Yes I was the only mini there .

randy
m7 Tuning

 

Randy, peter told me you an old guy when he visited Hawaii, lol....he was joking.

 

Hell he wasn't joking, i got Lasek surgery on wed and this year I qualify for the Denny's Senior citizens discount

randy
M7 tuning

 

This is from MINI-Mania

ROLL BAR W/BOLT-IN DIAGONAL BRACE/HARNESS BAR_ MINI COOPER
NMC1001 Roll Bar with the addition of a bolt-in, removable diagonal brace/harness bar allowing easier access to rear seat for street driven cars. Includes hardware needed for installation. See NMC1003 for weld-in option. FOR CARS WITHOUT SUNROOF - ROLL BAR FOR SUNROOF CARS AVAILABLE AS NMC1006. $539.95




Part No:

Car(s):
NEW_MINI
This is Special Order Only Item!

 

I believe that MINI-Mania roll bars are built by AutoPower . Good pricing through IO Port

 

Just some quick notes to clear any misconceptions. I just stumbled across this thread.

as stated above, the MiniMania bar is built by Autopower. This is a good bar if you are planning HPDE's but still want to use your rear seats. See the warnings about using the rear seats when you have a bar installed. At the very least the bar should be padded.

thanks to onasled for linking to the page showing our SportBars.

We custom build all our bars to suit your needs. A bar built for HPDE's can include removable diagonal and horizontal braces. And allows full use of the rear seats including allowing them to fold flat.

but such a bar may not pass inspection for some sanctioning bodies. To pass SCCA tech, the bar needs to have straight rear braces which means you loose the ability to fold the rear seat flat.

If you are going racing (door to door) a full cage is always best. Welded rather than bolt in. Make sure your cage builder uses DOM (or ChroMo) not ERW or HREW. Check your sanctioning bodies regulations. Our shop builds all cages to SCCA GCR spec or higher. Our Sport Bars use 1 3/4" x 0.120 wall DOM tubing for the main hoop.

Purchasing a rollcage is like purchasing a helmet
- you get what you pay for. If you have a cheap head, buy a cheap helmet
- Make sure it fits. Buy a cage that suits your needs, and fits your car as you need. Generic cages are fine for generic cars and generic drivers. Mini's are not generic.
- it only works if you use it. If you have a removable support(s) in the cage, use them. They are useless lying in your garage if you are on the track.
- check it's legal for the series you run in. ask your Tech represenative, consult the rulebook, talk to your cage builder - it is likely he has a better understanding of the rules than you do.

HTH
watch our site for our roll bar that will meet the US Challenge rules.

 

Ditto all of the above

 

RE: "HTH
watch our site for our roll bar that will meet the US Challenge rules."

Can you give us some details on that now?, we need to prepare NOW

Challenge Series starts in 2 months

 

OK,
I need to hear back from England to be certain.

This is what I know so far.

A Mini showing up for tech will pass if the rolbar meets or exceeds SCCA GCR (general rules of competition). A cage built to GCR will pass tech.

No problem right? Well in 2007 it is intended that the US cars meet the same specs as the cars that are racing in Europe. Those cars race built to FIA specs.

In rally we have had problems with FIA vs SCCA specs in the past. FIA spec for certain parts of the rollcage is 40mm which is a 1 5/8 tube. In the US 1 1/2 tube and 1 3/4 tube are the norm, and the FIA size is almost twice the cost per foot. Not to mention needing dies for the tubing bender.

We don't want to build a rollbar that will be legal for 2006 and not be legal for 2007.

 

What bar do you sell that would cover the specs and still have use of the back seat, when not racing ?

Pics and Links please, if possible

Thanks,

Phil

 

sorry Phil,

we do not make such a bar. To comply with SCCA specs the bars that support the main hoop need to be straight, no bends.

If we build it like that you can only fit it into your Mini with the rear seats folded flat, and they cannot be moved to the upright position. You could possibly install it with the seats up, they would not fold flat - but installation would be nearly impossible, because access would be so difficult.

Our Sport Bars that allow rear seat access are only recommended for HPDE's and track days, NOT any racing door to door. And thus I cannot recommend them for the Mini Challenge series.

sorry

Bones

 

Thanks Bones ....

I will research it further but will not put a full cage in my daily driver

The MINI Challenge Series, as it started out, seemed to be a small race series, few rules, less strict "requirements" and preparation, for the MINI enthusiast

Now, it seems to be getting more like any other race series, at least in safety requirements

To tell you my thoughts ....

There are NOT that many "fully prepped" race MINIS out there, I doubt some of these races will have 10 cars in them !!! (Except West Coast ones and maybe St.Louis)

Most people do wheels, tires, pulley, CAI and Harnesses, possibly TB and injectors, and stop short of roll bars ( Since we drive these cars to work and may have a passenger or two)

It would seem wise to start out the Challenge Series with fewer requirements the first year or two, let interest develop and not "discourage" the regular MINI HPDE guys from entering in a more exciting event, even if there intention is to gain experience, to see if they will take it to the next level, like Greg has

 

These new(?) rules will certainly stop quite a few from entering, or re-entering this series, though I do think that they are good rules and agree that they should be implemented. I was taken back a bit when I first heard about this series and the few safety requirements they requested. At this point in time I don't think anyone should be on the track without a Hans (or like) and all the necessary equipment that's required to use them. That's basically what this series has done. I applaud it myself.

 

If I only had a bigger garage, driveway and no kids !!!! ...LOL

4 cars and a 2 car garage in my house and now I may have to have a hans on my daily driver ...

 

...... but the family will be happy you have a Hans..
Anyway, Han devices are "cool".

 

Personally I agree with the safety requirements, I am sure the series has an insurance company they have to please, so I don't find the additional safety gear a hardship. But then I already own most of the stuff.

Make sure you read the rules properly, the HANS is recommended, not required. The HANS would be a good safety device for sure, but I think I'd require full cages first.

Mini owners don't hestitate to spend $1000 on a set of wheels, but safety gear is too much. To fully prep to Class 3 you could easily spend $5K, coilovers, brakes, 2 sets wheels. So $1500 on a cage, driver suit, gloves, shoes, helmet is just a little more than a set of SSR's.

Point noted about the lack of prepp'd cars. One avenue the series could take would be to approach the sCCA SSC Mini racers. Very stock cars with full SCCA safety gear, they'd only have to remove the restrictors.

Even the cheapest form of motorsport - gokarts, have safety gear requirements.

 

I am no expert, but it seems that the FIA spec would be a MINIMUM REQUIREMENT. and since 1 3/4" is larger than 40 mm or 1 5/8 I would think that the cage would be legal.

OR are they Technical anuses like the Idots who run F1. Banned JPM because his car didn't have a Sticker and because he did not jump into it 5 seconds earlier?

 

It would seem more wise to me to try to get the initial rules as complete as possible to avoid rules creep going forward.

New racers should be encouraged to research all their options instead of just automatically trying to turn what happens to be in their driveway into a racecar. (a lesson I've personally learned the hard way)

I know we all like our cars, but the mini isn't a very sensible choice for a racecar. It's not classed well anywhere and upkeep costs are going to be pretty high.

 

Correct, It is not classed well

That is WHY the MINI Challenge Series was appealing to me

I have no reason to buy a race car, IF my current car is a few steps away

 

You are correct that the FIA spec is minimum. So the 1 3/4" tube would be legal BUT it is also almost 0.25lbs per foot heavier. Racers tend to be **** about weight - heck I have sets of SSR's at $1400/set just to save 4 lbs per wheel.

A rollbar (not cage) built out of 1 3/4" instead of 1 5/8" would be almost 5 lbs heavier. Most serious racers would opt for the 1 5/8 even though it would cost more. Of course the difference in a cage would be more pronounced because there is more steel in a cage.

 

This on eBay. Might be of use to someone.
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/SCCA-...QQcmdZViewItem

 

Looks like a good buy ..

I have one coming already, just don't tell my wife
Rear Seat bracket is a bit strange ?

 

Other than the fact you want to keep daily driving the mini. Yea, a handful of people still drive their racecars on the street, but they all eventually learn the error of their ways.

 

Onasled,

I assume your cage is bolted in? If so, how easy is this cage to install, uninstall? I think you may know why I'm asking...folks at work...one in particular

 

pyugala the pics you posted, well I went to the link and I haven't touched up on my German lately. Have you found this cage any where else? Name Brand Name?