Roll over bar

[else]

Hope i never need one but whats the latest developements?

I have tried a search but found nothing posted lately.

I have looked at pictures of the Rollcentre bar as supplied by Tower View but it looks too low to offer sufficient protection. I'm 6' 1" and with my crash hat on my head just touches the inside of the roof but that roll bar looks like it is a good couple of inches lower. (I guess it needs to be that low for the roof to fold down).

I found some pictures of a twin hoop and a single hoop with two stays from a thread posted about three years ago and supplied by Peninsula but when i telephoned them they sounded unsure and couldn't give me any details, maybe they have discontinued them. Any body on here got either type fitted, if so how is it fixed to the chassis, how well was it made, what's it like in use etc.

My favourite option would be the twin hoop design but with a brace from each going back trough the parcel shelf onto the chassis for added strength. Similar in proportion to the Tuscan Convertible's twin hoops, i think that design looks very good.
Does anybody know of anyone offering that design or perhaps a company that would be prepared to make one for me. I am pretty much discounting the factory offered roll over bar because of reports of it being too close to your head and that it could cause injury in a front end crash with the whiplash scenario.

[chassis 33]

Try Caged www.therollcagepeople.com, theyre supplying the one for the racer, approx £1k for a full race spec MSA certified cage, the cars going down in a week or so's time so I cant comment on their quality of product, but their customer service so far has been the best, which I why I chose them.

However I think you'll stuggle with getting a cage/hoop high enough to miss your head but low enough to fit under the roof of the car.

Regards
Iain

[ATG]

I was in a similar position. Any roll protection that still allows you to fit the roof panel is going to be a compromise because it is going to be too low. Won't make any difference if it's a goal post or a hoop design, so I wouldn't reject the Rollcentre item on that basis unless you're prepared to ditch the roof and go for huge hoops. Can you lower your seat, or recline it further? (Worth noting that Rollcentre bar stops my seat reclining quite as much as it used to do, but the difference is marginal.) I'm looking to replace the seats at some point soon. Objective is to lower my head an inch or two by sitting lower and/or further back, and to get a seat that offers some lower back support and better lateral stability. Good luck

[else]

ATG, good point, i could fit aftermarket seats and mount them lower perhaps direct to the floor. I remember reading somewhere on here that Peter Humphries (GreenV8S)had done exactly that.

[mph.52]

Have had the same problem - Am thinking of a standard roll bar but with a small bolt on hoop for adding on track days/sprints when the roof is off. If you find a solution please be sure to let us all know!

[GreenV8S]

I seem to remember that Richard Blacklee has a rollover bar with seperate removable loops that stick up an extra six inches or so for increased protection when the roof is down. I'm not convinced the bolt on bits are strong enough to be relied on, but it's got to be better than nothing.

[else]

GreenV8S said:

I seem to remember that Richard Blacklee has a rollover bar with seperate removable loops that stick up an extra six inches or so for increased protection when the roof is down. I'm not convinced the bolt on bits are strong enough to be relied on, but it's got to be better than nothing.

Peter, is he a PistonHead, do you have any contact info?

[GreenV8S]

else said:

Peter, is he a PistonHead, do you have any contact info?

Think so but I don't see him here very often. You're more likely to find him at http://autos.groups.yahoo.com/group/TVR_Speed_Champ/

[Podie]

M@H has a twin hoop design... not sure of structural integrity... you'd need to ask him about that.

[else]

Thanks Peter, Podie, I will follow up with them.

[zumbruk]

GreenV8S said:

I seem to remember that Richard Blacklee has a rollover bar with seperate removable loops that stick up an extra six inches or so for increased protection when the roof is down. I'm not convinced the bolt on bits are strong enough to be relied on, but it's got to be better than nothing.

You're right, he does have such a bar. I agree with you about the strength of them - each add-on hoop is held on by what looks like 2 x 10mm Allen bolts. But even with the add-on hoops off, it's the same height as the Rollcentre bar (which I have). Richard got his bar from Guigliemi's (sp?).

Having seen pictures of rolled Chimaeras, which squash flat to the top of the doors (the windscreen surround is only fibreglass and will not support the weight of the car), any kind of rollover protection is a d*mn good idea.