Roll cages

[Rik178m]

If I made a roll cage myself what would this stop me from racing in? Howmuch does a rollcage cost on a budget?

[Cabrio]

You could not enter a proper event with a homemade cage...you could do trackdays...but unless do it well it could be more dangerous than no cage..if it breaks in an accident

The MSA are bringing in new regulations for cages soon and all DIY fitting will be then questioned (weld in cages)

Plenty of options for the E30 for bolt in cages - OMP, Sparco and Safetydevices (priced in that order if on a budget)

OMP bolt in and Safetydevices on ebay at present

If you cost the CDS (steel) you need which would be the cheapest material and your time etc

If on a budget OMP will do you but need to cut out sunroof if have one
OR
Safetydevices do a rear section with single diagonal so could get just the rear and add the front when have more money

Depends on your skill with a welder and cost paying for metal....if can get for free so just your time and only doing track days and good at welding then you could have a go and then still buy one later...hope that helps

[Rik178m]

Yep that helps alot mate thanks. See how my finances are when the time comes then! Checked ebay and theyre around £800!!!! Are rollcages only made from steel as I'm guessing thats abit heavy?

[Cabrio]

There is also an OMP one for £375 and I know if you can buy just a rear Safetydevices will be less again if only single diagonal rather than the X with harness bars...no problem

There are pros and cons of all the cages but as your on a budget then you wil have to do some of the work like paint the cage yourself and can fit one of these yourself...the more expensive ones are powder coated and generally better made...good luck

[Cabrio]

Most cages are made from either CDS, FE45 or CrMo...different weights but have to be strong and different costs...some people are trying to do Carbon cages but cant see this happening

[iguana]

Yep that helps alot mate thanks. See how my finances are when the time comes then! Checked ebay and theyre around £800!!!! Are rollcages only made from steel as I'm guessing thats abit heavy?

As said above OMP bolt in about the cheapest, can fish around & get sub £350, fine to race with in many series. Will take just a few hours to sort out the weld in feet plates.

Approx 25-30kg


If you are after a custom weld in jobbie from £1000 fitted up to £several K area for something mega.

[12345kevin]

Yep that helps alot mate thanks. See how my finances are when the time comes then! Checked ebay and theyre around £800!!!! Are rollcages only made from steel as I'm guessing thats abit heavy?

It may be a lot, but at the end of the day, what is your safety and possibly life worth ! I would budget for good safety equipment before considering mods to car etc.

[agreen]

i have a full saftey devices bolt incge rear cross over harness bars door bars dash suport,

looks great

- oversized tubing
- powder coated already
- looks the buisness
- upgrades avalable like double cross door bars

i had to save for long and i mean a long time for this cage but its worth it as now i have a solid shell with a solid cage

save and buy a sd mate its the way to go honest

[billgatese30]

- oversized tubing

what size is oversized??

what is its outside diameter and what is the wall thickness?

[agreen]

i mean the tubing itself

ie the outside is bigger in diameter than the omp cage

when you see them next to each other the omp looks skinny

i just think it makes it look better being bigger in diameter

imo

[Cabrio]

With cages you tend to get what you pay for ...but as stated before need to consider use

Some people stock the cages and deal with them all the time...others may order in...take some advice from recognised manufacturer or supplier if not clear, as lots of misinformation around...good luck

[billgatese30]

i mean the tubing itself

ie the outside is bigger in diameter than the omp cage

when you see them next to each other the omp looks skinny

i just think it makes it look better being bigger in diameter

imo

i know what you mean

i was just wondering if it was 1"5/8ths or 1"3/4, wether it was a 3mm or 4mm wall thckness, i was just curious

[Cabrio]

He means the tube diameter

[UweM3]

i mean the tubing itself

ie the outside is bigger in diameter than the omp cage

when you see them next to each other the omp looks skinny

i just think it makes it look better being bigger in diameter

imo

i know what you mean

i was just wondering if it was 1"5/8ths or 1"3/4, wether it was a 3mm or 4mm wall thckness, i was just curious

4mm wall thickness, holy cow! Do you know how much that would weigh?? It's more in the region of 2 -2.5 depending on tube dia.

You can't judge a cage just buy the diametre of the tubing. Wall thinkness and material play a big part. As better the steel, as thinner the gauge.

have a read here, page 15. (some good information about mounting your harness as well)
http://argent.fia.com/web/fia-public.ns ... penelement

[billgatese30]

I realise this, but assumed that the omp cages wouldn't be cro-moly or anything like that

i helped remove a safety devices cage from a VW Beetle the other week that was fairly small diameter.

i think it was only about 1"1/2 but was 4mm wall thickness (measured it with a mic)

I thought it was massively excessive too.

The new regs for his series demand at least 1"5/8 with at least a 2.5mm thickness i think, and can't remeber what the steel spec was now though, its a twat to bend though

[jibowski]

theres an omp 6 point on ebay now for 400ish

[Timbopbmw]

OMP can be a pain to fit , and you have to weld the door bars and mounts yourself (well on a 205)

ive gone for a sparco cage for the e30 , dead easy to fit slighty more expensive at £500ish but better quality and seems a realy nice finish!

[Cabrio]

The cages for PBMW challenge are CDS as per Safetydevices cages - see website www.safetydevices.com they also give info on different cage materials and structures if interested

The OMP cages currently for the E30 tend to be T45 for 6 point and CrMo for 10 point etc..which although are FIA you cant use in PBMW challenge and RWD challenge...remember there are minimum weights

There are BMW specialists that supply all the different makes and can give advice

[Black_Potato]

If you plan on racing in a series make sure you read the regs as many can change.

But as had been said, PBMW is FIA approved CDS only..

There is an example of what is onvolved to install a SD cage here...
The next step up from this is a full weld in custom cage.

[MJG]

I'm getting a full weld in custom cage from a mate who's just starting up his own fab/cage/general car work shop ProCage. PM him on www.driftworks.com his username is Clarkey. If you are interested. Would be around £600 all told for a custom item depending on what you want. Other than that, fabricage are popular in the drifting circles and do decent bolt in custom cages so if you wreck your car you can put the cage in another one

[Cabrio]

Cant comment on regs for drifting...but I do know they wont be the same as Racing and Rallying that have to be within MSA or FIA regulations ...but good luck with the new business

I would be carful with the name Custom Cages as it is the name of a brand and company...cheers

[northloop]

I dont think there is a right or wrong cage to buy............ You can buy cheap (ish) bolt in cages which would probably do the job. You can buy something comprehensive like a 'custom cage' product and it will cost around £750 to buy plus another £1000 to fit. Or you can get someone to make one up for you from scratch. I like to think that buying one from a supplier to their pattern means the concept has been tested before it gets to my car. The first time one made from scratch gets tested is when I hit something.

Loads of variants - no rights and wrong - personal choice.

plus of course whatever your race series calls for .........

[MJG]

Sorry didn't realise "custom cage" would cause copyright infringement, just saying it is a "custom cage" as it is a cage that is custom.

Drifting does have it's own rules, correct, but they are pretty much in line with MSA/FIA guidelines, if not exactly the same.

I'll get pictures up when/if I get it done in a few weeks, and if you like what you see then by all means contact my friend.