Removing roll cages without a trace - possible?

[Shoestringracer]

Hi,

I'm thinking of fitting a full cage to my car as a safety thing, even though the events I do doesn't require it. It would need to be a fully certified one, with proper installation.

However, the car will have few, if any, other mods and I'll want to sell the car as standard in the future. Obviously with the cage removed. Is this doable?

Thanks

[Trev450]

Its doable, but your biggest problem will be the fixing holes that are left behind. I suppose you could always put rubber grommets in them and hope they pass off as drain holes.

[spikey78]

You could remove all trace but not easily.. Its not just the mounting bolts that you'd need to conceal, but the mounting plates that have to be welded to the floor that the cage bolts to. If, as you say it has to be mounted properly (im assuming MSA) then the floor plates must be welded to the floor and so would have to be ground or cut off afterwards. Do-able, but not a 5 minute job

[moffspeed]

In the States back in the late 1960's Hertz used to rent out Shelby Mustangs at a very reasonable rate.

They abandoned these rentals when some of the cars arrived back at base with an unusual degree of tyre wear and a few additional holes drilled in the floorpan....

[rallycross]

Is this a road car?
Not too safe driving around daily with a roll cage and no helmet on.

[Furyblade_Lee]

rallycross said:

Is this a road car?
Not too safe driving around daily with a roll cage and no helmet on.

It always mistifies me this statement? I have 2 road cars with roll cages, and the cage is only about 2" closer to my head than the solid steel structure of the car is anyway, and from the seated belted position of my seat it is impossible for my head to contact the rollcage? And where theoretically it could, I have some FiA padding fitted.
The closest and most likely thing that could touch my head is the B post not the cage. I always find it a weird statement, and it always crops up!!

[Furyblade_Lee]

[Altrezia]

Furyblade_Lee said:

It always mistifies me this statement? I have 2 road cars with roll cages, and the cage is only about 2" closer to my head than the solid steel structure of the car is anyway, and from the seated belted position of my seat it is impossible for my head to contact the rollcage? And where theoretically it could, I have some FiA padding fitted.
The closest and most likely thing that could touch my head is the B post not the cage. I always find it a weird statement, and it always crops up!!

I think if it's padded you'd be OK, but I'd not want to headbutt any part of a car, so making it 2" closer isn't clever.

[rallycross]

Furyblade_Lee said:

It always mistifies me this statement? I have 2 road cars with roll cages, and the cage is only about 2" closer to my head than the solid steel structure of the car is anyway, and from the seated belted position of my seat it is impossible for my head to contact the rollcage? And where theoretically it could, I have some FiA padding fitted.
The closest and most likely thing that could touch my head is the B post not the cage. I always find it a weird statement, and it always crops up!!

It's not weird in the slightest I've owned a few competition cars that could still be driven on the road and in a few of them my head was very close to the cage (padded) if you had a bump with no helmet you could easily crack your head of the roll cage, it's also a pain in the neck using a race prepared car on the road it's fun for about 5 minutes .

[velocemitch]

I keep reading this statement about Cages and occupants with no Helmets.

Then I go out on a Saturday night and see practically every Road Rally Car on any given event with a Cage and a strict rule from the the MSA that you mustn't wear a Crash Helmet whilst competing.

It's been like that for decades and thousands of Cars have had Cages. We competitors are not all dead....... yet!.

[Furyblade_Lee]

Well I supposed each car is different and it depends how tall you are. As I said, my car presents no issues as my head would hit the normal B pillar first, but as these others say theirs do run close to their heads. At the very least get the roll cage padded with the proper stuff.

[cookracing]

rallycross said:

It's not weird in the slightest I've owned a few competition cars that could still be driven on the road and in a few of them my head was very close to the cage (padded) if you had a bump with no helmet you could easily crack your head of the roll cage, it's also a pain in the neck using a race prepared car on the road it's fun for about 5 minutes .

I had an hour commute in a competition prepped car down the M4, because she wanted the Fiesta 7 days a week so as not to be "stuck in the house" all the time (then complained she was out all day with the kids and knackered...). Anyhoo, it's not fun especially the noisey drone without the sound insulation (after many headaches decided to invest in rubber earphones) and a motorway will seem like a rutted track! Doable put painful...

[Norfolkandchance]

resurecting older thread -but I am the OP!

Still not made a decision but I thought the cages would join at the sill, cos they did on my old car, but have found one for my currect car that goes to the floor.

So, as discussed above, the installer would need to weld the plates to the floor (120cm2 rings a bell) and then bolt (weld?) the cage to them.

So, I guess I'd need to grind off the weld to remove the plate and then fill any holes. It wouldn't have to be absolutely perfect as it would go under the carpet from above and underseal / dirt from below...

I'd pay someone else to do it but could it be done? I guess the plate would be very close to the sill on one edge.

[Oilchange]

I think it's possible but not a shoestring

Seriously though if you go to someone like Andy Robinson you will get a good idea

[iguana]

Plates on floor is not really enough, need to tie into sill.

Either way not really an issue, carpet & trim can cover many types of bolt in cage interior evidence when cage is removed & new underseal on the floorpan exterior.

Edited by iguana on Sunday 18th January 23:43

[PhillipM]

To be honest, it just depends how good you want to hide it, it's possible to make it so you couldn't ever tell, but it'd take time to let the new steel into the floorpan where the mounts were, etc. You'd do a reasonable job just chopping the mounts and hiding what's left under the carpet as you say.