Fix those annoying headrests in 2 min. for $0
#22
Interesting mod. I've thought about taking the headrest apart and straightening those posts a bit. Just not sure about driving up on the headrest instead of using a vice. Is the cover and padding too hard to remove? I haven't looked.
#24
So how safe do you think it is to have your chin forced down toward your chest every minute that you're behind the wheel, simply because your size/shape/seating posture isn't the same as Ford's human evaluators' and crash test dummy's were? Does the same size shoe fit everybody?
I've DIY-tweaked a few things on cars over the years to make them fit either me or my wife better, too.
Norm
I've DIY-tweaked a few things on cars over the years to make them fit either me or my wife better, too.
Norm
#25
Norm
Last edited by Norm Peterson; 06-09-2013 at 09:20 AM.
#26
I think altering a safety device that is supposed to keep you alive when an idiot hits you from behind at 55 MPH at a stop sign is troubling. Will it work or will it snap? I've been rearended at 15 MPH and was surprised how hard my head hit the headrest at that speed.
Is there any more risk in the event of being rear-ended? Probably, but what you really need to do is assess the overall risk picture, which also includes consequential effects to your safe driving. Discomfort = subconscious distraction at best. Actively annoyed seems to fit OP's evaluation better. Sometimes it might really be better overall to give up a little in one area to gain more in another, which comes back to that individual thing again. Choices.
Locally cold-working the posts just a little just once is not likely to compromise their required performance to the point where it snaps, though it might be a good idea to dress the front edges of the height adjustment notches first to reduce their stress concentration effect (a small radius being much better in this respect than a sharp-cornered notch). One half of one fatigue cycle does not result in poorer performance on the next half cycle unless the material is flat-out brittle with essentially zero ductility. Sometimes, cold-working actually improves the strength of metal . . .
Norm
#29
I think altering a safety device that is supposed to keep you alive when an idiot hits you from behind at 55 MPH at a stop sign is troubling. Will it work or will it snap? I've been rearended at 15 MPH and was surprised how hard my head hit the headrest at that speed.
As for the strength of the metal posts and their ability to be bent, that's something each will have to determine for them self. I doubt the rods being that small a diameter are hollow, otherwise they would snap or crack during a rear end collision at 55 mph or when some 225 lb guy started jumping up and down on them.
I think the bottom line is, if the headrest doesn't bother you, don't mess with it. I'm actually a little surprised at how many members on a forum like this seem to be against making modifications to something.
#30
You'll have to pardon my ignorance, but how is something that pokes you in the back of the head if you sit upright going to save your life? I get the safety angle, but I don't see it being a big difference maker when it comes to fatalities, even if it were completely removed.
As for the strength of the metal posts and their ability to be bent, that's something each will have to determine for them self. I doubt the rods being that small a diameter are hollow, otherwise they would snap or crack
I think the bottom line is, if the headrest doesn't bother you, don't mess with it.
I'm actually a little surprised at how many members on a forum like this seem to be against making modifications to something.
Maybe because there is so much less need to DIY other relatively simple mods you might make that there isn't even as much willingness to truly DIY anything any more - somebody somewhere makes what 20 or 30 or 45 years ago you'd have had to DIY-fab, and today you've got the whole internet to help you find it.
How many people just in this thread think of doing a mod entirely themselves as an alternative to buying whatever it is pre-fabbed and maybe even paying somebody else to install it? First things that come to mind are exhaust, cold air intake, fuel delivery systems, and poly-bushed LCAs, so maybe just those are enough for purposes of making my point. Anybody ever fab their own (kits don't count here)?
Norm
Last edited by Norm Peterson; 06-10-2013 at 07:00 AM.