It's not so much the thought that you would be able to physically move out of the way, it's the idea that you can be pushed out of the way. It may not be by your own doing, however if a car rolls, your body is flexible enough that should you end up upside down, even if unconscious, your torso may bend forward (in a 3 pt. seatbelt) and then all you're supporting is the weight of your body.

If you're strapped into a 5 pt. harness with no proper roll protection, then your body is unable to bend if it needs to. Should you end up upside down without adequate roll protection, there is the possibility that the weight of the car will be on your head, since your upper body is unable to move or be pushed away. Note that Pastrana in your video has adequate roll protection.

Personally, I'm not going to say what anyone should or shouldn't do, but maybe that there are risks to be aware of. If you roll upside down in a 3-pt seatbelt and die, don't come blaming me 'cause I said you'd be safe, and if you're perfectly fine bolted into a 5-pt upside down, more power to you.

 

4pt without anti-sub belt. No thanks. 6pt for me, thanks.

 

This applies to a roll cage not a roll bar.

 

In regards to people saying they would be able to move themselves just right in event of an accident. That is a load of BULL. As a Firefighter who has seen numerous accidents and talked to numerous accident victims. And as someone who was hit nearly head on by a drunk driver, I can safely say that no one has that type of reaction time and strength.

One, you are thinking about avoiding the accident not positioning your body. Two in a roll the centrifugal force form the roll and/or the force of the impacts IS going to pull your head up if your trying to hold it down. I don't think people realize the sheer amount of force involved, think about it. unbelted people get thrown out of cars and often land a good distance away, that is a lot more force than you can resist with your neck.

If you want an idea of what it would be like in a 30mph crash, drop somethign the weight of your head off the 3rd or 4th floor of a building and catch it on your head and just try to keep your neck straight. now think about the fact that most rolls are at a higher speed than that.

In reality it is going to be an outside force (IE the ground) that is going to move you out of the way and prevent you from supporting the whole car with your body. if you are trying to hold yourself in one position you are going to be trying to resist far more force than you can handle and are going to get hurt worse

As someone who has seen the aftermath of numerous accidents I will leave you all with this. the smartest thing to do in ANY accident, INCLUDING a rollover in an S, is to go a limp as you can, just ragdoll it. this was your body is not resisting the forces and you are less likely to be seriously hurt. Every seriously injured victim I have pulled out has either A) been a retard and not worn their seatbelt, B) been in a situation where nothing was going to prevent it, or C) tryed to resist the forces of the crash in some way. A and C are avoidable, B is not.

 

HAHAHA.

But seriously, a roll-BAR with 3-pt belts (stock) is acceptable for the street for purely roll-over protection. However a CAGE should be used for track duty vehicle with 4+ point harnesses.

All of this is purely my opinion on the matter, but I like to think it counts sometimes

 

No need to me.. I stand by what I said. In a comfortable seating position, I'm far enough back to be in danger of hitting my head on the vertical support of the roll bar which would be right over my left shoulder, and close to being flush with the seat.

Sure, that's a LOT less danger than a full cage, but it's still something to smash my head into that wasn't there before.

I wouldn't put a roll bar in my car without a racing seat and a harness.

If you're shorter, I think that danger is seriously reduced.

Of course, this is all just my own, often incorrect opinion. YMMV.

 

I have a roll bar in my street/track car...it improves chassis rigidity and you need one due to regulations

 

[QUOTE=i_heart_my_DB8,Feb 19 2010, 01:14 PM]That's what your neck is for.

 

Um... did you read the rest of the thread, particularly where I clarified by saying this?:

[QUOTE=i_heart_my_DB8]It's not so much the thought that you would be able to physically move out of the way, it's the idea that you can be pushed out of the way.

 

And I think this is exactly what i_heart_my_DB8 is trying to say. Can't really "go limp" when you have a 5pt harness strapping you in. In a stock belt...I can flop around pretty much anywhere.

Anyway, I don't want to beat a dead horse.