[Orion88]

I'm in the midst of my first restoration (1970 GTO Frame-off) and I have been kicking around the idea of installing a small roll bar and a 4-point racing harness. Nothing extreme though. Summit has a 2-point roll bar that looked like it might do the trick:
http://www.summitracing.com/parts/ce...w/make/pontiac
Racing Harness:
http://www.summitracing.com/parts/vms-713013/overview/

I drove this car every day before I decided to tear it apart and I plan on driving it even more once it's finished. I am a very careful driver but you cannot count on that given the stupidity of most people you share the road with. A 40mph crash that most people could walk away from without a scratch would most likely leave me in far worse condition. No air bags, a simple lap belt, plus other non-existent safety features might have been fine 43 years ago, but I want a little more assurance than that. Plus, whenever I do decide to get squirrely the racing harness would keep me from sliding around during hard cornering.

Does anyone think this is a good idea or a waste of money/time? Seems like an easy install and a worthy upgrade to me. Also here is a link to my build thread on the other forum. I'm working on getting a build thread going on here.
http://www.gtoforum.com/f83/first-re...970-gto-40319/

[66bonne]

Always a good idea to do safety upgrades. But...I'm not too crazy about a two point roll bar. IMHO it should be at least a 4 point. I think it would be too easy for a two point to break loose or bend in event of rollover. Also it wouldn't be a bad idea to have a cross bar between the two hoop legs for added rigidity.

http://www.summitracing.com/parts/rci-9511c/overview/
These are the belts I initially used in our Catalina when it was a 12 second car. Very easy to install. They are not SFI belts but they are safer than just a lap belt.
{as the car got faster we installed a 6 point roll bar and 5 point seat belts.}
Keep thinking about safety.
Jim

[First Bird]

There's been a lot of discussion about how safe roll bars are on the street. Are you more likely to smack your skull on the steel bar in a roll-O? Do you wear a helmet on the street?
Food for thought. After reading various threads I decided against a roll bar in my car. It's a personal decision though. I'm tall so more likely to hit a roll bar.

These are the safety upgrades I made:
High back seats - protect your neck
Schroth Rallye 3 Harnesses. These mount to side of and behind seat. No bar needed.
Brighter, LED tail lights
Third brake light
Inertia safety switch (Ford product (I know)) - Kills fuel pump on impact
Teflon lined fuel hose - won't degrade, rupture, burn car
Fire extinguisher
Big Disc brakes F&R

[Orion88]

I have a set of Procar Rally 1000 seats that are tall enough to provide neck support, and I believe protect my head from the roll bar. The roll bar would be padded anyway, so it would still be better than slamming my face into the steering wheel in my opinion. Where did you get the LED tail lights? I might look into that if its an easy swap.

[Bliss_Street]

Originally Posted by Orion88

Where did you get the LED tail lights? I might look into that if its an easy swap.

I would also be interested in knowing more about this.

[First Bird]

This set from OPGI adds to your tail lights:
http://www.opgi.com/gto/G241145/

The ones on my 'Bird replaced the originals. Either way, they're gonna be way brighter.
Kids today just don't SEE the light level from brake lights of the 60's and 70's.

[lust4speed]

Also take into account that certain rules kick in at the drag strip when you install some safety items. Your stock lap belts can be frayed and the color sun bleached out of them, and tech will not hassle you. Once you install a harness, it must be replaced or re-certified every two years. Even if you are running slower than 14 seconds, if you want to wear a helmet then it must be Snell 2005 or newer. If you install a roll bar, then it must be installed within the NHRA rule book guidelines.

Even if you never planned on going to the track, using the NHRA guidelines for the roll bar isn't a bad idea since most of the physical requirements were arrived at over years of discovering what worked and what didn't work.

[Orion88]

Yeah I knew about all of that. If I did this I would keep the lap belt installed for if I take it to the track. Any idea on what kind of price I would be looking at for a bare minimum roll bar and harness? Is it something I can do myself or would I be better off paying a professional?

[NBF823]

If you don't like the bar you can always cut it out later. I know its a hassle, but its an option.

I'm pro bar, and I with 66Bonne on needing more that two points.

A lot of people try to keep any bars 6" away from your head for a street car. Pad and use a harness. Yes, you will have to replace or recert your harness periodically.

The reason I'm pro bar is that I've been in enough to know, without question, safety stuff saves lives. Cars without cages are little more than glorified trash cans and crush as such.

Using a harness can be a pain on a daily, but its worth it in my opinion(I've had enough factory belt bruises to appreciate a harness). The harness will limit your movement. This means you may want to consider your control locations; forget about grabbing something from the glovebox while driving, and consider power windows and door locks if its used a lot - you can't reach anything over on the passenger side buckled in.

This starts one thinking about the seats, and then the way the body is mounted to the frame. Maybe just keep it stock and be cautious.