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Edd-XS

Rollcage, Which One?

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Edd-XS

From doing a search it would seem that the OMP cage is good because it fits to the rear beam mounts, however, is not a brilliant fit.

I want a full bolt in cage, and would rather not have to start masacering the interior so should i still go for the OMP or go for the safety devices instead? It is going to be a road/track car and not having rear seats or anything like that for rally regulations or whatever.

Rear bars for harnesses would also be nice.

So what should i be looking for? And the next question, who sells it? :)

Thanks

Edd

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Leon

To fit an OMP cage you will have to do the following

 

1) Remove passenger grab handles on the roof

2) Cut a strip out of the roof lining (only if you have a sunroof)

3) Possibly shave 6mm or so from the corners of the dash (Phase 1 only I believe)

4) Remove the interior light

5) Remove the sun visors

 

No idea about other cages. :)

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Edd-XS

ok cheers for that mate, doesnt sound quite so bad when u put it like that! can u still use the sunroof cover? its quite nice to be able to shut the sunroof off sometimes...

Edd

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steendp

Retaining the original seatbelts seems to be a problem. Could be an issue for MOT.

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kartman

Funnily enough I spent yesterday fitting a OMP cage to a non sunroof 1991 205XS..... :)

 

Wasn't that bad....as mentioned had to remove passenger grab rail, sunvisors, the interior light unit (but have managed to jam it back in). The dash did not need trimming.

 

There was a fair amount of heaving and pushing to get it in. It bolted to the rear mounts quite well, the weld in mounts provided need modification to fit well. The main loop has brackets that go to the upper front seat belt mounts, and the bottom seat belt rail has to be removed (I have harness's so no problem).

 

When fitting you need to remove all the interior, including carpet, but the carpet can go back in just trimmed round the mounts. The rear seats go back in, just the bases need a section of the internal rail at the back removed to go round the brace bars.

 

There are two mounts that meet the bodywork by the top of the windscreen - but not sure what they are supposed to attached to?

 

Hope this helps?

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Edd-XS

steendp i wont be using standard seatbelts so no worries!

kartman thanks for your reply! I think i will stick with the OMP cage as i like the idea of the beam mounts being picked up on by the cage. I wont have carpet or anything fitted but would've like to have kept the handles, but no bother! i shall make something instead, gives me an excuse to get creative :)

Edd

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steendp

You're lucky. Here in Denmark we cannot use harnesses instead of the original seatbelts.

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smighall

Are there any issues with having harness bars welded onto roll cages by a normal machining place. It's just most budget cages don't have them and i really don't want to spend too much on the cage.

 

Thanks,

Sean

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kartman
kartman thanks for your reply!

 

No problem - if you want some piccies/advice drop me a PM.

 

For a good price try www.chrisastleymotorsport.co.uk

 

Think there is an offer on at the moment which includes door bars.

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Miles

The SD on's are/where much better, you can keep everything bar the Sun visor's and the quality is 100 times better than OMP, The SD cage also bolt's on the front of the rear beam mounts, Not that it make a huge differance as the rest of the cage is not attached to the shell or trianglelated.

Bolt in cage's are a pain to fit, Weld in are much quicker,

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Dino
The SD on's are/where much better, you can keep everything bar the Sun visor's and the quality is 100 times better than OMP, The SD cage also bolt's on the front of the rear beam mounts, Not that it make a huge differance as the rest of the cage is not attached to the shell or trianglelated.

Bolt in cage's are a pain to fit, Weld in are much quicker,

 

You can actually retain the sunvisors if you chop the ends off!

 

As for the OMP cages dont they foul the door mirror adjusters too?

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Leon

I think SD being "100 times better" is a slightly dramatic statement. The OMP cages are supplied "unfinished" - they require priming and painting, so comparing the finish itself is unfair. As for the actual quality of the welds and steel, both are FIA approved and both hold up well in crash situations - so I can't see the OMP being dramatically worse in any given situation.

 

Personally, I chose OMP after looking at both roll cages fitted to existing cars.

The OMP mounts to the rear beam pick up points directly. The ones on the SD cage bolt to the middle of the boot floor, which (no matter how reinforced it is) I just can't see it equalling the strength of the beam mounting point.

The OMP also mounts near the top of the B pillar and the base mounts at the B post are thick and sturdy, with the force of impact being spread over a large surface area, compared to the SD cage which looks more prone to punching straight through the floor where it is mounted slightly further back in the car. From memory the OMP cage can also be ordered with a thicker main roll hoop.

 

At the front the situation is similar - OMP legs shorter with substantial load spreading mounting "feet" and the SD with flat metal plates that provide a second skin over the floorpan.

 

If you look at the 2 guides on the main site these differences should be apparent. Another reason I went for OMP is the removable diagonal which is handy. You can of course weld it in place and either cage can be "braced" to mount harnesses on.

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Dino
The OMP mounts to the rear beam pick up points directly. The ones on the SD cage bolt to the middle of the boot floor, which (no matter how reinforced it is) I just can't see it equalling the strength of the beam mounting point.

 

Mattcony rolled his 205 several times off a road, down into a field and survived. His SD saved his life and now lives on in Alan_M's car - the proof is in the pudding?

 

It's all down to personal preference really. I think both cages do exacty what they are supposed to - save your life in the event of a roll!

 

Personally I preferred the way the SD cage fits as it seems more practical in more ways than one. I liked the removable door bars, the way it doesnt get in the way of the std seatbelts, or foul the mirrors.

 

I doubt that the OMP mounting directly to the rear beam makes a significant difference over the SD one. If rigidity is the main concern then go for a proper weld in type of cage.

Edited by Dino

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Miles

I should have written the Challenge spec SD cage mounts to the rear suspension, But any bolt in cage is not going to provide good suspension stiffening, A weld in cage picking up at the front and rear suspension points is the way to go if your after total shell stiffness

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Edd-XS

Hmm, interesting reading! I really dont want to spend an awful lot on the cage itself and all the weld in ones seem to be quiet expensive where as the bolt in ones seem readily available for under £300. I wont be the one doing the work of fitting it but I do not want to give the person who will be doing it, a mission of a job to do! (its a forum member, but hes probably forgotten :D )

Still abit un-decided, from what I read I originally thought the OMP had removable door bars and rear diagonal, where-as the SD ones were fixed, but it would seem I was wrong! Removable rear diagonal does sound appealing, although I bet I would never remove it anyway!

If anyone has any more input on the difference between these two cages feel free to chip in as im sure this may be useful for others too...

Thanks

Edd

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stu_woac

I'd go for a sd cage as there is more protection for the rear of the car so if you hit the rear quarter it shouldn't buckle as much as it would with a omp,

 

I had a very long look in alot of 205 be4 I decided my cage

 

its still not in tho due to no-one having the plates arHHHH

and me not having a workshop to produce my own and miles being far far away LOL

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Guest abmotorsport

We fit many many cages. In our experience:

 

OMP - cheap and effective for the money, difficult to fit, need painting. Good for track. Roll the car you will more than likely scrap the shell with this cage

SPARCO - as above (e-mail me for some pictures of a multi-point bolt in that collapsed very badly in a accident on the Malcolm Wilson Rally in 2003, scarey!!)

R&D - Only weld in option, good but you have to fit where they want you to fit as the cages come scolloped (maybe option to have unscolloped - not sure) Good for Rallying, rolled car with probabaly just need panels.

SD - In our opinion, the best option, fit is easy, the C12 is a 6 point bolt in and can be fitted in 8 hours, the C44 (challenge spec cage) is very very good value for money (OTT for track use) roll the car and you just need panels.

 

Sounds to me with a budget of £300-00 an OMP or sparco is your option.

 

All the cages will save your life in majority of cases wherever they mount in the shell. You have to decide how much your life is worth and then make a decision, our advice is do not skimp on the cage, seats, seat bars and harnesses, or how they are all fitted.

 

Advice is free and a phone call away....

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TonyGTI
Still abit un-decided, from what I read I originally thought the OMP had removable door bars and rear diagonal, where-as the SD ones were fixed, but it would seem I was wrong!

 

My 205 already had a OMP cage fitted, but no door bars. I have just bough a pair of OMP universal door bars from Demon Tweeks and whilst the brackets do require welding to the cage the bar itself is bolted to the brackets so the bars themselves are removable.

 

Hope this helps

 

Tony

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jonah

Pics of the SD Challenge and Multi-Point cages in case they're any use...

 

http://forum.205gtidrivers.com/index.php?showtopic=29379

 

The one I bought is now in its second shell, and fitting was much easier the second time round, I suspect that problems I was having the first time were a lot to do with the first car being a bit bent before the cage was fitted.

 

The door bars are removable btw (although I never bother, you get used to climbing over them).

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Edd-XS

cheers mate, i think ill probably go for an SD cage after all the research! I'll probably contact miles aswell and see about the cages he makes. Really want one with harness bars attached to it.

SD challange spec cage looks the best but will have to see how finances go.

cheers people

Edd

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sekim
cheers mate, i think ill probably go for an SD cage after all the research! I'll probably contact miles aswell and see about the cages he makes. Really want one with harness bars attached to it.

SD challange spec cage looks the best but will have to see how finances go.

 

You can (or at least could) get a standard 6 point safety devices one with harness bars. Should save you a few pennies over the Challenge spec one :)

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