I had a helmet on in my Z4, though the roll hoops are higher than my head and probably anyone under about 6' 2". Had the roof up too as it was soaking wet, didn't envy the guys in a 7/locost thing - they would have needed wetsuits! This was round Knockhill on one of their own experience packages and I don't remember the instructor saying anything about convertible/rollover protection.
Track days in a convertible
- Thread starter Hades
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So that rules out the Lotus Elise then?
Soldato
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I'd suggest a roll over hoop at least, The guy in this MX5 was seriously hurt had to be revived on track and flown away, He is ok now but one lucky guy.
So what we're saying here is that a convertible isn't a good idea even if it has rollbars
Not at all. Obviously there is always room to improve safety, like fitting roll cages in closed cars, but it's by no means a requirement. Track days are about taking road cars on track for fun and to explore your limits in a safer environment. People in to it will always seek imrpovements, but there are loads of people who rock up in their daily with no modifications at all.
The only requirement for open top cars is that you must have a full face helmet.
You are being a little naive if you believe this is true for cars as old as a 944. A roll at any decent speed will flatten the thin, spindly A pillars instantly.
A full cage with safety nets to prevent limbs flying outside the car is the best you could do, and will probably give a decent boost in stiffness to the shell which are inevitably weaker on cars primarily designed as a hard top.
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Elises (And their variants) are a slightly different case as they have a proper structural roll bar built in to the chassis. The substantial structure behind the occupants makes them somewhat different to a 'traditional' convertible where the whole rear section drops down.
Is that the recent one from Woodbridge? If so it's the incident that has driven most of my posts in this thread as my other half was working with the trackday organiser that day. Was very lucky to get away from that without serious injury from what I've heard.