dhutch Posted August 20, 2008 Posted August 20, 2008 Hi, Im quite keen on having a full cage, but that seam to narrow my choice down a lot. Having also look at the Indy, MK are able to remove the existing roll hoop and replace it with there full cage for around £550 (£400ish for parts, which need welding in) , so im wondering if its possable to do a simular thing with a westy. Replacing the screen with a aero one presumes? Also peoples thoughts on a full cage? Car will be for road and trackday usage. Daniel Quote
Blatman Posted August 20, 2008 Posted August 20, 2008 IIRC, the factory make a cage section that can be bolted to the RAC bar, but it might also require some welding of mounting plates. The (my) big favourite is the Caged cage. I believe the factory still sell that one too, and that is what I use, and on a car with a full screen. It's the nuts, and comes with full FIA homologation if you want. Put the word caged in to the search. Lots of opinion and some pics will come up. There are plenty of (small) pics of caged cage equipped cars on the front of the latest mag... The only other question is the proportion of road to track use. If it's just a handful of track days a year, the inconvenience of a cage with regard to fitting side screens, and general entry and egress aggro, you may want to think again and fit a Caged RAC roll bar instead. I guess you could use the factory "bolt in" cage and add it in for track days and remove it for road driving. Quote
speedy jon Posted August 20, 2008 Posted August 20, 2008 blatman, you said the caged cage is bolted, can it be welded too or would this be more of a pain? like dhutch,i fancy a full cage and would use it all the time as added protection if someone hit me while on the road. Quote
Guest Posted August 20, 2008 Posted August 20, 2008 okies i can answer this as i organised and worked with phil on to develop the first caged cages that went on to become the westfield factory cage . Bolt in is what you really want as there are lots of reasons you may need to remove it , new bodywork etc , it doubles the chassis stifness and is fully Fia homologated for motorsport use on the westfield chassis I would also say to the above post 440 quid not doubt plus vat and then welding (and trust me it wants a decent welding job doing) would equate to what caged charge for a full cage anyway. cages are about safety so to be fair saving a few quid shouldn't be a real issue , and diying to the current bar won't be much cheaper. if at all. and certainly not as light. Quote
speedy jon Posted August 20, 2008 Posted August 20, 2008 i didnt mean make my own cage, i ment can you weld a caged cage to the car but after ypu mentioned removing the cage to do any body repairs i think bolting would be better. How does the cage bolt to the chassis, would i need to add any brackets? thanks jon Quote
Blatman Posted August 20, 2008 Posted August 20, 2008 What Harv said The cages are all bolt in, and even the cage mounts can be bolted in if you want, although I had my mounts welded in. As Harv says, you want to be able to remove the cage... Quote
dhutch Posted August 20, 2008 Author Posted August 20, 2008 Has anyone got a photo of a westy with a cage? Stuggling to find one. For reference, two photos i took of indys with cages. - Dont know how they compair. Side bars are avilable too i think. Daniel Quote
Blatman Posted August 21, 2008 Posted August 21, 2008 This is a Caged cage on my narrow body car. The wide body cage looks identical, except it fits a wide body car. The Caged boys just needed the interior side panels removing to fit it. The screen was left in place, as was all the bodywork. Top job... Quote
JeffC Posted August 21, 2008 Posted August 21, 2008 tbh i feel naked without a cage on my car and i think a cage on the road makes as much sense and prob more than the track ? wouldnt like to think I went under a truck or collected a horse on a backroad without a full cage Ive had the westfield weld on type on my first westy, it does weld to the rac bar , buts its very heavy, cost me £100 to get a pro to weld it up after I tacked it together, mine came and took hours of cutting to get it to fit correct caged one came and was on in a couple of hours fwiw Ive got a caged cage coming today to replace a saftey devices roll cage Quote
Dave Posted August 21, 2008 Posted August 21, 2008 The MK one looks very heavy or its made from exhaust pipe also ther are no side intrusion bars and the top bar is very inboard. Hit something side on like a post or a tree and it will offer little or no protection Just look at a wrc car and ther is as much pipework on the side as ther is on the top. I've just fitted a Caged one (thanks JeffC) Quite easy to fit everything just bolts in looks the dogs The car is 99% sprints & hills but I deff feel safer in the car when on the road Dave Speedy Jon, I will try and make the next meeting at the black toddger come and have a look if you want. Quote
Guest Posted August 21, 2008 Posted August 21, 2008 Has anyone got a photo of a westy with a cage? Stuggling to find one.For reference, two photos i took of indys with cages. - Dont know how they compair. Side bars are avilable too i think. Daniel ok its a tarty picture but thats a westfield cage from caged on a widebody. and i didn't think you were sugesting making your own ,but having the bits supplied and getting them welded up would cost . and fwiw the caged cage as you can see has bolts through the side of the chassis in 3 places and then the normal mounts behind the seats ,then the lower rear bars , so fixed in 10 points total ..... don't like the look f the MK cages , but they won't strengthen the chassis that much and have little side protection , and as said before apear to be made from hug section tube which will be very heavy ... it sure ain't T45 Quote
custardtart Posted August 22, 2008 Posted August 22, 2008 Procomp do a great cage, same one as in my avatar. It's fully welded in with no bolts. See avatar or got to www.procomp.co.uk They are MSA certified. Quote
westy turbo Posted August 22, 2008 Posted August 22, 2008 Kinda confuse here....any mods required to fit both of them regarding boby work?? planning to use an aero screen,and fit and take it off the full cage once and while....which one should i go for.... Quote
Dave Posted August 22, 2008 Posted August 22, 2008 Ive just fitted a Caged cage, My scuttle is detatchable with 4 push fastener things, takes 30 seconds as nothing is attatched to the scuttle and the dash is mounted on brackets welded to the dash hoop. I can still take it on and off even with the cage in place The plan was to get another scuttle and screen for days when I dont want the aero. Dave Quote
Blatman Posted August 22, 2008 Posted August 22, 2008 Kinda confuse here....any mods required to fit both of them regarding boby work?? The Caged boys just needed the interior side panels removing to fit it. The screen was left in place, as was all the bodywork. Taking the cage off would mean taking the interior panels out to get to the mounts under the "door" and under the screen. All other mounts are accessible regardless. You could always cut inspection holes in the panels so you wouldn't need to remove them. Me, I'd leave the cage on all the time... Quote
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