mglobe

I could not agree more with this, and also with the comments from Larry & RedLine about being educated about the issues with the various pieces of safety equipment. Know what risks/issues are associated with each modification you make to your car, and make a well thought out decision about what you should/should not do. Also, keep in mind that while DE is not a risk free pursuit, neither is the drive to and from the track.

With respect to the compromise made with using a street car, it certainly seems to be one we all run into as we get faster & more experienced. Personally, I can't see having more than a harness bar with five/six point harnesses in a car that serves dual purpose. Once you go to a roll bar or more, it's a track car. I also agree with the comment about r-compunds on a dual purpose car. Probably better to just live with the limitations of your car than put race tires on a dual-purpose un-caged car.

mdrums -- I completely understand the issue of both the cost and the logistics of having a second track-only car. I'm laying out the ground work for what I hope is a track dedicated car in the future. It's made more complicated for you by the need for a tiptronic. FWIW, older boxters, are now pretty affordable, as are even early year 996's, which can be had in the 20's. Both are available with tips. Storage can be found. Talk to the racers, & you'll get some ideas. As far as a tow vehicle, my solution in the future will probably be to rent a pickup truck for track weekends. At least around my part of the world this is doable. Beats having to own one as far as I'm concerned.

Larry Herman

Gary, you crack me up. You spend more in entry fees in a month than I spend in half a season!

Gary R.

Well Larry, I said it didn't work for me!

Noel

I do like that!!!

mdrums

Problem with Boxters is I can not fit my 6'5" frame in them with a prosthetic leg that does not bend like a human leg. Even when I had a human left leg my wife had a 2001 Boxster S 6 speed and I could drive it for all of 30minute and had to get out because I got all cramped up.
Actually I have put a lot of thought into this and maybe soon I will work something out and either a 2005 997S with Tip will get cheap enought or a 2003-04 BMW M3 with seq shift tranny will work...but...I enjoy the Porsche and want to stay with that.

mdrums

Oh and about the R-Comps....I bought a set of track wheels and Toyou R1's because that way is cheaper than replacing the stock super expensive street tires. To be honest I have as much fun on street tires than the Toyo RA1's...if I could get street tires as cheaper than the RA1's I'd go that route probably.

dwe8922

This thread caught my attention. With my 993, the first mods I made were rollbar, seats, harnesses, and hans. I ran this way with track tires for a year before I replaced my well worn M030 suspension at stock height. Now, I made good on a long time promise to myself and bought an early Ferrari 360 coupe. Problem with that car is, hardly anyone changes them from stock (or really tracks them), and mounting steel rollbars/harness bars is a very big job. So, I am looking at mounting a one piece seat, and fabricating a harness bar to mount harnesses to. I would be very grateful (pretty please) to the experts if you wouldn't mind looking at the thread I started asking for advice on how to do it:

https://rennlist.com/forums/racing-and-drivers-education-forum/414031-need-help-designing-a-harness-bar-and-seat-mounts-f360.html

As for the 993, I plan to go ahead and convert it the rest of the way to run in G stock, or sell it to go 996 in H with all the safety equipment neccessary, and then continue to do DE's with my friends in the 360.

greg911

I went with GT3 seats with 6 pt harness. Also purchased a roll bar with a removable center because I need storage in the back seat for those 3 day Watkins Glen trips! I agree safety is first and anything you can do to provide safety to yourself is number one.

DGuida

Driving on the street with roll bar is very dangerous

mdrums

Looking into that as well. I stopped by the U-Haul place to check rates and so forth on their pick up truck rentals and found out you are not allowed to tow another vehicle with a U-Haul pick up truck. Oh well scratch that idea...

Russ Murphy

Flying Finn

+1

lowside67

I think that's a really unfair blanket statement. I think you could just about universally say that driving on the street without a helmet in a car with a rollcage is dangerous. However, a rollbar (IE a 4pt device) which is entirely contained in the backseat is really not an unsafe option for a daily driven car. However, this of course means nobody can ever safely sit in the REAR seats, but the front two are fair game. This is just a generalization though as each rollbar and car configuration is different - for example though I dont daily drive my BMW, it has a 4pt rollbar with 6pt harnesses and proper FIA seats. Under daily driving conditions, my head is well away from the top section of the rollhoop which is padded with the new dual-density foam padding (which isnt a get out of jail free card, but every bit counts).

RedlineMan

Ahem;

The reality is that the answer is just as scant as the statement it is directed at. The former is a blanket statement of black & white directed at a grey subject. The comment gives short shrift to the actual danger that this can present.

For instance, if you think that because your roll bar is 12" away from your head, and well padded, that it cannot present a danger to you in a street accident, you are ignorant (and I mean that constructively, not derogetorily).

It is neither necessarily dangerous, nor completely safe, and you have to understand what really can happen in a crash before you can make an informed decision as to whether you can live with (literally and figuratively) the compromise that your setup presents.

Russ Murphy

Your response is a complete summation of my "scant" or succinct posting. Thanks.
Considering all that has been thoughtfully written on this subject, the "blanket" statement about rollbar safety in a street car is indicative of little thought and/or not reading this or any other thread on the topic.