OldeSkool

Do bolt in roll bars improve the integrity of these cars much? I'm looking at getting a Wolfe bolt in roll bar.

I'm leaning towards the 6 point bar hoping that it will really solidify the back half of the car. I already have subframe connectors, and they made a big difference. I want to step it up a notch though.

DONAIMIAN

iTrader: (18)

short answer: yes it would.

You would see a gain going with the 4pt alone, and stepping it up to a 6 pt would help even more because youd be tieing(sp) in the the front and rear more in addition to your subframes.

OldeSkool

great. would weld in be better? are there points that could be welded to improve the bolt in? what do the bars get bolted to? (By that I mean, does it bolt to critical structural locations or convenient locations?)

thanks

HPP

Crazy question - isn't the reason these relatively small cars are so heavy, that they chassis has so much structure added to it to solve the "rattle trap" problem the 3rd gens suffered?

A friend of mine has a Nissan Sylvia. With it lowered, quite a lot, my roof top is only about an inch higher, and the cars are about the same width and length (which surprised me that his car was that "big"), and yet, his car is about 2800lbs or so. Vs our 3500lbs or so. Airbags (both sides), crash protection, smog equipment, PCMs, modern appointments (sound systems, sound deadening, full carpet, power windows/locks/brakes/steering, and everything else that modern car), we basically have all the same stuff, but he's one heck of a lot lighter. Oh and he has IRS too. I have heard that they are heavier overall, though they reduce unsprung weight.

So, are we carrying around lead ballast, or are our cars just very solid? That's the reason the GTO is so heavy (supposedly), the roads in Oz are rather crappy so it was overengineered to withstand them for a reasonable service life.

And someone here, Sam Strano, I think (I could be remembering incorrectly), told me about an LT1 4th Gen that was road raced and drag raced since new, has several hundred thousand miles on it, never had additional bracing, and is still straight and solid.

So...how much is "enough" when it comes to stiffness? Rollover protection, now that's something altogehter different. Clearly a cage is a must for that...


Edit - I'm not claiming to be correct here, just posting what I have come across/heard/remember.

DONAIMIAN

iTrader: (18)

Weld in would be better. With a bolt in kit, the roll bar is bolted to the floor behind the drivers seat and behind the back seat above the gas tank (yes you have to drop the tank, perfect time to install a bigger pump). A weld in attatches to the same place, instead its welded in instead of bolted in, and the bars are welded to the main hoop instead of bolted to the main hoop.