helmet damage?

[DCNSX]

I lent my helmet to a friend for a track day unfortunately he wrecked the car. Hit the front corner of his NSX doing maybe 20mph and apparently the front of the car is smashed up to the windshield. The car is totalled. His airbag deployed absorbing most of his body's impact. However, the helmet scraped the roof and has a scuff to prove it. The driver says clearance was only about a quarter-inch from the roof before the accident. (He and the instructor had some pretty serious bruises but were otherwise unhurt).

My question: I have heard that if a helmet suffers an impact (in some cases even dropping it hard) that it should be replaced. Based on the description above should the helmet be replaced? Is there a way to measure/determine an impact to the helmet? My feeling is that it was more of a "scrape" than a head-on type of impact ...but I would rather be safe than sorry.

 

[digimanoc]

As far as I know,any damage to a helmet requires you to replace it. In days gone by, the rule was to replace a helmet every year or two due to the effects of age on the shell/liner/padding even without any visible damage.
Comes down to how much you life is worth vs the cost of a new helmet.

 

[MarkB]

Howard,

I would definitely replace it. I come from a motorcycle background and made a practice of replacing my helmet biannually or if it was dropped more than a couple of inches onto a hard surface. Although some of us have really hard heads, it doesn't pay to play where a helmet is concerned.

 

[Peter Mills]

Howard:
You can direct your helmet question directly to the Snell Foundation (www.smf.org) as I did for a fellow instructor earlier this season. Snell's concern is the interior of the helmet. If there is an impact the interior cushioning is compressed therefor compromising all future protection. Sorry, but you'll have to invest in a new helmet.

 

[nsxtasy]

should the helmet be replaced?

Yes.

Sorry, but you'll have to invest in a new helmet.

IMO the person who borrowed the helmet should buy you a new one.

 

[DCNSX]

Thank you all. The borrower has offered to replace the helmet so that's what we'll do.

 

[Sig]

Hit the front corner of his NSX doing maybe 50mph and apparently the front of the car is smashed up to the windshield.

Get the new helmet.

 

[VBNSX]

this looks like a suitable replacement

http://www.speedwaremotorsports.com/helmet/sparco.asp

i mean dang.. u can't go wrong.. look it's wind tunnel tested!

x