roll cage fo a e30 with a sunroof

[nm1]

hi there is there such a roll cage that lets you keep your sunroof

thanks in advance

nicky

[ross_jsy]

Yep.

Believe Sparco do one and possibly OMP too.

If you are going for a dedicated track shlag then why not loose the sun roof?

[Kos]

safety devises also a 6 point bolt in cage

the omp one's standard is not great, thinner tubing and poor welding.

[ross_jsy]

Out of the 3 I would go with safety devices then.

Before I had the car my friend bought a Sparco which he said was a really bad fit before going Safety Devices 18 pointer and removing the sun roof.

[Kos]

i've bought 2 cages for 2 of my cars, both safety devises 6 point "bolt ins" one for a compact and one for an e30

both were mock fitted ready for tack welding the strngtheninig base plates and box sections into place in a cuple of hours

perfect fit with no aggro.

[Driftben]

just wondering as im in the process of removing my sunroof, how would you fill the sunroof hole back in after the removal of the sunroof assembly?

[MillRat]

Cut all the sunroof rail housing away, but leave a 10mm lip all around the sunroof hole. Use the sunroof panel to fill the hole then bolt the sunroof panel to the 10mm lip (this is tricky, and I used 12mm U bar alloy to provide extra support). Then, using lots of silastic, sikaflex, whatever you call it, fill the gap around the sunroof panel on the outside of the car. If done properly, the sunroof will look competely standard from the outside, yet almost flat with the roof lining from the inside.

Mine without cage (unpainted);


With cage (painted);


Roof;


All up took about 5 hours (just becareful when angle grinding inside of the car as it is very easy to scour the windows with the sparks, particularly the front window).

[MillRat]

Also, you can see in my second picture, that the front headline bar sits where the sunroof winding mechanism and CEL cluster use to. This is the bar that, in my opinion, makes keeping the sunroof very difficult (and still have a strong, safe cage). Having said that, I built my cage to Australian tarmac rally specification, so it is a little more full on than a club sprint cage.

[ross_jsy]

There is a guy local to me who made a wood mould of a sunroof in mdf. Beats a sheet of steel round it ready to be tacked in. Charged me £100 for it fitted.

[Petrolthreads]

I need a new cage I think

[MillRat]

There is a guy local to me who made a wood mould of a sunroof in mdf. Beats a sheet of steel round it ready to be tacked in. Charged me £100 for it fitted.

That sounds like a good option (it plays no part in the chassis stiffness). Racing catagories here in Australia (well the one's I can afford to race in) typically don't allow any other material than than original (for example, you can't replace a steel sunroof panel with a CF panel). That is why I used the orginal panel.

[Driftben]

Ah cheers michael. That's cleared that up. I'll get on and get this started because I need to get my Cage started and in.

[Lloydie38]

I took the sunroof out, what a pain in the arse, get a cage that will fit and is painted (not like my OMP one)

Easier for sure...

[MillRat]

^^ clean job!! ^^

Did you do the welding? If so, well done! I hear that roofs are a total bitch to weld properly.

If you got the welding skills, this is the way to go. As most people don't (me for one), then using the old sunroof panel is the easier and cheaper option.

[Nine468]

Lloydie.
Where did you get the large BMW roundel/decal on the roof.??? I want one or 2...Ta.

[Lloydie38]

I got a local sign maker to make it for me....£80 fitted

A pal did the welding and it is a skill I too have not got! Welded it in place with the help of some small plates and then filled the gaps... it looks really good but the underside is not that pretty...

[Nine468]

£80.. not cheap then....