MIDAS RollCage

[rocketron]

Hi Brian, Great stuff! Before you commit to seats etc. how about waiting until the 2010 Blue Book comes out and see what it says about seats for racing ( the MSA implements immediately any safety aspects and without warning)
I saw the "Yellow Peril", a group 6 1293.engine'd Cox Gtm, as featured in Car and Car Conversions about 1966. Its 0-100 mph was 14.4secs!!! So a vtec version would be summat else. I completed a chocolate brown Gtm in 1984, it had a 1312 with 649 cam (original, not a copy), Powermax flat tops, my own modified head with 11.2:1 c.r., split 40's, straight cut gears and drops, lcb and a Volvo silencer. This scared my Dad shitless, embarrassed Mum and got me dumped by my partner. Totally effin' hilarious and I loved it. The supercharged 970 S we built was the only Mini that was loopier.
The guy who owned it couldn't handle it and quickly sold it.

Keep in touch and best of luck, Ron

[bjw970s]

Hi Brian, Great stuff! Before you commit to seats etc. how about waiting until the 2010 Blue Book comes out and see what it says about seats for racing ( the MSA implements immediately any safety aspects and without warning)
I saw the "Yellow Peril", a group 6 1293.engine'd Cox Gtm, as featured in Car and Car Conversions about 1966. Its 0-100 mph was 14.4secs!!! So a vtec version would be summat else. I completed a chocolate brown Gtm in 1984, it had a 1312 with 649 cam (original, not a copy), Powermax flat tops, my own modified head with 11.2:1 c.r., split 40's, straight cut gears and drops, lcb and a Volvo silencer. This scared my Dad shitless, embarrassed Mum and got me dumped by my partner. Totally effin' hilarious and I loved it. The supercharged 970 S we built was the only Mini that was loopier.
The guy who owned it couldn't handle it and quickly sold it.

Keep in touch and best of luck, Ron

Hi Ron,

I know this is supposed to be a rollcage thread but I love dropping down A-series and mini-esque rabbit holes......

We have seen the pre-blue book 2010 stuff as we are a MSA reg club - no real surprises apart from some hints that certain helmet standards will be dropped.

As for race seats? having looked at an array of cars I reckon if the insisted on standard FIA sets then 50% of cars racing - including historics, open wheels, caterhams etc would cease to race as they can't fit a 'standard' race seat in - just my view

Our 970s is possibily the most fun I have had in a mini. I built it to be historic spec so it has limitations but it has every mod the monte 970s had and is really competative against other 1000cc's and a load of fun to drive once you get it on cam at 3500-4000 rpm. Superchaging would really help balance that out but wasn't avail in the rally market (they are very strict). It really helps that my wife owns part shares in some of the cars and is a petrolhead too!


Getting back to the thread, I will keep ypu idpated on rollcage developments via this thread and raise a project one for the car elsewhere.

Brian

[MikeW]

Hi

I am interested in building a similar car for hillclimb/sprints in Scottish road car classes. I remember there was a maroon Mk2 in Scottish speed events in the mid-late 1990s (A606 BCN). It had a rear cage, and later on had part of the front bodywork removable, presumably to made changing the plugs and points easier, but compromising crashworthiness and shell stiffness. Driver I think was Stuart Wooler, or Wooller. Hans has a pic on his website. I've got a pic of it at Doune hillclimb, and maybe I can find interior pics taken at Kames sprint track. If I can work out how to upload these I'll post them.

As far as full rollcages go, I've only found evidence of one competition car (a rally car), which according to this forum, had an alloy Aleybars rollcage. Safety Devices bought out John Aley many years ago, so there may be the jigs there.

Thanks
Mike

[rocketron]

Some sprint/hillclimb cars run under MSA rules do not require rollover cages, i.e. road going and road going specialist cars of less than 20 units per year. I will admit the rules for this discipline are confusing to say the least. More info from John Hopwood in Stockport, He's on the MSA Technical Commission with sprint/hillclimbs, and is very helpful. Tel No. in MSA Blue book.
These rules are quite odd, a friend's Rover 100 with 1600 k series and roof spoiler is classed as Sports Libre, an "unlimited modifications" class. In his case the stopwatch is dumped for a calendar: but he gets to drive. There's a class for all vehicles, trouble is, your mods may put you in a class where you've no chance of being competitive.
Regards,Ron

[MikeW]

Thanks Ron, useful advice.

Brian - how's the project and a quest for a rollcage going?

Might be worth swapping stories with other grp monocoque racers/rallyist on rollcage mounting - e.g. in Clan Crusaders. Not sure if anyone has put a full cage in a Rochdale Olympic or a Lotus Elite (but I guess if you've got the latter, money is no object!). The Rocjhdale Owners Club forum has chat at the moment about getting cages made.

Memory suggests that Rollcentre or Caged may have produced a Clan cage, so used to GRP cars (but may have been a 'weld-in' kit which I seem to remember from a article in the Clan OC mag was a tricky job to say the least, requiring very careful tack welding, and lots of removal and refitting).

Cheers
Mike

[d.woodspeed]

Hi all,
I am hoping to prepare my recently aquired MK2 for road/hillclimbs/sprints and therefore very interested in obtaining a roll cage. Previous rallying experience tells me this is a "must have" item, even for comparatively 'mild' motorsport!!!

I am thinking 6 point bolt-in, or maybe even just a 4 point rear cage.

Has anyone made any progress on this subject?

Regards,
Dave.

[d.woodspeed]

For everyones' info, I have been in contact with Rollcentre who list a cage for the Mini Marcos.

Unfortunately, we discovered the M.M. is several inches wider than the Midas, so there is no way an M.M. cage will fit the Midas!

They quoted £1200, ( yes £1200!!) + VAT to supply and fit a bespoke 6 point cage to the Midas! Too much for me!!!

Any suggestions on where to go now?

Regards, Dave.

[Hans Efde]

I have a pic on my website of a rallye Bronze in Scotland. As a response I got this email:

qte
Hi Hans, delighted to see my Midas highlighted in your gallery of these great
cars.....thats me top left in A606 BCN. That was a bad off track day during a sprint
about 1997!!.
This car is chassis no., 20203 supplied ex-factory to Macdonald Racing fully
finished and used hard everyday for 150,000 miles before being stripped out purely
for track use, where it has since won many awards beating many Porsches & Lotus'
along the way!!
Never before has any car given me so much pleasure!!!!!
Keep up the good work.
Stuart Skeldon.
popkizz@supanet.com

unqte
You can try to find Stuart or Macdonald Racing to find out what they did with the car. I suppose it had a roll cage.

[d.woodspeed]

Just to keep the ball rolling, I have been in contact with a steel fabrication company near York, (not too far from me), who have a motorsport division, (!?). A brief 'phone call produced a rough estimate of £275 for a 4-point rear cage, unpainted, but fitted, which I thought was reasonable. Just leave the car with them for a day, the man said!

Not sure if this is to MSA blue book regs, but will follow up when I've more time!

I am thinking that it would be useful for the back stays/supports to bolt direct to top of rear shockers, rather than to floor or wheel arch. What do you all think?

For interest, please see my post under MK1 Live or Dead, ref 1980 Midas rally car, LVT 430 V.

Dave.

[Stuart]

I don't think the cage needs to bolt to the damper mount, doing so would make the area even thicker and more difficult for the already too short damper strut (Alan had to cut the rubbers down a bit on his GAZ dampers to get them to fit)

Are you keeping the original headliner moulding? as I know this to be a bit on the bulky side just ahead of the rear-hatch.