Cool credentials, Eric. I'm a big Allan (sp?) Staniforth fan, I never met him of course (or much less worked with him), and I'll look for your name in my copy of High Speed Low Cost.
Whartonroadster wrote:
I feel that if Lexan windshields are standard fit to NASCAR race cars with speeds up to 200 mph.
They will be more thn adequate for my car on normal road use
Well, if you base your safety claims on what you feel, you shouldn't claim your safety claims are based on tests. I'm pretty lenient when manufacturers make performance claims based on their feelings, but many builders make decisions based on what they believe is safest, and if they don't do the tests themselves, they have to trust their supplier's test data...which is the way it
should be, since many tests destroy (or worse, do hidden damage to) the samples being tested.
Whartonroadster wrote:
I feel that if Lexan windshields are standard fit to NASCAR race cars with speeds up to 200 mph...
And how does this relate to your car? If I claimed, for example, the Kinetic's brake and clutch pedals were proven to a particular test standard, and later said "I feel that if cast aluminum brake pedals are standard fit to NASCAR race cars They will be more than adequate for my car on normal road use," people who had bought my brake pedals would be justifiably pissed off (and so would their estates, but that's a different subject).
I think your conclusion is illogical*. Other than a chemical similarity (both yours and NASCARs are made primarily of polycarbonate) your windshields have nothing in common with what NASCAR does these days. NASCAR windshields are supported around their full perimeter, yours are supported only at the sides. NASCAR windshield are convex, yours are flat. NASCAR windshields are laminated, and I think it's fair to assume you're using single sheet**. I'm sure your windshields will help (some) in a (low speed) bird strike (with a small bird) either back up your safety claims or keep them credible or I'll keep bugging you about them.
I think you could redesign your windshield to pass a rudimentary chicken test, but it'll take some effort. You'll need a rigid top frame and you'll need some sort of barrier at the scuttle (where the windshield rests) that will keep the windshield from flexing backward (into the passenger area).
Whartonroadster wrote:
This is my last word on the subject
Pity. I hope you'll reconsider, particularly if you redesign the windshield to be more robust (you sure don't have to go to NASCAR lengths, but they aren't worried about bird strikes, they're worried about metal debris from other cars). Plus you'll earn extra points if you shoot some chickens at it.
*I was going to say [Baloney] but this is a family forum.
**Or you'd mention you were spending 20x the price of single layer to get two layer laminate.