had to larf....tee hee

Do they not make them with roll cages? Brian

They have a roof strength test, but it is a static load used to rate the strength of the roof. The rating takes into account, the measured curb weight of the sample being tested. A rating of 4, means the crush force was scaled by the curb weight, and it takes four times the curb weight to crush it to a certain depth.

For the off-road crowd, it depends on where you off-road and what the terrain looks like (and how many of your friends were killed), to decide whether a roll cage is essential. Some drive on the side of steep mountains, and a failure there means rolling down the hill the wrong way, so to speak. To stay in a vehicle during one of those, you not only need a cage, you need a multipoint harness to keep you in the seat (as a kind of mystery meat for the rescuers).

There is a rating system, but relating the rating to your personal safety... is heuristic. Only the field reports, tell us whether a 3 is enough or a 5 is what you want.

The IIHS did one test, where they put 9500 pounds of concrete blocks in the back of the truck -- and of course during frontal impact, the load came through the back of the cab and would have killed the cab occupants (because the blocks entered the cab, from the bed). Which is no different than when a transport carries a load of pipe, and is involved in a frontal collision. Makes sushi out of the driver, if the pipe isn't prevented from entering the cab. They were not testing the truck, it was a calibration run for the sled-launcher, to ensure when testing BEVs, they had "enough horsepower" in the launcher to ensure a correct/stable crash test speed.

While there is a rating system, it's up to you to decide how far out of the norm your vehicle usage is.

Paul