914 B-pillars structual?

[The Glademister]

I'm looking at the SCCA Solo Prepared rules to see if I can get through testing and tuning without a roll bar or cage...

17.12 SAFETY
A. Roll Bars/Roll Cages (Aluminum is not an allowed material.)
1. All open Prepared Category vehicles shall have at a minimum a
roll bar complying with Appendix C.
2. It is recommended that all cars be equipped with a roll cage meeting
the requirements of the Club Racing GCR. Compliance with
this requirement supersedes the need to comply with Section
17.12.A.1.
3. Roll bars and cages may either be bolted or welded to the vehicle.

The way I read it, I'll at least have to put the targa top on unless that sail is considered a roll bar.

[Dave at Pelican Parts]

The targa bar was considered a roll bar waaaaaay back when, but I do not believe that it has been in a decade or more. Put the top on for your test & tune. Anecdotally, the top contributes noticeably to the chassis stiffness of the car, and did even when these cars were new!

--DD

[The Glademister]

Originally Posted by Dave at Pelican Parts

The targa bar was considered a roll bar waaaaaay back when, but I do not believe that it has been in a decade or more. Put the top on for your test & tune. Anecdotally, the top contributes noticeably to the chassis stiffness of the car, and did even when these cars were new!

--DD

Copy that Dave. I don't plan on cutting off the Targa bar in the future. I haven't looked at it that hard but can you put the top on without the front and rear trim pieces?

[Dave at Pelican Parts]

You should be able to put it on, but I am not sure how well it will stay on. The front seal (the expensive one, naturally!!) seems particularly necessary to keep the roof from rattling and being loose. Possibly loose enough to come off? I'm not sure.

The front latches are adjustable, but the rears are not--unless you put some tubing over the pins, at least.


To re-state: The rear should be fine; it presses against the top of the Targa bar. The front gets pulled forward so the tongue of the roof fits in the groove in the windshield frame, and the seal across the frame may contribute to the security of the latch.

--DD

[The Glademister]

Originally Posted by Dave at Pelican Parts

To re-state: The rear should be fine; it presses against the top of the Targa bar. The front gets pulled forward so the tongue of the roof fits in the groove in the windshield frame, and the seal across the frame may contribute to the security of the latch.

--DD

Copy that Dave. I think I actually saved that front seal when I stripped the interior. Oddly, much of that upper trim was in pretty good shape aside from the ant nests that were under it. I guess the ants were eating the mold and mildew