A Brief Story

"mXxxxXm24 /O/ /O/" (mxxxxxm24)
04/03/2018 at 20:54 • Filed to: Ass hat of the day

It was gorgeous day on the parkway today. Clear skies and many a tunnels to play in.

Hmm...

What is this I spot up ahead on the trail??

Oh. An a** hat in a 4runner who abandoned their broken car on a foot trail. I guess they only specified no 4wheelers...

Well... (no I didn’t key the car)

DISCUSSION (20)

Daily Drives a Dragon - One Last Lap > mXxxxXm24 /O/ /O/
04/03/2018 at 20:57

If that hood isn’t banged up too badly, mind snagging it for me?

mXxxxXm24 /O/ /O/ > Daily Drives a Dragon - One Last Lap
04/03/2018 at 21:04

Yeah I’ll just drive an hour out into the middle of the mountains and strap it to my roadster.

Daily Drives a Dragon - One Last Lap > mXxxxXm24 /O/ /O/
04/03/2018 at 21:15

Sweet. How does tomorrow at 4:30 sound.

Wrong Wheel Drive (41%) > mXxxxXm24 /O/ /O/
04/03/2018 at 21:20

Do you run your roll bar with no padding?

mXxxxXm24 /O/ /O/ > Daily Drives a Dragon - One Last Lap
04/04/2018 at 12:22

Sounds great

mXxxxXm24 /O/ /O/ > Wrong Wheel Drive (41%)
04/04/2018 at 12:29

Yeah I do. The way I am currently seated I’m not in close proximity to it and most passengers are shorter than to be anywhere near it. Not that I don’t think about it in some scenarios being a possible danger. Another reason to get a racing seat and lower myself further.

Wrong Wheel Drive (41%) > mXxxxXm24 /O/ /O/
04/04/2018 at 14:25

There a few rear ending scenarios where the bar can give a nasty knock to the head when unhelmeted. Even with a helmet, you need some sort of padding. But for the street, its just a danger either way really. I have two layers of padding on mine, one is the high density stuff for the helmet. And then I have a second layer of softer stuff that should probably keep me alive but still give me a concussion. I would feel safer if I just wore my harness all the time instead of the 3 point but that leads to other complications.

mXxxxXm24 /O/ /O/ > Wrong Wheel Drive (41%)
04/04/2018 at 18:33

Sounds like dual durometer padding you’re talking about. Is that what you use? I definitely agree with you. I didn’t realize how close the bar would be to my head being a taller guy, even with the street bar sitting farther back than the hard core model. Under normal movement I would hit my head on the hard top well before the possibility of hitting the bar, which is I guess when I came to terms with how unsafe my car would be for me in the event of an accident, roll bar or not. Though the roll bar can keep the structural integrity of the car together enough to potentially save my life. Had a friend who’s Miata was totaled by a rear end collision. The bar saved his life. Again shorter people have it much easier, but I did choose a small car.

Wrong Wheel Drive (41%) > mXxxxXm24 /O/ /O/
04/04/2018 at 18:55

Yup the dual durometer stuff. WAYYY more expensive than the regular stuff which is why I only bought enough to put behind the head of both seats rather than cover the whole thing. The soft top JUST barely fits with that on there which is the only complaint. No way would a hard top fit with that padding, although my bar is not rated for a hard top anyways since it is too tall/far back. I have the Boss Frog which sits back a bit further than the Hard Dog so I have even more distance. Plus the Bride (knockoff) seat mounted with a garage star side mount bracket gets me as low as possible. I am also tall (6'1") and this was the only way I could pass a broomstick test short of removing the seat hump and literally mounting to the floor to drop about another inch. It was funny when I first installed the seat, I REALLY felt low in the car. It was like driving a completely different car until I got used to it.

mXxxxXm24 /O/ /O/ > Wrong Wheel Drive (41%)
04/04/2018 at 19:29

broomstick test? Also I am just starting to look in to how to go about putting a seat in my car. Is it easy to mount with the garage star mounts? Would it be easier to mount to floor?

mXxxxXm24 /O/ /O/ > Wrong Wheel Drive (41%)
04/04/2018 at 20:24

looking at pci race mounts super low with sparco sprint 5s. Supposed to mount right in to factory location. I don’t want people moving my seat anyways lol it’s annoying.

Wrong Wheel Drive (41%) > mXxxxXm24 /O/ /O/
04/04/2018 at 23:08

Kinja'd!!!

Basically by “broomstick test” I mean that your roll bar is actually the first point of contact in a rollover, rather than the top of your helmet. Kind of defeats the purpose of a roll bar if your head becomes the roll bar lol.

And yeah the aftermarket Miata seat mounts are SUPER easy to connect to the car. Since its just four bolts. It varies how much of a pain in the ass it is to connect a seat to the mount and adjust it though. I can’t adjust my seat in the car, I have to completely remove it and then I can move it up/down, back/forward, and slightly left/right. That garage star mount was expensive as shit though. Something like $300 EACH. Glad I found mine used.

Wrong Wheel Drive (41%) > mXxxxXm24 /O/ /O/
04/04/2018 at 23:12

Definitely try to sit in the seat in a Miata somehow in order to make sure you can actually fit with a helmet on. That’s why I found it important to buy used. I brought my helmet with me and mounted the seat in the car before committing to buying. Once I confirmed I could fit, I knew I was in business. Roll bar purchase was done the same way, I was very happy to not have to wait for shipping and then find out I don’t fit. It’s tough being tall with a Miata. But honestly now with the mods I have WAY more room. My seat isn’t even all the way back anymore since I have plenty of room.

mXxxxXm24 /O/ /O/ > Wrong Wheel Drive (41%)
04/05/2018 at 12:22

Yeah I don’t have a helmet or race on a track at this point. Still important... even more so to create space between my head and the roll bar.

Also that’s good to know on seat mounts... they seemed straightforward. Do the fixed mounts like pci’s have multiple mounting points initially? Or is it literally one spot? Definitely need to make sure things fit before spending more money that I don’t really have to spare haha

Wrong Wheel Drive (41%) > mXxxxXm24 /O/ /O/
04/05/2018 at 14:10

I figure the broomstick test should apply to street driving as well. I still do not want my head to be the highest point. With the seat padding in, I actually wouldnt pass with a helmet on so I would have to remove that for a track day but without a helmet I can fit with the padding. Thankfully its velcro so its easy to insert/remove.

Idk about the PCI, it just depends on the mount.

Like this one? http://www.pci-racing.com/product/adjustable-seat-mounts/

Any website can tell you if the part will fit in the car. Miata seat mounts are simple and seem to adjust fine. It’s the do you fit part that matters. If you are like 5'10" its not really an issue, anyone can fit at that point. But much beyond there really depends since leg length and torso length can vary wildly.

mXxxxXm24 /O/ /O/ > Wrong Wheel Drive (41%)
04/05/2018 at 14:30

Oh yeah no I meant it is more important for the street cause no helmet, but yeah this is the mount I am looking at:

http://www.pci-racing.com/product/89-05-mazda-mx-5-2/

I just can’t tell if I have a choice of mounting points for the seat and also it only fits 2 seats so, we shall see

Wrong Wheel Drive (41%) > mXxxxXm24 /O/ /O/
04/05/2018 at 14:40

It seems like there would be some limited adjustability just depending on how you mount it but of course you couldnt really dial it in perfectly like you can with the more adjustable ones. I liked being able to fine tune the angle of my seat as well as the position.

And really there is no way to solve the no helmet and roll bar problem. They just arent designed to work that way. Being as far away as possible and putting as much padding as possible is the only mitigation method really. But even then its probably not enough to really resolve the concern. Its kind of just something to live with since if I am getting hit hard enough for that to matter, I might not be okay with or without that roll bar anyways. Its not like Miatas are super safe to begin with.

mXxxxXm24 /O/ /O/ > Wrong Wheel Drive (41%)
04/05/2018 at 15:23

Yeah not sure how I can see how I would fit in the non adjustable... but it is lower, cheaper, lighter and seemingly easier to install.

And yeah I have come to terms with the lack of safety of the Miata, but it is still safer than a bike. No matter how you look at it. Though I still feel it is safer with a roll bar rather than without. I saw the difference it makes

Wrong Wheel Drive (41%) > mXxxxXm24 /O/ /O/
04/05/2018 at 18:31

Oh of course, I knew I would be doing a lot of street driving still and I have a roll bar. I’d rather have a chance of living. Plus I just think Miatas look infinitely better with one. For the Na It’s a significant chassis reinforcement and I figure with 200k miles on mine and all the rust, it can’t hurt to have some of that lol.

mXxxxXm24 /O/ /O/ > Wrong Wheel Drive (41%)
04/06/2018 at 14:21

Exactly. I will give safety as a reason when people ask, but the main reason I got the roll bar was because even at only 120,000ish miles it just needed to have that chassis reinforcement. Mazda rally should have made the car with a roll bar initially, but I could see why they didn’t. And yeah it does look so much better with it.