Hellooo =]

So here is my dilemma, I would like to get Bride Gardis Seats but I have checked Bride's website and they say it doesnt fit. But i have read from a few people's posts that it does fit!

I plan to get Rails as well. Most likely Memory Fab Rails.

Also the list of seats that rx7club provides (https://www.rx7club.com/interior-ext...789715/page10/) Says the ZETA III fits but the bride site doesnt.

I wanted to confirm with anyone that has personal experience with this.

Zeta III is my second choice.

Next, i plan to get an AUTOPOWER or Cusco Bolt-In Roll Cage.

Autopower's website isnt very helpful I am not sure if i should call or whatever. Anyone know how to Buy one of these? Will these be able to act as a Harness bar as well? I plan to get a 4-Point Harness as well.

Thanks i Appreciate any feedback and advice I can get. If it helps im 5'6 135lbs I have a SunROOF.

Thanks again =]

 

not sure about your seat situation but a bolt in cage is a waste of money imo. if you are gonna spend money on a cage get a weld in. Jegs has 12pt full cage prebent weld in kit for 299 +shipping or an 8pt roll bar for 169 + shipping. find a good welder to do the install for you or if you've got the equipment, do it yourself. bolt ins aren't as strong or as safe, every bolt hole is a potential point of failure, and they usually fail when they are needed the most. don't put your life at risk. there is a reason a lot of sanctioning bodies don't allow bolt in cages.

 

I'm not sure about the seats, but the Autopower cage is OK, while the Cusco is a piece of junk sold to ricers. However, like the above post, I question why you want to compliment $3,000 worth of seats with a cheapie bolt-in roll cage.

My suggestion is that before you buy anything, first check the rules of your racing organization. I think that all of the Bride fixed seats have FIA certification, but each racing organization has its own rules about how to mount them, what kind racing harness is required, what kind of window net is required, and how the roll cage needs to be installed. You certainly do not want to buy thousands of dollars worth of stuff that the internet peanut gallery thought looked cool, just to find out that you need to buy all new stuff in order to race.

I think the best bet is to visit a local professional race shop that specializes in your racing class, and then have them put everything together for you. They will be able to let you know other racing class details that you may need for your car, such as disabling the steering wheel lock, installing a battery cut-off, installing a fire extinguisher, ride height restrictions, etc., that will meet the racing rule requirements.

 

Thanks appreciate the response. Just i have been hunting the forums and Autopower are the few names i saw mentioed a lot. I will look up JEGs now though.


-edit-

Just looked through JEGs and Its better. Thicker and such is better and i totally understand what you guys are saying. Thank you for providing me with some good information.

My question now is though with the JEG 8 PT Cage will it fit with a Bride Zeta III? and possible some MemoryFAB brackets? Or maybe Bride Brackets

 

What are you planning on doing with this car? That mostly determines what you do cagewise...

an autopower roll bar is fine for 90% of what people do... just don't expect to do any door to door racing with it.

cusco are crap, and aren't legal for anything

go to Auto Racing Safety Equipment, Bell, Pyrotect & Kirkey Driving & Racing Helmets, Suits, Books Gloves Shoes & Seats - I/O Port Racing to buy an autopower.

 

wow i didn't even look at prices of bride seats, spending that much on seats with a bolt in cage is crazy. I'd go for the cheapest seat that is comfortable for you and meets the requirements of your sanctioning body,and put more money in the engine, suspension, and wheels/tires.

 

Thanks for the link but im liking what i see at JEGSTER but idk im still out there looking for opinions. Thanks for that.

I plan to track this car. Right now i know that for tracking Suspension is a top priority and seating is a major factor. Every good track person i know swears by their seats so i trust them in that because well quite a few people have told me and i have felt the difference in sitting in one and its a huge difference. Thats why im not worried about expenses for it.

My FC is a very important car to me so I will do my best to make it a track star someday.

Again thanks

I am going to put money in all those areas like you said Suspension and everything is important. My Engine as of this point feels very reliable and i know it is already. So im satsified in that department. I Dont want to MOD everything like crazy and not know how each Mod effects my performance.

I am a deep believer of its the driver not the car.

Please keep advice and personal experiences with the roll cages coming its great.

 

You should decide on a particular type of racing before modifying your car. Just saying that you want to "track it" does not help. I realize that you may be undecided at this point, and it may take a year or more for you to decide on a race class. If this is the case, then I recommend that you just save your money until you decide. I'm telling you, if you just start slapping parts on your car then it is nearly impossible to luck-out and have all of them legal and competitive for any given race class, and you will have wasted thousands of dollars for nothing.

We have a racing subforum that may help you decide on a race class and appropriate modifications. There may even be somebody there who can help you with the Bride seat fitment.
Race Car Tech - RX7Club.com

 

Bolt in cages are, for the most part, crap. They aren't even legal for Lemons or chump races.

Go to a good qualified cage builder and have them build you a cage. It is worth every penny.

With a cage, a helmet, and a bride seat (padded) that is mounted on stock rails (tall), you will most likely hit your head on the cage repeatedly. Not awesome. Also, a cage is a serious PITA for a car that is not a full on track rat. You WILL NOT enjoy driving it on a regular basis.

 

As evilaviator said you should decide on what type of track star you want your car to be then go from there. The fc is a great platform for all types of racing from drag racing, drifting, autox and road racing. Decide which type of event you are going to focus on and base your build off of the rules you will have to follow. I am planning on going for all around track car capable of running drag drift and autox, and meeting tech for all is a challenge. The jegster 12pt cage will be fine as a drag cage but will require an additional diagonal bar in the main hoop for scca and drifting. Formula Drift and and XDC pretty much follow SCCA as far as safety is concerned.

Look into how strict the tech is for safety gear where you plan to race as well. FIA seats do technically expire after 5 years but most tracks will allow older seats through tech with a back brace. Some seats cannot be used with a back brace though particularly carbon fiber and frp seats not designed with back brace mounting points. So after five years your high price frp bride seats are pretty much worthless for track purposes.

There are a few places online where you can find used expired seats that'll give you the seat you want in a much more reasonable price if you don't intend on entering a competition right away. Check out racingjunk or other racing classifieds sites. you can also pick up other safety gear that has shorter certification life like a 5pt harness (only good for 2 years) this will let you work out all your mounting points ahead of time so you won't be paying full price for gear that you lose most of it's usable life(on the track) building the car.

If you can't find a used expired seat and you're still concerned about fitment contact a distributor to get specific dimensions. Then build a mock up seat with whatever scrap you can slap together, 2x4s and cardboard work great. Check the rulebook for interior parts. Some classes require the removal of all non essential factory parts like door panels, carpet, dash pads. Especially flammables like sound deadening material and carpet pad. You may be able to fit the seats without the stock interior parts getting in the way.

You said you were looking into a 4 point harness, most tracks and sanctioning bodies require a 5pt but strongly recommend a 6 or 7 pt harness. Go with a camlock instead of latch and link they cost more but you won't accidentally unhook your harness with a camlock. Quite a few drag racers I know have popped open their latch and link belts during runs, all have since stopped using them.

Other safety gear you may be required to get include fire suppression system, external battery shutoff, window nets, sunroof net, sfi rated fuel cell, sfi rated battery box, sfi driving suit and nomex underwear, arm restraints, sfi rated bellhousing and trans shield/blanket (mainly drag racing and only under a certain e.t.), helmet and helmet restraint such as a hans device, fuel shutoff safety switch, parachutes(drag racing under certain e.t.)

Again, like evilaviator said, check out the race car tech section. You may also want to check elsewhere online for a forum for the class of racing you want to run. Focusing on one class will make it easier to decide on parts. Trying to build an all around car like I am is expensive, requires a ton of research, and involves a massive amount of planning.

I hope I don't come off preachy or offensive and not trying to discourage you. I'm just trying to give you honest information, and prevent costly mistakes that are easy to make when you are starting out. The most important piece of advice I can give you is do your research and find what works best for YOU. Just because all the pros are running this part or that part doesn't mean it's the best one out there, more often it means that company is giving more of those away to pros for free.

If you are still undecided on what class you want to run and don't know what's available in your area check out racingin.com. You can look up the map view and see all the nearby tracks and find their websites to see what classes are run there and how often. Might help you decide which way you want to go. You could also look for autox clubs they have more relaxed rules about safety gear but aren't going to give you the on the track feeling of a real road course unless they actually run at a real road course.

Good luck and have fun

 

I Appreciate all the responses here very much. Sorry for being vague if i was on what track i was interested in. At this point i am intersted in track days in california. Such as Thunder Hill, Leguna Seca, Irwindale maybe. I dont know if it helps you out.

I sincerely thank all of you for your valuable information. i will take into account and if i have further questions i may PM one of you or just continue posting on this thread.

 

I don't think you need a cage at all to do track days at any of those tracks.

Maybe just get a roll hoop if you are worried about it. A full cage is a serious PITA!

 

Everything you need to know for Laguna Seca, and Thunder Hill
HPDE/HPTD What you Need to Know - YourPrivateTrackDay.com

There is a Laguna Seca track day this weekend 2days + catered lunch $395 Oct. 26 + 27

 

yeah, you don't really need anything special to do track days. you can do it in a stock car if you'd like.

I'd concentrate more on cooling and brakes. but if you want safety I'm not going to tell you no.

I'd try to do a few track days before you got pouring thousands of dollars into you car making it completely non-streetable.

 

One thing not mentioned in all this good advice is this:

The second you put the car on the track you'd better be prepared to kiss it off.

Even a minor off-track excursion can render the car undrivable, so make plans to deal with it.