Coach 02 A3 Z/28

iTrader: (10)

Direct from Mr. Baker(IHRA head tech offical) any t-top car running 11.49 1/4 mile or faster is goiing to have to have a 10 point roll cage to pass tech. This is at any IHRA track in the country.

This rule kinda hurts the pocket book right now but it is all about safety. My Hot Rod will be going to Madman within the next week to have a 10 point put in. Any one need a LS6 intake and a ported TB? Need to pay for the cage ya know?

Coach

Windy City

Unreal. One little peice of stamped metal that makes the difference between a hardtop and t-top car warrants it to be safer and takes the place of a 10-point cage? Yeah, right.

Sorry but if they're really concerned about safety, they'd take the time to understand the vehicles better and not treat t-top 4th gens like they're so fragile. Instead they push people onto the street to get their thrills which in my book, is a whole lot more unsafe.

Magnus

iTrader: (4)

Damn, full 10 point already?? Thats a drag

SilverGhost

iTrader: (53)

arrrrrrrrrgh!!

DrkPhx

iTrader: (15)

The IHRA tracks I go to don't tech for that stuff, they don't even check the helmet rating. I will wait and see if they really enforce it.

Camaroholic

iTrader: (1)

I agree, it probably won't be enforced at most IHRA tracks, except for major events.

But I'd like to know the driving force behind this. Either there's a conspiracy or a series of accidents involving T-top cars. Maybe the IHRA tracks have complained that T-top cars have been losing their tops on the track forcing cleanup - and this is a way to get them to stop coming to the track. Have there been many serious accidents involving rollovers / injuries with T-top cars at tracks? And has there been a significant delta in the level of injury of a T-top car versus a hardtop car (aside from the glass that'll chew you up)?

Where's my tin foil hat smiley when I need it...

gator's 99TA

iTrader: (2)

damn. i understand safety, but that is crazy. a full roll cage for an 11.49 car?

Zippinzee

Looks like a hard top conversion might get popular. Glad all my birds are hard tops. I had a t-top SS and I hate t-tops and I asked a body shop friend about making it a hard top and he said no problem. But I sold it to buy my WS6 formula hard top. It might not be any more than adding a cage.

horist

guess it's time to start racing NHRA where the rules are now less strict heh... ashame the only NHRA track around here is Rt. 66 and it's uber crowded

Cheatin' Chad

iTrader: (3)

This rule is uncalled for in my opinion. I have a 5pt which should be more than adequete for an 11.49 or better. I have seen modern cars go end over end at higher speeds than most mid 11 runs occur at and hold up very well. I knew I shoudl have ekpt looking for a hardtop...

Ah well not much we can do.

TwoFast4Lv

iTrader: (8)

I was just in contact with NHRA about the same thing. Guys the T-Top is the same damn car as a Hardtop. the Hard top has a FIXED piece of plastic(YES plastic) on top and the t-top has two pieces of bullit resitant Plastic on top. Which one is safer? I can tell you from experiance the t-tops are strong! three tree's head on and i walked away...the t-tops were still in tact!