popular spot on the Mississippi Gulf Coast. It closed in 1975 and was demolished in 2000. The site became a Surf Style beach store, which was destroyed by Hurricane Katrina in 2005. Highway 90 is still there and is the main coast highway. The accident occurred just past Fort Pike Bridge (aka Rigolets bridge) outside of New Orleans. That bridge was to be replaced by a new one that was eventually built, though it had to be delayed due to, yep, Hurricane Katrina.

AfromanGTO > Jcarr 01/24/2017 at 14:15

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I think the Mansfield bars should be a lot lower and have a lot more bracing to make them sturdier. Make them so they are 6-10 inches above the ground.

The Compromiser > Jcarr 01/24/2017 at 20:39

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We’ve always called them Interstate Bars.

Berang > ttyymmnn 01/25/2017 at 02:17

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In general, generalizations are half-truths.