So I know the general consensus is that roll bars/cages are not safe on the street due to the fact that if you are in a crash without a helmet they could do more harm than good.

My question is, is there anything out on the market that is safer for the street while still being functional in an actual roll over?

Sorry if this is a dumb question, I'm not too familiar on the topic

 

I'm quite happy with my RSS 930 rollbar. I prefer the rollbar designs that mount to the shock towers. The only downside is that you have to cut holes in the rear shelf carpet, but you can always buy a replacement piece down road to go back to stock. The front mounting point still uses the seat belt mounts, so no drilling of floorboards.

Pros:
-Good amount of room to move back driver seat
-no drilling floorboards
-mounts to rear shocks
-reasonable pricing
-lots of color options
-1.5" tubing is a good compromise between weight and "beefiness"

Cons:
-Installation is not easy. You have to cut away some plastic underneath the carpet at the front seatbelt mount. This was not made clear up front and the directions were non-existent
-There is some limitations to moving back the passenger seat. My gf always adjusts the seat so that it is rubbing against the bar which gets annoying. She is tiny and has plenty of room, but she is the type who likes to recline in the passenger seat

 

I've been looking at the RSS 930 roll bar. I'm trying to find someone's experience with it after being in a crash/roll-over.

Are you concerned at all with head impact if you were to crash on the street without a helmet?

 

gmg w/c chromoly bar. best there is for the porsche in a bolt in bar. option for a 6 point mount if wanted. gusseted for strength.

all the bars are behind the driver so head impact is rare unless the seat was to break backwards and slide the driver into the rear compartment.

 

No personal experience with owning or crashing, but I think the BBi setups look pretty amazing and well constructed.

I'd have to look at pictures again to check head clearance.

Another option... just wear a helmet on the street haha. I always thought that would be funny. Pulling up to someone at a stoplight a you're wearing a full face helmet. Or better yet, if a police officer were to pull you over and you could explain how you're going above and beyond the basic seatbelt laws to ensure your safety if you were to get into an accident.

 

Friend has an RSS 930 in his GT3, I think I'll be going with the same one in my car. It's a nice set up.

Like 32krazy said, unless your seat breaks or the bar comes loose and moves forward there isn't much risk of hitting head on it since it is all in the rear seat area. Maybe something to worry about if you don't have good seats or brackets.

 

The thing I did not like about GMG wc bar is that it doesn't mount to the rear shocks. I imagine that the bars that mount back there are going to add better rigidity to the chassis because it acts as a strut brace and it has more triangulation.

Practically I did not really notice any added stiffness to the car once I added the bar, but the engineer in me likes the concept. It also looks cooler to have the bars slope backward in the rear window

 

Since none of the rear suspension links are located by the shock towers, it wouldn't make much of a difference.

 

It has the ability to become a 6 point bolt in bar

 

[QUOTE=32krazy!;4543894]It has the ability to become a 6 point bolt in bar[/QUOT

That's what I have a GMG 6 point. It's a tight azz fit too.

 

i think the tequipment bar with the cross brace removed ( they make two versions iirc? ) such as i have installed is a good compromise btw full cage and none. works for me, although i thankfully haven't really "tested" it

 

I had the Techequipment roll bar installed and noticed a substantial improvement in steering response. In fact, when I removed it, it was acutely noticeable how much extra steering input was required for simple lane changes. I had to get used to it, it took a few days to become accustomed to the different level of steering required at any speed over 40 MPH or so.

Also, with GT3 seats (which I use) the bar is so covered by the rear of the seat, it is hard to imagine your head being able to hit the bar. I checked for this and felt very protected as far as that went...

 

The only roll bar that will add legitimate rollover protection is one that is properly welded to the chassis. Any of the "roll bars" that attach to the seatbelt bolts at the base in nothing more than a harness bar in reality. In a rollover strong enough to crush the curved roof (which is incredibly stiff to begin with) the two seat belt attachment bolts will shear off like butter. Attaching the rear of the bar to the strut towers definitely helps but it's the forward attachment that is key and that needs to be welded to the body for rollover protection, or at the very least have a wide base resting on the floor to allow it to distribute the load. The Tequipment bars are definitely not roll bars but function well as harness bars with a minimal weight penalty. The Teq bar bar without the cross brace (the cars and coffee bar) is strictly for looks as you can't use a harness with it. I'm not sure what the point of it is besides looks. It weighs under 20 lbs and the full cross brace one just a little over 25lbs. The crossbrace Teq bar is a nice harness bar and about the lightest one you can buy. Most of the bolt in bars are 40lbs+. To claim that the Teq bars increase steering response on a car with a suspension full of rubber bushing is rather amusing as that would imply that 4 bolts will stiffen a computer designed bridged steel monocoque body which would have to be flexing noticeably to begin with. The Teq bars are relatively soft and and legs can be flexed relatively easily as you have to do when bolting it on place during install. The rear legs are especially "soft" as they have no cross bracing. Yes, in theory there will be a small amount of added rigidity but I wouldn't install one with that as the end goal unless you have one amaaaaazingly sensitive butt dyno (I certainly don't) and a suspension devoid of any compressible rubber... I've installed several of these bars (have one in my car) and can't say that I ever noticed any increased rigidity or handling change. With that said, I like the Teq bar as it's a factory part, is 20lbs lighter than the aftermarket bars, and provided a attachment point for harnesses. The Teq bar also allows you to squeeze past it if you ever need to get the the rear shock adjusters (if you have those) or just wanna be able to wipe down the back of the car from the inside. With some of the aftermarket bars it's impossible to get back there and you end up with a layer of dirt and dust you can't ever get to unless you hire to 10 year old to climb back there.