My next three mods will be the following, in no particular order: suspension - to go faster around turns brakes - to stop faster going into turns roll cage - for when the first two options fail I plan on doing my own cage, that is once my welding skills improve. I want to keep a FULL interior. Carpets...roofs...backseats...everything...I've always thought it was foolish to buy a four door, 5 passenger car just to remove any of the seats. I've come across pictures here and there, but can't seem to find any at this point. If anybody knows where any such links are, please post up or post ideas and opinions. Just doing my research now, want to learn as much as possible.
Found this - pretty damn good looking build. More bends than I'd want, but gets the general idea down
I'm thinking about doing the same thing. I dont see how you would be able to use the back seats though, and you'll probably have to cut the door panels.
I know a guy with a fully built evo with a cage and functional back seats. If i can get a hold of him i'll let you know about the build
Full cages and street driving are somewhat of a death trap without a helmet. I know many people do this, but just keep that in mind. That cage you are building for safety on the track, is horribly unsafe on the street.
Who, Dan? We just modified his rear seats to make them fit around the cage. If it is going to be a DD I would not recommend a cage. You could do a harness bar at the very least but you would need to not have anyone ride in the back seat.
To keep the rear seats useful you have to put a bend in the bars going to the back shock towers which I think will keep it from being legal with most organizations. If you are going to put a full cage in you need to get seats as well. I wouldn't recommend doing your cage yourself its not as easy as you would think. I would have Dan at BG or the guys at Robinson racing do it, either way its going to be between 2000 and 3000 dollars.
LOL I found the roll cage - when first two options fail quote freaking hilarious. Rollcages on a street car is just stupid IMO. I had a friend that had a daily with a cage and he slammed on the brakes one time and jerked the wheel when someone cut him off......I ended up with a mild concussion from my head hitting the cage. I was very :unamused:.
A slow bump could kill you if your head hits the bar. And, REALLY BIG crashes are worse because you don't have crumple zones... On a track you generally don't hit head-on. If you want to 5-point harness and helmet yourself and passengers for a trip to the grocery store go for it. If not, you'll be safer as-is.
McCoy is the only one making sense...the others have lost their damn mind. This car sees less than 2k miles per year. Of that 2k, 1.9 are spend at WOT. Of those 1.9, 1.89 are spent without people in the back seat. FYI, if you hit your head on the cage in while strapped in the front seat, you deserve to die a painful death. The point of this thread was to find a fucking cage that keeps your interior. While I understand it may not be the brightest idea doing this, if you people think that not having a cage in 500whp car is WORSE than wearing a 3-point harness, GTFO of this thread. It's a track / fun car, not a fucking grocery getter
Sorry Drew but the reason it only sees 2k per year is that you've had it in pieces. If you really want a track day car, starting with a 4 door sedan is probably not the best way to go. I hate to see someone take a nice car, go for mega power and spend the rest of the time with the car changing down annoying problems which ultimately end up in frustration and then selling the car. When I worked at a shop I saw it all the time. Buy a 2nd gen RX-7 track only car and enjoy your Subie in one piece.
I had a customer with an Autopower bolt in cage on his evo. Basically right where your head is there is a big bolt. Really scary if you are not wearing a helmet.
If the car is 98% track use as you described, then of course a cage is far safer. I think the pros and cons have been made. We just didn't want people to think that full cages in street cars are safe. But there are a lot of things that people do that are unsafe, so I am not one to judge. Make your own decisions and live with them. And for what it's worth, the medium density foam padding alluded to is for helmet to bar contact. Without a helmet, it provides very little in the way of protection.
Good rule of thumb: when you install a cage, take out every OEM/retractable seat belt and then never drive the car on a public road again. So, you're thinking a 4 seater track car is a good idea... ANd you know what a cage means for the front... (helmets and harness every mile) but why do you care about back seats? Do you really want/need to helmet and harness 4 people??? I would NEVER harness myself into the back seat of a car... God... could you imagine?! I get scared enough strapped into the front passenger seat... Fuck that! Plus with you behind the wheel...
Yeah, and roll bar padding is 99.9% useless. If your cage needs padding you don't want it!!!1!!one! Only reason you need it is to keep SCUFFS off your HELMET getting in and out.
Just make the cage out of pvc piping and paint it black! Hell you could even fill the piping with cement if you wanna get official! Good luck man!
I hear ya bro, well put, if you want a cage like that you will need to find someone that is willing to let you use a tubing bender and custom fit it how you want it. If you dont feel like you can handle it PM me and I will build ya one.
I feel bad for those who will be spending 10 miles a year riding in your back seat with a cage surrounding them. Hope is isn't little kids...