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I thought this would be the best place to get good answers for my question. If thread needs to be moved please do.
I am looking at having a 5-pt roll bar installed in my FRC. I want to be not only "legal' down to 10.0 but I also want it to be safe as possible (not bolt-in).
Do any of you know the exact rules for fitting a bar in a c5 FRC?
Check out either NHRA or IHRA's web site as they give diagrams with measurements regarding bar placement. The only thing that comes to mind right away is the height of the bar behind the seat that runs parallel with the ground. Some of the bolt-in bars have that particular bar too low. The problem occurs when you attach your shoulder belts they end up being too low and are unsafe.
Do you have a professional chassis shop with a good reputation close? If you're not going to go the bolt-in route (which many of us have done with no problems) then having a custom built bar or cage is recommended.
Why are you against a bolt-in bar? We have a Wolfe and it will pass tech, was easy to install and most importantly I feel very safe in the car whether I'm driving or my wife is behind the wheel. It's a very nice product.
A couple of points.
If you are tall, you will need to most likely remove the plastic interior piece at the roofline so the bar can be built taller than your helmet.
I am approx 6', and the nhra tech guy informed me my helmet was above the bar. And not legal. The seat was as low as it would go.
As Scott said, the shoulder harness mount needs to conform to the rules. So if using the hole in the sport seats, assuming you have those, take this into consideration.
My bar failed in both respects.
NHRA rules state that if a car has a full frame, the bar must be welded to the frame. Even though I have a bolt in bar, I have no idea how it legal......wait, I already know it's not!
What really cracks me up is how the side bar mounts on sandwich plates that are secured to a thin piece of balsa wood and fiberglass.....
A competent roll bar shop should be able to build a legal bar with no issues.
NRC Motorsports is in Aiken, SC. Not far from Augusta, GA. They build top notch stuff there. Bob and his son are really good at what they do. Give them a call or go visit them.
A couple of points. If you are tall, you will need to most likely remove the plastic interior piece at the roofline so the bar can be built taller than your helmet.
I am approx 6', and the nhra tech guy informed me my helmet was above the bar. And not legal. The seat was as low as it would go.
As Scott said, the shoulder harness mount needs to conform to the rules. So if using the hole in the sport seats, assuming you have those, take this into consideration.
My bar failed in both respects.
NHRA rules state that if a car has a full frame, the bar must be welded to the frame. Even though I have a bolt in bar, I have no idea how it legal......wait, I already know it's not!
What really cracks me up is how the side bar mounts on sandwich plates that are secured to a thin piece of balsa wood and fiberglass.....
A competent roll bar shop should be able to build a legal bar with no issues.
Ron
Did not realize that Ron about the height issue. Makes sense though. I'm 6'3" so I guess when I get teched from now on I better slide down in the seat.
Regarding the floor and what it's made of I thought the exact same thing. When I was installing ours it was hard not to giggle when you were drilling the holes in the floor for the plates and wood chips came up! I've always wanted to see a C5 with a custom cage to see how they deal with the "no frame wood floor" issue.
It's actually pretty easy Scott. The frame is just to the left of that spot. A simple short bar from that stub to the frame will fix the issue.
Ok. That makes sense. So it wouldn't be a big deal then most likely for a good chassis shop to take a bolt-in bar like ours and modify it to be tied into the frame?
Ok. That makes sense. So it wouldn't be a big deal then most likely for a good chassis shop to take a bolt-in bar like ours and modify it to be tied into the frame?
Scott
Nope. Not at all. If you remove the plastic interior piece in that area, you will see the frame.
I made my own lower plate that goes under the car and it extends under the frame. Was going to weld it to the frame, but never did. Was worried about setting the car on fire. 😊
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