I've been looking for a rollbar for the Miata ever since I got the car back in December of 2015. It's been on my mind as a mod for the car for several reasons:
The Reasons (Or How I Try To Convince Myself I'm Not Just Pissing Money Away):
1. Safety: The most important reason of course. I want to do some track days with this thing eventually, and most tracks require a rollbar for convertible cars. I have a hardtop on the car, but that's not going to help in a rollover.
Not At All.
Thin Fiberglass, Paint and Glass Versus Road Surface, Weight and Inertia?
(Warning: Graphic Images)
Pretty much a no brainer, eh?
Since the car will spend most of the time on the street, I need to add some padding to the main hoop of the bar so that I don't crack my oversized noggin open in a rear end collision, or while doing something stupid on the street, so some SFI Certified padding will be used as well. I eventually plan to upgrade to different seats that will either allow me to sit lower (Aftermarket Fixed Bucket) or have a taller headrest (01-05 Miata "Surfboard" Seats). I could also do a "fomaectomy" which involves removing padding from the seat bottom to allow a person to sit lower.
2. Chassis Rigidity: The stock Miata is not very stiff, due to being a convertible (Really?). The roof and B-Pillars on a conventional car add a lot of structural support to the chassis but take that away and the car can flop like a wet noodle in certain situations. Going over Potholes, Railroad Tracks, Bumps, Curbs At Speed (Wait,What?), and the car will let you know it's not happy. The hardtop helps a lot, but the rollbar will definitely stiffen up the chassis quite a bit.
3. Looks: Most people would agree that cars with a rollbar look pretty cool. I know it's supposed to be there to help save my life and improve the structural integrity, but it would definitely be a nice form addition, as well as functional. It makes an ordinary car, look like a race car and if any car could use some "butching" up it's a Miata.
So Which One Did You Get?
There are several manufacturers of bolt in Miata rollbars. The three big ones are Hard Dog, Blackbird Fabworx and Boss Frog. Every one of these manufacturers make a fine product, but I wanted to be sure I picked the right bar for me, since I don't plan on buying another one for this car.I wanted whichever bar I picked to meet a few criteria:
1. Hardtop/Softop With Glass Window Compatible- My car will primarily be driven with the hardtop installed, so the rollbar would have to clear the hardtop. On the off chance that I don't have the hardtop on, I don't want operating the soft top to be an issue.
2. Visibility- With the hardtop installed, the larger rear window makes lane changes and the overall driving experience, better. I didn't want the rollbar to detract too much from that if possible.
3. "Streetability"- "Streetability" is not a quantifiable value, but rather an entirely subjective one. What one is willing to put up with on a street car differs from person to person. My basic worry, is : "How much is this is going to detract from everyday driving?" Hardtop compatible rollbars are a compromise when it comes to one important area, the height of the main hoop. The higher the hoop is placed, the least likely you are to get a serious head injury from an accident on the street, unless you're wearing a helmet (A helmet? On the street? Are you mad?).
Hardtop rollbars place the hoop further back, but lower in height, while bars for soft top installs are taller, but closer to the driver.
There are number of very heated threads on pretty much any Miata forum debating, the use of a rollbar on a street driven car and which is better, taller or further back.
I'm not here to debate on the subject, but I'm of the opinion that with the proper padding installed on the rollbar, it's a much safer option than driving without a rollbar installed. Especially if there's spirited driving involved. Something as simple as getting out of bed is a risk these day, but I believe the risks with a rollbar on a street car can be mitigated enough for my tastes.
The Manufacturers:
Hard Dog is the most popular, offering a wide assortment of styles to accommodate the different needs of Miata owners looking for additional safety for their cars. From racetrack legal rollbars to street "safety" bars, they have it all. Hardtop/Softop Compatible, Single Diagonal, Double Diagonal, No Diagonal, Retro Style Hoop Bars they have it all. They're the "800lb Gorilla" of the Miata Rollbar market in the United States. From what I've read, most Hard Dog owners are very happy with the bars. I had a hard time figuring out what I wanted based on how many were available. Kind of overwhelming.I had my choice narrowed down to the Hard Dog M2 Hard Core Hardtop, which featured 1.75in Diameter tubing for the main hoop, and my choice of either a single diagonal or double diagonal support bar. It's hardtop compatible, and extremely popular in the Miata community, and I passed on it.
The single diagonal obscured the view out the window, and the double diagonal while better wasn't what I was really looking for. Some folks online reported some fitment issues during installation, and a problem with the seat belt retractors working slowly, due to the rollbar interfering with their factory location. Plus, EVERYONE and his brother has one of these bars. An awesome bar, but not what I was really looking for.
Boss Frog offers a much smaller selection of bars, and I couldn't really find a lot of folks with them installed. They offer a Double Hoop and Single Hoop model. Again, since I couldn't get a feel for how their products fared with their customers, so I passed on the Clearview as well.
Blackbird Fabworx is a smaller company out in California that offers two different single hoop rollbars for the NB Miata, along with models for all generations of Miatas and other cars. They also do fabrication for a wide range of cars as well. One is a Single Diagonal model and the other is a X braced model called the GT3. All models for the NB and NA Miata are Hardtop and Soft Top compatible.
Also the issue with the seat belt retractors seems to have been tackled in a different manner with a set of tabs welded onto the rollbar to move the upper belt anchor point above the stock location. From what I've read, this improves the issue with the belt retraction, and improves the appearance of the setup. Neat. It's little touches like this that show the care and thought that went into the product.
Hmm. Over Engineered? Integral Harness Bar (Which I'll probably never need.)? Better Visibility Than the Competition? Hardtop and Soft Top Compatible?
Hell, Sign Me Up.
Needless to say I placed a call to Moti at Blackbird Fabworx and ordered a Single Diagonal Rollbar for my car. The bar can be shipped nationwide and powdercoated in just about any color for an extra charge. I went with standard black because I'm cheap and boring. Moti also asked me if I wanted to add some padding to my order for the rollbar and took my information over the phone and was generally a pleasure to deal with. I was informed that they had one on the shelf ready to go to powdercoating, and I should hear from them soon when it's ready to ship.
I Can't Wait.
Of course I'll post pictures of the mayhem and carnage, once it arrives and I actually get to the installation process.
Until Then,
Alpha, Mike Foxtrot...
No comments:
Post a Comment