thinking of a roll cage

[kishg]

nix. the coilovers for the e39 and spend that money on seat time. my se30 cage cost 2.5k with all the additional bits and pieces including nascar bars on the driver side. paul poore in pa did it. mcmahan in ohio is the guru and quite reasonably priced as well. check http://www.rollcageguy.com/

[Mike The Bavarian]

nix. the coilovers for the e39 and spend that money on seat time. my se30 cage cost 2.5k with all the additional bits and pieces including nascar bars on the driver side. paul poore in pa did it. mcmahan in ohio is the guru and quite reasonably priced as well. check http://www.rollcageguy.com/

probably some of the best advice in the whole thread. and that's a fair price for an se30 cage

[dnova89]

Well I didn't mean coilovers for the e39 were going to interfere with seat time, that's always first in my book. If I had to choose I'd choose seat time hands down, but I'm able to save up for them.

So when I start talking to shops about cages, should I have any special knowledge about cages, or do I just tell them I want them to build me a cage for this particular class and that's it? I don't like to trust people I don't know with a project 100%, I like to go into it with some basic knowledge so I can watch out for anything that could be a warning sign that something is wrong/fishy/not what I actually wanted. Not saying I want to breathe down the shop's neck, but I just want to be informed and know a little bit about what I'm paying someone to do for me.


Here's a random question.... what is a node? Is that where the pipes meet together and get welded?

[etxxz]

i would put that money towards track time/travel fees.

we've established that you don't need a cage, and you feel safe without it for now. You'll know exactly when you need a cage.

[Vince30]

Make it out of pvc pipe.

[dnova89]

[kishg]

Definitely do your research, take a look at the cages in SE30 cars at the track, talk to the racers about where they got their cages done. Keep in mind that when you cage, you will likely not be street driving it. Budget for a truck+trailer. Once you choose a cage builder, go over the overall design with him/her. Draw up a design if neccessary and make sure the cage builder is familiar with the class rules.

[fryerfighter94]

Pvc

[Brian D]

Track time first, but if you want to go talk to a damn sharp guy run down to Santa Cruz and talk to Alan Blaine at Blainefab. He'll likely tell you the same as everyone else here, but if you want a bulletproof cage he's the guy to see in your area.

[dnova89]

Okay, thanks everybody. You've all convinced me I'm not ready for a cage. Oh, and waiting until I have a truck/trailer actually sounds like a really good idea... probably won't be till I finish college and get an engineering job, but until then it's cageless track days for me! I'll definitely try to learn as much as I can about it until that day comes.

Thanks guys.

[j0oftheworld]

If it's a street car that you're driving to the track and you see your pace/laptimes coming down I'd go for a bolt-in like I have. It's a nice safety piece that's a perfect compromise since you're not ready to go all out yet. Plus you can always get your money back when you pull the bolt-in for a real jungle-gym!

[e30shmobberr]

you can try getting a auto power roll bar then adding what you want to it.

[XvillainousX]

I do not recommend getting a bolt on cage because, the A pillar bar is dangerously close to your head. They have to make the bolt in cage work with factory sun roof. The harness bar depending upon your height is usually in the wrong location. Everyone has seen the mustang fall on its roof and the bolt in cage burst through the floor.



NASA will allow a bolt in cage for HPDE and thats it.

TC Design in milpitas can do a custom cage in as little as 3 days. Their prices start off at 1800 for a basic SpecE30 cage. If you bring in two or more of the same car you get a 200 dollar discount. From the basic cage, you can pick and choose with configuration you'd like, nascar bar, more diagonal bars, etc etc.