Harness or roll bar?

[Rick Lee]

The local consensus is that I need a roll bar or cage for my SC. But a very reputable source told me the other day that a harness bar was sufficient, since he'd never seen a roof cave in on a rolled 911 at the track. My SC will become a track car, but will be kept street legal. I keep putting off getting track seats until I know what safety device I will get first. Of course, I'd like to save money. I plan on about 5 DE's per year in this car. What do you guys think?

[}{arlequin]

Hey Richard,
Pari, Charlie and I had the exact same debate yesterday. After seeing some accidents on track, I'd definitely go for the roll bar first. The fact that a 911 roof does or does not cave in is just not solid enough for me to feel that comfortable about it. There is always a chance for some funny roof slide where the a-pillar will hit a curb and then buckle. I wouldn't take that chance, esp since a rollbar will probably cost $200 more than a harness bar. Weigh in $200 vs. an injury..... what's nicer to surrender?

[Vipergrün]

Rollbar - offers a lot more peace of mind and safery. I started our with a Brey Krause harness bar, but ended up with a DAS rollbar. If you are gonna spend 450.00 on an autopower or other bar, you may as well blow yer wad on a DAS or one from TRE.

[jbryant]

I think I remember hearing Potomac will not allow instructors to ride in cars with harnesses and no rollbar. I could be wrong though.

[jpnovak]

Fit the roll bar. Get on that sits up on the sills, not the floor.

Go down the street and get a bar from OGR. Great setup, well designed. The cross bar doubles as a harness bar. Kurt would probably weld it in for you.

[Todd Simpson]

I've only seen one car roll at a DE, an '85 Carrera. The roof came down about a foot when the car rolled in the gravel outside turn 10 at Summit point.

Sounds like the DAS removeable roll bar would be a good solution. They make it easy to return the car to stock and an added bonus is their popularity makes them easy to sell for a good price down the road.

[widebody911]

Actually, a decent roll bar will have an integrated harness bar - a win-win situation!

[lally911]

Get the roll bar. I started with the BK truss and soon went to a roll bar for added security and safety. Like Jamie says, find one that attaches to the sills and not the floor. Safety Devices has a nice one that you can later add on the front part if desired.

I don't know who this was but it shows how quickly it can happen.

http://www.buoy.com/~lally/car/lrprollover.mpg

[masraum]

That's what happens when you try to follow a 911 in a subaru.

"...easy off the gas to bring the back end around"

It sounded like he was trying to make a training video, apparently it was a video about the wrong way to do it.

[Eric Mckenna]

go hoop or full cage..

[Jack Olsen]

The roof only has to cave in a few inches to compress your spine.

[Rick Lee]

Looks like the roll bar yeas have it. I have a few leads, but if anyone is unloading one cheap, keep me in mind. And I'm dying for Sparco Evo II's, but they never show up used.

[}{arlequin]

Richard,
Charlie is sourcing one real soon. Contact him to see where he got it.

[jbryant]

Richard,

This guy:
Dave 1-540-295-6569
has two used ones for sale cheap.

[Noel]

A picture is worth a thousand words. BTW, this was a DE accident.

[arrivederci]

I agree with everyone else - roll bar. I have the safety devices full cage in my '72 if you're interested in taking a look at it. I'm pretty happy with it. Its a nice, tight fit against the headliner.

Also, last I heard there OGR bars were on sale. Not sure if that's still going on...

[}{arlequin]

Originally posted by Noel
A picture is worth a thousand words. BTW, this was a DE accident.

see??.... Turbos DO look good w/o the whaletail

Good pic, Noel.

[Zeke]

Originally posted by Rick Lee
Looks like the roll bar yeas have it. I have a few leads, but if anyone is unloading one cheap, keep me in mind. And I'm dying for Sparco Evo II's, but they never show up used.

I'm sure you have heard the expression, "If you have a ten dollar head, buy a ten dollar helmet." I think this is attributed to Bill Simpson. Why would you want to worry about a hundred bucks on a roll bar? If you are going to the track, remember you can lose it all. In more ways than one.

That said, I think a harness bar is suitable for autox; no more than that.

Jack is right. If you are strapped in and have a helmet on, your neck can be compromised. It's not the same as having a 3 pt. on with no helmet.

Most rollovers are simple affairs, but there's always the one that is violent. Look at how many hit the wall with little or no ill effects, and then along comes Earnhart, who was no stranger to the wall, and he dies. Some say it was the way he used the safety equipment. Whatever. Use the safety equipment.

There is no budget on safety, only a deficiency. (No, I don't have everything I could have, so don't flame me. I do understand the need for a complete safety package and can still recommend that my fellow drivers get equipped.)

[strupgolf]

Where do I look for a good harness bar. I dont plan to DE or track, I would just like one for the street. Thanks

[PorscheGuy79]

I have a question, can anyone post pics of their roll bars. I have always wanted one with a diagonal crossbar across the back. Are there ones like this?