Thank you in advance for your opinions.

I am at a point where I would like to add some level of roll over protection in my S. Last year I did 3 HPDE events and in 2007 I am planning on doubling that number. The issue I am having is that my S is my daily driver and sees about 20k miles a year. Also, due to family planning, I may only have the car for another year or two.

The way I see it now:

Roll Bar
+ Best protection
+ Can use harnesses!!
- Decrease resale value
- Effect on safety of car for daily driving


Hardtop
+ Increase daily livability in winter months
+ Increase resale value of car
- Not as much protection (any?)
- No harnesses

I figure cost offsets itself between a higher initial investment in the hardtop, but it also increases resale.

I did see the pictures that Clark posted on his recent roll and the protection provided by the GFL bar. Has anyone seen pictures of an S with a HT rolled?

Thanks for your input.

Dan

 

I have a hardtop that I use in the winter months and have had it on for some track events as well. I would not rely on the hardtop for protection in a roll over situation at all and honestly have to wonder if it would even stay in place. In my opinion the fasteners are nowhere near strong enough to withstand those forces from what I can see. If someone can prove me wrong on that point I am all ears, but I would rather not find that out myself through personal experience.

FWIW I do have a roll bar in my car, but I also plan on keeping the car for a while and it is my daily driver as well. I typically do anywhere from 10 to 15 track events per year and definitely wanted to be able to have a harness for the track.

 

The hardtop has no structural protection whatsoever. If you rolled the car with a hardtop, you would have a flattened hardtop with protrusions where it molded itself to the existing roll protection, be it factory hoops or an aftermarket bar. Please don't buy a hardtop in lieu of proper rollover protection and think you've done anything to enhance your safety.

A hardtop can work as an adjunct to roll protection, but not as a replacement for same.

 

It's better to think of the hardtop as providing intrusion protection rather than structural rollover protection.

 

I agree... Especially if the tracks you run on have sand pit run off's.

 

Thanks for the input. I have not seen a HT and didn't realize was not very rigid in design. It looks like the roll bar is the only way to add the protection.

Thanks,
Dan

 

I wouldn't say it's not rigid, but from a rollover stand point it's level of added protection is no substitute for a roll bar. Keep in mind it's only clamped to the body at 4 points and it's aluminum.

As your sometimes instructor, more crash protection is never a bad thing.

One of the other NASA instructors used to have a S2000 with stock roll tubes extended up higher, basically as high as the stock stop allowed. It had some shifter boot type upolstry work between the cut off stock plastic pieces. That way to put it back to stock, you just bolt a stock bar back in and by 4 trim pieces.

edit: here's picture of the stock, bolt-on, roll hoops and the trim pieces that go over them

 

[QUOTE=jlucas,Oct 22 2006, 04:53 AM]I wouldn't say it's not rigid, but from a rollover stand point it's level of added protection is no substitute for a roll bar.

 

The stock hoops offer some protection but NOTHING compared to a proper rollbar. The hardtop does not offer any structural rigidity or rollover protection but it does keep your bits inside the car.

In a racing situation a convertible/open-top car usually requires both a normal cage plus arm straps designed to keep your arms in the car in the event of a rollover. The hardtop and a window net removes the need for the arm straps but not the cage. In racing form the hardtop needs to be permanently attached with hardware; the latches must go.

FYI

 

Well, it looks like the decision will continue to be a tough one. My previous car had a full roll cage built by a semi local fabricator (Mark McMahan) that builds cages for cars. http://www.twingles.com/dsm/pics/090299/ I may have to see what he could do for this car.

Thanks,
Dan