Seight Trackday

[Nige_T]

May I ask for opinions please - do people track Seights?  Are they generally 'trackable' (or are serious mod's/upgrades advised)?

Forgive me if that's a daft question, I'm a total Westfield newbie.

Thanks in advance.

[Kingster]

Can’t see any reason not to. People send all sorts around on track days so your Seight will be no problem. 
 

No idea what roll bar/cage you have, but I’d personally not want to track a car with one of the “cosmetic” bars. Otherwise just make sure you bring loads of fuel and have a good amount of meat on your brake pads. 
 

edit: book tuition too 👍

[Nige_T]

1 hour ago, Kingster said:

Can’t see any reason not to. People send all sorts around on track days so your Seight will be no problem. 
 

No idea what roll bar/cage you have, but I’d personally not want to track a car with one of the “cosmetic” bars. Otherwise just make sure you bring loads of fuel and have a good amount of meat on your brake pads. 
 

edit: book tuition too 👍

Thanks for that.  Not sure if this is cosmetic but it feels pretty meaty.  I've started looking into fitting a full cage.  

[Pco]

Just now, Nige_T said:

Thanks for that.  Not sure if this is cosmetic but it feels pretty meaty.  I've started looking into fitting a full cage.  

Trust me it's not... Its held on by a single bolt onto a flange plate that's not strong. 

[Nige_T]

1 minute ago, Nige_T said:

Thanks for that.  Not sure if this is cosmetic but it feels pretty meaty.  I've started looking into fitting a full cage.  

and yes, had some tuition on my last trackday.  wish i'd done ir years ago

[Nige_T]

Just now, Pco said:

Trust me it's not... Its held on by a single bolt onto a flange plate that's not strong. 

Ah, ok, thanks for that.  You may be a life-saver.  I'll sort something proper before I track it.  Only had it a week and not had enough time to fully inspect it.

[Jenko]

Fully agree with the above, those roll bars are really not great.... Not only are they secured via one bolt, but also, look where your head is in relation to the top of the bar....you may be shocked.

 

Most cars were fitted with the mounting points for the roll bars with the rear stays. Its a relatively simple job and they do quite often pop up for sale as people upgrade further to full cage.

 

[Nige_T]

35 minutes ago, Jenko said:

Fully agree with the above, those roll bars are really not great.... Not only are they secured via one bolt, but also, look where your head is in relation to the top of the bar....you may be shocked.

 

Most cars were fitted with the mounting points for the roll bars with the rear stays. Its a relatively simple job and they do quite often pop up for sale as people upgrade further to full cage.

 

Thanks for that.  I think it might spoil the V8 look but I think I am going to try to see if I can fit a full cage.

[Pco]

1 hour ago, Nige_T said:

Thanks for that.  I think it might spoil the V8 look but I think I am going to try to see if I can fit a full cage.

A half cage is much more discreet and pretty good compromise. If your not going to race I'd probably stick with a half cage 

[Labrat]

Mine has been round Curborough a few times. It is mainly road focused with underslung exhaust, windscreen and half cage but it was great fun. You can really let the torque and power come out to play even on a short track. Good if you have some people about who know what they are doing too.

 

[TableLeg]

On 18/05/2022 at 16:40, Nige_T said:

I think it might spoil the V8 look but I think I am going to try to see if I can fit a full cage.

Not sure what you mean by that, I happen to like the look of my full cage plus it adds stiffness to the chassis too.

 

🙂

[kenton]

Personally I like the safety of a cage and I certainly wouldn't say it spoiled the looks

 

[Rory's Dad]

Please copy this thread to our Chairman who seems to think differently!

[Dave Eastwood (Gadgetman) - Club Chairman]

1 hour ago, Rory's Dad said:

Please copy this thread to our Chairman who seems to think differently!

 

I merely say it should be up to the individuals choice and we should not return to the old days of the forum where members were relentlessly brow beaten if they didn't agree with the most vocal.

 

For the record, my personal view.

 

Competition, of any sort, whether demanded by regs or not, full cage with arm restraints and Hans.

Track day (Regular), full cage and Hans, ideally, Half cage strongly recommended as the minimum

Road/Touring, what ever you personally feel comfortable with, if that's a full cage, no problem, though understand the risks it may bring, if things like helmets and correctly tightened harnesses are not used. Half cage if preferred, cosmetic bar if you're personally happy with that.

 

It's all about the choice of the members, though I whole heartedly agree it should be an informed choice, and I do agree the standard (Jap) bar would be better labelled as a cosmetic roll-bar in the Parts Store.

 

[Captain Colonial]

My opinion and experience tells me a few things on this:

 

> in 20 years, I have seen or personally know of a grand total of two Westfield rollovers.  Both happened in individual timed competition circumstances.  One was with a full cage, the other just the hoop.  Both drivers had helmets and both were relatively unscathed.

 

> Track days are not all the same.  I wouldn’t like to go to one where everyone from a Caparo to a Capri runs at the same time.  Properly organised, properly supervised ones where safety is everything and loonies get black flagged are the only ones I’d entertain.

 

> The cars have a very low centre of gravity and are unlikely to roll over unless you make a major excursion or hit something solid while drifting sideways.

 

> In the highly unlikely event the car flipped over, it’s almost certainly not the roll hoop that would fail first, it’s the unsupported windscreen.  As your helmeted head is at the roll hoop, it would most likely support the car and provide a gap through which you could crawl out.  That’s what happened in one example I saw.

 

> Do I think a half or full cage is essential for the odd annual non-competition track day?  No.  If I was doing 3-4 per year, then yes I’d probably invest.

 

My view is choose your non-competition track day carefully, check the car over with a fine toothed comb first, and invest in driver training and safety equipment / clothing first before you spend loads on a cage.  If you decide you didn’t enjoy it after splashing out on a cage, you’ve just gone through a lot to create a road car that’s even harder to get in and out of.