- :
- San Antonio, Texas
- :
- '15 CX-5 Miata AWD
Noticed this as I was disconnecting the battery to weld a socket on a stuck bolt (which I failed at and hurt my finger grabbing the hot socket later lol). There is a crack over the spot weld of that little bracket, which is attached to the shock tower. The brackets sole purpose is to act as an bolt spot for the bar that runs under and serves as a attachment point for the cowling. When I go back I'm going to throw some weld on it (didn't think about it at the time).
Point being that the same stresses that led to that failure are on the shock tower as well. The bar helps reduce the stress by sharing the load with the other tower. If the shock tower cracks or warps your gonna have a bad day lol (bad alignment at best).