chub406

ok, but is it just to the floor i guess would be what im asking? i know by nhra and ihra rules. there has to be bars to the subframe connecters. other than that its just to the floor of the car then? thanks!

mad_steve

iTrader: (2)

Yes, so long as you have 6" of plate that the cage is welded to, then the plates can be welded directly to the floor.

chub406

ok. i see. lol like i said im used to full frames were it has to be welded to the frame. that makes it alot easier. plus with the hatech and t-tops. you can actually have room to work. thanks!

leadfoot4

iTrader: (1)

Yoy kinda' hafta' look at it tthis way. In a full framed car, you weld the cage to the frame. In a uni-body car such as the Camaro/Firebird, you weld up a cage, which becomes the frame, and weld the car to it....

chub406

lol. i like that. that makes perfect sense. i seen pics of some who took out the dash, cut it so the bars went through it. can you retain you ac and heat still? i dont know exactly how the vents are on the trans ams but im assuming your going to lose 2 vents?

mad_steve

iTrader: (2)

I believe you end up losing the entire a/c system, unless you wanna pay the extra money to have someone custom fabricate the front down bars around the a/c. IMO, you can't run your a/c while you're racing anyway, plus it lightens up the car when removed, so toss it.

chub406

ya. thats ussually the first thing to go. just curious. i see really fast cars with the a/c still and they have to have a full cage too.

mad_steve

iTrader: (2)

It is possible to keep the a/c, but as said before, it's more expensive and time consuming to install a cage around the a/c box.

chub406

just like anything else. its all in how much time and money you want to spend. fortunately time is free. lol This is another weird question. I seen you car in your sig. Has T-tops. Have you ever cracked one or broke one from the car twisting? Ive seen it happen. What im wondering is how common that is with a car that has a 10 point in it? im sure the cage adds the support and shouldnt be a problem. just curious if anyone has seen it on a caged car? thanks guys! and thanks mad steve for answering so many of my newb questions!

mad_steve

iTrader: (2)

I personally have never seen a t-top crack on any of our cars. Two reason's why i've never seen it- 1. We use an anti-roll (sway bar) which keeps the cars from rolling over on the right rear tire. 2. The roll cage strengthens the chassis/body enough to keep it rigid. The 1st reason does put more stress on the body, but the 2nd takes up the slack to keep it from tearing anything up, such as a t-top. The car in my sig is a street driven car that runs low 11's (soon to be low 10's hopefully), and will yank the tires pretty hard when the track is in good condition. He's never had any problems with his t-tops.

On another note, I have no problem answering your questions. I'm here to help people and possibly sell something along the line. We base our business on customer service, and anything a customer/future customer needs is top priority. If you ever need any parts or have questions concerning chassis, feel free to call me. Our number is in my signature, as well as our website which has a full online catalog.

chub406

that makes sense. the videos ive seen of it happening, i dont know if they had a cage or not. that says alot about you and your company. the horrible part is you guys are the minority anymore. the companies want to sell you something, usually a kit, then you get it home and something is missing or dont work, and its like pulling teeth to get ahold and get your problem fixed. the worst i hate is when you call the tech line and the guy you are talking to can only read out of the catalog and doesn't know enough to even answer the question. lol heres a dif question. i went to your web site and say a half ton chevy pickup you guys did a cage on. out of curiosity, how does he like that? i have a 77 short box that was all custom made that got drowned in the flood. but i could still buil it cause everything would be coming out anyway. The only thing is its like pushing a brick through the wind, heavy, still rides like a truck, and theres no weight in the *** end of them. I thought about building it but these seem to be some heavy cons. there is alot more room though for the turbo. lol you guys do absolutely spectacular work. those cages look gorgous.

mad_steve

iTrader: (2)

The guy that owns that truck is very pleased with it. With the right motor combination and suspension set-up, those trucks can do well on the track. You would most likely wanna change the rear suspension to a ladder-bar set-up with coil-overs. We did this to a 90 model 454 SS pickup recently. The truck runs low 10's with-out nitrous.